TRANSFORMATIONALCharlie Parker’s Junkie Jazz AlchemyBird was a phenomenal musician who, against all odds, almost singlehandedly changed our conception of what jazz could be. He was also his own worst enemy.AD BY THE DAILY BEAST
PopsHow Louis Armstrong Taught Us to SwingThis genius with a trumpet did not invent jazz, as some have said, but when he got through with it, America’s homegrown art form was changed almost beyond recognition.Nat Hentoff
Lady Day Billie Holiday: Jazz’s Aching SongbirdHer life had all the cliches of the jazz world: horrible childhood, meteoric rise to fame, addiction, bad affairs. But when she opened her mouth to sing, none of that mattered.AD BY THE DAILY BEAST
Heavyweight Champion John Coltrane’s Mighty Musical QuestThe tenor saxophonist was one of the most imaginatively restless artists to ever work a bandstand. Nat Hentoff explains why we're still playing catch up with this musical genius.Nat Hentoff
