Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original - Couverture rigide

Kelley, Robin

Couverture rigide

ISBN 10 : 0684831902 ISBN 13 : 9780684831909

Editeur : The Free Press, 2009

Synopsis

The image of Thelonious Sphere Monk (1917-1982), with his trademark goatee, dark glasses, and hat, is today a poster-image of coolness just as Che Guevara's face once was an image of rebellion. Jazz fans revere Monk for his ground-breaking compositions and piano playing from the 1950s and 1960s, but to a wider audience he stands for something much bigger: the very idea of native genius; a quirky, absent-minded, unalloyed originality that is the perfect symbol of the indefinable essence of jazz. Monk's creations from the 1950s and 1960s rank among jazz's most beloved classics, yet Kelley shows that the life behind the music was anything but triumphant. A husband and father, Monk nonetheless moved in with an aristocratic Dutch hipster, Nica de Koenigsvater, known as "the Jazz Baroness," a key, strange patron of modern jazz. He continued to compose subtle, deceptively simple-sounding classics, while descending into depression and erratic behaviour. A once-energetic, joking, handsome young man grew into his image as a tortured artist, and the Monk mystique took hold.

A propos du livre

Revue de presse

"Monk’s story, from roots in slavery, to the Great Migration north, to the cultural explosions of the 40s, 50s, and 60s, encapsulates a vivid tableau of twentieth-century American life and music. This biography is, at its best, a fitting tribute to one of America’s most original and lasting creative geniuses."
—The Sacramento Book Review

"...extraordinary and heroically detailed... I doubt there will be a biography anytime soon that is as textured, thorough and knowing as Kelley's. The 'genius of modern music' has gotten the passionate and compassionate advocate he deserves." 
—August Kleinzahler, The New York Times Book Review

"An omnibus of myth busting."
—Ben Ratliff, The New York Times

"...a massive and impressive undertaking... Thoroughly researched, meticulously footnoted, and beautifully crafted, Thelonious Monk presents the most complete, most revealing portrait ever assembled of the man known as the high priest of bebop."
—Steve Greenlee, The Boston Globe

"Every step of Monk's musical journey is teased out in meticulous detail...whether he's charting the highs or lows of Monk's emotional swings, Kelley rarely strays from his central theme of an extraordinary talent pushing against the boundaries of his art."
—Publishers Weekly

"A wealth of historical context is richly studded with details of Monk's family background and the broader world in which he lived and worked... Likely the most thorough possible illumination of the man behind the legend."
—Library Journal

"Thelonious Monk was a true original... This affectionate biography fills in the fascinating and heart-wrenching backstory of an artist the world has always longed to know better."
—The Christian Science Monitor

"Robin D. G. Kelley’s exhaustive, necessary, and as of now definitive [book] offers a Baedeker of sorts...Kelley has created a lush portrait of the private, off-camera Monk, one it would have been difficult to paint without the unprecedented access he had to the Monk family."
—David Yaffe, The Nation

"This is an authoritative tome that pulls aside, without completely lifting, the shroud of mystery that has long surrounded one of the most enigmatic figures in the history of jazz."
—Russ Musto, AllAboutJazz.com

"...as complete a picture of this complex, original and enigmatic artist as possible... this very welcome book is certain to be a go-to reference."
—Down Beat Magazine

Présentation de l'éditeur

With his trademark goatee, dark glasses, and hat, Thelonious Monk is an image of coolness. Jazz fans revere Monk for his groundbreaking compositions and piano playing from the 1950s and 1960s, but to a wider audience he stands for something much bigger: the idea of native genius; a quirky, absent-minded, unalloyed originality that is the perfect symbol of the undefinable essence of jazz. The man behind the mystique is now more interesting and edifying, thanks to extraordinary, unprecedented access to Monk's closest friends and family, his private papers, and hours of audiotapes of Monk himself. Monk's musical and cultural education blended together the key strands of African-American music traditions: from church hymns, to ecstatic stomping and call-and-response, to the blues. When he put it together with the Kansas City and New York dancehall music of swing, he reached a cultural apex unlike anyone before or after him. A husband and father, Monk moved in with an aristocratic Dutch hipster known as the Jazz Baroness,' a key, strange patron of modern jazz. He continued to compose subtle, deceptively simple-sounding classics, while descending into depression and erratic behaviour. A once-energetic, joking, handsome young man grew into a tortured artist, and the Monk mystique took hold. Now Kelly reveals that this talented musician was in fact a much more complex and interesting figure than his image would suggest. A fascinating biography, not just for Monk and jazz fans, but for those interested in the fragile spirit of human nature. Robin DG Kelley is a professor of history, American studies and ethnicity. He has spent most of his career exploring African American culture, on which he's written several books, including on jazz and hop-hop.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: The Free Press
• Date d'édition: 2009
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 0684831902
• ISBN 13: 9780684831909
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 416
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible