Digging: The Afro-American Soul of American Classical MusicFor almost half a century, Amiri Baraka has ranked among the most important commentators on African American music and culture. In this brilliant assemblage of his writings on music, the first such collection in nearly twenty years, Baraka blends autobiography, history, musical analysis, and political commentary to recall the sounds, people, times, and places he's encountered. As in his earlier classics, Blues People and Black Music, Baraka offers essays on the famous—Max Roach, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, John Coltrane—and on those whose names are known mainly by jazz aficionados—Alan Shorter, Jon Jang, and Malachi Thompson. Baraka's literary style, with its deep roots in poetry, makes palpable his love and respect for his jazz musician friends. His energy and enthusiasm show us again how much Coltrane, Albert Ayler, and the others he lovingly considers mattered. He brings home to us how music itself matters, and how musicians carry and extend that knowledge from generation to generation, providing us, their listeners, with a sense of meaning and belonging. |
Contents
Photographs follow p 310 | 1 |
ESSAYS | 3 |
Poetry Music History Message 59 | 5 |
Miles Later | 9 |
Aesthetics as the Continuing Political History of a Culture | 19 |
Looking Both Ways | 28 |
Rhythm | 33 |
The Great American Song Book | 38 |
Paris Max | 210 |
The Great Max Roach | 214 |
Billie Holiday | 219 |
The High Priest of BeBop | 222 |
A Note | 236 |
Jackie Mc | 237 |
It Aint about You | 240 |
You Ever Hear Albert Ayler? | 242 |
Blues Line | 47 |
Cosby and the Music | 49 |
Nina Returns | 56 |
Jazz Criticism and Its Effect on the Music | 72 |
Bruce Springsteen | 86 |
Black Codes from the Underground | 88 |
The International Business of Jazz and the Need for the Cooperative and Collective SelfDevelopment of an International Peoples Culture ཌ | 91 |
Newarks Coast and the Hidden Legacy of Urban Culture | 101 |
Black Music as a Force for Social Change | 106 |
What You Mean Du Wop? | 110 |
Classical American Music | 117 |
A Theater Piece | 119 |
Newarks Influence on American Music | 124 |
Ritual and Performance | 133 |
Bopera Theory | 140 |
Thirty Years Later | 145 |
Random Notes on the Last Decade | 155 |
GREAT MUSICIANS | 157 |
Miles Davis | 159 |
When Miles Split | 166 |
David Murray Mings Samba | 170 |
David Murray Fo Deuk Revue | 173 |
David Murray Addenda to a Concert | 176 |
On Reissuing Trane | 178 |
Why His Legacy Continues | 192 |
Interview with Wayne Shorter | 195 |
Art Tatum | 198 |
Max Roach at the Iridium | 208 |
Alberts Will | 259 |
Sassy Was Definitely Not the Avon Lady | 261 |
Fred | 265 |
Fred Hopkinss Memorial | 267 |
The Musics Great Spirit | 270 |
Duke Was a Very Great Pianist | 276 |
The Continuity of Americana | 277 |
Don Pullen Leaves Us | 280 |
Black History Month Rediscovers the Music in New York City | 286 |
Black History Month Rediscovers the Music Part | 289 |
Wonderful Stevie | 292 |
Abbey Lincoln | 295 |
Jackie McLean John Hicks Hilton Ruiz Halim Suliman | 304 |
NOTES REVIEWS AND OBSERVATIONS | 312 |
Impulse Sampler Act on Impulse | 313 |
Ralph Peterson | 316 |
Andrew Cyrille Good to Go | 318 |
Odean Pope Saxophone Choir Epitome | 321 |
Ravi Coltrane Moving Pictures | 323 |
Donal Fox and David Murray Ugly Beauty | 326 |
Tyrone Jefferson Connections | 331 |
James Moody | 334 |
In the Tradition | 338 |
Pharoah Sanders Shukuru | 340 |
Don PullenGeorge Adams Quartet Breakthrough | 344 |
Von and Chico Freeman Freeman and Freeman | 349 |
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Digging: The Afro-American Soul of American Classical Music Amiri Baraka,Imamu Amiri Baraka No preview available - 2009 |
Common terms and phrases
Abbey Abbey Lincoln actually aesthetic African American Afro-American music Albert album American Classical Music American culture American music Amina Amiri Baraka artists bass beautiful BeBop big band Billie Holiday Bird Black Arts Black music blues called Cecil commercial consciousness cool created creative critical dance David Murray deep Dizzy Gillespie drummer drums Duke Ellington emotional ensemble European expression feeling funk funky Grachan Moncur III Hard Bop Harlem harmonic hear heard horn human improvisation innovative Jackie Jazz Jimmy John Coltrane lives lyrical Max Roach melodic Miles Miles Davis Miles's Monk Monk's musicians Newark Nina orchestra Ornette Pharoah Pharoah Sanders pianist piano players playing record reflection rhythm rhythmic Sassy saxophone singer singing slave slavery social solo song soul sound spirit Sun Ra swing talking Tatum tenor thing thought tion Trane vocal voice wanted white supremacy whole young