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Also by Will Friedwald:

A Biographical Dictionary Of Jazz And Pop Singers, November 2010
Hardcover

A BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF JAZZ AND POP SINGERS
By: Will Friedwald

Pantheon Books
November 2010
On Sale: November 2, 2010
832 pages
ISBN: 0375421491
EAN: 9780375421495
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction

The most extensive biographical and critical survey of jazz and popular singers ever written—an essential guide to the Great American Songbook and those who performed it.

These illuminating, opinionated essays—provocative, funny, and personal—on the lives and careers of more than three hundred singers anatomize the work of the greatest popular vocalists of the twentieth century, from giants like Ella Fitzgerald, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, and Judy Garland to lesser-known artists whose work still pleases and inspires.

Will Friedwald reconsiders their personal stories and professional successes and failures, their songs and performances, appraising both the singers and their music by balancing his opinions with the criticism of fellow musicians, listeners, and critics. This magisterial reference book—ten years in the making— brings into focus the Great American Songbook and the men and women who have sung it: straightforward jazz and pop singers; hybrid artists who moved among and combined genres; the leading men and women of Broadway and Hollywood; yesterday’s vaudeville stars and today’s cabaret artists.

A must-have for anyone with a passion for the classic, iconic music of America—the music that continues to resonate throughout our popular culture.

Media Buzz

On Point - August 5, 2010