Herbie Nichols wanted to be a Prokofiev, but when classical training proved beyond his means as a young pianist in Harlem, he decided instead to become an Ellington.
In truth, he became a Nichols Ñ by his own description a ÒjazzistÓ and by any other name a singular figure on the New York jazz scene of the 1950s. He composed and all too infrequently recorded music whose originality, modernity and humour Ñ set him apart from his contemporaries.
Increasingly celebrated in the years since his death, Nichols is now honoured with this sympathetic and engaging biography., Herbie Nichols, jazz, piano, Cecil Taylor, Mark Miller, Harlem, Mark Miller| 9781551281650 | 226PAGES