Elegant Soul: The Life and Music of Gene Harris.Elegant Soul: The Life and Music of Gene Harris For the baseball player, see . Gene Harris (September 1, 1933, Benton Harbor, Michigan – January 16, 2000) was an American jazz pianist known for his warm sound and blues and gospel infused style that is known as soul jazz. by Janie Harris with Bob Evancho Caxton Press This article is about the Irish printing company. For the Idaho printing company, see Caxton Press (Idaho). For the New Zealand printing company, see Caxton Press (New Zealand). , February 2005 $24.95, ISBN ISBN abbr. International Standard Book Number ISBN International Standard Book Number ISBN n abbr (= International Standard Book Number) → ISBN m 0-870-04445-1 In the good "old" days, when it was "cool" to be "good" and "good" to be "cool," the harmonies of Gene Harris and the Three Sounds embodied the essence and the heart of a great listening sound. It was jazz music at its higher order. Harris and Iris band would be, in today's vernacular, "smooth as trotter." They had that type of sound. In a tribute to Harris, Janie, Gene's second wife, with Bob Evancho, has written a charming book about Mr. Harris and his "piano-playing soul." The book is a sincere representation of his vitality, "as one of the most talented and dynamic jazz players in the world." The book covers everything, it appears, from Harris's roots in Benton Harbor, Michigan Benton Harbor is a city in Berrien County in the U.S. State of Michigan. The population was 11,182 at time of the 2000 census. It is the lesser populated of the two principal cities included in the Niles-Benton Harbor, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area. , to his renewed fame and death in Boise, Idaho, in January 2000. This is a pleasing book, and much of its gratification comes from Mrs. Harris's portrayal of her husband as a man who truly loved all music, his music particularly, constantly trying to make improvements. It was always about the music. He persevered through the disagreements within the group when jazz fell out of favor, and with the efforts to renew himself as a musician. He experimented with performing solo and being a part of a quartet. He suffered with health problems and endured personal tragedies. Yet, he was still able to "make a piano stand up and talk." The story line is crafted from the heart. Readers feel the relationship that Mrs. Harris enjoyed with her husband. It is elating e·late tr.v. e·lat·ed, e·lat·ing, e·lates To make proud or joyful: Her success elated the family. adj. Elated. to read about their experiences. Unfortunately, I never saw Gene Harris and the original Three Sounds. I was introduced to their music by an older relative who bought their vinyl albums. My Uncle Joe would always say that "Gene Harris and the Three Sounds could play rings around his contemporaries, Ahmad Jamal and Ramsey Lewis." While this may or may not be correct, Elegant Soul is both an informative and provocative book that will help frame any conversation about jazz music. Fred Lindsey is an assistant professor of cultural studies at John F. Kennedy University John F. Kennedy University is a private university. School of Law In the July 2007 California Bar Examination, nineteen graduates took the examination for the first time. Six passed. Fifty-four took the examination for, at least, a second time after previously failing it. in Pleasant Hill, California Pleasant Hill is a city in Contra Costa County, California, in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 32,837 at the 2000 census. It was incorporated in 1961. . |
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