Thelonious Monk
The Life and Times of an American Original
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Thelonious Monk
Buy for $23.21
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Sean Crisden
-
By:
-
Robin DG Kelley
About this listen
Thelonious Monk is the critically acclaimed, gripping saga of an artist's struggle to "make it" without compromising his musical vision. It is a story that, like its subject, reflects the tidal ebbs and flows of American history in the 20th century.
To his fans, he was the ultimate hipster; to his detractors, he was temperamental, eccentric, taciturn, or childlike. His angular melodies and dissonant harmonies shook the jazz world to its foundations, ushering in the birth of "bebop" and establishing Monk as one of America's greatest composers.
Elegantly written and rich with humor and pathos, Thelonious Monk is the definitive work on modern jazz's most original composer.
©2009 Robin D. G. Kelley (P)2017 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
-
The History of Jazz, Second Edition
- By: Ted Gioia
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 21 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 317
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 285
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 283
Ted Gioia's History of Jazz has been universally hailed as a classic - acclaimed by jazz critics and fans around the world. Now Gioia brings his magnificent work completely up-to-date, drawing on the latest research and revisiting virtually every aspect of the music, past and present. Gioia tells the story of jazz as it had never been told before, in a book that brilliantly portrays the legendary jazz players, the breakthrough styles, and the world in which it evolved. Here are the giants of jazz and the great moments of jazz history.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
An Exciting Opportunity Missed
- By Kindle Customer on 02-02-15
By: Ted Gioia
-
Assata
- By: Assata Shakur, Angela Davis - foreword
- Narrated by: Sirena Riley
- Length: 12 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 2,952
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 2,580
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 2,580
In 2013 Assata Shakur, founding member of the Black Liberation Army, former Black Panther and godmother of Tupac Shakur, became the first ever woman to make the FBI's most wanted list. Assata Shakur's trial and conviction for the murder of a white State Trooper in the spring of 1973 divided America. Her case quickly became emblematic of race relations and police brutality in the USA. While Assata's detractors continue to label her a ruthless killer, her defenders cite her as the victim of a systematic, racist campaign.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Knowledge is power
- By Ashleigh Terry on 08-20-17
By: Assata Shakur, and others
-
Miles
- The Autobiography
- By: Miles Davis
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 16 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,318
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,167
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,154
Universally acclaimed as a musical genius, Miles Davis was one of the most important and influential musicians in the world. Here, Miles speaks out about his extraordinary life. Miles: The Autobiography, like Miles himself, holds nothing back. For the first time Miles talks about his five-year silence. He speaks frankly and openly about his drug problem and how he overcame it. He condemns the racism he encountered in the music business and in American society generally. And he discusses the women in his life.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A man untroubled by his own contradictions
- By Barry on 12-07-12
By: Miles Davis
-
Essays
- By: George Orwell
- Narrated by: Alex Hyde-White
- Length: 25 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 141
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 110
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 108
With great originality and wit, Orwell unfolds his views on subjects ranging from a revaluation of Charles Dickens to the nature of Socialism, from a comic yet profound discussion of naughty seaside postcards to a spirited defense of English cooking. Displaying an almost unrivalled mastery of English plain prose, Orwell’s essays created a unique literary manner from the process of thinking aloud and continue to challenge, move, and entertain.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great Content; Would benefit from chapter names
- By Laimis on 08-15-20
By: George Orwell
-
Healing Oneself Healing the World
- By: Thích Nhất Hạnh
- Narrated by: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Length: 9 hrs and 58 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 54
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 45
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 45
These 2013 recordings by Thich Nhat Hanh are from Magnolia Grove Monastery in Batesville, Mississippi during a 6-day retreat in 2013 with the theme Healing Ourselves, Healing the World. The program has been digitally remastered and has 12 hours of wonderful material.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
For Soulful Renewal. Excellent and Inspired Teaching
- By Althea Banda-Hansmann on 01-21-18
By: Thích Nhất Hạnh
-
The Boxing Kings
- When American Heavyweights Ruled the Ring
- By: Paul Beston
- Narrated by: Alexander Cendese
- Length: 13 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 152
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 128
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 128
