Can three songs trace the soul of jazz?

3 Songs: How the Genius of America Created Three Jazz Standards (and why my brain thinks they are related) is an inspired deep dive into the heart of American music.

This richly illustrated, thoroughly researched, and deeply personal work uncovers the improbable origins and lasting legacy of three iconic jazz standards: "Star Dust," "Lush Life," and "Midnight Sun." But it's more than music history, it's cultural archaeology.

Through the lives of the composers and lyricists, readers are transported into the sonic and social ferment of 20th-century America: from Tin Pan Alley to Harlem, from New Orleans to Hollywood, from the smoking cabarets of Chicago's Bronzeville to the nation's first studios for recording and broadcasting sound.

Along the way, themes of race, immigration, invention, and identity converge, much like the music itself.

Blending memoir, biography, and historical narrative, 3 Songs is a rare book: intellectually curious, emotionally resonant, and accessible to both jazz aficionados and newcomers. Whether you're a musician, a lover of the Great American Songbook, or just want to understand the art form America gave the world, this book will leave you enlightened, and moved.

A must-read for anyone who hears in blue.