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Jazz Primer for Rock People

The Penguin Guide to Jazz
Richard Cook & Brian Morton
Colossal 1500 page book that reviews just about every Jazz CD on the market today. Cook and Morton are knowledgeable, funny, and this brick of a book is the best of it's kind. Was very helpful in my selection of suggested recordings.

The Making of Jazz
James Lincoln Collier
A great historical intro to the subject. This is one of my textbooks from college, and would be a great read for you if this article has whetted your appetite for more on the history of jazz. I could not have written this article with out consulting this authority many times.

Beneath the Underdog
Mingus, Charles
A semi-autobiographic book detailing several events from the Mingus point of view. For some insight into this wild individual, you should check out this book. The sex scenes are the most memorable, but the whole book reeks of Mingus Mingus Mingus.

Jazz is
Nat Hentoff
Jazz musicians naturally despised most of the characters who tried to write about jazz, yet alone those who tried to critique it. Nat Hentoff was one of the chosen few that most musicians actually liked. With good reason; Hentoff is one of the finest writers to ever take up his pen in the name of music. This book will show you why.

Miles the Autobiography
Miles Davis with Quincy Troupe
Funny, poignant, informative, overall one of the most entertaining and thought provoking books I've ever read. The life of Miles Davis in his own words. Essential.