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Ain't Misbehavin' The Story Of Fats Waller  Ed
Kirkeby (with Duncan P. Schiedt & Sinclair Traill)Da Capo Press, 1966 Paperback. 256pp. b&w illustrations £12.99 One of the kings of the blues-derived "stride" school of jazz piano, Fats Waller earned his reputation as "the most perfect of all the jazz pianists" with "his impeccable time keeping, his instrumental mastery, the intensity of his swing, and his melodic gift." He arrived on the scene just as jazz was flowering nationwide, and he reaped a harvest of fame and fortune through his piano rolls, recordings, and much lauded European tours. His death, in 1943, marked the end of the swing era. The informal narrative of Waller's life and music - a moving memoir of a musical genius and an outstanding human being - was written by Fats' personal manager, Wallace T. "Ed" Kirkekby. Reviewing Fats' brief but stellar career, Kirkeby reveals a life that was filled with paradoxes and a man who moved with ease from a middle-class church-going home to New York's speakeasy subculture. The life-of-the-party who improvised at the piano for stag films, Fats would periodically retreat to the organ loft to play Bach and spirituals. Kirkby details Waller's collaboration with lyricist Andy Razaf; his friendships with James P. Johnson, Willie "The Lion" Smith, and Duke Ellington; and his successful forays into films and Broadway musicals, including Hot Chocolates and Stormy Weather (with Lena Horne). He also contributes his own personal memoir and a selected discography listing the most representative Waller recordings. |
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