In the Brewing Luminous: The Life and Music of Cecil Taylor
The first full biography of the pianist who made jazz unlistenable to some and essential to others.
Philip Freeman gives Cecil Taylor his first proper biography, covering the conservatory training, the decades of poverty, the dance and poetry he considered inseparable from the music, and a body of work that pushed free jazz further than almost anyone managed. Freeman is clear about how demanding the recordings are without ever apologising for them.
Recommended by 1 Person
Tyler Cowen
Philip Freeman, In the Brewing Luminous: The Life and Music of Cecil Taylor. Call me crazy, but I think Sun Ra and Taylor are better and more important musically than say Duke Ellington. Freeman’s book is the first full-length biography of Taylor, and it is well-informed and properly appreciative.
Source · February 2025
As an Amazon Associate, bookstoread.org earns from qualifying purchases. Links to Amazon on this page may earn us a commission at no extra cost to you. Spotted an error on this page? Tell us and we will fix it.