Bunny Berigan - Elusive Legend of Jazz

Softcover
368 pgs.
Louisiana State University Press, Publ.
Illustrated

In his short lifetime (1908-1942), Bernard "Bunny" Berigan performed on more than six hundred recordings and served as a direct link between Louis Armstrong and later musicians such as Dizzy Gillespie, Clifford Brown, and Wynton Marsalis. Berigan lent his uninhibited jazz style to the big bands of Benny Goodman, Hal Kemp, and Tommy Dorsey, and was in demand as a studio musician for vocalists Billie Holiday, Bing Crosby, and Mildred Bailey. He also formed his own band in 1937 and recorded his most famous hit and theme song, "I Can't Get Started". Robert Dupuis draws on hundreds of interviews with family, friends, and colleagues to present a fascinating and entertaining look at the fast-paced career and personal life of this jazz great.