Bud Powell was not only one of the greatest bebop pianists of all time, he stands as one of the twentieth century's most dynamic and fiercely adventurous musical minds. His expansive musicianship, riveting performances, and inventive compositions expanded the bebop idiom and pushed jazz musicians of all stripes to higher standards of performance.
"What happens to a genius deferred? If that genius is Bud Powell, it finds resonance in the prose and cultural exegesis of Guthrie Ramsey, Jr., whose brilliant The Amazing Bud Powell offers one of the most compelling and generative views into this enigmatic giant of Black Modernism."-Mark Anthony Neal, author Looking for Leroy: Illegible Black Masculinities
"Equal parts biography, historiography, and music analysis, Ramsey's brilliant study represents a much-needed examination of one of jazz's most influential pianists and artists."