The Boxing Kings tells the story of the heavyweight title in the days when it was a defining institution in the United States. Author Paul Beston places special emphasis on those champions who held a central place in American culture beyond just in the boxing ring, including John L. Sullivan, who made the title a commercial property; Jack Johnson, who in 1908 became the first black man to claim the title; Joe Louis, whose contributions to racial tolerance and social progress transcended even his greatness in the ring; and many more.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
An outstanding book on heavyweight champions
- By LSmith on 02-01-18
By: Paul Beston
-
The History of Jazz, Second Edition
- By: Ted Gioia
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 21 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 317
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 285
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 283
Ted Gioia's History of Jazz has been universally hailed as a classic - acclaimed by jazz critics and fans around the world. Now Gioia brings his magnificent work completely up-to-date, drawing on the latest research and revisiting virtually every aspect of the music, past and present. Gioia tells the story of jazz as it had never been told before, in a book that brilliantly portrays the legendary jazz players, the breakthrough styles, and the world in which it evolved. Here are the giants of jazz and the great moments of jazz history.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
An Exciting Opportunity Missed
- By Kindle Customer on 02-02-15
By: Ted Gioia
-
Assata
- By: Assata Shakur, Angela Davis - foreword
- Narrated by: Sirena Riley
- Length: 12 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 2,952
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 2,580
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 2,580
In 2013 Assata Shakur, founding member of the Black Liberation Army, former Black Panther and godmother of Tupac Shakur, became the first ever woman to make the FBI's most wanted list. Assata Shakur's trial and conviction for the murder of a white State Trooper in the spring of 1973 divided America. Her case quickly became emblematic of race relations and police brutality in the USA. While Assata's detractors continue to label her a ruthless killer, her defenders cite her as the victim of a systematic, racist campaign.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Knowledge is power
- By Ashleigh Terry on 08-20-17
By: Assata Shakur, and others
-
Miles
- The Autobiography
- By: Miles Davis
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 16 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,318
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,167
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,154
Universally acclaimed as a musical genius, Miles Davis was one of the most important and influential musicians in the world. Here, Miles speaks out about his extraordinary life. Miles: The Autobiography, like Miles himself, holds nothing back. For the first time Miles talks about his five-year silence. He speaks frankly and openly about his drug problem and how he overcame it. He condemns the racism he encountered in the music business and in American society generally. And he discusses the women in his life.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A man untroubled by his own contradictions
- By Barry on 12-07-12
By: Miles Davis
-
Essays
- By: George Orwell
- Narrated by: Alex Hyde-White
- Length: 25 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 141
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 110
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 108
With great originality and wit, Orwell unfolds his views on subjects ranging from a revaluation of Charles Dickens to the nature of Socialism, from a comic yet profound discussion of naughty seaside postcards to a spirited defense of English cooking. Displaying an almost unrivalled mastery of English plain prose, Orwell’s essays created a unique literary manner from the process of thinking aloud and continue to challenge, move, and entertain.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great Content; Would benefit from chapter names
- By Laimis on 08-15-20
By: George Orwell
-
Healing Oneself Healing the World
- By: Thích Nhất Hạnh
- Narrated by: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Length: 9 hrs and 58 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 54
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 45
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 45
These 2013 recordings by Thich Nhat Hanh are from Magnolia Grove Monastery in Batesville, Mississippi during a 6-day retreat in 2013 with the theme Healing Ourselves, Healing the World. The program has been digitally remastered and has 12 hours of wonderful material.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
For Soulful Renewal. Excellent and Inspired Teaching
- By Althea Banda-Hansmann on 01-21-18
By: Thích Nhất Hạnh
-
The Boxing Kings
- When American Heavyweights Ruled the Ring
- By: Paul Beston
- Narrated by: Alexander Cendese
- Length: 13 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 152
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 128
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 128
The Boxing Kings tells the story of the heavyweight title in the days when it was a defining institution in the United States. Author Paul Beston places special emphasis on those champions who held a central place in American culture beyond just in the boxing ring, including John L. Sullivan, who made the title a commercial property; Jack Johnson, who in 1908 became the first black man to claim the title; Joe Louis, whose contributions to racial tolerance and social progress transcended even his greatness in the ring; and many more.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
An outstanding book on heavyweight champions
- By LSmith on 02-01-18
By: Paul Beston
-
Herbie Hancock: Possibilities
