Stanley Crouch fut une voix américaine imposante dont l'écriture a touché au cœur de la culture américaine, particulièrement dans les domaines du jazz et des relations raciales. Poète dynamique, journaliste musical et critique, il a exploré les complexités de l'identité et de l'art américains avec un intellect inébranlable et une prose passionnée. Son œuvre, façonnée par ses expériences d'activiste et de musicien, offre des aperçus pénétrants des paysages socioculturels historiques et contemporains. Les lecteurs trouveront dans ses écrits un mélange captivant d'analyse pointue et de commentaires vivants.
Stanley Crouch, a prominent figure in American literature, was renowned for his bold writing style and insightful critiques, particularly in jazz. Born in Los Angeles in 1945, he engaged readers with his passionate and sometimes controversial views on race, politics, literature, and music. His larger-than-life personality and intellectual curiosity made him a beloved yet polarizing critic, leaving a significant impact on literary and cultural discourse following his death in 2020.
Stanley Crouch delivers a provocative exploration of American culture, addressing subjects ranging from the American South to significant events like the death of Tupac Shakur and the O.J. Simpson verdict. His commentary is marked by a commitment to truth, often confronting painful realities. Crouch's deep passion and extensive knowledge of jazz, covering legends such as Sidney Bechet, Duke Ellington, and Miles Davis, further enrich his insights, making him a unique voice in cultural and political discourse.
Kansas City Lightning: The Rise and Times of Charlie Parker is the first installment in the long-awaited portrait of one of the most talented and influential musicians of the twentieth century, from Stanley Crouch, one of the foremost authorities on jazz and culture in America. Throughout his life, Charlie Parker personified the tortured American artist: a revolutionary performer who used his alto saxophone to create a new music known as bebop even as he wrestled with a drug addiction that would lead to his death at the age of thirty-four. Drawing on interviews with peers, collaborators, and family members, Kansas City Lightning recreates Parker’s Depression-era childhood; his early days navigating the Kansas City nightlife, inspired by lions like Lester Young and Count Basie; and on to New York, where he began to transcend the music he had mastered. Crouch reveals an ambitious young man torn between music and drugs, between his domineering mother and his impressionable young wife, whose teenage romance with Charlie lies at the bittersweet heart of this story. With the wisdom of a jazz scholar, the cultural insights of an acclaimed social critic, and the narrative skill of a literary novelist, Stanley Crouch illuminates this American master as never before.
Set against the backdrop of America’s complex social landscape, the novel explores the passionate yet tumultuous relationship between Carla, a blonde jazz singer, and Maxwell, a black tenor saxophonist. Their intense five-year love affair faces external pressures from both racial and cultural expectations, challenging their commitment to one another. As Carla fights to preserve their bond, her past intertwines with the present, revealing a diverse cast of characters and unpredictable situations that illuminate the struggles of love across societal boundaries.
This collection of essays showcases Stanley Crouch's sharp and insightful commentary on race and culture in America. Known for his eloquence and unpredictability, Crouch tackles complex societal issues with a unique perspective. His work has garnered recognition as a New York Times Notable Book, reflecting his influence and prominence in national media. Through his essays, readers can expect a thought-provoking exploration of contemporary cultural dynamics.
Mr. Artur Sammler, Holocaust survivor, intellectual and occasional lecturer at Columbia University in 1960s New York, is a 'registrar of madness', a refined and civilized being caught among people crazy with the promises of the future (moon landings, endless possibilities). His Cyclopean gaze reflects on the degradations of city life while looking deep into the sufferings of the human soul. 'Sorry for all and sore at heart', he observes how greater luxury & leisure have only led to more suffering. To Sammler--who by the end of this ferociously unsentimental novel has found the compassionate consciousness necessary to bridge the gap between himself and his fellow beings--a good life is one in which a person does what is 'required of him'. To know and to meet the 'terms of the contract" was as true a life as one could live. At its heart, this novel is quintessential Bellow: moral, urbane, sublimely humane.
