More Dialogues in Swing: Intimate Conversations With the Stars of the Big Band Era

Book by Hall, Fred

Hall, host of the syndicated radio show Swing Thing , presents transcripts of recent interviews with singers, instrumentalists, and band leaders associated with the Big Band era--figures such as Les Brown, Tony Bennett, and Alvino Rey. Although discussions with Steve Allen, "Sweets" Edison, and Teddy Wilson provide substantial information, the interviews generally suffer from a lack of editing and uneven quality. For example, interviewee Harry James responds with noncommittal one-liners and Kay Starr discusses her weight problems. Because of the small talk and lack of new information, this is not an important title. Better are Gunther Schuller's The Swing Era: The Development of Jazz, 1933-1945 ( LJ 1/89) and Albert McCarthy's Big Band Jazz ( LJ 8/74).
-Paul Baker, CUNA Inc., Madison, Wis.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.