Spooky Season Reads

While searching for vintage guitars on the internet, Zeke Schein came across what he believed was a photograph of one of the most influential blues musicians of all time. Schein, both a fan and historian of the Delta Blues, suspected that the image depicted the enigmatic Robert Johnson. His attempts to authenticate it inspired vitriolic debates among blues aficionados about its legitimacy. Schein's fascinating experiences documenting its history are entwined with his own journey of discovery and his unwavering belief in the truth of the image.

The great American composer George Gershwin was a product of the energetic Jazz Age city of New York. Yet Pittsburgh may have been his adopted town, through road tours of his Broadway shows, his appearances as a concert pianist, and his myriad associates with ties to the Steel City. Meticulously researched, Gershwin in Pittsburgh chronicles these surprisingly consequential connections. Theatrical venues such as the Nixon and Alvin Theatres and colleagues like Ned Wayburn, Oscar Levant, George S. Kaufman, Dolores Costello, Fritz Reiner, and Pandro S. Berman are all spotlighted. Most revealing are the visits Gershwin personally made to the city--as accompanist to vaudeville star Nora Bayes, during his Rhapsody in Blue tours with the Paul Whiteman and Leo Reisman orchestras, and for his 1933 guest appearance with the Pittsburgh Symphony.

Milwaukee's jazz scene has forever stood in the shadow of Chicago's illustrious institution, but it stands strong. Cream City has produced a wealth of talent, attracted top-notch transplants, and hosted legends like Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Herbie Hancock, Billie Holiday, and Wynton Marsalis. From the heyday of the 1940s and 1950s to the renaissance of the 1970s, from the streets to the classrooms, from grand ballrooms to outdoor festivals, from swing to bebop, from smoky bars to dimly lit clubs like the Flame, Thelma's Back Door, and the Jazz Gallery, Milwaukee has been a hotbed of improvised music, providing a noteworthy contribution to the story of jazz in America.