Books About Pittsburgh Jazz Musicians at Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
Biographies
George Benson, guitarist, vocalist
Benson, George with Alan Goldsher
Benson: The Autobiography
Boston, MA: Da Capo Press, 2014
Art Blakey, drummer
Gourse, Leslie
Art Blakey: Jazz Messenger
New York: Schirmer, 2002
Kenny Clarke, drummer
Hennessey, Mike
Klook: The Story of Kenny Clarke
Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1994 [orig. 1990]
Billy Eckstine, vocalist
Ginell, Cary
Mr. B: The Life and Music of Billy Eckstine
Montclair, NJ: Hal Leonard Books, 2013
Roy Eldridge, trumpet
Chilton, John
Roy Eldridge: Little Jazz Giant
London: Continuum, 2002
Erroll Garner, piano
Doran, James M.
Erroll Garner: The Most Happy Piano
Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press and the Institute of Jazz Studies, Rutgers University, 1985
(Also has profiles of Pittsburghers whose careers intersected with Garner: Carl McVicker, Bass McMahon, Art Blakey, Ray Brown, Billy Eckstine, Jimmy Pupa, Ben Nozilo, Leroy Brown, Anne Baker, Reid Jaynes and Alyce Brooks.)
Earl “Fatha” Hines, pianist
Dance, Stanley
The World of Earl Hines
New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1977
(Also the best source for information about singer and bandleader, Lois Deppe.)
Lena Horne, vocalist
Buckley, Gail Lumet
The Hornes: An American Family
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1986
(Author Buckley is Horne’s daughter, born in Pittsburgh in 1937.)
Gavin, James
Stormy Weather: The Life of Lena Horne
New York: Atria Books, 2009
Haskins, James with Kathleen Benson
Lena: A Biography of Lena Horne
Chelsea, MI: Scarborough House, 1991 [orig. 1984]
Palmer, Leslie
Lena Horne
New York: Chelsea House, 1989
Henry Mancini, composer, arranger, pianist
Mancini, Henry with Gene Lees
Did They Mention the Music?
Chicago, IL: Contemporary Books, 1989
(Also contains chapter on Max Adkins, conductor of the pit band at Pittsburgh’s Stanley Theater and “the most influential figure” in Mancini’s life.)
Caps, John
Henry Mancini: Reinventing Film Music
Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 2012
Dodo Marmarosa, pianist
Salemann, Dieter and Fabian Grob
Flights of the Vout Bug: A Guide to the Recorded Music of Michael “Dodo” Marmarosa
Albany, GA: BearManor Media, 2009
(Primarily a discography but contains a good amount of biographical info throughout.)
Billy May, bandleader, arranger, composer, trumpeter
Mirtle, Jack
The Music of Billy May: A Discography
Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1998
(Primarily a discography but begins with an 18 page biography.)
Billy Strayhorn, composer, arranger, pianist
Claerbaut, A. Alyce and David Schlesinger, eds.
Strayhorn: An Illustrated Life
Chicago, IL: Bolden, 2015
Hajdu, David
Lush Life: A Biography of Billy Strayhorn
New York: North Point Press, 1997
Leur, Walter van de
Something to Live For: The Music of Billy Strayhorn
New York: Oxford University Press, 2002
Hosea Taylor, saxophonist
Taylor, Hosea
Dirt Street: A Quintessential Autobiographical
Pittsburgh, PA: 3blindmice, 2007
(Taylor writes mostly about the 1940s in this volume but the photograph section has pictures from the 1940s-2000s. The library is trying to acquire Taylor’s rare second book Yar’s Dream: The Spawning Treewhich chronicles his life in jazz in the 1950s.)
Mary Lou Williams, pianist, arranger, composer
Dahl, Linda
Morning Glory: A Biography of Mary Lou Williams
New York: Pantheon, 1999
Kernodle, Tammy L.
Soul on Soul: The Life and Music of Mary Lou Williams
Boston, MA: Northeastern University Press, 2004
Collective Biographies that Feature Pittsburgh Jazz Musicians
All the “internationally known” artists from the Pittsburgh Jazz Musicians page have biographical entries in either Leonard Feather and Ira Gitler’s Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz or the New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, 2nd ed., edited by Barry Kernfeld (also available online through library-provided databases under the title Oxford Music Online).
