BLACK AND BLUE: The Life and Lyrics of Andy Razaf.

New York:: Schirmer Books / Macmillan,, (1992). Hardcover first edition -. Near fine in near fine dust jacket (a bit of light discoloration to outer edges of back of textblock.). First printing. A book which chronicles the life and Prohibition-era times of this legendary songwriter and whose musicals pioneered a distinctive African-American musical theater on Broadway, but who has been almost forgotten. "The 1920s were thrilling years for Broadway and Tin Pan Alley. Uptown in Harlem, talented musicians and composers were working to shed the image of minstrelsy and to find mainstream success within the structures of that particularly African American music known as jazz. The subject of this biography was lyricist for hundreds of songs, including 'Honeysuckle Rose' and 'Ain't Misbehavin'.' His contemporaries formed a Who''s Who of jazz greats, from Louis Armstrong to Razaf's most noted collaborator, Thomas 'Fats' Waller. Razaf brought a sensitivity and sophistication to his lyrics that ensure the timelessness of his best work. The poignant 'Black and Blue,' dealing with the plight of being Black in a white world, may be the first racial protest song."" (Library Journal) Illustrated with photographs. Notes, songs, discography, index. xvii, 444 pp.