- By: Herbie Hancock, Lisa Dickey
- Narrated by: Herbie Hancock
- Length: 12 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 636
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 568
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 565
Hancock discusses his musical influences, colorful behind-the-scenes stories, his long and happy marriage, and how Buddhism inspires him creatively and personally. Honest, enlightening, and as electrifyingly vital as the man who wrote it, Herbie Hancock promises to be an invaluable contribution to jazz literature and a must-read for fans and music lovers.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
High Marks All Round
- By Joyce on 06-21-15
By: Herbie Hancock, and others
-
Dubliners (Tantor Edition)
- By: James Joyce
- Narrated by: Gerard Doyle
- Length: 7 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 54
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
Dubliners is a collection of short stories by James Joyce that was first published in 1914. The 15 stories were meant to be a naturalistic depiction of the Irish middle-class life in and around Dublin in the early years of the 20th century. The stories were written at a time when Irish nationalism was at its peak and a search for a national identity and purpose was raging; at a crossroads of history and culture, Ireland was jolted by various converging ideas and influences.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Superb reader for Joyce
- By Paul on 06-14-17
By: James Joyce
-
Playing Changes
- Jazz for the New Century
- By: Nate Chinen
- Narrated by: Ron Butler
- Length: 11 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 58
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 46
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 44
“Playing changes”, in jazz parlance, has long referred to an improviser’s resourceful path through a chord progression. Playing Changes boldly expands on the idea, highlighting a host of significant changes - ideological, technological, theoretical, and practical - that jazz musicians have learned to navigate since the turn of the century. Nate Chinen, who has chronicled this evolution firsthand throughout his journalistic career, vividly sets the backdrop, charting the origins of jazz historicism and the rise of an institutional framework for the music.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Jazz happens
- By álvaro castro on 02-11-19
By: Nate Chinen
-
The Greatest Game Ever Played
- Harry Vardon, Francis Ouimet, and the Birth of Modern Golf
- By: Mark Frost
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 17 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 747
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 673
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 671
Francis Ouimet and Harry Vardon came from different worlds and different generations, but their passion for golf set them on parallel paths that would collide in the greatest match their sport had ever known.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great Book
- By Warren on 11-02-15
By: Mark Frost
-
Dilla Time
- The Life and Afterlife of J Dilla, the Hip-Hop Producer Who Reinvented Rhythm
- By: Dan Charnas, Jeff Peretz - contributor
- Narrated by: Dan Charnas
- Length: 14 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 701
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 604
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 604
He wasn’t known to mainstream audiences, even though he worked with renowned acts like D’Angelo and Erykah Badu and influenced the music of superstars like Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson. He died at the age of 32, and in his lifetime he never had a pop hit. Yet since his death, J Dilla has become a demigod: revered by jazz musicians and rap icons from Robert Glasper to Kendrick Lamar; memorialized in symphonies and taught at universities.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Only a few chapters in <3
- By Chris Johnson on 02-05-22
By: Dan Charnas, and others
-
Broken Glass
- Mies van der Rohe, Edith Farnsworth, and the Fight Over a Modernist Masterpiece
- By: Alex Beam
- Narrated by: Kimberly Farr
- Length: 8 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 75
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 58
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 58
In 1945, Edith Farnsworth asked the German architect Mies van der Rohe, already renowned for his avant-garde buildings, to design a weekend home for her outside of Chicago. Edith was a woman ahead of her time—unmarried, she was a distinguished medical researcher, as well as an accomplished violinist, translator, and poet. The two quickly began spending weekends together, talking philosophy, Catholic mysticism, and, of course, architecture over wine-soaked picnic lunches.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Tedious and disappointing
- By Deborah McGarr Hutchins on 02-03-23
By: Alex Beam
-
Mighty Justice
- My Life in Civil Rights
- By: Dovey Johnson Roundtree, Katie McCabe
- Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
- Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 44
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 39
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 38
In Mighty Justice, trailblazing African American civil rights attorney Dovey Johnson Roundtree recounts her inspiring life story that speaks movingly and urgently to our racially troubled times. From the streets of Charlotte, North Carolina, to the segregated courtrooms of the nation’s capital; from the male stronghold of the army where she broke gender and color barriers to the pulpits of churches where women had waited for years for the right to minister - in all these places, Dovey Johnson Roundtree sought justice.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Remarkable!