Below are circulating books that have chapters, sections or entries on Pittsburgh jazz musicians.
Baggenaes, Roland
Jazz Greats Speak: Interviews with Master Musicians
Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 2008
features:
Mary Lou Williams, pianist, composer, arranger
Bloom, Ken
The American Songbook: The Singers, the Songwriters, and the Songs
New York: Black Dog & Leventhal, 2005
features vocalists:
Billy Eckstine
Lena Horne
Dakota Staton
Maxine Sullivan
Britt, Stan
The Jazz Guitarists
Dorset, UK: Blandford Press, 1984
features:
George Benson, guitarist
Burke, Patrick
Come In and Hear the Truth
Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2008
features:
Maxine Sullivan, vocalist
Carver, Reginald and Lenny Bernstein
Jazz Profiles: The Spirit of the Nineties
New York: Billboard Books, 1998
features:
Geri Allen, pianist
Jeff “Tain” Watts, drummer
Crouch, Stanley
Considering Genius: Writings on Jazz
New York: Basic Civitas Books, 2006
features:
Ahmad Jamal, pianist
Dance, Stanley
The World of Swing
New York: C. Scribner’s Sons, 1974
features:
Roy Eldridge, trumpet
Deffaa, Chip
Swing Legacy
Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1989
features:
Maxine Sullivan, vocalist
Dicaire, David
Jazz Musicians, 1945 to the Present
Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2006
features:
Art Blakey, drummer
Kenny Clarke, drummer
Jeff “Tain” Watts, drummer
Dicaire, David
Jazz Musicians of the Early Years, to 1945
Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2003
features:
Roy Eldridge, trumpeter
Earl “Fatha” Hines, pianist
Doerschuk, Robert L.
88: The Giants of Jazz Piano
San Francisco, CA: Backbeat Books, 2001
features pianists:
Geri Allen
Erroll Garner
Earl “Fatha” Hines
Ahmad Jamal
Mary Lou Williams
Doran, James M.
Erroll Garner: The Most Happy Piano
Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press and the Institute of Jazz Studies, Rutgers University, 1985
features:
Anne Baker, vocalist
Art Blakey, drummer
Alyce Brooks, piano
Leroy Brown, saxophonist, bandleader, bassist
Ray Brown, bassist
Billy Eckstine, vocalist
Reid Jaynes, pianist
Bass McMahon, bassist
Carl McVicker, music teacher
Ben Nozilo, drummer
Jimmy Pupa, trumpeter
Enstice, Wayne and Paul Rubin
Jazz Spoken Here: Conversations with 22 Musicians
New York: Da Capo Press, 1994 [orig. 1992]
features:
Art Blakey, drummer
Enstice, Wayne and Janis Stockhouse
Jazzwomen: Conversations with Twenty-One Musicians
Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2004
features:
Shirley Scott, organ
(Note: Scott was much more of a Philadelphia musician but lived in Pittsburgh in the 1960s while married to saxophonist Stanley Turrentine.)
