5 comments about Jazz Composition: Theory and Practice.

1. This is a great book. My daughter found it very easy to read.



2. This excellent book realy help me to teach modern jazz theory and composition on Jezek Conservatory Prague.I recommend this book to all my students.



3. It starts with melody, and what is cool has exercises throughout, so you can really learn on the way... if you are interesting with jazz theory, I suggest this book, and also "modern jazz voicings" compliments it very well.



4. This is a great book for those who know a respectable amount of jazz theory and want to understand the practice and art of jazz composition. Throughout the book, you are given exercises and opportunities to write your own pieces and comes with a CD. Although this book teaches you modal harmony, chromatic harmony, blues writing, ect., there is no substitute for a jazz composition professional teacher who would be valuable to check your work and offer criticism and suggestions.
   
   Writing pieces on your own is basically made easier in terms of form and structure.



5. This book is an excellent guide for the beginning to intermediate jazz composer. This book assumes some basic knowledge of jazz style and notation. The resorces are are excellent for jazz harmonization and melodic composition both tonal and modal. This book does not, however, go into much depth in regards to part writing for an ensemble. I think this book is good preparation for Sammy Nestico's "The Complete Arranger" book.

4 comments about Best of Wes Montgomery: Guitar (Signature Licks).

1. Wolf tears it up in this one. I now have three of his books: 101 jazz licks, Wes Montgomery, and Charlie Christian. This one is by far my favorite of the three.
   
   All of Wolf's books are dead accurate. I have played his cds and origional recordings side by side and the match is identical. He and his band have got every note, every cymbol crash, every lick, everything down identically. The tabs are also right on. Wolf is the only one I've found who gets tabbing correct.
   
   Buy ALL of his books. Not only is he an amazing guitarist, he is also a totally humble man. He even gave me some pointers that have helped me considerably when I first met him at a John Pissano/Henry Johnson gig at Spazios in Sherman Oaks.



2. This is a really well done transcription of these Wes Mongomery tunes. The tablature is very accurate and easy to work with. The accompanying CD is also good help for working on these solos.



3. First of all, Wolf Marshall is an awesome guitarist. To be able to mimic the syles of so many legendary guitar heroes is nothing short of unbelievable. This book gave me insight into Wes songs I already knew and helped me correct some of the mistakes I was making, after learning them by ear. Mi Cosa, for example, uses the original Riverside version, I learned the Verve version, which was done with strings. I suggest, whenever possible, listen to actual Wes recordings. Wolf is good, but he definitely ain't Wes. There is a difference in the exact nuances, phrasing and touch that Wes gets. I've been playing for 30+ years and am impressed with the knowledge I've been able to gain from Wolf's books. The transcriptions are first-rate and accurate. I also recommend his George Benson and Pat Martino books. This is more than worth the money, it's a real bargain. Buy and enjoy.



4. This is the best value for money I've ever got on a guitar book, at only $15.61 from Amazon!
   Great music, accurate transcription.
   I just keep on playing the cd, and reading and working at the book.
   If you are interested in improving your playing, this is a must!
   
   
   NEW UPDATE 11-oct-2007
   1 year later I'm still enjoying this book and cd!
   Slowly progressing through Missile Blues and Sundown.
   I can play the heads for both songs, now moving into the solos.
   Trying to speed up my reading of notes.
   Still using both tabs and notes, as I reckon tab is still essential because the guitar sounds so different depending on the frets used.

1 comments about Exploring Jazz Piano - Volume 1 (The Schott Pop Styles Series).

1. This book assumes you're at least an intermediate pianist, but it also assumes you may have had only standard, sightreading classical music piano lessons. It initially goes over how to swing eighth notes, build chord triads, and so forth, but pretty quickly gets into playing music based on pentatonic scales, playing walking bass lines, using fake books, working with 7th and 9th chords, and much more. In other words, you aren't learning to sightread jazz music, you're learning to be a jazz musician. There are also some jazz standards in here to learn, but not just that--Tim Richards explains how they were created, how to solo over them, and how to improvise, and then on the CD he not only plays the music so you can hear what he's showing, but also you can get just the drum and bass part so you can sort of play with a jazz combo by yourself. Volume 2 builds on this volume, but also be aware of "Improvising Blues Piano," because this book (volume 1) builds on that book, and you might be best off starting with that book.
   
   My only complaint, but it's not enough to ding the book a star in this review, is that the binding came unglued on one side almost immediately.

