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31 October 2015

Post 288: DICK BAKER'S GREAT RESEARCH AND WEB SITE

In 2013 I had an e-mail from Dick Baker, whom I did not previously know. This in turn led me to discover Dick's website:
CLICK HERE.

What a tremendous resource for all traditional jazz enthusiasts this is! I cannot recommend it too highly.

Dick has listed in alphabetical order nearly 4000 tunes from the traditional jazz canon. Here's a typical page. There are currently over 400 such pages.


With every title, Dick has given wherever possible the date of composition and the name(s) of the composers. There often follows a mini-essay in which he discusses such matters as controversies about the composition, alternative versions, and recordings of the piece.

It is hard to imagine what an intense labour of love this project has been (and still is). It must have cost Dick (and others) hundreds of hours of painstaking research and writing.  We are all deeply indebted to him.