- By Stacey on 12-05-19
By: Dovey Johnson Roundtree, and others
-
Sophisticated Giant
- The Life and Legacy of Dexter Gordon
- By: Maxine Gordon
- Narrated by: Joe Morton, Terria Joseph, Prentice Onayemi
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 43
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
Sophisticated Giant presents the life and legacy of tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon (1923-1990), one of the major innovators of modern jazz. In a context of biography, history, and memoir, Maxine Gordon has completed the book that her late husband began, weaving his “solo” turns with her voice and a chorus of voices from past and present. Reading like a jazz composition, the blend of research, anecdote, and a selection of Dexter’s personal letters reflects his colorful life and legendary times.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Beautifully Told
- By Light Mentat on 03-23-21
By: Maxine Gordon
-
Uncovering Greek Mythology: A Beginner's Guide into the World of Greek Gods and Goddesses
- By: Lucas Russo
- Narrated by: Jared Zak
- Length: 3 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 279
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 126
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 126
Get to know the Greek gods and goddesses, from the mighty Zeus, to the temperamental Poseidon, the beautiful Aphrodite, and every character from A to Z. Who wouldn’t want to hear about Zeus and his command of lightning, Hades and how he found his bride, the wisdom of Athena, and so many other stories that capture the imagination. These stories can do more than just entertain; they can also inspire and teach us lessons that were penned by the Greeks themselves.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful book!!
- By Laura Preston on 12-07-22
By: Lucas Russo
-
Mesoamerican Mythology
- A Captivating Guide to Maya Mythology, Aztec Mythology, Inca Mythology, and Central American Myths
- By: Matt Clayton
- Narrated by: Randy Whitlow
- Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 57
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 55
If you're looking for a captivating collection of Inca myths, then pay attention.... This audiobook includes four captivating manuscripts: Maya Mythology, Aztec Mythology, Inca Mythology, and Central American Mythology.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Horrible pronouncing of names
- By Time2C on 09-27-21
By: Matt Clayton
-
Whatever Happened to the Metric System?
- How America Kept Its Feet
- By: John Bemelmans Marciano
- Narrated by: Neil Hellegers
- Length: 9 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 54
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 42
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 41
The American standard system of measurement is a unique and odd thing to behold with its esoteric, inconsistent standards: 12 inches in a foot, three feet in a yard, 16 ounces in a pound, 100 pennies to the dollar. For something as elemental as counting and estimating the world around us, it seems like a confusing tool to use. So how did we end up with it? Most of the rest of the world is on the metric system, and for a time in the 1970s America appeared ready to make the switch.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Deceptive Title - Not really about the US
- By Kah on 04-08-22
-
Duke
- A Life of Duke Ellington
- By: Terry Teachout
- Narrated by: Peter Francis James
- Length: 17 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 101
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 88
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 88
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was the greatest jazz composer of the twentieth century - and an impenetrably enigmatic personality whom no one, not even his closest friends, claimed to understand. The grandson of a slave, he dropped out of high school to become one of the world's most famous musicians, a showman of incomparable suavity who was as comfortable in Carnegie Hall as in the nightclubs where he honed his style.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
This audiobook needs music
- By John on 04-08-14
By: Terry Teachout
Critic reviews
Featured Article: From the Queen of Soul to the Purple One, Hear the Stories of Black Musicians and Artists Who Broke Boundaries
This Black History Month—and every day of the year—we're shining a light on artists and thinkers who demonstrate the boundless depths of Black creativity, joy, and love. We've gathered a list of memoirs by and biographies about artists who totally upended the expectations of a white-dominated field and crafted something entirely their own, making history and changing lives as a result.
