HAMP, An Autobiography, by Lionel Hampton. Warner Books (1989). First Edition. This book relates Hampton’s journey from obscurity to worldwide fame and his off-the-cuff recollections of contemporaries such as Louis Armstrong, Gene Krupa, Buddy Rich, Teddy Wilson, Nat King Cole, and Ella Fitzgerald.

"I love music, perhaps as much as life itself, and it's given me a great deal of happiness as well as a comfortable living."- Hampton, from the book

Hot Jazz and Jazz Dance, by Roger Pryor Dodge: Collected Writings, Oxford University Press (1995). Almost forgotten today, Roger Pryor Dodge was one of America's first great jazz critics, and an essential force in making America's music critics take hot jazz and jazz dance seriously. This book is a collection of his essays and reviews from 1929 - 1964. A book for both jazz fans and students of modern culture.

Hot Man, The Life of Art Hodes by Art Hodes. University of Illinois Press (1992). Hodes was a jazz pianist, called "the last of the living legends among Chicago jazz musicians." This book documents his colorful life.

In Search of Buddy Bolden, First Man of Jazz, by Donald M. Marquis. Louisiana State University Press (1978). First Edition. Bolden, an African American cornetist, was a key figure in the development of a New Orleans style of ragtime music that would later come to be known as jazz. He died in 1931.

Jazz Anecdotes by Bill Crow. Oxford University Press (1990). First edition; 2nd printing. No photos in this book, but great stories culled from interviews, biographies and autobiographies of jazz musicians such as Louis Armstrong, Fats Waller, Bessie Smith, Duke Ellington, Eddie Condon and Charlie Parker. Good index.

A Louis Armstrong quote: "If you have to ask what jazz is, you'll never know."

Jazz Is, by Nat Hentoff. Random House Inc. (1976). First Edition.  Hentoff, a lifetime traveler in the world of jazz, presents his reflections on jazz as a way of living, with input from many musicians, historians and others. Book includes discography and bibliography.

Jazz Masters of the Twenties, by Richard Hadlock. First Collier Books Edition (1965 PB). The author examines the individual recordings of several important jazz musicians, including Louis Armstrong, Bix Beiderbecke, Fletcher Henderson, Fats Waller, Bessie Smith and more. (This is the only copy of this book on Amazon. See its companion, right.)

Jazz Masters of the Forties, by Ira Gitler. First Collier Books Edition (1966 PB). Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie are the main focus in this book about the musical revolt that formed the basis of modern jazz. (See companion volume, left.)

Jazz Memories, by Dan Bied. Craftsman Press (1994 PB). This book is a warm accounting of the author’s memories of big bands, their singers and sidemen. Bied, a reporter, reviewer and lifelong fan of jazz, died in 1988.

(Note: Harry's autographed mint-condition copy of this book has sold, but other copies remain available on Amazon.)

Jazz in the Movies by David Meeker. Da Capo Press (1982 PB). This is an A-to-Z guide of movies that included performances by jazz musicians, with their names and the musical numbers in each movie. A great archival reference for jazz scholars and enthusiasts.

Jelly's Blues: The Life, Music, and Redemption of Jelly Roll Morton, by Howard Reich and William Gaines. Da Capo Press (2003 PB). This is a sympathetic biography of the legendary Creole jazz pianist, composer and bandleader. Booklist called this book "... a revisionist milestone in jazz studies, a book on which more than just future Morton biographies will depend."

A Jelly Roll Morton quote: "Get up from that piano. You hurtin' its feelings."