One Oclock Jump

Softcover
274 Pages
Beacon Press Publishers

Though the Blue Devils were on the scene in various forms from 1923 to 1933, the legacy of this fascinating jazz band has been largely overlooked. Together they were a seminal band, and individuals who played with them--including trumpeter Oran "Hot Lips" Page, saxophonist Lester "Pres" Young, bandleader Count Basie, and writer Ralph Ellison (when he was a teenager)--went on to become celebrated artists of the twentieth century. Now, utilizing personal interviews, government records, and lively newspaper accounts of various performances, cultural historian Douglas Henry Daniels explains the importance of the band to both the individual musicians and the larger American cultural landscape.