Jim Marshall: Jazz Festival - by Amelia Davis & Tony Nourmand Hardcover

Book Synopsis

From Thelonius Monk to John Coltrane, Miles Davis to Nina Simone, Jim Marshall's defining photographs of the 1960s jazz scene

Jim Marshall is known as the defining father of music photography and his intimate photographs of the greats of rock & roll, country, folk, blues and jazz are legendary. Renowned for his extraordinary access and ability to capture the perfect moment, his influence is second to none. In 2014, Marshall became the only photographer ever to be honored by the Grammys with a Trustees Award for his life's work.

Published here for the first time ever are Marshall's jazz festival photographs from the 1960s, which capture the crowd, the performances and unguarded moments with jazz icons such as Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Nina Simone, Ray Charles and many more.

Over 95% of the material in this breathtaking volume has never been seen before. Marshall's remarkable photographs of the festivals at Newport and Monterey immortalize the unique energy and soul of these celebrations of jazz. Complete access to Marshall's vast archive has been granted for this book. It includes a foreword by President Bill Clinton and an introduction by renowned jazz writer Nat Hentoff, and is designed by art director Graham Marsh (The Cover Art of Blue Note Records, Hollywood and the Ivy Look). This is the first in a series of books to be published by Reel Art Press in collaboration with the Jim Marshall Archive.

Jim Marshall (1936-2010) was born in Chicago. While still in high school, he purchased his first camera and began documenting musicians and artists in San Francisco. Over a 50-year career he created hundreds of legendary images that came into public consciousness through magazine features, more than 500 album covers and six books: Monterey Pop, Not Fade Away, Proof, Jazz, Trust and Pocket Cash.

Review Quotes

This extraordinary book celebrates Jim Marshall's unique talent and lifelong desire to "capture the perfect moment".-- "L'Oeil de la Photographie"

it seems Jazz is the most visual of aural mediums.-- "BBC Radio London, Robert Elms Show"

A master of music photography, Marshall assiduously shot jazz festivals offstage and on in Newport and Monterey, California throughout the early 1960s with his trademark mix of backstage access and fly-on-the-wall candor. This largely unseen trove reveals a bygone culture of cool, its players and denizens, with striking immediacy.--Jack Crager "American Photo"

An in-depth trawl through the photographer's work...a breathtaking photographic trip through those legendary, barrier-breaking festival years--Jon Newey "Jazzwise"

Before he was a famous rock photographer, Jim Marshall photographed jazz, covering the festivals in Newport, Rhode Island and Monterey, California in the 1960s and photographing the biggest stars along with their deeply hip audience-- "Photo District News"

It's a given that Marshall had technique and then some. But the fact that he knew many of these musicians and loved their music was also an important metaphysical element.--Alllan Campbell "BBC Arts"

Jazz Festival acts as an insight into decidedly rare cultural miscegenation for the time period - captured with a lightness of touch at odds with the photographer's reputation for bullishness... Jim Marshall managed to get the kind of access most photographers can only dream about.--Jacob Brookman "British Journal of Photography"

Jazz Festival is not a nostaligic yearning for the past, but a celebration of the continuing cultural craze for all things relating to Modern Jazz and Ivy Look clothing... You can almost feel the sun's warming rays and an ocean breeze emanating from Jim Marshall's evocative photographs in this book.--Graham Marsh "Port Magazine"

Marshall's shimmering photographs of those lazy summer days when the giants of jazz mingled with the crowd won't be seen as just a celebration of their music. It'll be the epitaph for an era.--John Blake "CNN"

Photographer Jim Marshall's black-and-white shots taken at the Newport and Monterey jazz festivals during the 1960s capture an era that can't be ignored.-- "Rolling Stone"

Reel Art Press prides itself in its exceptional taste, curatorial eye, and eclectic selection of material. Without a doubt, Jim Marshall: Jazz Festival is a title in which they may take great pride.--Michael J. McCann "NY Journal of Books"

The shots of the musicians performing are great, but one of the best things about Marshall's work and this book in particular is all the backstage scenes and crowd shots that make you feel like you're in the thick of things. It's a wonderful documentation of what is arguably one of the pinnacles of American music.--Mark Murrmann "Mother Jones"

When Marshall's democratic camera captured the young, relaxed, supremely stylish and racially mixed audiences that the jazz giants were attracting, at least on the east and west coasts, he was chronicling a brief utopian moment amid the gathering storm of protest and often violent reprisal that would define the civil rights era of the early-to-mid 1960s.--Sean O'Hagan "The Guardian"