Ben Sidran: A Life in the Music

Ben Sidran: A Life in the Music by Sidran, Ben. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780878332915.

Sidrans wonderfully crafted memoir revisits the many different facets of his life and career: As a performer, he has recorded with jazz icons (Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Jon Hendricks) and rock legends (Eric Clapton, Van Morrison, Steve Miller); as a composer, he has scored films (Hoop Dreams); and as a scholar he has written books and articles on the history of jazz and black music in America. With a charismatic and informed voice, Sidran illuminates scenes from his childhood in Chicago and gives an inside view of the recording industry, also revealing an awareness of the history of Jewish contributions to jazz.