Synopses & Reviews
Many jazz lives have unfolded as marginal existences, as jazz guitarist Peter Leitch attests in this honest memoir of a life lived in search of excellence in music and art, but also a life lived battling depression, alienation, and narcotics addiction. Leitch vividly relates trying to eke out a living in jazz clubs, nightclubs, and studios in Montreal, Toronto, and New York. He tells of growing up as an Anglophone in Montreals working-class and predominantly French-speaking East End refinery district, discovering jazz on CBC radio and learning to play it—outside of the academy. Peter Leitch has played with many musicians in his long career including Oscar Peterson, Jaki Byard, Renee Rosnes, Jeri Brown, and Sadik Hakim. He lived and played in Montreal during his early years, Toronto in the 1970s, and in New York since 1982, which comprises the largest section of the book, chronicling the inner workings of the jazz business.
Review
"I'm proud and happy to be represented in this book, really the first document of its kind. The authors did their research and represented everyone well." —Joe Lovano, Grammy Award winning saxophonist and composer
Review
"What a joy to see so many musicians I've worked with receive their due. Dal Cerro and Witter have composed a chronicle of history, love, joy and music that started in countless Italian American homes. A great musical read!" —Gene DiNovi, bebop pianist and composer
Review
“In more than thirty in-depth chapters about Italian American jazz musicians, journalists Bill Dal Cerro and David Anthony Witter have unearthed and collected a wealth of information that sheds light on this often overlooked side of Italian American culture. Bravi!" —Francesco Martinelli, Siena Jazz Foundation, Italy
Review
"This book is long overdue . . . the importance of Italians in jazz, their love of harmony and melody and bel canto performing, has long been a part of jazz, and too long neglected. [The book] demonstrates how aspects of the Italian personality have seeped into the music, into what Wynton Marsalis has called the 'gumbo' of jazz. Italians have added quite a bit to the gumbo." — Frank A. Salamone, Ph.D, author, The Culture of Jazz
Review
"Thoroughly enjoyable and very informative. The book fleshes out what we always knew and many expected, knowing the Italians' historical appreciation of, contribution to, and love of music, indeed for all of the arts.” —Helene LaFaro Fernandez, author, Jade Visions
Synopsis
Celebrating the Italian contribution to Jazz are the stories of many Italian-American musicians whose talents and determinations have enriched one of America’s greatest art forms. This book profiles musicians such as Tony Bennett, Joe Lovano, Flip Phillips, Louis Prima, Frank Sinatra, and Lennie Tristano, and also features original interviews with Louie Bellson, Sam Butera, Buddy DeFranco, Johnny Frigo, Buddy Greco, and Bucky Pizzarelli—who, in the pursuits of their craft, survived the immigrant experience, the Great Depression, poverty, and other personal tragedies. As Grammy Award-winning saxophonist Joe Lovano said, “Jazz has a specific root— the African American experience—but it’s also about the branches of the tree. Jazz is about cultures coming together, inspiring each other, which is what makes it so beautiful.”
About the Author
Bill Dal Cerro is the former president of the Italic Institute of America and the associate producer of the PBS special And They Came to Chicago: The Italian American Legacy. His works have appeared in Ambassador Magazine, Fra Noi, Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, and The Washington Post. David Anthony Witter is a photographer, blues musician, and teacher. He is the author of Chicago Magic, Oldest Chicago, and has contributed to The Best of the Chicago Blues Annual and The Italian American Experience: An Encyclopedia. They live in Chicago.