Myself When I Am Real

Charles Mingus was one of the most innovative jazz musicians of the 20th century, and ranks with Charles Ives and Duke Ellington as one of America's greatest composers. By temperament, he was a high-strung and sensitive romantic, a towering figure whose tempestuous personal life found powerfully coherent expression in the ever-shifting textures of his music. Now, acclaimed music critic Gene Santoro strips away the myths shrouding Jazz's Angry Man, revealing Mingus as more complex than even his close friends knew. Written in a lively, novelistic style, Myself When I Am Real draws on dozens of new interviews and previously untapped letters and archival materials to explore the intricate connections between this extraordinary man and the extraordinary music he made.

An acclaimed music critic strips away the myths shrouding "Jazz's Angry Man, " in "the best examination yet of an American original" ("The Washington Post").

The definitive Mingus biography.--The Boston Book Review

The best examination yet of an American original.--Washington Post

The great bassist and composer's wild, turbulent life [is] wonderfully captured by Santoro....In sharp and lively prose, [he] digs deep into Mingus' past to sort out the strands of his life...--Rolling Stone

As Mingus's story unfolds, Santoro keeps the backbeat with perspectives on the socio-political churnings over those years, all of which affected Mingus's life and music....Santoro is on target, and his writing...soars.--The Boston Globe

This is a biography as gargantuan in scope and ambition as Mingus himself, and highly recommended.--The Seattle Times

Written with the elegant hand of an experienced journalist and the insight of a musician with first-rate ears, the book accomplishes the seemingly impossible task of casting a revealing light upon the inner life of its enigmatic subject.--Los Angeles Times

Santoro brings his readers into the mind of this conflicted genius.--The Philadelphia Inquirer