3 comments about Lady Sings the Blues the 50th Anniversary Edition (Harlem Moon Classics).

1. The only thing that saved this book is Billie's personality, which oozes off every page. I found it really hard to get through this book because it doesn't read chronologically---events are thrown all over the place and there are too many people named throughout the book (as if she just wanted to give them a shout-out--so that they could be remembered because she cared about people in that way) but its very difficult to keep up with so many names. It doesn't dig too deep into her drug habit or relationships...and some things are believed to be fictionalized so that the book could sell. Nonetheless, I have to give the book three stars because if anything, it introduced me to Billie. She was sassy, charming, real, and plain beautiful inside and out despite her life experiences. I'm very unfortunate to have not lived in that musical era...when artists truly sang from the heart with passion. I would have loved to meet her. In fact, after reading this novel, I feel like everytime I hear one of her songs, we will have a connection. You don't have to buy this particular book, but you should read up on her and try to listen to some of her music...just to keep her memory alive.



2. I have a deep love and respect for some of the most influential female jazz and soul singers of our time, like Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn, Dinah Washington, Carmen McRae, Lena Horne, and last but not least, Billie Holiday. In LADY SINGS THE BLUES, Holiday recalls some of the most resonant memories of her turbulent past--the good, the [mostly] bad and the [frequently] ugly. From the very start, Billie Holiday (birth name Eleanora Fagan) born to thirteen year old Sadie Fagan and sixteen year old Clarence Holiday, had a very difficult life. The young girl saw much in the rough streets of Baltimore, Maryland, as a call girl, a jailbird and a spitfire with a vey hot temper.
   
   Billie didn't even consider a career in singing, and her introduction as a vocalist was (perhaps) accidental, but definitely fate. Her descent into drug addiction, jailtime, turbulent relationships (with both men and women) and the great antipathy she faced in the storm of racism, jealousy and gossip made for a very adverse life, on and off of the stage. Some of the greatest moments of her career are documented here, as told to writer William Dufty. We learn the stories behind songs like "Strange Fruit," that are songs she created and truly lived and experienced, before setting them to lyric and melody. Though, I never heard Billie Holiday's speaking voice, I heard it throughout this piece, and I can see why it was brought to the screen, as a film. I haven't seen it, so I honestly have no idea how well it translated as a movie, with Diana Ross. Though, I have heard it was fantastic.
   
   There is also a companion CD, that goes with the memoir, to mark the 50th anniversary of its original release (1956-2006). Perhaps that's why I had to take one star away from the package, as a whole. You really can't read a book like LADY SINGS THE BLUES and then hear other artists covering the songs that Billie really created. There is no comparison, even though musicians like Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds are featured on the album (doing a respectable job of STRANGE FRUIT). It's just not the same. Yet, if the CD was excluded from this 50th anniversary reissue, I would give the book (on its own) five stars, without hesitation. Highly reccomended!



3. Nice reissue of the 1956 original. Billie was and still is an American jazz icon. For me the CD stuck in the back of the book was a wonderful bonus. 16 year old Renee Olstead singing "Good Morning Heartache" just blows me away! She has the potential to become another great jazz icon!

No comments about Trumpet around the Corner: The Story of New Orleans Jazz (American Made Music Series).

2 comments about Complete Jazz Guitar Method: Intermediate Jazz Guitar (Complete Jazz Guitar Method).

1. This is the second of a series of 4 books that cover arpeggio, modal, and chord melody theory for playing jazz guitar. They don't touch on the CAGED system at all which is a slight weakness, but these books are a great all-around quick education. I think each of these books is easily worth what you would get from a couple guitar lessons. A great deal.



2. I feel that this series is most worthwhile for any student on his own or one being guided by a teacher. I jumped right into the first of the series and am enjoying the method and the results. The Intermediate book and CD appears to simply enhance the Beginning Jazz Guitar book and move on to greater depth. My only small criticism of the series(4 in all) is that they should include a DVD to further augment their instruction in all 4 of the books and not just with the Beginning Jazz text. Nice series overall. Ps. A good selection of practice pieces as well.

5 comments about John Coltrane: His Life and Music (The Michigan American Music Series).

