Description: Music, like romance, is the language of the soul. Music allows us to express ourselves, and in so doing makes us feel alive. Jazz music, the only art form created by Americans, reminds us that the genius of America is improvisation; a good beat, a contagious rhythm, an emotional ballad, creative improvisation, jazz has it all. Jazz is the story of extraordinary human beings, black and white, male and female, children of privilege and children of despair, who were able to do what most of us only dream of doing: create art on the spot. Their stories are told in Blue Notes. Blue Notes contains profiles of 365 jazz personalities, one for each day of the year. Each vignette tells a story, some heartwarming, others tragic, but all memorable. The daily entries also provide valuable information on jazz styles, jazz history, instruments and instrumentalists, and such related topics as jazz and religion, women in jazz, drug and alcohol abuse, and racism. These topics can be referenced through an extensive set of indexes. The book's appendix includes helpful background information, a concise overview of jazz music, and even a quiz on jazz biography. While Blue Notes is written for jazz fans in general, experts will value its comprehensive nature. So whether you are curious about jazz or simply love and appreciate music, Blue Notes will provide daily moments of discovery and help you recognize what the rest of the world already has, a music so compelling that it can be said to define the human being in the twentieth century. Endorsements: ""My affair with jazz] has lasted fifty-three years. And in that time I have seen her power firsthand: the power to make men forget their differences and come together; the power to make one's heart swell until it feels like it's going to jump out of your chest; the power to make you laugh, cry, jump, dance, think, and love. It's a power that doesn't recognize color, class, religion, or geographic boundaries--it's universal."" --Quincy Jones: arranger, composer, bandleader, trumpeter, pianist, record producer (from the foreword to Jazz: The First Century, edited by John Edward Hasse; New York: William Morrow, 2000. About the Contributor(s): Robert P. Vande Kappelle is Professor of Religious Studies at historic Washington and Jefferson College in Washington, Pennsylvania. He is the author of three books: Love Never Fails, The Invisible Mountain, and Into Thin Places, which comprise his ""Adventures in Spirituality"" trilogy.