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
3 Shades of Blue
- Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, and the Lost Empire of Cool
- By: James Kaplan
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 14 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 100
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 87
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 87
In 1959, America’s great indigenous art form, jazz, reached the height of its power and popularity. James Kaplan’s magnificent 3 Shades of Blue captures how that golden era came to be, and its pinnacle with the recording of Kind of Blue. It’s a book about music, and business, and race, and heroin, and the cities that gave jazz its home, and the Black geniuses behind its rise. It’s an astonishing meditation on creativity and the strange environments where it can flourish most.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Great deep dive into a pinnacle of jazz, marred by author bias against later jazz years
- By Michael J. Anderson on 04-08-24
By: James Kaplan
-
The History of Jazz, Second Edition
- By: Ted Gioia
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 21 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 317
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 285
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 283
Ted Gioia's History of Jazz has been universally hailed as a classic - acclaimed by jazz critics and fans around the world. Now Gioia brings his magnificent work completely up-to-date, drawing on the latest research and revisiting virtually every aspect of the music, past and present. Gioia tells the story of jazz as it had never been told before, in a book that brilliantly portrays the legendary jazz players, the breakthrough styles, and the world in which it evolved. Here are the giants of jazz and the great moments of jazz history.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
An Exciting Opportunity Missed
- By Kindle Customer on 02-02-15
By: Ted Gioia
-
Miles
- The Autobiography
- By: Miles Davis
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 16 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,318
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,167
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,154
Universally acclaimed as a musical genius, Miles Davis was one of the most important and influential musicians in the world. Here, Miles speaks out about his extraordinary life. Miles: The Autobiography, like Miles himself, holds nothing back. For the first time Miles talks about his five-year silence. He speaks frankly and openly about his drug problem and how he overcame it. He condemns the racism he encountered in the music business and in American society generally. And he discusses the women in his life.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A man untroubled by his own contradictions
- By Barry on 12-07-12
By: Miles Davis
-
Herbie Hancock: Possibilities
- By: Herbie Hancock, Lisa Dickey
- Narrated by: Herbie Hancock
- Length: 12 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 636
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 568
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 565
Hancock discusses his musical influences, colorful behind-the-scenes stories, his long and happy marriage, and how Buddhism inspires him creatively and personally. Honest, enlightening, and as electrifyingly vital as the man who wrote it, Herbie Hancock promises to be an invaluable contribution to jazz literature and a must-read for fans and music lovers.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
High Marks All Round
- By Joyce on 06-21-15
By: Herbie Hancock, and others
-
How to Listen to Jazz
- By: Ted Gioia
- Narrated by: Peter Ganim
- Length: 6 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 192
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 175
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 170
In How to Listen to Jazz, award-winning music scholar Ted Gioia presents a lively introduction to one of America's premier art forms. He tells us what to listen for in a performance and includes a guide to today's leading jazz musicians. From Louis Armstrong's innovative sounds to the jazz-rock fusion of Miles Davis, Gioia covers the music's history and reveals the building blocks of improvisation. A true love letter to jazz by a foremost expert.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Kind of useless as an audiobook.
- By Mitch Foster on 02-28-20
By: Ted Gioia
-
Sophisticated Giant
- The Life and Legacy of Dexter Gordon
- By: Maxine Gordon
- Narrated by: Joe Morton, Terria Joseph, Prentice Onayemi
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 43
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
Sophisticated Giant presents the life and legacy of tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon (1923-1990), one of the major innovators of modern jazz. In a context of biography, history, and memoir, Maxine Gordon has completed the book that her late husband began, weaving his “solo” turns with her voice and a chorus of voices from past and present. Reading like a jazz composition, the blend of research, anecdote, and a selection of Dexter’s personal letters reflects his colorful life and legendary times.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Beautifully Told
- By Light Mentat on 03-23-21
By: Maxine Gordon
-
3 Shades of Blue
- Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, and the Lost Empire of Cool
- By: James Kaplan
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 14 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 100
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 87
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 87
In 1959, America’s great indigenous art form, jazz, reached the height of its power and popularity. James Kaplan’s magnificent 3 Shades of Blue captures how that golden era came to be, and its pinnacle with the recording of Kind of Blue. It’s a book about music, and business, and race, and heroin, and the cities that gave jazz its home, and the Black geniuses behind its rise. It’s an astonishing meditation on creativity and the strange environments where it can flourish most.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Great deep dive into a pinnacle of jazz, marred by author bias against later jazz years
- By Michael J. Anderson on 04-08-24
By: James Kaplan
-
The History of Jazz, Second Edition
- By: Ted Gioia
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 21 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 317
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 285
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 283
