Strayhorn: An Illustrated Life

by A. Alyce Claerbaut (Editor), David Schlesinger (Editor), Ramsey Lewis (Foreword by)

Overview

“This lush paean to the composer explores the challenges he faced of being both black and gay, and his commitment to his own four freedoms.” —The New York Times

Strayhorn: An Illustrated Life is a stunning collection of essays, photographs, and ephemera celebrating Billy Strayhorn, one of the most significant yet under-appreciated contributors to 20th century American music. Released in commemoration of Strayhorn's centennial, this luxurious coffee-table book offers intimate details of the composer's life from musicians, scholars, and Strayhorn's closest relatives.

Perhaps best known for his 28-year collaborative role as Duke Ellington's "writing and arranging companion," Strayhorn has emerged in recent years as an even more meritorious force in shaping the jazz canon. Strayhorn begins by describing Billy's abusive upbringing and early success, and goes on to cover his music, family, intellectual pursuits, involvement with civil rights, and open homosexuality.

Strayhorn features contributions from Strayhorn's biographer David Hajdu, film director Rob Levi, music scholar Walter van de Leur, as well as commentary from jazz greats like Lena Horne, Clark Terry, Dianne Reeves, Nancy Wilson, Terell Stafford, Herb Jeffries, and more. With lush photography and rare memorabilia like handwritten scores, this is a book to be treasured by jazz aficionados and music lovers everywhere. Enthralling and visually captivating, Strayhorn: An Illustrated Life lauds a beloved jazz legend and captures a prodigious legacy that will influence generations to come.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781932841985
Publisher:	Agate
Publication date:	10/20/2015
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	9.40(w) x 11.40(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

A. Alyce Claerbaut served as an administrator at Northeastern Illinois Universityuntil her retirement in 2002. She is the president of Billy Strayhorn Songs, Inc., a family-owned music publishing company. Claerbaut has sung professionally and is an active jazz advocate and promoter. In 2011, she was named "Chicagoan of the Year" in Jazz by the Chicago Tribune.

David Schlesinger is a writer and editor living in California.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for Strayhorn: An Illustrated Life , edited by A. Alyce Claerbaut and David Schlesinger:

"A posthumous corrective, belatedly giving Strayhorn his due as master composer and pioneer of equal rights." — Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune

"This book will be an enjoyable read for knowledgeable jazz fans and neophytes alike." — Downbeat magazine

"This brimming tribute gives immensely talented yet too-little-recognized Strayhorn his due, gracing us with his mantra, 'Ever up and onward.'" — Booklist , starred review

"A gorgeous coffee-table book dedicated to the life and work of Billy Strayhorn, the wonderful jazz composer best known for his collaborations with Duke Ellington. Packed with photographs, sheet music and recollections from Strayhorn’s many friends, this book will make you want to listen to the great man’s music." — June Thomas, The Book Reader , NY 1 Time Warner Cable News

"A luxuriously illustrated new book is dedicated to the story of one of jazz’s most influential, yet overlooked, artists." — Michael Ruscoe, BookTrib

"Readers with even the slightest interest in jazz will be delighted with the endlessly fascinating array of visual treats and star-studded reminiscences that tenderly pay tribute to an often overlooked yet extremely important figure in jazz history.” — Erin O. Romanyshyn, Library Journal , starred review

"A stunning collection of essays, photographs and ephemera celebrating the legend. Not to be missed! " — Alan W. Petrucelli, Examiner.com

Praise for Billy Strayhorn :

"Billy Strayhorn was always the most unselfish, the most patient, and the most imperturbable, no matter how dark the day. I am indebted to him for so much of my courage since 1939. He was my listener, my most dependable appraiser, and as a critic he would be the most clinical, but his background—both classical and modern—was an accessory to his own good taste and understanding." — Duke Ellington

"It made us all think a little differently about what we were doing." — Benny Carter

"Strayhorn is like Beethoven—every note he wrote seems inevitable." — Cliff Colnot , principal conductor, Civic Orchestra of Chicago

"To me [Billy Strayhorn] is the boss of the arrangers." — Quincy Jones

"Billy was the source of my consciousness raising.... I had to learn to accept myself first, and that's what Billy helped me do." — Lena Horne

"That's all I did - that's all I ever did - try to do what Billy Strayhorn did." — Gil Evans

"All those sevenths—man, I never heard anything like those things until him." — Dizzy Gillespie

"When Strayhorn came on the scene, he just blew us away." — Gerry Mulligan

"Strayhorn had created a personal musical style in which he sought and found refuge. His music at the same time reflected beauty and conflict, and allowed for multiple readings." — Walter van de Leur, author of Something to Live For

From the Publisher

★ 11/15/2015
Having already composed one of jazz's most beloved ballads, "Lush Life," at age 16, the prodigious Billy Strayhorn (1915–67) became Duke Ellington's "writing and arranging companion" in 1938. Over the next quarter-century, he penned many of the Duke's most famous tunes, yet died in relative obscurity without having been credited for much of his life's work. It was only after family members enacted a clause of the copyright law that ownership of his works assumed their rightful place in his family's holdings. Since then—and since David Hajdu's 1997 biography, Lush Life, was published—there has been renewed interest in Strayhorn's legacy, which is presented here in two distinct sections: "Musical Orbits," written by Strayhorn's niece, examines Billy's early life and success as a musician, and "Moral Freedoms" discusses the implications of his openly gay lifestyle and involvement with the civil rights movement. Interspersed throughout are well-placed liner notes, photographs, facsimiles of scores and other ephemera, as well as interviews with family, friends, and fellow musicians. VERDICT Readers with even the slightest interest in jazz will be delighted with the endlessly fascinating array of visual treats and star-studded reminiscences that tenderly pay tribute to an often overlooked yet extremely important figure in jazz history.—Erin O. Romanyshyn, Frances Morrison Central Lib., Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

Library Journal