Martin T. WilliamsCritiques
Auteur de Smithsonian Collection of Newspaper Comics
Critiques
Classic Jazz par Martin Williams
Among the many jazz artists covered here in portraits, accounts of rehearsals and specific live performances,and in-depth reviews of recordings are: Earl Hines, John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, John Lewis, Milt Jackson, Eric Dolphy, singers Dinah Washington and Billie Holiday, and Duke Ellington.
Martin does not restrict himself to the established jazz masters, but also has some interesting observations about the blues singer, Robert Johnson, and the black poet, Langston Hughes.
One of the most interesting pieces is an interview with Ross Russell of Dial Records about the famous recording sessions with Charlie Parker that generated much controversy within the jazz community.
Martin presents an unusual but highly informative glimpse of three jazz bassists in his appealing piece on Scott LaFaro, Steve Swallow, and Gary Peacock.
Although Martin was a recognized authority on early jazz and the author of books on both New Orleans jazz and Jelly Roll Morton, he does not limit his writings to this period. For example, this book offers an extended profile of Ornette Coleman, as well as an analysis of a recording of a 1969 concert by Coleman at NYU. Martin also discusses the musical career of pianist Steve Kuhn and presents an interview with "outspoken" trumpeter Ruby Braff.
The centerpiece of the book, however, is certainly the 54-pages of extensive notes written to accompany the release of the multi-volume set of historic recordings made in 1938 by Jelly Roll Morton at the Library of Congress. In a series of 12 brief essays, Martin blends historical, biographical, and musical analyses to produce a fascinating set of commentaries on some of the most important recordings in the history of jazz.
Like Martin's other collections, including Jazz Heritage and Jazz Masters in Transition, 1957-1969 (Macmillan Jazz Masters Series),there are essays in this volume that should interest just about any jazz fan.
My only criticism of this collection is that it contains material published in other books by Martin. For example, his account of Thelonious Monk playing at the Five Spot, the piece about a rehearsal with Milt Jackson, a similar treatment of a rehearsal with Jimmy Giuffre's trio, and a critical appraisal of four over-rated pianists, all appear in one of Martin's other collections. But this is a relatively minor shortcoming, as everything contained in Jazz Changes is worth reading and probably twice.
Highly recommended for all jazz fans who want to expand their knowledge of jazz and its many "changes." I totally agree with the dust-jacket blurb from the Washington Review: "Read anything of Williams you can get your hands on...His knowledge of jazz is all but unmatched."
Williams covers a wide range of jazz musicians in these fairly brief pieces, including Sidney Bechet, Pee Wee Russell, Lester Young, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Teddy Wilson, Fats Navarro, Art Farmer and Jim Hall,Sonny Stitt, and Jacki Byard.
In a section entitled "Apreciations," Williams gathers together what he calls "profile-appreciations," slightly longer essays on six fairly well-known jazz artists: Lee Konitz, Lionel Hampton, Bud Freeman, Thad Jones, Bobby Hackett, and Harry Carney. In these pieces, Williams deftly summarizes the musicians' contributions to jazz while at the same time presenting readers with a glimpse of these figures as individuals away from the night club stage and recording studio.
The record annotations included here also reflect Williams' wide range of expertise in the important task of writing liner notes. His comments deal with LP records by Count Basie, Charlie Parker, The Modern Jazz Quartet, and a rather diverse group of trumpeters: Freddy Keppard, Tommy Ladnier, King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Henry 'Red' Allen, Dizzy Gillespie, and Miles Davis.
Williams covers a lot of territory, and in the process offers a number of judgements about developments in jazz. For example, while acknowledging the seminal influence of Miles Davis' record, Bitches Brew, on the jazz "fusion" movement, Williams argues that fusion was basically an artistic "dead end." Williams also comments on such pivotal figures during this period as John Coltrane and Miles Davis, as well as two musicians who belong to the movement once called the "New Thing" -- Eric Dolphy and Ornette Coleman. Williams' remarks on both Dolphy and Coleman reflect his genuine admiration for their contributions to jazz, a position that not many American jazz critics took at that time.
Jazz In Its Time is a book that rewards its readers through its author's use of clear, jargon-free prose that offers pleasurable reading while at the same time educating jazz fans on some of the greatest musicians and most controversial trends in jazz history.
A wonderful historical collection of newspaper comics, many of which even this old man doesn't remember. All comics are discussed, including their context and how they related to the world at their time. Some are obviously quite politically incorrect, but an accurate history will necessarily include much of what makes most folks blush and gulp today.
I don't really believe that we are all that sensitive, but for the sake of fitting in, most of us will continue to pretend so.
So when did we begin to depend on cartoons to be honest, revealing, and relaying truth to the masses? Well, probably right from the very beginning!
This book is an essential. No question.
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