Ted Gioia's History of Jazz has been universally hailed as a classic - acclaimed by jazz critics and fans around the world. Now Gioia brings his magnificent work completely up-to-date, drawing on the latest research and revisiting virtually every aspect of the music, past and present. Gioia tells the story of jazz as it had never been told before, in a book that brilliantly portrays the legendary jazz players, the breakthrough styles, and the world in which it evolved. Here are the giants of jazz and the great moments of jazz history.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
An Exciting Opportunity Missed
- By Kindle Customer on 02-02-15
By: Ted Gioia
-
Miles
- The Autobiography
- By: Miles Davis
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 16 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,318
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,167
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,154
Universally acclaimed as a musical genius, Miles Davis was one of the most important and influential musicians in the world. Here, Miles speaks out about his extraordinary life. Miles: The Autobiography, like Miles himself, holds nothing back. For the first time Miles talks about his five-year silence. He speaks frankly and openly about his drug problem and how he overcame it. He condemns the racism he encountered in the music business and in American society generally. And he discusses the women in his life.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A man untroubled by his own contradictions
- By Barry on 12-07-12
By: Miles Davis
-
Herbie Hancock: Possibilities
- By: Herbie Hancock, Lisa Dickey
- Narrated by: Herbie Hancock
- Length: 12 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 636
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 568
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 565
Hancock discusses his musical influences, colorful behind-the-scenes stories, his long and happy marriage, and how Buddhism inspires him creatively and personally. Honest, enlightening, and as electrifyingly vital as the man who wrote it, Herbie Hancock promises to be an invaluable contribution to jazz literature and a must-read for fans and music lovers.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
High Marks All Round
- By Joyce on 06-21-15
By: Herbie Hancock, and others
-
How to Listen to Jazz
- By: Ted Gioia
- Narrated by: Peter Ganim
- Length: 6 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 192
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 175
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 170
In How to Listen to Jazz, award-winning music scholar Ted Gioia presents a lively introduction to one of America's premier art forms. He tells us what to listen for in a performance and includes a guide to today's leading jazz musicians. From Louis Armstrong's innovative sounds to the jazz-rock fusion of Miles Davis, Gioia covers the music's history and reveals the building blocks of improvisation. A true love letter to jazz by a foremost expert.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Kind of useless as an audiobook.
- By Mitch Foster on 02-28-20
By: Ted Gioia
-
Sophisticated Giant
- The Life and Legacy of Dexter Gordon
- By: Maxine Gordon
- Narrated by: Joe Morton, Terria Joseph, Prentice Onayemi
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 43
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
Sophisticated Giant presents the life and legacy of tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon (1923-1990), one of the major innovators of modern jazz. In a context of biography, history, and memoir, Maxine Gordon has completed the book that her late husband began, weaving his “solo” turns with her voice and a chorus of voices from past and present. Reading like a jazz composition, the blend of research, anecdote, and a selection of Dexter’s personal letters reflects his colorful life and legendary times.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Beautifully Told
- By Light Mentat on 03-23-21
By: Maxine Gordon
-
Kansas City Lightning
- The Rise and Times of Charlie Parker
- By: Stanley Crouch
- Narrated by: Kevin Kenerly
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 186
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 168
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 169
Kansas City Lightning: The Rise and Times of Charlie Parker is the first installment in the long-awaited portrait of one of the most talented and influential musicians of the twentieth century, from Stanley Crouch, one of the foremost authorities on jazz and culture in America. Throughout his life, Charlie Parker personified the tortured American artist: A revolutionary performer who used his alto saxophone to create a new music known as bebop even as he wrestled with a drug addiction that would lead to his death at the age of thirty-four.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
A Disappointment
- By Stephen on 01-04-19
By: Stanley Crouch
-
The Jazzmen
- How Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie Transformed America
- By: Larry Tye
- Narrated by: Dominic Hoffman
- Length: 16 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 23
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 20
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 20
From the New York Times bestselling author of Satchel and Bobby Kennedy, a sweeping and spellbinding portrait of the longtime kings of jazz—Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie—who, born within a few years of one another, overcame racist exclusion and violence to become the most popular entertainers on the planet.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Well Organized and Themed
- By unhae campbell on 05-23-24
By: Larry Tye
-
Saxophone Colossus
- The Life and Music of Sonny Rollins
- By: Aidan Levy
- Narrated by: Bill Andrew Quinn
- Length: 31 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 2
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 2
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 2
Sonny Rollins has long been considered an enigma. Known as the "Saxophone Colossus," he is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz improvisers of all time. His seven-decade career has been well documented, but the backstage life of the man once called "the only jazz recluse" has gone largely untold—until now. Based on more than 200 interviews with Rollins himself, family members, friends, and collaborators, as well as Rollins' personal archive, Saxophone Colossus is the comprehensive portrait of this legendary saxophonist and composer, civil rights activist and environmentalist.
