The field of Popular Music Studies is growing, but still lacks some basic reference materials. The Chronology of American Popular Music, 1899-2000 fills this gap by offering a comprehensive overview of the field. It will be a must-own for libraries and individuals interested in this growing field of research.
Biography
Frank Hoffmann served as Editor for the Encyclopedia of Recorded Sound, 2nd Edition, just published by Routledge. It has already received a "starred" review by Library Journal, a high accolade for any reference resource. In addition to this work Hoffmann has authored or coauthored over 25 music reference works, many of which are considered standard items in the field.
"An apt, alternative title for Mandel’s engaging and enlightening triple portrait could be "Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Avant-Garde?" Weaving together provocative insight and personal experience, he has found a layman-friendly way of explaining three of the most challenging and enduringly experimental icons of modern jazz—and it’s a way that leads right back to the music."
-Ashley Kahn, author of A Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane’s Signature Album
"Howard Mandel has readily accepted the white man’s burden, that is, decoding the jazz avant-garde through the thoughtful, straightforward and in-depth analysis of three major figures. Personal yet scholarly, Howard lives the jazz life like he writes it—quite well."
-Nutch Myers, author of The Boy Who Cried Freebird: Rock & Roll Fables and Sonic Storytelling
"Howard Mandel approaches the vast musical imaginations of these three men with the immersed abandon with which a bird must approach air or a fish, water. At once insightfully critical and personal, Miles, Ornette, Cecil will be a wonderful read for anyone who likes books about serious music by serious writers."
-A. B. Spellman, poet and author of Four Jazz Lives (formally Four Lives in the Bebop Business)