Freeth, Nick and Cliff Douse
Great Guitarists
San Diego, CA: Thunder Bay Press, 2001
features:
George Benson, guitarist
Friedwald, Will
A Biographical Guide to the Great Jazz and Pop Singers
New York: Pantheon Books, 2010
features vocalists:
Billy Eckstine
Lena Horne
Eddie Jefferson
Dakota Staton
Maxine Sullivan
Gelly, Dave
The Giants of Jazz
New York: Schirmer, 1986
features:
Art Blakey, drummer
Ray Brown, bassist
Roy Eldridge, trumpeter
Erroll Garner, pianist
Earl “Fatha” Hines, pianist
Giddins, Gary
Visions of Jazz: The First Century
New York: Oxford University Press, 1998
features:
Geri Allen, pianist
Art Blakey, drummer
Roy Eldridge, trumpeter
Billy Strayhorn, composer/arranger
Goldberg, Joe
Jazz Masters of the 50s
New York: Da Capo Press, 1965
features:
Art Blakey, drummer
Goldsher, Alan
Hard Bop Academy: The Sidemen of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers
Milwaukee, WI: Hal Leonard, 2002
features:
Art Blakey, drummer
Gourse, Leslie
Blowing on the Changes: The Art of the Jazz Horn Players
New York: Franklin Watts, 1997
features:
Roy Eldridge, trumpeter
Griffiths, David
Hot Jazz: From Harlem to Storyville
Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 1998
features:
Greely Walton, saxophonist
Hadlock, Richard
Jazz Masters of the Twenties
New York: Da Capo Press, 1986
features:
Earl “Fatha” Hines, pianist
Janus, Cicily
The New Face of Jazz: An Intimate Look at Today’s Living Legends and the Artists of Tomorrow
New York: Billboard Books, 2010
features:
George Benson, guitarist
Sean Jones, trumpeter
Sammy Nestico, composer/arranger
Jones, Max
Jazz Talking: Profiles, Interviews, and Other Riffs on Jazz Musicians
New York: Da Capo Press, 2000 [orig. 1987]
features:
Billy Eckstine, vocalist
Mary Lou Williams, pianist
Kenney, William Howland
Jazz on the River
Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2005
in the “Steamin’ to the End of the Line: Jazz On, Along, and Beyond the Ohio River” chapter, features:
Lois Deppe, vocalist
Erroll Garner, pianist
Earl “Fatha” Hines, pianist
Billy Strayhorn, pianist
Mary Lou Williams, pianist
Knauss, Zane
Conversations with Jazz Musicians
Detroit, MI: Gale, 1977
features:
Eric Kloss, saxophonist
Korall, Burt
Drummin’ Men: The Heartbeat of Jazz: The Bebop Years
New York: Oxford University Press, 2002
features drummers:
Art Blakey
Kenny Clarke
Lee, William F.
American Big Bands
Milwaukee, WI: Hal Leonard Corp., 2005
features bandleaders:
Billy Eckstine
Baron Elliot
Earl Hines
Billy May
Ted Weems
Lees, Gene
Arranging the Score: Portraits of the Great Arrangers
London: Cassell, 2000
features:
Henry Mancini
Billy May
Lees, Gene
Friends Along the Way: A Journey Through Jazz
New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2003
features:
Ray Brown, bassist
Stanley Turrentine, saxophonist, in a chapter titled “The Pittsburgh Connection”
Lees, Gene
Meet Me at Jim & Andy’s: Jazz Musicians and Their World
New York: Oxford University Press, 1988
features:
John Heard, bassist
Lyons, Len
The Great Jazz Pianists: Speaking of Their Lives and Music
New York: Da Capo Press, 1983
features pianists:
Ahmad Jamal
Mary Lou Williams
Marshall, Wolf
Jazz Guitar Icons
Milwaukee, WI: Hal Leonard, 2012
features:
George Benson, guitarist
Mathieson, Kenny
Cookin’: Hard Bop and Soul Jazz, 1954-65
Edinburgh, UK: Canongate, 2012 [orig. 2000]
features:
Art Blakey, drummer
Sonny Clark, pianist
Stanley Turrentine, saxophonist
Moody, Bill
The Jazz Exiles: American Musicians Abroad
Reno, NV: University of Nevada Press, 1993
features:
Kenny Clarke, drummer
Nathan Davis, saxophonist
Mour, Stanley
Innovators of American Jazz
Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow, 2014
[Note: this book is intended for younger readers.]
