Author: Ron Forbes-Roberts
Publisher: University of North Texas Press
Year Published: 2006
Format / Pages: / 325 pages
Review: As a biography, this is excellent reading. As a jazz biography of guitarist Lenny Breau (1941 - 1984), it is an outstanding and memorable look at one of America's finest jazz musicians. Lenny Breau started playing the guitar when he was seven years old. As another guitar legend said of him: Lenny Breau is the greatest guitarist who ever walked the face of the earth. The foreword to the book is by Gene Lees.
Living a tormented personal life, Lenny Breau nevertheless became the finest jazz guitarist of his time and soared in his musical performances. Found dead in his apartment swimming pool in 1984 at the age of 43, police suspected his wife but she and nobody else has ever been formally charged with Breau's death.
The book centers in on Breau's evolution as a musician and what he gave to the world as a master of all guitar styles. His performances were electrifying and held audiences spellbound with their intensity and complexity.
This book contains a highly detailed discography, and the index will lead the reader to many topics of interest. The book has photographs, and there are some interesting photos of the death scene where Breau's body was found. Readers will find the notes section illuminating, and full of interesting facts.
Following the introduction are ten chapters, closed by an in depth epilogue. A bibliography is included in the book for further reference. The chapters are arranged in a logical manner, each one covering a period of time in the guitarist's life, with the first chapter covering the longest early length and the following chapters covering year spans of a given time. Each chapter is excellent reading, and among the most fascinating are "Workin' Man's Blues," "Days of Wine and Roses," "Cold, Cold Heart," "Meanwhile Back in LA," among others.
This is a memorable biography. Highly recommended. Congratulations, Ron Forbes-Roberts on a well-written biography filled with insights and sensitivity.
Additional Information: Check it out @ Amazon.com
ISBN: 9781574412109
Reviewed by: Lee Prosser