Bud Powell revolutionized jazz piano in the 1940s by developing a rapidity of thought and execution hitherto matched only by pioneer bebop trumpeters and saxophonists. He combined the harmonic innovations of Thelonious Monk with the quicksilver runs and vitality of Art Tatum. Yet hand in glove with his glittering technique and brilliant achievements at the keyboard was a life of tragedy, dogged by mental and physical illness that took him out of the public eye for long periods at a time. In this first English-language biography of Powell, Alan Groves and Alyn Shipton unearth one of the most heart-rending stories in jazz. They follow Powell's career from its early days in New York with Cootie Williams' big band to the heyday of bebop with Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. They chart his subsequent slow decline, and his rehabilitation in Paris, the true story of the Powell legend that was the real-life background to Bertrand Tavernier's film Round Midnight.

His recording career is fully discussed, and there is a comprehensive discography of Powell's work by Alyn Shipton, covering both discs made under his own name and other bandleaders.

ALAN GROVES is a journalist and writer about jazz whose work has appeared in Jazz Journal.

ALYN SHIPTON is a jazz writer and broadcaster, who presents programmes for BBC Radio and is a jazz critic for The Times.

"This fascinating (at times hideously so) biography is told with great sympathy but necessary toughness, and even when prompting disagreement it is stimulating and authoritative." - RICHARD PALMER, Jazz Journal

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