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University of California Press

Norman Granz

The Man Who Used Jazz for Justice
by Tad Hershorn (Author), Oscar Peterson (Foreword by)
Hardcover eBook
Price: $34.95 / £30.00
Publication Date: Oct 2011
Edition: 1st Edition
Title Details:
Rights: World
Pages: 488
ISBN: 9780520949775
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About the Book

“Any book on my life would start with my basic philosophy of fighting racial prejudice. I loved jazz, and jazz was my way of doing that,” Norman Granz told Tad Hershorn during the final interviews given for this book. Granz, who died in 2001, was iconoclastic, independent, immensely influential, often thoroughly unpleasant—and one of jazz’s true giants. Granz played an essential part in bringing jazz to audiences around the world, defying racial and social prejudice as he did so, and demanding that African-American performers be treated equally everywhere they toured. In this definitive biography, Hershorn recounts Granz’s story: creator of the legendary jam session concerts known as Jazz at the Philharmonic; founder of the Verve record label; pioneer of live recordings and worldwide jazz concert tours; manager and recording producer for numerous stars, including Ella Fitzgerald and Oscar Peterson.

About the Author

Tad Hershorn is an archivist at the Institute for Jazz Studies at Rutgers University.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations 
Foreword by Oscar Peterson 
Prologue: “I Made Things Work” 

1 “All I Wanted Was My Freedom” 
2 “A Marvelous Crucible” 
3 Cole Train 
4 “The Opener” 
5 Let Freedom Swing 
6 Norman Granz versus . . . 
7 Mambo Jambo 
8 Enter Ella and Oscar 
9 The Continental 
10 “I Feel Most at Home in the Studio” 
11 Starry Nights 
12 “That Tall Old Man Standing Next to Ella Fitzgerald” 
13 The Jazz Hurricane 
14 “The Lost Generation” 
15 Duke, Prez, and Billie 
16 Joie de Verve 
17 Across the Sea 
18 “Musicians Don’t Want to Jam” 
19 Picasso on the Beach 
20 “One More Once” 
21 Takin’ It on Out—for Good 
22 “Somewhere There’s Music” 

Epilogue: “My Career, Such As It Is . . .” 
Acknowledgments 
Chronology 
Notes 
Selected Bibliography 
Index

Reviews

"Most accounts of Granz are given over to his humanitarian triumphs, but this book from the Rutgers archivist Hershorn adds a close examination of the recordings Granz made at his Verve label, many of which have engendered controversy ever since. . . . While the Granz discography may be more padded than jazz historians would like, at least the dross is mitigated by gems like his work with Oscar Peterson (who provides the book’s foreword) and his glorious run with Ella Fitzgerald. And even the dross had a few kickin’ solos mixed in with the sometimes inchoate jams."
— New York Times Book Review
"In this first-ever biography of an often brusque and unyielding but thoroughly principled jazz missionary, Tad Hershorn has masterfully researched Granz's vivid career, adding new information about the jazz originals he guided and sometimes sparred with."
— Wall Street Journal
“Hershorn's capsules on the artists are invaluable and his meticulous research . . . doesn't slow down the story of this unique figure. This is an exhaustively rich portrait of a man and his times.”
— All About Jazz
“Tad Hershorn’s Norman Granz: The Man Who Used Jazz for Justice delivers an engaging and multisided retrospective on the culture altering jazz impresario. Hershorn writes with passion and an eye for reconstructing history with rich descriptions, narration, and humor. He imbues his writing with equal parts admiration and critical analysis. . . . Arguably, one of the best biographies of the year, Hershorn approaches his subject with a critical eye, allowing readers to delve deeper into the early jazz industry and fully live the challenges and successes of the Granz empire.”
— PopMatters
“Exhaustively researched comprehensive biography. . . . The story is told through a combination of personal interviews with Granz, never-published ephemera from his estate and interviews with musicians, historians and friends.”
— Downbeat
“Granz’s views on and struggles toward racial equality, respect, and financial viability for musicians is perhaps the most engaging element of his life—and of this exceptional book. Hershorn . . . has crafted the first in-depth biography of Granz, and his voluminous research combined with an engaging, journalistic tone makes this a satisfying read.”
— Library Journal
“Hershorn has chosen a good subject - it’s surprising that no one thought of a volume on Granz before now, and he has done some most impressive research to create this admirable book. It’s packed with anecdotes and well-founded detail which make it continuously interesting -- the story never flags.”
— Jazz Journal
“[A] diligently researched biography. . . . [Hershorn] meticulously documents the personnel and songs played at many concerts and recording dates while avoiding irrelevant details.”
— Stereophile
"Today, as cultural studies of jazz becomes an increasingly important area of scholarship. Hershorn’s Norman Granz makes the case that the storied jazz impresario was in fact ahead of his time and anticipated many of the battles that would be fought in jazz when mainstream social values would no longer become acceptable, or considered normative, by the music and its leading musicians. The book also gives an accurate and compelling depiction of the social context in which jazz relentlessly battled for racial justice in the United States among its most important years of development."
— Ethnic and Racial Studies
“A substantial biography - which this is - attempting to describe and explain the uniqueness of the Granz phenomenon is welcome, and overdue. . . . [The book] has resonances well beyond jazz, first as an in-depth study of a fiercely determined man with a deep trust in the correctness of his own instincts; second as a many-faceted portrait of a life fully lived; and finally as an analysis both of musical and social trends of the second half of the twentieth century. . . . A thoughtful, necessary, even vital addition to the history of jazz.”
— LondonJazz
“The book is alive with anecdotes about virtually all of the major jazz figures of four decades, and with stories of what Granz achieved for jazz and society. Hershorn’s work aids understanding of a crucial period of American history.”
— Rifftides
“Provides an in-depth and analytic look at the impresario.”
— Jazzwax
“An eye-opening journey through Granz’s long career and, more broadly, through the colorful history of the music he championed. . . . Norman Granz is an impressive achievement. Some books are hard to put down. Yet readers may well find themselves putting this one down as they run to their online music libraries, CD shelves, or (for a lucky few) LP collections to listen again to Art Tatum’s piano, Ella Fitzgerald’s voice, or some other piece of Norman Granz’s legacy. That’s okay. Listen for a while. Then remember to come back and finish reading the story of how all that essential, irresistible music came to be.”
— Washington Independent Review of Books
“Granz could be blunt and gruff but he loved the music and, in Tad Hershorn’s admirable book (which includes quotes from his interviews with Granz), he comes across as very human and quite admirable.”
 
