Stormy Weather: The Music and Lives of a Century of Jazz Women

I found this book when i was writing a report on women in Jazz for my Jazz history class. It was fantastic and full of information. Sadly, it is mainly only the female jazz singers who gain any sort of fame while other talented musicians fall by the wayside. However, Stormy Weather does not leave out the many talented females in jazz history and clearly explains their importance and how much we miss if we leave these women out of the spotlight. (Don't worry, it does not leave out great singers either) Women musicians played with and even mentored the more familiar male names that mark the pages of most jazz histories but are paid little attention. Many jazz standards were composed and arranged by women. This book not only tells you the importance of the women but many the colorful details of their experiences in the jazz scene and the wonderful stories bring these women, and the men they played with to life, with all the depth of real people, not just distant gods of jazz. The book is as fascinating as it is educational. I must say it served as the perfect starting off point as I delved into the lives of many amazing Jazz women, but it also was the standard I kept coming back to in writing my report. It is written with a wonderful clarity that is too seldom found in any history texts. It aids understanding as to what happened when and the ways the various movements in Jazz evolved. I am only a student of Jazz but to me this book was a great introduction to some amazing women and also aided my understanding of Jazz in a more general sense. However, the best part of this book was how much life is brought to the page and the personal details that are so often left out of histories.

From Back Cover: "A panoramic survey, packed with rich anecdotes and musical and cultural analysis, of a century of women's experiences in, and contributions to, jazz, 'Stormy Weather, vividly illuminates an unjustly neglected part of the music's history. Featuring, among many others: *The blues royalty of the 1920s: Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, Ida Cox *The immortal singers: Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Lena Horn, Carmen McRae, Billie Holiday, Betty Carter *The great instrumentalists: Lil Hardin, Lovie Austin, Valaida Snow, Mary Lou Williams *The bands: The Melodears, The International Sweethearts of Rhythm *The composers: Carla Bley, Toshiko Akiyoshi Part FIVE includes profiles of Willene Barton, Carla Bley, Clora Bryant, Dottie Dodgion, Helen Humes, Sheila Jordan, Helen Keane, Melba Liston, Mary Osborne, & Ann Patterson

Linda Dahl's 'Stormy Weather' is one of the best among the many old and new books on jazz, women in jazz, etc. It is objective, well researched . If you want to learn about women in the jazz world , this is a must.