By: Aidan Levy
-
Miles to Go
- By: Chris Murphy
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 39
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 19
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 19
Miles to Go is a frank and intimate exploration of Miles Davis' eccentric working life, drug habits, paranoia, depression, and subsequent recovery. Murphy explores Davis' troubled relationship with his children and the controversial role Cicely Tyson played in his life. The book also delves into the dynamics that made Davis' band work so well together, placing Davis' work in a historic, literary, and musical framework.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Miles to Go (Unabridged)
- By Matthew on 09-07-06
By: Chris Murphy
-
Listen to This
- Miles Davis and Bitches Brew
- By: Victor Svorinich
- Narrated by: John Gagnepain
- Length: 5 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 25
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 25
Listen to This stands out as the first book exclusively dedicated to Davis' watershed 1969 album, Bitches Brew. Victor Svorinich traces its incarnations and inspirations for 10-plus years before its release. The album arrived as the jazz scene waned beneath the rise of rock and roll and as Davis faced large changes in social conditions affecting the African-American consciousness.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Very thorough
- By Dave McElfresh on 04-06-19
By: Victor Svorinich
-
The Jazz Standards
- A Guide to the Repertoire
- By: Ted Gioia
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 21 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 75
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 61
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 60
Written by award-winning jazz historian Ted Gioia, this comprehensive guide offers an illuminating look at more than 250 seminal jazz compositions. In this comprehensive and unique survey, here are the songs that sit at the heart of the jazz repertoire, ranging from "Ain't Misbehavin'" and "Autumn in New York" to "God Bless the Child," "How High the Moon," and "I Can't Give You Anything But Love." Gioia includes Broadway show tunes written by such greats as George Gershwin and Irving Berlin, and classics by such famed jazz musicians as Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Duke Ellington, and John Coltrane.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Great info, but not ideal in audio format
- By Patrick on 08-30-14
By: Ted Gioia
-
Victory Is Assured
- Uncollected Writings of Stanley Crouch
- By: Stanley Crouch, Glenn Mott - editor, Jelani Cobb - introduction, and others
- Narrated by: Mirron Willis
- Length: 14 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 4
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 4
With Stanley Crouch's untimely death in 2020, American literature lost "a critic without peer" (Ta-Nehisi Coates). Born in Los Angeles in 1945, Crouch—a towering stylist, fearless columnist, and without question, one of the finest jazz critics of all time—was Rabelaisian both in stature and in intellectual appetite. Beloved yet cantankerous, Crouch delighted and enflamed the passions of his readers in equal measure, whether writing about race, politics, literature, or music.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
I'm not worthy!!!
- By Terry Horace Bhola on 02-09-25
By: Stanley Crouch, and others
-
Blues People
- Negro Music in White America
- By: LeRoi Jones
- Narrated by: Prentice Onayemi
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 80
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 67
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 66
"The path the slave took to 'citizenship' is what I want to look at. And I make my analogy through the slave citizen's music - through the music that is most closely associated with him: blues and a later, but parallel, development, jazz...[If] the Negro represents, or is symbolic of, something in and about the nature of American culture, this certainly should be revealed by his characteristic music." So says Amiri Baraka in the introduction to Blues People, his classic work on the place of jazz and blues in American social, musical, economic, and cultural history.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Very good
- By Cara Foss Arellano on 05-06-21
By: LeRoi Jones
-
Beneath The Underdog
- By: Charles Mingus
- Narrated by: Mark Ebulue
- Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 31
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 24
-
Story3.5 out of 5 stars 25
Charles Mingus is a musician, a mongrel musician who plays beautiful, who plays ugly, who plays lovely, who plays masculine, who plays feminine, who plays all sounds, loud, soft, unheard sounds, sounds, sounds, sounds.... Beneath the Underdog is the memoir of the Angry Man of jazz, Charles Mingus - the genius whose adventures began at the feet of Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Charlie Parker, and led him on a tour of every bottle, bar and bed in the world.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
It's not about music at all.