— Los Angeles Jazz Scene
“Hershorn covers all of the aspects of Granz’ career in sharp detail. He is not afraid to question the judgment of his subject, or to specify when Granz made a particularly wrong turn. Although Granz’ concert and recording activities tended to dovetail, Hershorn wisely separates them to keep his story clear.”
— JazzHistoryOnline
“This book is a valuable addition to the jazz literature.”
— The Jazz Society Of Pensacola
“The JAZZ AT THE PHILHARMONIC concerts were a turning point in my life. My fellow Californian Norman Granz figured it out. This biography lays out, in impressive detail and insight, the incredible contribution of Mr. Granz to the world of music and art. The deed of the vast recordings of ART TATUM says it all.” —Clint Eastwood

“Norman Granz was one of the most important people in the world of jazz. He did more to escalate respect for jazz and raise our salaries than anybody else. He absolutely loved jazz and jazz musicians. I’m honored to have shared a beautiful friendship with Norman for many, many years. Hopefully, with this incredible book by Tad Hershorn, the world will have a chance to learn about Norman, and his phenomenal contribution to our beloved music—jazz.”—Clark Terry, author of Clark: The Autobiography of Clark Terry

“Tad Hershorn’s Norman Granz: The Man Who Used Jazz for Justice is a relentlessly readable, rigorously researched, deeply empathic portrait of the complex and heroic man who was arguably the greatest champion of this great American art form—and its great artists. Essential reading for anyone who loves jazz.” —James Kaplan, author of Frank: The Voice

“Norman Granz was renowned as a vivid force in jazz history, both as a producer of invaluable classic recordings by many of the music’s most original performers and also for his world-wide, all-star Jazz at the Philharmonic tours. Moreover, he broke the color line dividing jazz audiences by mandating the end of segregated seating his continually popular concerts. Yet until this magisterial, deeply researched biography of Granz by Tad Hershorn, there has been no full-scale inside account of the achievement and combats of this often larger-than-life personality who, without playing an instrument, was so swingingly instrumental in making jazz an international language.” —Nat Hentoff, author of At the Jazz Band Ball: Sixty Years on the Jazz Scene

“Norman Granz, one of the most significant non-musicians in jazz history, took gutsy public stands but remained a private person. Tad Hershorn's years of dedicated research reveal the man behind the lasting legacy, on which he sheds new light as well.. This great American story is a must read—and not just for jazz fans!” —Dan Morgenstern, author of Living with Jazz

“Norman Granz was an institution in jazz. He was loved by some, hated by others, often controversial, and always fearless. But Granz was also elusive and, until now, sometimes came across as more symbol than man. Tad Hershorn has changed all that in this stunning, beautiful biography of the music's most relentless advocate of social justice.” —Robin D. G. Kelley, author of Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original

“Norman Granz was an important man, and Tad Hershorn tells his story with a fearless compassion grounded in yeoman research. Imperious, vain, and rude, Granz was also generous, inventive, and brave. He fought valiantly for jazz and civil rights, made pots of money, and never failed to bet it on his passions and beliefs. If you do not know him, you couldn't ask for a better introduction than Hershorn's judicious portrait; if you think you do know him, you are in for more than a few surprises.” —Gary Giddins, author of Visions of Jazz

"You're probably smarter than you present yourself." —Norman Granz to author, 2001

Awards

  • ARSC Awards for Excellence 2012, Association for Recorded Sound Collections
  • Book of the Year 2012, Jazz Journalism Association