Music Book Review: Blue Note: Uncompromising Expression by Richard Havers

Blue Note: Uncompromising Expression
by Richard Havers (Music 781.65 Hav)

In the history of jazz music, there have been several important record labels that have helped to bring recordings of the music to audiences all around the world, from Atlantic Records to Impulse to Columbia to Verve. Taken together, all of these labels have made essential contributions to the art form, preserving styles of jazz as they developed, and exposing people to the music outside of the major hubs where it was being played. But one record label stands above them all for documenting such a wide variety of jazz over the last century: Blue Note. Founded in 1939, the label documented the transition from hot jazz and early 20th century forms of the music through all of the major jazz trends to the present day. Bebop, cool jazz, hard bop, free jazz, you name it and you can find it on Blue Note. With a legacy of thousands of releases, the label has already been the subject of three documentary films and a handful of books, the best of which so far has been Richard Havers’ lavishly illustrated book Blue Note: Uncompromising Expression from 2014. That book has been hard to come by for some time, perhaps because its author passed away in 2017, but this year it’s finally been reprinted in a beautiful paperback edition that you can borrow from Polley.

Besides containing a wealth of information about the history of the venerable Blue Note label, this book has one of the best combinations of great writing and beautiful photos and ephemera I’ve ever seen in such a book. And the information you’ll learn in this book covers several areas of 20th century music history. Of course you’ll learn about the label itself, but the label has been such an extensive and long-term endeavor that you’re really learning about the greater history of jazz. Additionally, Blue Note was formed in the same era as the major record labels that have dominated the music industry ever since, and it has changed hands several times as labels have consolidated, so there is a fascinating window into the world of the commercial side of the record business to explore as well. And all the while, readers benefit from stunning photography that helps to bring these bygone eras to life.

It may be a surprise to some jazz fans that the founding of Blue Note, a label that has always documented the uniquely American art form of jazz, is largely indebted to the unique Weimer Republic era in Germany between the World Wars. Label founder Alfred Lion first got into jazz during that unique period in 1920s Berlin. He moved to New York City in 1928 after the Nazi party started to take power, then returned to Berlin for a while, then to Santiago, Chile in 1933, and ultimately back to NYC in 1936. The 1920s had been an interesting period for jazz, too, as Prohibition in the United States had caused many artists to look for careers in Europe, particularly around Paris and Berlin. Jazz continued to develop in both the US and Europe through the 20s—swing bands became particularly popular—and between the end of Prohibition in 1933 and the increasing political turmoil in mid-30s Europe, the founding of Blue Note in 1939 proved to be perfect timing for both Mr. Lion and many NYC jazz artists of the time.

In the early days, Blue Note focused on boogie woogie piano music and swing or “hot jazz,” but right out of the gate, Lion was innovating. The first releases on the label were done as 12” records, allowing for a little more time for performers to improvise compared to the standard 10” pop records of the era. While the label struggled financially in its first few months, a record featuring Sidney Bechet, whom Lion had seen perform in Berlin the decade before, proved to be a hit record that helped to boost the label into financial security.

Once we get to the 1950s, though, Blue Note’s importance to jazz really began to shine. This was precipitated in part by changes in technology: 78 RPM records were on their way out, and 33 1/3 RPM records, which can hold much more music per record, were on their way in. Blue Note started out with a series of 10” 33 1/3 albums in 1950, and gradually starting reissuing music from 78 RPM releases while continuing to produce new records. By the mid-50s, Down Beat editor Leonard Feather was writing liner notes for albums, a new innovation that let people read more about the artists they were hearing. And then 12-inch 33 1/3 RPM records became the standard, allowing for lots of liner notes and great space for album cover design, which became the work of Reid Miles, who designed many now-iconic covers for the label.

At this point in the book, Havers starts to incorporate a fantastic format change: after talking about the history of a musical decade, several of the most essential albums from that decade are highlighted, with excellent photos and frequently some great descriptions of the music and its historical context. These sections are a great way to both celebrate some of the finest jazz recordings of the last century, and perhaps to discover a few albums you might have missed along the way. After a series of fantastic 50s albums, we find the section discussing the 1960s, another banner decade for the label that includes its first forays into “the new thing” or free jazz. Sadly, though, the decade also ends with Alfred Lion selling Blue Note to Liberty Records and ultimately retiring.

After a long series of classic 60s Blue Note albums, the next chapter leaps through several decades, from the late 60s through the 80s. The discussion here focuses largely on the business side of the label, as it changed hands several times in record label consolidations. First came the Liberty Records acquisition. Then Transamerica, owners of United Artists, bought Liberty in 1968. Finally, EMI bought United Artists in 1979, and retired the Blue Note label temporarily, from ’79 to ’85. But the label marched on, albeit as a small imprint among many in its new home.

The final chapter is surprisingly short given the span of time it tackles: the 90s to the present. There’s a final business consolidation, as Universal bought EMI in 2011, which making Blue Note part of the overall Capitol Records Group. In more recent years, the label has continued to expand its horizons just as modern jazz has evolved, and you’ll find information on some great records by Brian Blade, Norah Jones, and Madlib, to name a few contemporary Blue Note titles that expand into pop, hip-hop, and rock in exciting new ways.

Overall, it’s an excellent book about the history of Blue Note. I would have liked to see a little more coverage of the recent history of the label, but the coverage of the prime 50s and 60s Blue Note periods is excellent. This is a great book for both jazz record collectors and jazz fans more generally. It’s hard to imagine what the jazz world would have been like without Blue Note, but fortunately we don’t have to!

(If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Blue Note: Photos by Francis Wolff, or Always in Trouble: An Oral History of ESP-Disk by Jason Weiss.)

( official www.bluenote.com web site ) | ( Wikipedia entry on the late Richard Havers )

 

Recommended by Scott S.
Polley Music Library

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