Dave Brubeck: A Life in Time
WINNER OF THE PRESTO JAZZ BOOK OF THE YEAR 2020
An articulate, scrupulously researched account based on first-hand information, this book presents Brubeck’s contribution to music with the critical insight that it deserves – ***** BBC Music Magazine
This is the writing about jazz that we’ve been waiting for – Mike Westbrook
The sheer descriptive verve, page after page, made me want to listen to every single musical example cited. A major achievement – Stephen Hough
‘Definitive . . . remarkable. Clark writes intelligently and joyously.’ – Mojo
In 2003, music journalist Philip Clark was granted unparalleled access to jazz legend Dave Brubeck. Over the course of ten days, he shadowed the Dave Brubeck Quartet during their extended British tour, recording an epic interview with the bandleader. Brubeck opened up as never before, disclosing his unique approach to jazz; the heady days of his ‘classic’ quartet in the 1950s-60s; hanging out with Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Louis Armstrong, and Miles Davis; and the many controversies that had dogged his 66-year-long career.
Alongside beloved figures like Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra, Brubeck’s music has achieved name recognition beyond jazz. But finding a convincing fit for Brubeck’s legacy, one that reconciles his mass popularity with his advanced musical technique, has proved largely elusive. In Dave Brubeck: A Life in Time, Clark provides us with a thoughtful, thorough, and long-overdue biography of an extraordinary man whose influence continues to inform and inspire musicians today.
Structured around Clark’s extended interview and intensive new research, this book tells one of the last untold stories of jazz, unearthing the secret history of ‘Take Five’ and many hitherto unknown aspects of Brubeck’s early career – and about his creative relationship with his star saxophonist Paul Desmond. Woven throughout are cameo appearances from a host of unlikely figures from Sting, Ray Manzarek of The Doors, and Keith Emerson, to John Cage, Leonard Bernstein, Harry Partch, and Edgard Varèse. Each chapter explores a different theme or aspect of Brubeck’s life and music, illuminating the core of his artistry and genius.
An articulate, scrupulously researched account based on first-hand information, this book presents Brubeck’s contribution to music with the critical insight that it deserves – ***** BBC Music Magazine
This is the writing about jazz that we’ve been waiting for – Mike Westbrook
The sheer descriptive verve, page after page, made me want to listen to every single musical example cited. A major achievement – Stephen Hough
‘Definitive . . . remarkable. Clark writes intelligently and joyously.’ – Mojo
In 2003, music journalist Philip Clark was granted unparalleled access to jazz legend Dave Brubeck. Over the course of ten days, he shadowed the Dave Brubeck Quartet during their extended British tour, recording an epic interview with the bandleader. Brubeck opened up as never before, disclosing his unique approach to jazz; the heady days of his ‘classic’ quartet in the 1950s-60s; hanging out with Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Louis Armstrong, and Miles Davis; and the many controversies that had dogged his 66-year-long career.
Alongside beloved figures like Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra, Brubeck’s music has achieved name recognition beyond jazz. But finding a convincing fit for Brubeck’s legacy, one that reconciles his mass popularity with his advanced musical technique, has proved largely elusive. In Dave Brubeck: A Life in Time, Clark provides us with a thoughtful, thorough, and long-overdue biography of an extraordinary man whose influence continues to inform and inspire musicians today.
Structured around Clark’s extended interview and intensive new research, this book tells one of the last untold stories of jazz, unearthing the secret history of ‘Take Five’ and many hitherto unknown aspects of Brubeck’s early career – and about his creative relationship with his star saxophonist Paul Desmond. Woven throughout are cameo appearances from a host of unlikely figures from Sting, Ray Manzarek of The Doors, and Keith Emerson, to John Cage, Leonard Bernstein, Harry Partch, and Edgard Varèse. Each chapter explores a different theme or aspect of Brubeck’s life and music, illuminating the core of his artistry and genius.
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Reviews
This is the writing about jazz that we've been waiting for. By keeping the music at the centre, and interweaving the background of cultural, political and social change to illuminate the development of the music, Clark gives us a complete picture of the artist's life and work.
Biography, social history, musicological exploration ... this wonderful book is many things. But above all it is a sort of intoxicating literary jam session. Words and sentences spit and spin and swing creating rhythms and harmonies worthy of Brubeck himself. The sheer descriptive verve, page after page, made me want to listen to every single musical example cited. A major achievement.
'A life in Time' is about the timeless life of the inspired and inspiring jazz master Dave Brubeck. This biography, written with love and passion, is a landmark document that is insightful and inspiring all in itself. Bravo!
A nontraditional biography that sings . . . an adoring biography as unconventional and compelling as its subject.
Clark hits the right notes for die-hard Brubeck disciples and jazz neophytes alike.
Definitive . . . remarkable. Clark writes intelligently and joyously.
A Life in Time is that rare beast: an uncompromisingly analytical study that absorbs and entertains, illuminating both its subject and his social context.
Clark comes as close as anyone ever will to filling in the blanks.
The definitive biography of one of jazz's most successful pianists
A Life in Time is that rare beast: an uncompromisingly analytical study that absorbs and entertains, illuminating both its subject and his social context.
Contains fascinating new material... Brubeck left a magnificent jazz legacy that is well served by Clark's impressive book.
An enlightening read
An engaging new biography... Clark makes an eloquent case
Thorough and authoritative, Mr. Clark has done a great service to his subject's legacy.
Richly detailed . . . Dave Brubeck is the closest thing the 20th century had to a universal artist. This biography profoundly reflects that.
Compelling
Illuminating as it is lyrical
This is a very fine book ... Clark enables the reader to understand Brubeck the pianist. Myths are demolished. It is the kind of writing that will drive the reader back to the records enabling the reader to hear the music as if for the first time.