The JJA’s Zoom Jazz Book Party from Sunday, Jan 17, featuring member-authors Karl Ackermann, Debbie Burke, Tish Oney, Ted Panken and Mark Ruffin, whose books were published in 2020, is now edited and posted for public viewing at the JJA’s Youtube channel, as well as below.
The 90-minute, interactive Zoom event was intended to be streamed live to the JJA’s Facebook page, but technical difficulties prevailed. The event was also “bombed” with vile photos and rants in the chat, which have been edited out of the posted version, and only momentarily delayed the discussion.
Besides the five authors, whose books are A Map of Jazz: Crossroads of Music and Human Rights (Ackermann), Tasty Jazz Jams for Our Times (Burke), Peggy Lee: A Century of Song (Oney), Life in E-flat – The Autobiography of Phil Woods (Panken) and Bebop Fairy Tales: A Historical Fiction Trilogy on Jazz, Intolerance, and Baseball (Ruffin), member-publisher Gary S. Stager of Cymbal Press (responsible for Life in E-Flat, as well as Jon Gordon’s Jazz Dialogues) and bassist-producer-writer Gene Perla contributed informative comments. Bob Blumenthal spoke briefly as chair of the JJA’s Book of the Year Jazz Award committee, and JJA president Howard Mandel served as moderator.
