American Jazz Annual, Newport Edition, 1956 [Robert Brownjohn, Bob Cato]

American Jazz Annual, Newport Edition, edited by Louis L. Lawless with co-editor and art director Jacques Willaumez, 1956. International Jazz Associates, New York, USA. 8 x 10, pp. 98 plus covers. Cover designed by Robert Brownjohn with photography by Bob Cato. This original item was featured in my book The Moderns (p. 138).

Program published in conjunction with the American Jazz Festival held in Newport, Rhode Island from July 5–7, 1956 which included so many greats: Count Basie, Jutta Hipp, Sarah Vaughn, Joe Williams, Milt Jackson, Louis Armstrong, Art Blakey, Dave Brubeck, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Art Tatum and many others.

Articles include: International Jazz Report (France, Germany, Holland, Australia, Italy); Cold War Jazz; Solarized Jazz; Hi-Fi; Jazz Afloat; Progressive Piano; Democracy and Jazz (music/musicians in the segregated South); Jazz Fiction; More Jazz (with drawings by Joe Eula); West Coast Jazz; and 120 short jazz biographies.

Brownjohn’s excellent kinetic cover design offered a fresh perspective and sentiment to jazz music ... and may refer to the article Progressive Piano. Other designers, artists and photographers who contributed are credited throughout: Featheringill, Claxton, Gleason, Tanaka, Robert Brownjohn, Robert Parent, Bronson, Leonard, Jacques Willaumez, Jay Maisel, Markowitz and John Rawlings.

A good magazine with wear to cover edges and spine including a bumped and torn upper left hand corner. Some handling throughout.