The Penguin Guide to Jazz

Infobox Book
name = The Penguin Guide to Jazz
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption = The cover of the eighth edition of the "Penguin Guide to Jazz", with a photograph of Philly Joe Jones by Francis Wolff, Nola Rehearsal Studio, NYC, 1959.
author = Richard Cook
Brian Morton
illustrator =
cover_artist =
country =
language = English
series = Penguin Guide
subject = Jazz
genre = Non-fiction
Encyclopedic
Reference
publisher = Penguin Books
release_date = November 28, 2006 (8th)
September 28, 2004 (7th)
January 1, 1995 (2nd, US publication date)
english_release_date =
media_type = Paperback
pages = 1728
isbn = ISBN 0-14-102327-9 (8th)
0141014164 (7th)
preceded_by =
followed_by =

"The Penguin Guide to Jazz" is a non-fiction book that is an encyclopedic referencing of jazz recordings on CD which are currently available in Europe or the United States. It is compiled by Richard Cook and Brian Morton, two well known chroniclers of jazz resident in the United Kingdom.

History

The first edition was published in Britain by Penguin Books in 1992. Every two years since then, a new edition has been published with updated entries. The eighth edition, published in November 2006, boasts close to two thousand new CD entries.

The title has taken different forms over the lifetime of the work, as audio technology has changed. The seventh edition was known as "The Penguin Guide of Jazz on CD" while the latest edition is titled "The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings." The earliest edition had the title "The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, LP and Cassette".

Content

Artists are listed alphabetically and the entries begin with short (usually one paragraph) biographies before a comprehensive listing of a musicians' available recordings. Each disc is given a rating of up to four stars and details of its label and catalogue number, musicians featured on the disc, month and year of the recording or the span of time in which the tracks were recorded and finally a review of varying length. Often a number of discs are reviewed together.

Two extra features, author's picks (crowns) and "core collections," have been added to succeeding editions. The first shows entries flagged as personal favorites while the latter are the "more essential" albums for a jazz CD collection. John Eyles comments in a review that "the implication is that the choices for crowns are subjective, while the Core Collection is somehow more objective," when in fact both lists are decided upon by the same two editors.citeweb|url=http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=23610|title=The Penguin Guide To Jazz Recordings, 8th Edition|author=John Eyles|accessdate=2006-04-18]

Bootlegs and "issues of dubious provenance" have usually been excluded, but as the major labels have merged and cut back their reissue programmes, the restriction on 'grey market' releases, usually in existence as a result of less stringent copyright laws in Europe, has gradually become more relaxed.Fact|date=April 2007 Limited-edition Mosaic Records releases are also excluded. Various-artists compilations were reviewed in the first edition but have since been dropped.

Due to the increasing numbers of CDs on the market, space limitations and depth of coverage have increasingly become an issue: in the 7th edition, for instance, the index was dropped to save space, but it was restored in the 8th edition (but a number of entries were dropped or shortened to make room for it).

Reception

Though each edition doesn't "spring any great surprises," that matters little, since "it has a tried and trusted formula that works". It is also praised as being "of equal value to both experienced jazz listeners and novices."

[http://www.ucalgary.ca/~ghfick/jazz.html Gordon Fick] has compiled a list of all discs identified as either four star, crown or core.

References

External links

* [http://us.penguingroup.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9780141023274,00.html Listing at Penguin Books.]