Musician's Tales

This book of short stories tells of experiences jazz musicians had during their lives, whether while living and playing in New York, traveling in the United States, or around the world so that people could hear their music and so the musician could make a living playing it. They tell about the problems Black musicians and a white musician had playing in a Black-led band and of the dues several Black musicians had to pay playing in a white-led band, especially when traveling in parts of the United States in the nineteen sixties, none of which in either scenario were from anybody in those bands. They also tell about the joys they had sharing the love they had for their music with audiences regardless of where they were playing and the appreciation they received from those audiences during their performances and sometimes afterwards. Several of the stories that happened in New York also illustrate the hard work these musicians had to do and the sacrifice all of these musicians had to make, none of which could dent the joy they gained by playing this great music.