1. This is a nearly perfect biography in every way. It is comprehensive, objective, and written with a good understanding and appreciation of Coltrane's music. The tone is scholarly without being too dry -- a difficult balance to achieve.
   The book is fairly long, providing in-depth coverage of Coltrane's life and music from his early development through his controversial late work. There is a good balance between discussion of his musical and personal development. There are lots of quotes included from people who knew him and worked with him.
   For non-musicians, the theory and analysis may be intimidating and un-necessary. For musicians, it is good reading, but non-musicians may not understand some parts that deal strictly with music theory. I don't really think there is any way to explain the significane of Contrane's music in any depth without going into this type of explanation, so I cannot count this as criticism. How can one explain the significance of Giant Steps, for example, without describing the innovative harmonic movement by thirds? How can you give a good discussion of Interstellar Space without analyzing specific examples of motivic development? For non-jazz musicians or non-musicians, these parts can probably be skipped when they go over their heads without significant loss to the value of the book, but perhaps they should at least skim through them to get an idea of why Coltrane is such an important figure in jazz history.
   There is adequate criticism and praise for Coltrane's music from many different, reliable sources included throughout. For example, McCoy Tyner's displeasure with the direction Coltrane took with his groups in the mid-60's is included, along with quotes from people who loved playing with him at that time.
   Overall, this biography is objective, comprehensive, and enlightening to anyone interested in jazz or in the development of a remarkable talent in general. Very much recommended.



2. Porter's biography is a detailed exploration of Coltrane's musical development, consisting of extensive analyses of selected examples of Coltrane's music, together with what reads like a patchwork of biographical details (much of which is newly researched and not included in other Coltrane biographies). The latter dimension of the work was apparently an afterthought which Porter started working on in 1994 after having spent the previous fourteen years working on the musical analysis (he indicates this in his preface to the book). The analysis of the music is challenging and would probably be inaccessible for someone who does not have some knowledge of music theory.
   
   The biographical portion of the book seems to be well researched and explores parts of Coltrane's life which his other biographies have not delved into (although Porter does rely significantly on two previous biographies - one by J.C. Thomas, the other by C.O. Simpkins, to flesh out his own research). The first chapter, titled "Southern Roots," is an exploration of Coltrane's familial roots and the origins of the Coltrane name. A family geneology, photos of family marriage licenses, the 1920 census of High Point, North Carolina (where Coltrane grew up) and even Coltrane's birth certificate are included. The author then explores Coltrane's childhood through stories recounted by family members and friends who knew Coltrane as a boy. Included in this section is a remarkable photo of Coltrane's grade 3 class, in which the young Coltrane already has a look of concentrated seriousness.
   
   Porter then goes into a lengthy exploration of Coltrane's early musical development through a discussion of Coltrane's encounters with books and teachings the saxophonist used to develop his obviously vast musical knowledge. This section, which dominates the first third of the book, is highlighted by interviews with other musicians, particularly Jimmy Heath, who knew Coltrane during his musically formative years, and by Porter's insights into some of the sources of Coltrane's playing. This section is definitely one of the strengths of the book.
   
   During the second third, Porter makes the usual stops, touching on Coltrane's substance abuse, his membership in the Miles Davis Quintet and his apprenticeship with Thelonious Monk.
   
   The final third of the book begins with Coltrane's final split with Davis and ends at the present time with an examination of the saxophonist's influence on contemporary music. In between, the formation and eventual dissolution of Coltrane's classic quartet is outlined. Within this last third is Porter's most intense analysis of Coltrane's music, highlighted by a very detailed exploration of one of the peaks of his art, "A Love Supreme."
   
   Another chapter, called "The Man:'A Quiet, Shy Guy,'" in the final section presents quotes and interviews drawn from a variety of sources about aspects of Coltrane's personality along with his views on philosophy, religion, race and politics. This chapter, although useful, is somewhat awkward and might better have been integrated into the other chapters. As it is, it highlights one of the problems with Porter's book - it tries to be too many things and does not integrate them into an organic whole.
   
   A particularly valuable part of the book is a forty page chronology which documents all of Coltrane's known performances and interviews. This section alone, might make the book worth purchasing for some readers.
   
   In summary, if you are looking for an analysis of Coltrane's music, this is the place to look. If it's the biography you are interested in, this book cannot be ignored because it presents details not mentioned elsewhere but it still falls short. Porter's writing is dry and academic, which is useful for presenting the facts of an artist's life or for analysing his work, but it fails to evoke a sense of the man and the world he lived in. For that, a writer with a warmer, more imaginative style is needed.
   
