Description
Published at the tail end of Blake’s life, this biography captures one of the last living links to ragtime’s origins and early Broadway jazz. Written by Al Rose, a longtime chronicler of American popular music, the book draws on direct conversations and firsthand recollections, preserving a voice that stretches back to the turn of the 20th century. It’s as much an oral history of early American music as it is a traditional biography.
Blake’s career touches nearly every major figure and movement in early jazz and theatrical music—from Shuffle Along to collaborations with Noble Sissle and encounters with legends like Scott Joplin and Fats Waller. The photographs and anecdotes carry real weight here; you’re not reading about history at a distance—you’re hearing it from someone who lived it. Copies in this condition, with a presentable jacket, are getting harder to find.
A solid copy of a foundational American music biography—clean, complete, and ready for your shelf.
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