Vince Guaraldi at the Piano

This book is an incredible chronicle of Vince Guaraldi and his musical genius. Author Derrick Bang skillfully takes us on a memorable journey through the jazz scene in San Francisco and other prominent musical places and introduces us to Vince Guaraldi's talents, his struggles and achievements. One also gets exposed to the other creative artists, singers and jazz musicians who worked and influenced him.We can actually experience the Vince Guaraldi Trio playing in the jazz clubs, such as the hungri i in San Francisco, and feel him playing Gershwin's "Summertime" along with Cal Tjader and the quartet on the Monterey Peninsula during that bewitching midnight hour. With Derrick Bang's gift for accuracy, he archives this period in history and obviously spent countless hours researching and authenticating the material. The book is both scholarly and entertaining and Bang’s passion for detail should be appreciated by all.As a huge Charles M. Schulz fan, one experiences the production of the Peanuts' cartoon characters on the big screen with Guaraldi's unforgettable piano accompaniments. His energetic piano music makes Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy, Linus, and Schroeder quite memorable as he captures their essence.Derrick Bang brings to life Guaraldi's personality, temperament and humor in this book and adds some interesting familial influences. I thoroughly enjoyed the addition of the Marcellino family with Carmella and Vince’s ever-talented musical uncles, Muzzy and Joe. Many of the pictures of Guaraldi are delightful throughout the book, especially the 1933 elementary school photo of Vince in San Francisco clutching his teddy bear. This book truly is a classic piece of musical history and is informative and enjoyable.

Essential book for piano jazz fans and especially for Vince Guaraldi fans! Beautifully written, with all the details , an excellent discography and videography. Only regret that a hardcover version was not made. It would have deserved. Through the book you can discover how difficult it is to find and buy fundamental cds that have not been reprinted anymore, and especially the new documentary on Guaraldi that has not found a distributor and therefore it is still not possible to see it on an internet platform or on dvd. A wonderful tribute written with love to a great artist who died too early.

It's a good peek into the life of a working musician / recording artist. While reading, I listened to most of VG's recorded work and got a much deeper appreciation for his exquisite style. The book concentrates on his working life vs personal details but you still get a good sense of the man. One can only imagine the great things he would have produced had he lived longer.

As a Vince Guaraldi fan, I enjoyed the book. I would have preferred more stories about Guaraldi. The book devotes a large portion of the text to listing what appears to be each concert or performance Guaraldi ever had. That was a bit tedious to read through, although I understand that some may be interested in that. I enjoyed the book for the most part, although I can only really recommend it to a true fan of Guaraldi.

Beautifully researched and well written account ofVince Guaraldi’s life and the SF music scene of the 50’s through the 70’s. Kudos to Derrick Bang!

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Covers his entire career, from early years with Woody Herman and Cal Tjader, through his solo years. Great anecdotes with former sidemen. No other book out there on Vince. A must have for Guaraldi fans. I've been listening to him since I was 12 years old, after hearing him on the Charlie Brown specials. Still love his music, even though jazz has changed and evolved since the 50's, 60's and 70's.

Three stars for the wealth of information contained in this book on the gigs, sidemen and lots of interesting anecdotes from said sidemen. Minus TWO stars for the repeated foreshadowing of Guaraldi's passing. This happens once to three times EVERY chapter.

great book and pics

It was a pleasure reading this book, the focus on music and detail in Guaraldi's musical career was awesomely presented. I thoroughly enjoyed going through it. Some chapters seemed a bit lengthy though, and it would have been nice if they'd been split in two. Looking forward to updated apeditions as new information surfaces on this little researched musician, composer and pianist. Vince guaraldi.Derrick Bang has done a phenomenal job at detailing the artists short life, and presenting his many endeavours, beyond that of the Peanuts/Charlie Brown music.