   The definitive Coltrane biography still remains to be written, but Porter's book is worth holding onto in the meantime.



3. To fully appreciate this book the reader should certainly be able to read music. There are a multitude of scores that the reader should understand to be able to get the most out of this book. However even if you can't read music (As I can't) there is a lot to interest one in this book. Coltrane came from the Rocky Mount Section of NC. It seems ike he had an interesting, stable Family Life, though the Father does not seemed to have lived with him. Moved to Philly after High School, where he did Graduate. He was in the Service in the Mid 40s, and surprisingly was in an integrated Navy Band. I thought the services were segregated at that time.
   There are also details of his two marriages.
   If you can read music or at least understand scoring this book is highly recommended. If you are like me you will still probably enjoy it.



4. It's unfortunate for John Coltrane that such a poor writer decided to take up the pen to sketch out his life. The writing of Lewis Porter is incredibly stilted, weak, and generally poor. There is absolutely no style to his treatment and the detailing of Coltrane's life is thin at best. While the book appears to have the guise of a linear arc, it meanders, it flails, it fails.
   
   One walks away wondering who John Coltrane was. The cursory attention given to the personal details of his life, especially his later life, is unforgivable. Yeah, he liked sweets, so what? We are given hardly any personal details of his life in the 60's when his fame was at its height. At one point Porter casually mentions a Sheila Coltrane, who apparently was an illegitimate child of John's, and then drops it. I mean, really? He couldn't do a little more research and fill the reader in? Towards the end of his narrative Porter scores the ultimate cheap trick and gives the reader a chapter containing only quotes by other people about Coltrane--I mean who does this? I'll tell you who--A lazy biographer who's looking for filler, and can't be bothered to do what legitimate biographers do and weave the quotes into the text.
   
   The real meat of the book is in the analysis of the music. Porter devotes countless pages to breaking down minute details of Coltrane's music, producing sheet music, charts, and yawns...
   
   I'm sure Porter's scrutiny of the music will appeal to some serious music fans, but don't buy this book if you are interested in learning alot about John Coltrane.
   
   The details say 448 pages, but the actual text is only 300 pages with the rest devoted to bibliography, notes, a timeline of his shows (???), and an index.



5. An excellent book that includes thorough analysis and scores from Trane's solos (imagine that, a book about a musician that actually focuses on the guy's music). Chasin' the Trane was full of trite, silly speculation in some places and clearly was not written by someone with a working knowledge of music. THIS book deals with many facts about Trane's music. Porter carefully breaks down Coltrane's "methodology" and shows how, even though the aesthetic of the music changed drastically after 1965, he was actually adhering to the pentatonic scales in thirds approach (albeit without steady rhythm and harmonic anchors). Include many transcripts of pieces ranging from Fifth House (early) to Venus (late). If you are a musician who wants a serious study of Coltrane then THIS is the book to buy.

5 comments about Tons of Runs: For the Contemporary Pianist.

1. Just when I was thinking, not another LICK BOOK! Andy Laverne has actually surpassed most other works in this category, as he organizes the book in a quick reference fashion. I keep finding myself turning back to it if I'm desperate for some ideas. You can take on "run" and usually create about 5 more if you're creative enough ;)



2. Run books are what they are. This one covers multiple difficulty levels, so some runs will disappoint experienced players, and while others will daunt beginners. Although I like the use of chapters, I wish the book went one level deeper with its categories. To digest the material, I skip around, mostly through the lengthy first chapter, with pencil in hand and assign runs to my own categories such as "blues", "ascending pentatonic sequence", "descending diminished sequence" and "ascending augmented sequence". It would help beginners if the book described a technique, such as a diminished sequence, and then gave examples of runs using that technique in order of increasing complexity/difficulty, like Bert Ligon does in his books. Armed with the concepts, a beginner could then study examples, embellish them, and use that knowledge to create original material. Then again, being forced to categorize techniques myself saved me from my own laziness. The material is usually generic, which befits this kind of book. Quirky examples would be better suited to books devoted to specific artists/periods/sub-genres. For usable material, truth-in-advertising, helpful (but not perfect) organization, and value, this book gets my recommendation.



3. One reviewer said that there weren't too many runs contained in the book, and goes on to speculate on LaVerne's motives for putting the book out. I can only guess that that reviewer is the author or publisher of a competitive book.
   
