Sonny Rollins Plays the Bridge by Gary Golio, illustrated by James Ransome

 

Sonny Rollins Plays the Bridge 

written by Gary Golio, illustrated by James Ransome

Nancy Paulsen Books. 2021, 32 pages

Imagine being a jazz musician and not being about to practice playing your saxophone every day in your own apartment because the beautiful sounds you make disturbs your neighbors.

Well, that was exactly the situation Sonny Rollins found himself in. So, Sonny leaves his house, taking his saxophone with him, and walking down Delancey Street, he heads straight  to a place where he knows he can play to his heart's content, and as loudly as he wants/needs to. Sonny continues walking until he reaches the Bridge, taking the walkway to the highest point of this long suspension bridge, he pulls out his sax and begins to play.  But "is that a/ strange/ place/ to play his/ horn?" No, not when you need to do it, not when you are compelled to play. 

There, standing mid-Bridge, Sonny can practice playing his saxophone as loudly as he wants against the background noise of the city, the busy East River below, including squawking seagulls, the passing subway trains, and all the car traffic by his side. It is the perfect spot for this talented jazzman to freely hone his skills without disturbing anyone.

You're probably thought that Sonny found what he needed on the iconic Brooklyn Bridge, but no, indeed. At the end of Delancey Street, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan where he lived is the Williamsburg Bridge and that Bridge and this Musician were perfect together.

Gary Golio is a picture book biography Meister with an already impressive oeuvre, and now, with the inspirational Sonny Rollins Plays the Bridge, he has once again proven this to be true. His poetic text reads like a jazz performance, by which I mean that instead of classical poetic forms, readers can feel the rhythmic beat and syncopation. It almost makes you want to snap your fingers as you read because of its musicality that capture's all of Rollins' moods and emotions throughout. 

Harmonizing with Golio's jazzy text are James Ransome's equally jazzy watercolor and collage illustrations. The illustrations range from detailed full color two page spreads to simple spot images, catching the busy streets of the Lower East Side as Sonny walks to the Bridge. I particularly liked the way Ransome represented the music from Sonny's horn - as various shapes of golden notes.

I love picture book biographies. They can be so inspiring and they are a wonderful way to introduce young readers to people and their achievements they might not otherwise learn about. And often, their stories show readers that problems and obstacles are solvable - and Sonny Rollins' is a prime example of that.

Back matter includes information about Sonny Rollins as well as the Williamsburg Bridge and Sonny's Words about how this book came to be.

FYI: In 1962, Sonny Rollins recorded an album simply called The Bridge. It was his first album after taking a 3 year hiatus from music during which time he practiced his saxophone on the Williamsburg Bridge. 

This book is recommended for readers age 6+

This book was gratefully received from the author.

The Cosmobiography of Sun Ra by Chris Raschka

Since the theme of Black History Month this year is A Century of Black Life, History and Culture, I thought I would look at this picture book about a very talented African American musician who contributed to making jazz one of the most beloved musical forms around the world.  Jazz has its roots in African American communities, beginning in New Orleans, and spreading quickly to St. Louis, Chicago and New York and the reast of the world and it is considered by many to be a quintessentially black musical art form.

Herman (Sonny) Blount in Birmingham, Alabama in 1914, it quickly became evident that he was a musical genius.  He was a talented piano player by 11 and as a teen, Sonny could notate, compose and even had his own ensemble with singers.  But Sonny was too ordinary an name for someone who felt they really had come from Saturn, so Sonny became Sun Ra.

Sun Ra also noticed that blacks and whites lived separate, very different kinds of lives.  And when the US went to war, he refused to fight and kill people, spending those years in a Pennsylvania forest as a conscientious objector.

When the war ended, Sun Ra was off the Chicago, mastering jazz, do-wop and the blues.  Forming his own bank, the Arkestra, it was time to hit the jazz clubs of New York City, arriving in the 1960s.  From there, the sky was the limit, playing his particular brand of jazz around the world, wearing long colorful robes, necklaces and shiny metal crowns.

