Since the mid-1970s, almost every jazz musician has owned a copy of the same book. It has a peach-colored cover, a chunky, 1970s-style logo, and a black plastic binding. It’s delightfully homemade-looking—like it was printed by a bunch of teenagers at a Kinkos. And inside is the sheet music for hundreds of common jazz tunes—also known as jazz “standards”—all meticulously notated by hand. It’s called the Real Book. But if you were going to music school in the 1970s, you couldn’t just buy a copy of the Real Book at the campus bookstore. Because the Real Book... was illegal. The world’s most popular collection of Jazz music was a totally unlicensed publication. The full story of how the Real Book came to be this bootleg bible of jazz is a complicated one. It’s a story about what happens when an insurgent, improvisational art form like Jazz gets codified and becomes something that you can learn from a book.
The Real Book
This episode originally aired in April 2021
Roman note: I love this episode. An all time favorite. Pass it along to someone jazzy if so inclined.
579- Towers of Silence
The Power Broker: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
578- Anything's Pastable: Eat Sauté Love
577- The Society of Ambiance Makers and Elegant Persons
576- Chambre de Bonne
Roman Mars Describes Athens GA As It Is
575- Autism Pleasantville
574- The Monster Under the Sink
The Power Broker #03: David Sims
573- Toyetic
572- WARNING: This Podcast Contains Chemicals Known to the State of California to Cause Cancer or Other Reproductive Harm
Roman Mars Describes Santa Fe As It Is
Significant Others: A Sneak Peek at the Woman Behind Benedict Arnold’s Betrayal
571- You Are What You Watch
The Power Broker #02: Jamelle Bouie
570- The White Castle System of Eating Houses
569- Between the Blocks
568- Don't Forget to Remember
Roman Mars Describes Chicago As It Is
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Radio Atlantic
Articles of Interest
Planet Money
Pollyanna
The Art of War
The Atlas Obscura Podcast
Up First