The reference librarians at Seattle Public Library are pretty darn amazing. They don’t know everything, instead they know where to find everything. As part of an irregular series of posts we salute the talented and dedicated reference staff at your local library. Names and other identifying information have been removed from the questions we showcase. Got a stumper?
Click on Ask a Librarian. It’s what we do.
I have to do a research paper on Boogie-Woogie, which is a Genre of music, and a branch of jazz, could you help me with that?
We have one book in our collection titled:
A Left hand Like God: a History of Boogie-Woogie Piano by Peter Silvester
Otherwise, here are some other choices which include a chapter on your subject:
Jazz: New Perspectives on the History of Jazz by Nat Hentoff
Jazzmen by Frederic Ramsey
A New History of Jazz by Alyn Shipton (It has a 10 page history of Boogie-Woogie)
You might want to check out a 1938 concert recording of the famous From Spirituals to Swing concert that really launched boogie-woogie with the main public (as opposed to the hipper crowd, earlier).
It’s in the Library catalog, along with The Rough Guide to Classic Jazz, which has Pinetop Smith’s Pinetop’s Boogie Woogie, which was a hit in 1929 and is also one of the catalysts of the music.
Sadly, Pinetop Smith lived the classic jazz life and tragically died from misplaced gunfire at a saloon he was playing in.
Google Books searches old music magazines and if want to enter names like Albert Ammons, Pete Johnson, Meade Lux Lewis, etc, there are full text articles.
Be sure to select full view.
Using our Quick Search feature of our magazines databases under “boogie woogie” yielded a variety of articles. You will need to login with your Seattle Public Library libary card and PIN number in order to use it away from our library catalogs.
We also have some boogie-woogie sheet music. Please go to the Art, Recreation and Literature Department on the 7th floor of the Central Library and ask for help finding them.
Please let us know if you require further assistance.
Thank you for using the Seattle Public Library for your information needs.
~ Library Staff
Update: Appologies to the Arts, Recreation and Literature Staff who are really on Level 8 and not Level 7
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