Suggested Jazz Books
and Periodicals

Books about
Jazz History

Jazz: An Illustrated History

This book was written by Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns. It features many great photos that were not seen in Burns' television documentary titled "Jazz." That documentary was widely seen by many jazz fans throughout the world. ISBN: 0679765395

The History of Jazz

This book was written by Ted Gioia. It features content that goes way back to the slave dances of the early 19th century and to the roots of jazz in Africa. It also covers the development of jazz in the cities of New Orleans, Chicago, Kansas City and New York. ISBN: 019512653X

Books about
Jazz/Blues

Kind of Blue

This book was written by Ashely Kahn and Jimmy Cobb. Kind of Blue is one of the best selling classic jazz albums of all time and this books takes you through the history of how it was conceived and made. The story begins in the late fifties and includes references to many great jazz musicians of that era. ISBN: 0306809869

Sweet Swing Blues: A Year with Wynton
Marsalis and His Septet

This book was written by jazz musician and composer Winton Marsalis. It delves into the everyday lives of the musicians in this outstanding group, including their families. It also covers his own personal viewpoints, on various topics, of which there have been mixed reviews. ISBN: 1560251557

Books about
Jazz/Mainstream

The Playboy Guide to Jazz

This book was written by Playboy's jazz critic Neil Tesser of Chicago. Although Playboy is most well-known for its sexy publications they have also been big supporters of jazz music and have published some very high quaility articles and guides such as the one featured here. ASIN: 0452276489. They also have a hardcover version titled "The Playboy Book of Jazz" that was published in 1999. ISBN: 0747543771.

All Music Guide to Jazz: The Definitive
Guide to Jazz

This book was written by Vladimere Bogdanov. It is a good, comprehensive guide to many types of jazz music and it also cover the musicians, their instruments and much more. ISBN: 087930717X

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