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Book Signing: Edward Allan Faine - Ellington at the White House 1969 and The Best Gig In Town: Jazz Artists at the White House 1969-1974

In Ellington at the White House 1969, Edward Faine takes us behind the scenes, tracing the decades-long journey that both Ellington and jazz had to travel to have their music heard in the White House, and the machinations leading up to Nixon's approval of the tribute and Willis Conover as the concert's producer. Brimming with photographs and surprising little-known facts, the book celebrates the singular White House event that had such an enormous impact on both the African American and the jazz arts communities--and on the millions worldwide who viewed the USIA documentary (a White House first) and listened to Willis Conover's VOA radio broadcasts of the event.

The Best Gig in Town: Jazz Artists at the White House 1969-1974 pays homage to a handful of iconic entertainers who graced the East Room stage during Nixon’s term in office: singers Pearl Bailey, Peggy Lee, and Frank Sinatra; pianists Henry Mancini, Bobby Short, and Billy Taylor; New Orleans musicians Pete Fountain and Al Hirt; and the instrumental groups the Modern Jazz Quartet and the World's Greatest Jazz Band. In assembling these profiles, the author drew on published sources as well as archival taped performances, transcribing everything from Nixon's introductory and closing remarks to the statements made by the stars to the reaction of the glitterati in the audience.

Meet the author.

Date: 03/14/2015
Time: 2:00pm - 4:00pm
Place:

185 N Loudoun St
Winchester, VA 22601