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Book cover for Blue Note featuring photo of Lionel Hampton conducting jazz ensemble

The Blue Note

Seattle’s Black Musicians’ Union A Pictorial History

David Keller

$29.95

Documenting a portion of American cultural history not often chronicled, The Blue Note focuses on Seattle’s black American Federation of Musician’s Local 493. It is an upbeat story of race, jazz, gender, and union culture, set in the Pacific Northwest and the wider jazz world. Detailed research and end notes underpin a user-friendly pictorial format, spanning the years from the 1880s to the mid-1950s.

“The Blue Note takes me home to the heady days of Seattle’s jazz scene. It’s a fine blend of rare photographs, first person accounts and solid scholarship.”—Quincy Jones

Our House Publishing

Photographs / illustrations /notes / bibliography / index / 224 pages (2013)

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SKU: 978-0-615-86781-6 Categories: , , , Tags: ,

Description

Documenting a portion of American cultural history not often chronicled, The Blue Note focuses on Seattle’s black American Federation of Musician’s Local 493. It is an upbeat story of race, jazz, gender, and union culture, set in the Pacific Northwest and the wider jazz world. Detailed research and end notes underpin a user-friendly pictorial format, spanning the years from the 1880s to the mid-1950s. Featuring more than 100 photographs and other illustrations—many previously unpublished—The Blue Note uses union documents, first person oral histories, and extensive primary and secondary sources. The book features more than 100 photographs and other illustrations.

David Keller is an archivist and historian with a strong interest in labor and jazz history. He has written for Down Beat, Jazz Times, Columbia, and BlackPast.org.

Our House Publishing

Photographs / illustrations /notes / bibliography / index / 224 pages (2013)

 

 

Recognition

“The Blue Note takes me home to the heady days of Seattle’s jazz scene. It’s a fine blend of rare photographs, first person accounts and solid scholarship. It also shines light on the path-breaking union musicians who played Seattle and ultimately brought about the merging of the black and white unions.”—Quincy Jones

Additional information

Dimensions 10.5 x 8.25 in
Format

Paperback

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