The importance of the new book Ain’t But A Few of Us from the legendary Willard Jenkins cannot be underestimated. Considering the legacy of jazz, this incredible genre that was birthed from the African experience in America, it is shocking but sadly not surprising that the number of black journalists writing about this genre is extremely low. It is also not surprising that this imbalance has previously not been openly explored and discussed. This book is well overdue and vital.
Willard Jenkins, along with a truly astounding collective of writers, share their experiences as black writers in the jazz industry, gifting the reader with an inspirational and highly valuable insight into the journey of black music writers. This is their story and their words.
Beginning with a brilliant roundtable discussion with seven writers, exploring their motivation, challenges and the impact of what Willard quite rightly refers to as the ‘glaring disparity’, the book then dissects this further by exploring the experiences of a range of writers in different areas: The Authors, Magazine Editors and Publishers, Dispatch Contributors, Magazine Freelancers, Newspaper Writers and Columnists and ‘The New Breed’, referring to online journalists.
There are too many writers to highlight here, every single one of them is a ‘highlight’, but the book includes an inspired range of writers, from veterans such as Herb Boyd, Jo Ann Cheatham and Greg Tate to contemporary journalists such as Jordannah Elizabeth and Angelika Beener. The industry wide gender imbalance is not ignored and as Willard told me, there could be another version of this book – Ain’t But A Few of Us Women. Dr Tammy Kernodle discusses this, and more, through sharing her first experiences as a student exploring musicology and the lack of black music in the curriculum and her graceful response to when she was told by a professor that ‘No American, no black and no woman has ever made any substantial contribution to music’.
Ending with a truly inspirational anthology, Willard has created the beginnings of a historic collection of articles from 1946 to 2016 including Leroi Jones’ ‘Jazz and the White Critic’ written for Downbeat in 1963 and John Murph’s ‘Rhapsody in Rainbow: Jazz and the Queer Aesthetic’ written in 2010. I look forward to seeing this developed and incorporated into music curricula across the world.
To say that this book is an essential read is an understatement. It is essential not only to enjoy the eloquence and grace of the writing, the depth of knowledge, expertise and experience of these writers, but because things must change. Jazz needs more black voices. The world needs more black voices.
Contributors: Eric Arnold, Bridget Arnwine, Angelika Beener, Playthell Benjamin, Herb Boyd, Dwight Brewster, Bill Brower, Tina Brower, Jo Ann Cheatham, Karen Chilton, Janine Coveney, Marc Crawford, Stanley Crouch, Anthony Dean-Harris, Jordannah Elizabeth, Lofton Emenari, Bill Francis, Barbara Gardner, Farah Jasmine Griffin, Jim Harrison, Eugene Holley, Haybert Houston, Robin James, Martin Johnson, LeRoi Jones, Robin D. G. Kelley, Tammy Kernodle, Steve Monroe, Rahsaan Clark Morris, John Murph, Herbie Nichols, Don Palmer, Bill Quinn, Guthrie P. Ramsey, Ron Scott, Gene Seymour, Archie Shepp, Wayne Shorter, A. B. Spellman, Rex Stewart, Greg Tate, Billy Taylor, Greg Thomas, Robin Washington, Ron Welburn, Hollie West, K. Leander Williams and Ron Wynn.
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Inspired by the book, click here for information about More Than A Few Of Us Mentoring Scheme.
