DC Jazz

Original and fascinating stories about the DC jazz scene throughout its history—now in paperback, with a new preface

The familiar history of jazz music in the United States begins with its birth in New Orleans, moves upstream along the Mississippi River to Chicago, then goes by rail to New York, before exploding around the globe. This telling of jazz's history, however, overlooks the pivotal role the nation's capital has played in jazz for a century.

DC Jazz tells the story of some of the city's notable clubs, players, and promoters, and its institutions so critical to this uniquely American form of music. Closer to the ground, a network of local schools like the Duke Ellington High School for the Performing Arts, jazz programs at the University of the District of Columbia and Howard University, churches, informal associations, locally focused media, and clubs keeps the music alive to this day. The historians Maurice Jackson and Blair Ruble also portray the role of jazz in desegregating the city.

A copublishing initiative with the DC History Center, this book includes over thirty museum-quality photographs and a guide to resources for readers interested in Washington history, the history of jazz, and Black history.