Lush Life: A Biography of Billy Strayhorn
by David Hajdu
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Description
Billy Strayhorn (1915-1967) was one of the most accomplished composers in American music, the creator of such standards as "Take the 'A' Train," yet all his life he was overshadowed by his friend and collaborator, Duke Ellington. Through scrutiny of Strayhorn's private papers and more than five hundred interviews, Hajdu revives Strayhorn as one of the most complex and tragic figures in jazz history.Tags
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Member Reviews
I was hoping for much more. I don't have a solid appreciation of the author's motivation for his involvement with this project. I have no doubt the material is factual but there doesn't seem to be much life in this biography. Too many quotes about how witty Billy was but too few examples.
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Author Information
12+ Works 2,237 Members
David Hajdu is the author of the award-winning "Lush Life: A Biography of Billy Strayhorn" (FSG, 1996, North Point Press, 1997). Lately he has written for "The New York Times Magazine", "The New York Review of Books"; & "Vanity Fair". He lives in New York City. (Bowker Author Biography)
Awards and Honors
Common Knowledge
- Original title
- Lush Life: A Biography of Billy Strayhorn
- Original publication date
- 1996
- People/Characters
- Billy Strayhorn; Duke Ellington
- Dedication
- For Roy Hemming
- First words
- 1
Something to Live For
From the first, he was nameless. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)We looked down the walkway, and there was Duke, all alone in the distance, slowly walking along the river." Ellington honored Strayhorn aptly, in the eloquence of anonymity.
- Blurbers
- Yardley, Jonathan; Horne, Lena
- Original language
- English
Classifications
- Genres
- Music, Biography & Memoir, Nonfiction, LGBTQ+, General Nonfiction
- DDC/MDS
- 781.65 — Arts & recreation Music General principles and musical forms Traditions of music Jazz {equally instrumental and vocal}
- LCC
- ML410 .S9325 .H35 — Music Literature on music Literature on music History and criticism Biography
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 244
- Popularity
- 132,075
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (4.35)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 6
- ASINs
- 3