features:
Mary Lou Williams, pianist, arranger, composer
O’Neal, Hank
The Ghosts of Harlem: Sessions with Jazz Legends
Nashville, TN: Vanderbilt University Press, 2009
features:
Maxine Sullivan, vocalist
Greely Walton, saxophonist
Orr, C. Prentiss, et al
Pittsburgh Born, Pittsburgh Bred: 500 of the More Famous People Who Have Called Pittsburgh Home
Pittsburgh, PA: Pittsburgh 250, Inc., 2008
features:
Max Adkins, arranger, conductor
Chuck Austin, trumpeter, historian
George Benson, guitarist
Harold Betters, trombonist
Art Blakey, drummer
Ray Brown, bassist
Paul Chambers, bassist
Sonny Clark, pianist
Kenny Clarke, drummer
Bob Cooper, saxophonist
Johnny Costa, pianist
Billy Eckstine, vocalist, trombonist
Roy Eldridge, trumpeter
Jerry Fielding, composer, arranger
Erroll Garner, pianist
Slide Hampton, trombonist
Walt Harper, pianist
Beaver Harris, drummer
Joe Harris, drummer
Earl “Fatha” Hines, pianist
Lena Horne, vocalist
Roger Humphries, drummer
Ahmad Jamal, pianist
Eddie Jefferson, vocalist
Gene Ludwig, organist
Henry Mancini, composer
Dodo Marmarosa, pianist
Billy May, trumpeter, arranger
Grover Mitchell, trombonist
Joe Negri, guitarist
Sammy Nestico, trombonist, arranger
Horace Parlan, pianist
Jimmy Ponder, guitarist
Ethel Smith, organist
Dakota Staton, vocalist
Billy Strayhorn, composer, arranger
Maxine Sullivan, vocalist
Stanley Turrentine, saxophonist
Tommy Turrentine, trumpeter
Jeff “Tain” Watts – drummer
Mary Lou Williams – pianist, arranger
Ramsey, Doug
Jazz Matters: Reflections on the Music & Some of its Makers
Fayetteville, AK: University of Arkansas Press, 1989
features:
George Benson, guitarist
Reisner, Robert George
The Jazz Titans, Including “The Parlance of Hip”
New York: Da Capo Press, 1977 [orig. 1960]
features:
Art Blakey, drummer
Kenny Clarke, drummer
Billy Eckstine, vocalist
Rizzo, Gene
The Fifty Greatest Jazz Piano Players of All Time: Ranking, Analysis & Photos
Milwaukee, WI: Hal Leonard, 2005
features pianists:
Erroll Garner
Earl “Fatha” Hines
Ahmad Jamal
Mary Lou Williams
Shapiro, Nat and Nat Hentoff, eds.
The Jazz Makers: Essays on the Greats of Jazz
New York: Da Capo Press, 1979 [orig. 1957]
features:
Roy Eldridge, trumpeter
Earl “Fatha” Hines, pianist
Shribman, David M. and Angelika Kane, eds.
Pittsburgh Lives: Men and Women Who Shaped Our City
Chicago, IL: Triumph Books, 2006
features Pittsburgh Post-Gazette obituaries of:
Johnny Costa, pianist
Billy Eckstine, vocalist
Leonard Litman, Copa clubowner
Nicholas P. Lomakin, clarinetist
Stanley Turrentine, saxophonist
Simon, George T.
The Big Bands
New York: Schirmer Books, 1981
features bandleaders:
Billy Eckstine
Earl Hines
Billy May
Ted Weems
Spagnardi, Ron
The Great Jazz Drummers
Cedar Grove, NJ: Modern Drummer Publications, 1992
features drummers:
Art Blakey
Kenny Clarke
Beaver Harris
Jeff “Tain” Watts
Summerfield, Maurice J.
The Jazz Guitar: Its Evolution and Its Players
Gateshead, UK: Ashley Mark, 1979 [orig. 1978]
features guitarists:
George Benson
Barry Galbraith
Taylor, Arthur
Notes and Tones: Musician-to-Musician Interviews
New York: Da Capo, 1993 [orig. 1977]
features:
Art Blakey, drummer (and he notoriously bad mouths Pittsburgh in his interview)
Kenny Clarke, drummer
Erroll Garner, pianist
Tumpak, John R.
When Swing Was the Thing: Personality Profiles of the Big Band Era
Milwaukee, WI: Marquette University Press, 2008
features:
Billy May, arranger, bandleader, trumpeter
Yanow, Scott
The Great Jazz Guitarists: The Ultimate Guide
Milwaukee, WI: Backbeat Books, 2013
features guitarists:
Ron Affif
Ron Anthony
George Benson
Ray Crawford
Andy Fite
Barry Galbraith
Eric Johnson
Jimmy Ponder
Ben Sher
James “Blood” Ulmer
Yanow, Scott
Trumpet Kings: The Players Who Shaped the Sound of Jazz Trumpet
San Francisco, CA: Backbeat Books, 2001
features trumpeters:
Al Aarons
Roy Eldridge
Tommy Turrentine
Franc Williams
and those trumpeters not primarily known as such:
Billy Eckstine
Billy May
Please contact the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh Music Department for further research assistance.
Email: musicdept@carnegielibrary.org
Phone: 412-622-3114