Circular Breathing

The Cultural Politics of Jazz in Britain

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Music, Music Styles, Jazz & Blues, Jazz, Theory & Criticism, History & Criticism
Cover of the book Circular Breathing by George McKay, Duke University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: George McKay ISBN: 9780822387282
Publisher: Duke University Press Publication: November 23, 2005
Imprint: Duke University Press Books Language: English
Author: George McKay
ISBN: 9780822387282
Publisher: Duke University Press
Publication: November 23, 2005
Imprint: Duke University Press Books
Language: English

In Circular Breathing, George McKay, a leading chronicler of British countercultures, uncovers the often surprising ways that jazz has accompanied social change during a period of rapid transformation in Great Britain. Examining jazz from the founding of George Webb’s Dixielanders in 1943 through the burgeoning British bebop scene of the early 1950s, the Beaulieu Jazz Festivals of 1956–61, and the improvisational music making of the 1960s and 1970s, McKay reveals the connections of the music, its players, and its subcultures to black and antiracist activism, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, feminism, and the New Left. In the process, he provides the first detailed cultural history of jazz in Britain.

McKay explores the music in relation to issues of whiteness, blackness, and masculinity—all against a backdrop of shifting imperial identities, postcolonialism, and the Cold War. He considers objections to the music’s spread by the “anti-jazzers” alongside the ambivalence felt by many leftist musicians about playing an “all-American” musical form. At the same time, McKay highlights the extraordinary cultural mixing that has defined British jazz since the 1950s, as musicians from Britain’s former colonies—particularly from the Caribbean and South Africa—have transformed the genre. Circular Breathing is enriched by McKay’s original interviews with activists, musicians, and fans and by fascinating images, including works by the renowned English jazz photographer Val Wilmer. It is an invaluable look at not only the history of jazz but also the Left and race relations in Great Britain.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In Circular Breathing, George McKay, a leading chronicler of British countercultures, uncovers the often surprising ways that jazz has accompanied social change during a period of rapid transformation in Great Britain. Examining jazz from the founding of George Webb’s Dixielanders in 1943 through the burgeoning British bebop scene of the early 1950s, the Beaulieu Jazz Festivals of 1956–61, and the improvisational music making of the 1960s and 1970s, McKay reveals the connections of the music, its players, and its subcultures to black and antiracist activism, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, feminism, and the New Left. In the process, he provides the first detailed cultural history of jazz in Britain.

McKay explores the music in relation to issues of whiteness, blackness, and masculinity—all against a backdrop of shifting imperial identities, postcolonialism, and the Cold War. He considers objections to the music’s spread by the “anti-jazzers” alongside the ambivalence felt by many leftist musicians about playing an “all-American” musical form. At the same time, McKay highlights the extraordinary cultural mixing that has defined British jazz since the 1950s, as musicians from Britain’s former colonies—particularly from the Caribbean and South Africa—have transformed the genre. Circular Breathing is enriched by McKay’s original interviews with activists, musicians, and fans and by fascinating images, including works by the renowned English jazz photographer Val Wilmer. It is an invaluable look at not only the history of jazz but also the Left and race relations in Great Britain.

More books from Duke University Press

Cover of the book Poor People's Medicine by George McKay
Cover of the book Writing in the Air by George McKay
Cover of the book It's Been Beautiful by George McKay
Cover of the book Constitutional Deliberation in Congress by George McKay
Cover of the book Consuming Russia by George McKay
Cover of the book A Master on the Periphery of Capitalism by George McKay
Cover of the book Becoming Beside Ourselves by George McKay
Cover of the book Ivy and Industry by George McKay
Cover of the book National History and the World of Nations by George McKay
Cover of the book Tourists of History by George McKay
Cover of the book Beyond Settler Time by George McKay
Cover of the book Specters of Mother India by George McKay
Cover of the book Bodily Matters by George McKay
Cover of the book Between Hollywood and Moscow by George McKay
Cover of the book A Language of Song by George McKay
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy