The Song of the HAWK - Coleman Hawkins

Softcover
429 pgs.
The University of Michigan Press, Publ.
Illustrated

This is the first full-length biography of Coleman Hawkins, who has been hailed as "the father of the tenor saxophone." John Chilton recounts Hawkins' lengthy career: his performances with Mamie Smith's Original Jazz Hounds, his work with the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra, his experiences with his own band, and his participation in Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic tours. Descriptions of Hawkins' recordings --which span some forty-five years-- together with well-chosen anecdotes gleaned from interviews, letters, articles, books, and liner notes, provide a revealing portrait of a consummate professional at work.