The death yesterday of Gene Lees - author, critic, singer, songwriter - was pretty sad for me as I found him to be a perceptive and humorous writer of jazz related subjects.
I'm please to own and to have read - Meet Me At Jim & Andy's : an anecdote ridden book about a 48th St. New York bar that was a hangout for musicians in the 1960s. You can almost taste the booze and inhale the smoke, that's how atmospheric it is. The other one of his many books that I have read is Singers and the Song. This one looks at Sinatra, Jo Stafford, Piaf, Peggy and Sarah amongst others including Johnny Mercer. Another immensely readable book.
Also many articles in Down Beat and, of course lyrics such as Quiet Nights and Quiet Stars and Waltz For Debby.
Gene Lees was 82.
Lance.
PS: You know something? I've started reading Meet Me At Jim & Andy's again - it's even better than I remembered!
0 comments; click to add more:
Post a Comment