   "Tons of Runs" does deliver tons of runs. If you are a jazz player with less than a decade or two of serious woodshedding under your belt, you will find new things to add to your vocabulary. It starts off with one-bar dominant fragments, progressing through major sounds (^, 6, etc), and finally gets to the big, impressive ii V I licks toward the end.
   
   There is a great wealth of vocabulary to be gained in this book. I think the size of the fragments is perfect; the author seems to have a clear idea of how much constitutes a neat melodic idea without becoming too elaborate. Where most lick books contain the kind of stuff that you learn and then wait for the opportunity to play, and transcriptions leave you wondering how to use your favorite player's dialect in your own playing, "Tons of Runs" is really teaching you a lot of jazz "words" that you can use as you please. This book has helped me as much as any other book on the jazz language.
   
   I play guitar, and the notation presents no conflicts for me. Most of the examples are treble clef only, and they are written in the middle of the staff, usually in 3 keys each. Most runs don't even have any double-stops, so this book is really suitable for anyone who can read treble clef.



4. These "runs" are just short phrases that any serious jazz musician already knows, or can easily conceive on his/her own. For a beginning jazz improviser this book will be helpful, but for any experienced player the material is uninspiring. They do provide good material for sight-reading. Much of the language is simplistic so if you are looking to expand your harmonic knowledge this book will not help you. I would (and have) recommended this book for my students.



5. Honestly, I don't know what possessed me to buy a book of licks. I guess I was fascinated by the number of rave reviews from musicians (presumably) who saw their chops improve because of this book. As a relatively new (2 years) jazz pianist, I'm still not quite settled in my ways. I've had some success with some song books like The Real Book: Sixth Edition and instruction books like The Jazz Piano Book, as well as drills from Virtuoso Pianist in 60 Exercises - Complete: Piano Technique and even transcriptions such as The Bill Evans Trio - Volume 1 (1959-1961): Featuring Transcriptions of Bill Evans (Piano), Scott LaFaro (Bass) and Paul Motian (Drums), so a "lick book" seemed to be the one thing I was missing. Something clicked in my mind, and when I had to pick up a jazz course textbook from Amazon due to local lack of availability, I threw this and a couple others in the cart, more as an exploratory (okay, call it impulse) purchase than anything else. This is nothing but a vaguely grouped series of melodic ideas, riffs, licks, arpeggios, shortened arpeggios, harmonic triplets, whatever, page after page after mind-deadening page. I agree it is nice to have each listed in three different keys, but I disagree that the lack of printed instructions is a blessing and not a curse. (Less is sometimes more in jazz, I know, but more is sometimes more, too.) In short, I don't know what to do with this book. I'm not sure where it fits into a practice routine, and I can't see taking it to band practice (for example) and getting any use out of it. ("Hold on guys, I think there's an E7 lick in here that's pretty cool. Hold on a sec...Now where is it...") My piano instructor suggested just taking one or two licks every now and then and trying to work them into a song after practicing them. So I suppose I will eventually take my Real Book, flip through this and match up some of the chord progressions, and then attempt a lick from the LaVerne book while rendering a song, but only because I don't know what else to do with it. Ultimately, I'll get some use out of this, because that's the type of person I am, but I can't think of a single serious musician I would recommend this book to. (So if you're not a serious musician and just want to sound predictable, but reasonably good, reasonably quickly, maybe this is for you.) Just the same, in looking to see when this book was written (composed?), I happened to notice there is no copyright mark anywhere in the book. Now I'm thinking about doing some transposing and publishing my own book of overrated riffs.

4 comments about Comprehensive Technique for Jazz Musicians: For All Instruments.

1. A common theme across all of Bert Ligon's books is that they are comprehensive and rooted in the reality of jazz. What do I mean by that? They are comprehensive in that their coverage of the subject area is full: you have an excellent single source of information. Rooted in reality? Whilst they cover the theory of jazz they do it in a practical way: a lot of analysis of actual improvisations has been done, and is used to illustrate the ideas. There are many exercises and the examples can be used as exercises. Any of the books could easily double as a source of jazz vocabulary.
   
   You can see the contents pages elsewhere in Amazon. Each chapter explains things clearly.
   
   It is not a mistake to buy any of his books. I have four. Years ago a departing friend said to me `I'm glad I met you.' That's how I feel about these books: they are a Jazz-send.
   
   Whereas `thin' jazz tutors mention particular techniques such as Chromatic Embellishment or Neighbor Tones, and cover them in at most two pages this book covers all of its subjects in great depth, and with many exercises and examples.
   
