Jazz: A History of America's Music. - Review - book review

Black Issues Book Review, Jan, 2001 by Keith A. Owens

Jazz: A History of America's Music by Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns Knopf, November 2000, $65.00, ISBN 0-679-44551-X

Whenever anyone attempts to write a history of something as enormous and complex as jazz music, that brave soul can count on having the effort picked apart by criticism of all sorts. If Burns didn't know what he was getting into before, he does now.

Considering that this is yet another contribution by a white man to the growing pile of historical work featuring white folks' version of black folks' lives, it is not surprising that the smoke from the fire has already begun to cloud the issue of whether or not this is a good book.

It is a very good book.

Does this mean that it is the definitive book on jazz history? Of course not. Does Burns tell the story without letting his own point of view seep in? Of course not. But what he did do is produce a well-written, easy-to-read, extremely comprehensive piece of work that largely succeeds in giving the reader a good solid educational foundation in "America's music." There is already controversy over Burns' extensive collaboration with trumpet virtuoso Wynton Marsalis--anything involving Wynton tends to draw controversy. What is indisputable, however, is that Marsalis is without a doubt one of jazz music's most well-informed educators making it hard to fault Burns for seeking his input. While jazz aficionadoes might find nothing new here, those novices who are seeking a crash-course immersion into this complex world will find it invaluable.