- By Amazon Customer on 05-25-23
By: Charles Mingus
-
Elements of Jazz: From Cakewalks to Fusion
- By: Bill Messenger, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Bill Messenger
- Length: 5 hrs and 59 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 714
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 622
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 617
Jazz is a uniquely American art form, one of America's great contributions to not only musical culture, but world culture, with each generation of musicians applying new levels of creativity that take the music in unexpected directions that defy definition, category, and stagnation. Now you can learn the basics and history of this intoxicating genre in an eight-lecture series that is as free-flowing and original as the art form itself.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
A Disappointingly Distorted, Myopic View Of Jazz
- By Parallax View on 08-18-13
By: Bill Messenger, and others
-
Music
- A Subversive History
- By: Ted Gioia
- Narrated by: Jamie Renell
- Length: 17 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 114
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 114
Histories of music overwhelmingly suppress stories of the outsiders and rebels who created musical revolutions and instead celebrate the mainstream assimilators who borrowed innovations, diluted their impact, and disguised their sources. In Music: A Subversive History, Ted Gioia reclaims the story of music for the riffraff, insurgents, and provocateurs. Gioia tells a 4,000-year history of music as a global source of power, change, and upheaval.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Squeezing cherry-picked facts into a simplistic narrative
- By Erik A. Ritland on 11-24-20
By: Ted Gioia
-
12 Notes
- On Life and Creativity
- By: Quincy Jones
- Narrated by: JD Jackson, Quincy Jones
- Length: 5 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1,137
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 987
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 981
Wisdom and musings on creativity and life from one of the world’s most beloved musicians, producers, and mentors, Quincy Jones. 12 Notes is a self-development guide that will affirm that creativity is a calling that can and should be answered, no matter your age or experience.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
I lived these notes with Quincy
- By Thomas Bähler on 04-29-22
By: Quincy Jones
What listeners say about Thelonious Monk
Highly rated for:
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- bdbrinker
- 08-05-20
Justice for Monk
Monk truly deserved to have this book written. After all the nonsense said about him, he deserved this. Beautiful and touching. I feel so honored to listen to his music and to understand his life through a masterful and sympathetic writer. Thank you both. Justice for Monk. And god bless Nellie.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jacob Christian Stergos
- 04-16-19
Astonishing
Robin D.G. Kelley’s achievement cannot be overstated. This is a comprehensive book that covers in detail nearly every aspect of Thelonious Monk’s life, and takes great pains to accurately and expressively contextualize his life and his music. The author’s love for his subject is unmistakable, and to be able to experience such an intimate and thorough portrait of Monk is a profound gift.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Allegra Stevens
- 06-10-21
When does the movie come out!
I really enjoyed this book. It was long but so packed with history and side stories that greatly enhanced the story of T Monk. I am not a jazzer but am interested in learning about Thelonius Monk. I have purposely sought out and listened to the pieces that the author mentions and his story makes the music great
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Corey
- 04-22-24
Long Live Monk!
Insightful, musical, a glimpse into a complex and ingenious mind. Monk’s place in the music cannon and imagination is secured!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Regina
- 04-17-22
Authoritative and well investigated bio w/analysis
Well researched. Gives an accurate biography with very thorough and specific information about dates, musical collaborators, and track listings. Reading is patient and expressive without undue dramatization as befits the text. A bit dry, but highly informative..
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Woodwork
- 08-28-24
The life of jazz in a jazzed-life
To get to know a personal icon, a man whose melody and complexity are fixed in the story of my life.
The book did not let me down and took even further into not just Monk, but the music that evokes the memories and moments of my life.
Absolutely wonderful!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- ricardo
- 12-27-17
The definitive bio of Monk
Excellent book!!! Excellent story about Mr. Monk, his devotion to his family, his generosity to fellow musicians, his tenacity and dedication to his vision of modern music. The people who surround Monk like Nelly and Nica, aa well as his associates in the music business get a fair shake in this book. Mr. Monk is examined fairly and accurately in all aspects of his life. His “eccentric “ behavior and chemical imbalance are addressed clinically yet compassionately.
Every aspect of Monk’s creative life and musical output is completely discussed. This is “The Book” on Mr. Monk. Excellent. 1000 stars
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
7 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 08-13-21
Absolutely Wonderful
I never wanted to turn it off. A beautifully written tribute to one of America's best original musicians.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- NB
- 07-21-21
Very Worth Reading
Very detailed, sometimes making it slow reading, especially at the beginning, but so much valuable and interesting information about Monk, jazz, other musicians, and the times.
Most importantly, gave me a better understanding of this complex person and genius who has influenced music so profoundly.
Enjoy.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Robert
- 09-21-22
Wonderful
I hardly ever write these reviews, but this is such a wonderful book that I had to tell everyone. I have read a lot of biographies in my life and this has to be one of the most haunting and beautiful of them all. I recommend it highly.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
5 people found this helpful