This book is a collection of essays, some of which appeared earlier in Jazzletter, a publication authored by prominent jazz journalist Gene Lees. Like previous anthologies of Lees’ work, this collection is gathered around a central theme--in this case, racism. It is a deeply insightful and moving book. He does not restrict himself to relations between white and black but deals with American Indians, multi-racial mixes, the confusion of race and nationality, and institutionalized racism. He also illustrates incidences of prejudice among middle- and upper-class blacks against jazz.

While Canada, where Lees grew up as a white male, is not free of racism, and while Lees was aware of racism in America, his first chapter deals with his shock in encountering blatant racism on his arrival in Louisville, Kentucky. It is an extremely touching story. Subsequent essays tell the individual stories of artists like Dave Brubeck who is part American Indian and a fierce supporter of integration; Ernie Andrews, a black man who traveled with a white band; Red Rodney, a Jewish man who traveled with a black band; and Red Mitchell, a white man who, like many black artists, relocated abroad to escape racism.

The book was first published in 1995 and raised many an eyebrow for its final chapter dealing with reverse racism--anti-white sentiment among blacks--in which he cites the practices of Wynton Marsalis, director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Lees wrote a new introduction for the 2001 reissue of the book in which he quotes bassist Bob Cranshaw in a review which urges everyone to read this book--jazz lover or not. “Lees’ sensitivity and beautifully written plea to recognize jazz not as the sole property of any one group but as an art form that celebrates the human spirit is bound to stir up controversy and strong emotion in all who read it.”

Gene Lees is a jazz journalist, the biographer of Oscar Peterson and of Lerner and Loewe, and the author of Meet Me at Jim & Andy’s; Friends Along the Way: A Journey Through Jazz; Portrait of Johnny: The Life of John Herndon Mercer; Arranging the Score: Portraits of the Great Arrangers; Leader of the Band: The Life of Woody Herman; Fever: The Life and Music of Miss Peggy Lee; Singers and the Song, and Singers and the Song II. Since 1981 he has written and published Jazzletter.