Raschka introduces the reader and draws them into the life of Sun Ra by playing a game of let's pretend - let's pretend that Herman Sonny Blount really did come from Saturn (but we know it is only pretend, right?).  He keeps up the conspiratorial tone throughout the book, thereby creating an intimate bond with his readers.  Raschka's colorful watercolor and ink illustrations, done in a palette of fittingly bold black and mostly primary colors, give the feeling of jazzy improvisation throughout the book.

Sun Ra may not be as well known as other jazz musicians like Dizzy Gillespie or Thelonious Monk, but Raschka's obvious love of jazz has now made him and his music accessible to a whole new generation of readers and hopefully, jazz lovers.

And The Cosmobiography of Sun Ra would pair up very nicely with Rascha's other jazz musician biographies - Charlie Parker Played Be-Bop, John Coltrane's Giant Steps and Mysterious Thelonious - for some very jazzy fun.

This book is recommended for readers 7+
This book was sent to me by the publisher, Candlewick Press

February is Black History Month

This is book 3 of my 2015 Nonfiction Picture Book Reading Challenge hosted by Kid Lit Frenzy

Benny Goodman & Teddy Wilson: Taking the Stage as the First Black and White Jazz Band in History by Lesa Cline-Ransome, illustrated by James E. Ransome

Benny Goodman & Teddy Wilson traces the very different backgrounds of two very talented musicians who eventually met and formed the first interracial trio to play in public.

In the 1920s, Jazz was the music of the moment.  Benny Goodman, the son of Jewish immigrants and living in Chicago, learned to play the clarinet when he and his brothers were signed up for free lessons at their synagogue and playing in its marching band, but he much preferred the exciting sounds of Jazz.

Teddy Wilson, the son of music educators living in Tuskegee, Alabama, learned to play the piano, the oboe, the violin and the piano as a child, dutifully practicing classical music, but he, too, preferred the cool Jazz sounds of Duke Ellington, Fats Waller, and Earl Hines.

As men, both continued to play in different venues around the country, earning the admiration and respect of their fellow Jazz musicians.  But the stage was a segregated world, and it was only in jam sessions offstage that musicians from different races could play together.  Then one day, in Forest Hills, Queens, NY, their two men met and it was kismet - two different men who thought the same way musically.

Along with Gene Krupa, the Benny Goodman Trio was formed and beautiful music was made. There was just one problem - Goodman was reluctant to play onstage with a black musician.  But finally he said yes, and not just music, but history was made.  And people loved their sound!  Lionel Hampton later joined them and the trio became a quartet.

Can you tell I love this book?  Well, I love music, especially Jazz and Swing.  And the husband and wife duo of author Lesa Cline-Ransome and illustrator James Ransome has done a suburb job of making the story of these two great musicians accessible to young readers.  The snappy language used to tell the story along with illustrations in cool blues and hot yellows make reading Benny Goodman & Teddy Wilson feel like you are listening to a good Jazz performance.

There is plenty of back matter giving more information on Benny Goodman and Teddy Wilson, a Jazz timeline focused on these two men, and a who's who in Jazz, including all the musicians mentioned in the book.  This is such an excellent addition to the growing body of Picture Books for Older Readers that are ideal for introducing young readers to new people and events.

I've often wished that there were books like this around when my Kiddo was young.  Every time I tried to introduce her to things like Jazz, Swing, Classical, even Classic Rock, I met resistance.  But as she grew older, she began to embrace these different musical genres and significantly expanded her musical appreciation and seriously wanted to know why didn't I ever tell her about this great music?
 
This book is for readers aged 7+
This book was purchased for my personal library

Here is the original Benny Goodman Quartet performing one of their biggest hits Sing, Sing, Sing in 1973.

It's Nonfiction Monday!

This is book 3 of my 2014 Nonfiction Picture Book Reading Challenge hosted by Kid Lit Frenzy