Whether in the compositions of foundational figures like Jelly Roll Morton, Thomas “Fats” Waller. and Earl “Fatha” Hines; swing pioneers such as Teddy Wilson and Joe Bushkin; torch-bearers like Mary Lou Williams and her student Thelonious Monk; technical masters including Bud Powell and Bill Evans; or modern mixologists such as Sun Ra and Keith Jarrett, the piano has been the site of historic innovations in jazz, and the stage on which some of its most colorful personalities have cemented their legacies. It’s no coincidence that several legendary pianists—Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Nat King Cole—are named after royalty.
As one of the leading writers on jazz today, author, journalist, and historian Will Friedwald has witnessed over a half-century of epochal developments in the genre and the central role that the piano has played in its evolution. Nights at the Red Steinway collects key writings (from the Wall Street Journal and elsewhere) to form a deeply personal and engaging survey of key figures from Abrams to Zawinul. Irreverent when it wants to be but serious when it counts, Friedwald’s writing offers a wide-ranging, deeply considered tour through the history of jazz piano. It is an indispensable collection for fans of all stripes.
