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Title: The Penguin Guide to Jazz on Cd (Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, 6th ed) by Richard Cook, Brian Morton ISBN: 0-14-051521-6 Publisher: Penguin Books Pub. Date: 29 April, 2003 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.3 (73 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: A witty and useful guide for jazz collectors.
Comment: This really is an indispensable book for the jazz collector. The biggest advantage it has over the books referred to in some of the customer reviews is that it lists session information. If, like me, you like to wander into used record stores or Goodwills, you'll appreciate the listings of personnel and recording dates that you can find in this book.
The reviews are well written and very witty. The writers treat their subject seriously but not stodgily and, in some instances, their geographic distance allows them a measure of independence from US opinions of certain artists. Their treatment of two musicians in particular, Kenton and Brubeck, are unexpectedly fair, acknowledging their weakness, while pointing out what is interesting and valuable about their best music.
As to the attention given to European and avant-garde jazz: Thank God. American critics and fans alike seem to think that be-bop and hard bop are the only kinds of jazz worth considering. While one might quibble with some of Cook's and Morton's opinions-I tend to bypass most fusion albums-seasoned jazz collectors will be able to figure out what they're getting into from the accurate descriptions contained here. If you buy a Sam Rivers disc expecting something like Ben Webster, you can't say you weren't forewarned by these guys.
I do wonder why some readily available discs were not included. Gerry Mulligan's Pacific Jazz stuff is all still in print and isn't reviewed here (although it is included in previous editions).
My only complaint is that the small print, running across a fairly wide page, is a little tough for those of us who are bi-focaled. Otherwise, I hope to see this book in many editions to come.
Rating: 3
Summary: Well-written, but not the best reference for US readers
Comment: The Penguin Guide is a well-written, informative survey of the field. It's the only jazz review omnibus I return to for pleasure, rather than for reference.
While this tome is more opinionated than competing reviews, it's good to have a consistent frame of reference. You learn what the authors like and dislike, and can apply that to your own preferences. The essays that accompany the ratings avoid the redundancies found in the All Music Guide, and do a better job of placing the recording in the context of an artist's career.
Because the authors are English, however, much of the discographical data isn't very useful for American consumers. Also, the representation of American labels can be understated. For example, there's a lot more Blue Note CDs in print in the U.S. than in Europe, leaving some notable gaps in an artist's output. Fans of other American labels and artists might find similar holes in the discography.
The flip side of its European focus is that you get reviews of artists and releases usually ignored by American reviewers. And the English/European jazz canon is different than the American version, making the Penguin Guide something more than the Revised Standard Version of the received wisdom you'd find in an American omnibus.
I wish the Penguin Guide would follow the example of the All Music Guide and simply review the important albums, deleted or not. Eventually those Bobby Hutcherson titles (to choose some personal favorites) will return to print, and when they do, you won't be able to consult the Penguin Guide, unless you wait for the biannual update.
Rating: 3
Summary: Intentional Oversights?
Comment: Prior to purchasing this book, I went on a Jazz CD buying spree
(SunRa- Futuristic Sounds Of, Nothing Is; Pharoah Sanders- Tauhid; Art Ensemble Of Chicago- Americans Swinging in Paris; Dollar Brand- Portrait of a South African Village) I was excited to see the reviewers take on these great discs, and to get some suggestions for future purchases. To my surprise, NONE of these Cds were reviewed or even mentioned in this book! What is the reason for this? ...this book only covers recordings that are in print at the time of publication. Obviously, this is more of an annoyance than a service. Certain albums go in and out of print all the time, and even then one can easily purchase used CDs on the web, so why not just cover all bases, and give a complete view of each artists' oeuvre?
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Title: All Music Guide to Jazz - 4th Edition by Vladimir Bogdanov, Chris Woodstra, Stephen Thomas Erlewine ISBN: 087930717X Publisher: Backbeat Books Pub. Date: 01 November, 2002 List Price(USD): $32.95 |
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Title: The Penguin Guide to Compact Discs & Dvds: 2003/4 Edition (Penguin Guide to Compact Discs and Dvds) by Ivan March, Edward Greenfield, Robert Layton, Ivan Penguin Guide to Compact Discs March, Paul Czajkowski ISBN: 0141013842 Publisher: Penguin Books Pub. Date: 30 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title: The Oxford Companion to Jazz by Bill Kirchner ISBN: 019512510X Publisher: Oxford University Press Pub. Date: 01 October, 2000 List Price(USD): $49.95 |
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Title: Jazz 101 : A Complete Guide to Learning and Loving Jazz by John Szwed ISBN: 0786884967 Publisher: Hyperion Pub. Date: 23 August, 2000 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: Gramophone Classical Good Cd Guide 2004 (Gramophone Classical Good CD Guide) by Emma Lilley ISBN: 0860249972 Publisher: Music Sales Corporation Pub. Date: 01 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
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