Book Reviews

Earl H. Brooks, a musician (saxophone) and assistant professor of English at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, has contributed to a growing literature on the cultural significance of popular music with his forthcoming book from the Wayne State University Press: On Rhetoric and Black Music (2024). | Read more>> Read More

A new biography by Stephanie Stein Crease Thanks to jazz historian Stephanie Stein Crease, we now have a comprehensive biography of William Henry (“Chick”) Webb (1905-1939), the Baltimore-born musical prodigy whose innovative drumming technique helped to perfect rhythmic “swing,” the defining orchestral aesthetic of the Swing Era:  Rhythm Man: Chick Webb and the Beat That Changed America (2023). | Read more>> Read More