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Les McCann, Alan Abrahams, Pat Thomas

Invitation To Openness: The Jazz & Soul Photography Of Les McCann 1960-1980

On sale date: April 19, 2015

This collects the photographs of legendary musician Les McCann; he documented the jazz scene and its players—Nina Simone, John Coltrane, Count Basie, and many others—from the inside, across several decades.

Throughout Les McCann’s incredible jazz career, he took hundreds of photos—at clubs, studios, and festivals around the world—and documented the vibrant cultural life of jazz and soul between 1960 and 1980. These photos include a very young Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Sammy Davis Jr., John Coltrane, Aretha Franklin, Nancy Wilson, Richard Pryor, Quincy Jones, Tina Turner, Miles Davis, Cannonball Adderly, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, B.B. King, Errol Garner, Stanley Clarke, Bill Evans, Lionel Hampton, and other black celebrities, such as Bill Cosby, Muhammed Ali, and Stokely Carmichael to name but a few. These photos are characterized by their intimacy, and the cross-section of names listed is merely the tip of the iceberg. The book features candid commentary by McCann himself and is curated by Pat Thomas (Listen, Whitey!: The Sights and Sounds of Black Power 1965-1975) and maverick music producer Alan Abrahams (Pure Prairie League, Joan Baez, Stanley Turrentine, Kris Kristofferson, Taj Mahal).

Praise

"If McCann never touched a piano in his life, he'd likely still have become famous as a photographer. The proof is in his new book, Invitation to Openness: The Jazz & Soul Photography of Les McCann, which collects many of his best pictures. Looking at McCann's photographs, one gets the distinct sense of being in the room with the subjects. ... In each case, McCann's lens strips these icons of pretense, brushes away the dust of history, and leaves them not naked, not vulnerable, but open." — Travis Atria - Red Bull Music Academy

"One of the most thoroughly enjoyable parts of the book Invitation to Openness, alongside his insightful pictures, is McCann's personal remembrances of his photographic subjects..." — Chris M. Slawecki - All About Jazz

Specs

Pages
200
Format
Hardback
Color
Black & white
Dimensions
9.4" × 12.3"
ISBN-13
9781606997864
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