There is some valuable stuff in Kernfeld's book; I enjoyed particularly the section on the historical evolution of jazz styles. Kernfeld obviously knows his subject well. However, I found his organization lacking. Including a CD with selections by jazz greats to illustrate his points was a fine idea; but the text should have been divided up so that the cuts on the CD could be listened to in conjunction with full text descriptions in the same order -- something about the personnel playing, why the cut is significant historically, and comments on what we're listening to. Instead, Kernfeld scatters the references to the different tracks throughout the text and this makes it much more laborious for the listener/reader. My second gripe is with the idiot at the publishing house (I presume it wasn't Kernfeld) who thought it would be cute to use a tiny (maybe ten point) pseudo-artsy type face for the entire text. Come on folks -- not every book has to be set in Times Roman, but this isn't even remotely a book face. It gave me a headache after three pages.

Mr Kernfield is definitely an authority on jazz. I also own the "New grove Dictionary of Jazz", which he edited. "What to listen for in jazz" is well-written, though it can be hard going if you're not familiar with all the musical jargon.

The book is accompanied by a CD containing a rich selection of songs, covering many decades and many styles. Unfortuantely, some songs are excerpts (for example John Coltrane's Ascension). Excerpts of the notation of the songs are printed in the book. For example, I found enough about Weather Report's Birdland to understand the structure of the song well enough for my purposes.

I also found the book to be well organised. The chapters cover rhythm, forms, arrangement, composition, improvisation, sound and style. The appendices feature a discography and biographical sketches of some musicians, and there is also a good index.

If you read this book along with Aaron Copland's "What to listen for in music, you will not only learn heaps more about music, but you will enjoy your music heaps more.

If, like me, you know a little about Jazz (but not much), and you're looking for a way to broaden your knowledge, this is the book you want.

Kernfeld focuses on the basics. He uses 22 landmark recordings (provided on the accompanying CD)to illustrate the points he makes. The six chapters of the book deal with rhythm, forms, arrangement, composition, improvisation and sound. In the course of reading the book, you revisit the same composition several times, each time focusing on a different excerpt from it. When Kernfeld talks about backbeats, syncopation and blue notes, he explains what he means!

This book is a must-have! (A useful accompaniment to this book -though not essential- is "How to read music" by Terry Burrows, another book/cd combination.)

Note: The accompanying CD features tracks by Miles Davis ('round midnight), Billy Holiday ( georgia on my mind), Louis Armstrong (hotter than that), Duke Ellington (ko-ko, trumpet no end), Jelly Roll Morton (black bottom stomp) and Thelonious Monk (misterioso). Others on the cd include Dizzy Gillespie, Weather report, Herbie Hancock, Sun Ra, Coleman Hawkins, Earl "Fatha" Hines and Charlie Mingus.