GIL EVANS: Out of the Cool, His Life and Music

One of jazz's great musical arrangers and composers—the author compares him to Duke Ellington and Aaron Copland—Evans is principally known today for his groundbreaking work with trumpeter Miles Davis. In this comprehensive albeit somewhat dry biography, music journalist Crease depicts how Evans's life and career both shaped and were shaped by the changes in jazz. After a hardscrabble upbringing in California, Evans, a self-taught musician, quickly became a top arranger during the big band era of the 1930s. Even during this early period, he showed what was then an unusual trait: an interest in borrowing from other musical genres, principally classical. After World War II, Evans moved to New York City, where he became part of the scene that fueled jazz's postwar boom. Following a brief career downturn in the early 1950s, he rose to some prominence with the well-known and flamboyant Davis. Together, the two pioneered the relaxed, subtle sound of cool jazz referred to in the book's title. Unfortunately for the lay reader, Crease fails to define or explore the elements of cool jazz. She also gives little attention to Evans's personal life, which for a jazz musician of his generation was relatively quiet, though it included a brief breakdown and a divorce from a wife who many believed was alcoholic. There's little doubt that Evans, who died in 1987, deserves wider acclaim; unfortunately, this biography is unlikely to generate it. (Oct.)