Book Review: The Boston Jazz Chronicles

This is a book I've been meaning to read for a while. While it may seem to be a book strictly for jazz fans, it actually fits the subject of this blog quite well. The years covered are mostly the 1930s through about 1960, and as is true of many locations featured here, most of the old clubs and bars and dance halls have been lost to urban renewal and the hazards of time. For anyone interested in mid-20th century Boston, there's much to learn in these pages.

Did you know that Huntington avenue was the home of big-band dancing in Boston? Or that strippers and gay bars existed in the Lower Washington street area before the closing of the Old Howard and the destruction of old Scollay Square? Or, (for the jazz lovers) that you could have seen Miles Davis with John Coltrane near Copley Square for no cover, no drink minimum?

The Boston Jazz Chronicles is full of historical nuggets, and tell of a time that some still alive remember, but has been totally lost to the New Boston. Definitely recommended.


The Boston Jazz Chronicles