Mr. P.C: the life and music of Paul Chambers

Named one of the best books of 2012 by The New York City Jazz Record

Winner of the 2013 Association for Recorded Sound Collections Award for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research in Jazz

During his thirteen year career, between 1955 and 1968, Paul Chambers was one of the leading double bass players in jazz, performing with a variety of artists and in a range of the music’s sub-genres. He recorded over three hundred LPs for labels such as Blue Note, Riverside, Mercury and Columbia Records. Chambers performed as a sideman with many of the greatest names in jazz including Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley, Sonny Rollins, Wes Montgomery, Joe Henderson, Bill Evans, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Hank Mobley, Lee Morgan, Gil Evans and Freddie Hubbard. He recorded a half dozen albums under his own name that included his own compositions, but is probably best remembered for his contribution to the greatest jazz recording of all time: Miles Davis’ Kind Of Blue.

Mr. P.C. tells the story of this quiet giant of jazz: his early experiences in Detroit, his rise to jazz celebrity, his time at the top, his ultimate struggle against the tides of change enveloping the music that he loved, and the circumstances surrounding his tragic death, aged 33, in 1969. Featuring interviews with family members, friends and colleagues with the jazz fraternity, this book represents the first time that much of this influential musician’s story has been told. It includes a comprehensive discography detailing all of his recordings both as a sideman and a band leader.

The link below will take you to the publisher’s website where the book can be purchased as a hardcopy or as an e-book.