In 1935, a violinist from Minnesota named Leon Abbey brought the first all negro jazz band to Bombay, leaving a legacy that would last three decades. In a decade, swing would find its way to the streets of India as it influenced Hindi film music the very soundtrack of Indian life. The optimism of jazz became an important element in the tunes that echoed the hopes of newly independent India.
This book tells a story of India and especially of the city of Bombay through the lives of a menagerie of geniuses, strivers and eccentrics, both Indian and American, who helped jazz find a home in the sweaty subcontinent. They include the burly African-American pianist Teddy Weatherford; the Goan trumpet player Frank Fernand, whose epiphanic encounter with Mahatma Gandhi drove him to try to give jazz an Indian voice; Chic Chocolate, who was known as the Louis Armstrong of India; Anthony Gonsalves, who lent his name to one of the most popular Bollywood tunes ever; and many more.
Taj Mahal Foxtrot, at its heart, is a history of Bombay in swing time.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Naresh Fernandes
The author Naresh Fernandes is editor-in-chief of Time Out India. A renowned journalist, he has previously worked with the Times of India and the Associated Press in Mumbai and with the Wall Street Journal in New York. His writings have appeared in numerous national and international newspapers and magazines. He is the co-editor of the anthology, Bombay Meri Jaan.The photo research was done over a long period of time by Pramod Kapoor, who is a collector of historical records and photographs and a publisher by profession. He has previously compiled pioneering books like the Unforgettable Maharajas; India: Then and Now; and will soon be launching Witness to Life and Freedom: Margaret Bourke-White in India. He compiled the pathbreaking illustrated book, New Delhi: Making of a Capital, which is a bestseller.The photo researcher, Chirodeep Chaudhuri has worked in the Sunday Observer, the Outlook Group and at Time Out Mumbai. Many of Chirodeep’s projects on Mumbai have been exhibited around the country and abroad; and his work has been included in exclusive books on the city. His work is also a part of the permanent collections of the Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Arts (Japan) and the Museum of Fine Arts (Houston, USA).
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