   It is an excellent book of musical jazz technique.
   
   The chapter on Outline Exercises covers what Bert Ligon refers to as Outlines. These are three basic structures that recur with a mind-blowing frequency in actual improvisations by great jazz players. Think of them as some of the dots in a dot-to-dot drawing: the great players find ways to vary joining the dots (using the techniques covered elsewhere in the book). Again there are hundreds of examples taken form real solos. The reason I mention this is that `Outlines' also appears in the Volume I of Jazz Theory Resources and are the majority of the Connecting Chords With Linear Harmony. However, they are not `cut and paste' of a Chapter. Instead you learn a whole lot more of the power of Outlines with each book. The Outlines are only a small part of this book.
   
   If I lost this book I'd buy it again instantly.



2. Definitely on my top 10 of instructional books!! Such vast amount of material. I shouldn't be writing - I should be working on the stuff in this book! Enjoy!



3. Wow... just wow. I have been living with this book for many months now. It has been my main practice resource during that time. I've been a musician for over 30 years, received my college degree in music, studied with professional musicians, bought hundreds of books, watched dozens of DVD courses... All in the attempt to learn the elusive black art of jazz improvisation. What I learned during that time is that MOST of the best improvisers simply aren't very good teachers. At least not for the way my brain works. This book works for me. Step by step, everything is explained. And each step comes with many relevant exercises.
   
   My ability to improvise has soared since working thru this book.!
   
   There is so much material in here, I could literally study from only this book for the rest of my life and still not fully exhaust all of the potential information and lessons in here.
   
   HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for anyone who wants a step by step break down of jazz improv and on-target exercised to take you there.



4. I'm sure this is a great book
   and aspiring jazz musicians should be able to read music but .. i would not have bought this book had i known there is no tablature
   
   if you dont read music
   dont buy it

5 comments about This Jazz Man.

1. I love this book! My son is 20 months and loves this book the rhythm of the words, the numbers, the clapping the sounds of the instruments. What would be excellent if there was an auditory accompaniment to the book. A taping of someone reading the book who can demonstrate the sounds or even better a taping that included musical instruments playing.
   I know a lot of people would LOVE to hear it as well and it would be an excellent teaching tool. Please forward this to the appropriate individuals and if possible keep me updated on the release date of the cd. Thank YOU for writing such an awesome, entertaining and needed book!



2. This is such a wonderful book! I used it in my K-2 art classes as an introduction to Jazz music followed by a lesson on making art with a Jazz theme. The students loved the rhythm and rhyming patterns in the book and caught on to it quickly. It follows the tune of "This old man, he played one...." The illustrations are light and colorful with beautiful patterns and textures (all which the students incorporated into their artwork). Short bios on the jazz musicians at the back of the book were a nice way to wrap up the reading portion of our lesson and made the book really come to life. Highly recommended for anyone who loves jazz, children's books, illustrations, etc. A really fun read!



3. This is the perfect book for any child, jazz lover or not. In fact, it is really two books in one. The first is a jazzy recasting of that familiar childhood tune "This Old Man" with the eponymous geezer replaced by the great men of Jazz: Armstrong scats, Bojangles taps, and Mingus is among us. Kids will love Ehrhardt's textual rendering of musical sounds that stand in for the non-sensical "knick knack paddywhack," and be mesmerized by Roth's perfectly paired illustrations (which feature a fun game of 'find the jazz mouse' to boot.)
   The second book here is the biographical sketches presented as the encore to the joyous rhyming beginning. Ehrhardt has a knack for finding interesting biographical facts of these men who changed the way we listen to music.
   Bravo!



4. this book presents the soundtrack! All of these giants on one stage. I love it, but more importantly, my three year old son is OBSESSED. We read it 5 times a day. It is a great read aloud book in which children and adults can exchange riffs. The scatting musical sounds of each musician provide ample opportunity for improvisation while the bios of each player gives a nod to tradition and history. My son has mastered counting to ten with this book because it is so fun. He also loves looking for the hidden jazz mouse.



5. we got this book as a gift and thought it was pretty cute, but it has turned out to be one of our daughter's favorites! she even tries to snap along and she's only 14 months! i think the part we'll eventually like best is the bit of history included - there's a great description of the 9 jazz musicians showcased in the book. it's a lot of fun to read and there is a lot of interaction possible. so i've been giving it as a gift to everyone!