The sad truth is, many jaz greats couldn't face the fact that they had played themselves out of a job. The options are to sellout and play crap (in their minds) or starve to death. Some blame the public for not appreciating their suprior talent (jazz apprecition is an acquired taste).

Many died early from a variety of illnesses (drugs, alcohol,etc.) but in the end, thy died of broken dreams and a massive sense of fruatration).

I had a superior saxophone player here in Lexington come to me broke, divorced and crying once saying he wished he never even saw a G**D*****saxophone.

How sad! James Moody, for all his successes, probably made about as much as a successful local car salesman in his lifetime.


You're right, people like Chet Baker and many others were pathetic and not very nice people. The definitive book on jazz is Reading Jazz, edited by Rebert Gottlieb, published by Pantheon Books. It contains a lot of biographical writing by the artists.

What a tragedy an art form so beautiful has such a dark side.


Russ