Great bio/discography on under appreciated artist
Serge Chaloff was one of the few baritone saxophone players worth noting. He started out in some of the big swing bands (Jimmy Dorsey, Count Basie), and first became well-known as one of the "Four Brothers" reed section in Woody Herman's Second Herd (and the most flamboyant one at that). Captivated by Charlie Parker, Chaloff became the first major bebop baritone sax player, played with Bud Powell for awhile, and led some of his own groups. His career suffered from his heroin addiction, which he only kicked several years before he died of cancer of the spine in 1957 at the age of 33. Despite his problems, he was an outstanding and very under appreciated saxophone artist, leaving an excellent body of work behind him. The fact that he got his own box set on Mosaic Records (The Complete Serge Chaloff Sessions) speaks volumes about his importance as a jazz artist.
Vladimir Simosko's "Serge Chaloff: A Musical Biography and Discography" is by default the best book on Chaloff because it is the only one. Having said that, Simosko is a well regarded jazz scholar, teacher, player, and previously the curator of the Institute of Jazz Studies at Rutgers University, with books about Eric Dolphy and Artie Shaw to his credit as well.
I have a large library of jazz books and discographies. Using those as a basis of comparison, I'd say that this is a first-class biography and discography. I found it well-written and enjoyable to read. It has also proven an invaluable resource in chasing down some of Chaloff's more obscure recordings and its factual accuracy on all of his recordings.
If you are a Serge Chaloff fan, you have to have this book. If you enjoy reading about jazz artists of the 1940s and 1950s, you will enjoy it and be pleased to add it to your library.
Recommended without any reservations at all.
