Blue Note Records: The Biography

Now a division of Capitol Records, Blue Note was a pioneer in jazz's golden age, serving as a breeding ground for legends such as Sidney Bechet, Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, Kenny Burrell, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, Sonny Rollins and Horace Silver. In this landmark book, jazz writer Cook (co-author of The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD) presents a history of the label, from its 1939 start producing hot jazz and swing records to its current projects, which include releasing Norah Jones's top-selling 2002 record, Come Away With Me. Eschewing tales of boardroom politics and pages of record reviews for an overall picture of how Blue Note's""mystique grew up, and how it endures,"" the book is more than just the chronicle of a company. It shows how far jazz, and, by extension, popular music, have come in the past 60-odd years.