B G On The Record A Bio-Discography of Benny Goodman

Octavo, [25cm/10inches], gilt-embossed navy blue binding w/ mylar-protected dust jacket, pp. 691. Illustrated with b-w halftones. Please feel free to inquire as to particulars and/or additional photographs. Coonor's obituary notes: "Donald Russell Connor, who went from his carefree years to the sober world of banking, working his way up to vice president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, a jazz buff who wrote four books on Benny Goodman and became pals with drummer Gene Krupa, died Wednesday at age 92. He was one of the original homeowners in Levittown. Russ, as he was known to family and friends, assembled one of the foremost collections of big-band music - buying, selling and trading records with fellow enthusiasts as far away as Switzerland and Thailand. A drummer himself, Russ met Gene Krupa in 1936 at Atlantic City's Steel Pier and kept up a friendship with the famed drummer until Krupa's death in 1971. Russ had been a fan of Benny Goodman since Russ' teenage years and finally got to meet his hero in the 1950s after attending numerous performances of the clarinetist's big bands. Russ compiled Goodman's music in books published between 1958 and 1994, starting with BG - Off the Record. The books included personal memoirs and behind-the-scenes color. He had access to Goodman's personal archive as well as to collections of Goodmanania by researchers and specialists worldwide. The final book, Wrappin' It Up, catalogs hundreds of previously unknown recordings along with never-before-published photographs". In exceptionally good condition.…