Bird and Lady Days

In this selective memoir of his life as a jazz musician, Tony Scott recalls his close associations with some of the greatest names in the music business. Born in 1921, Scott started his career during the early evolution of modern jazz.

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Tony Scott has travelled the world and worked with musicians from Bali and Japan, although his reputation was made as one of the finest clarinettists in jazz, taking the style of the instrument forward from the days of Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw into the bebop era. In this selective memoir of his life as a jazz musician, he recalls his close associations with some of the greatest names in the music business. Born in 1921, Scott started his career in and around New York before the first generation of musicians had faded from the scene, but during the early evolution of modern jazz. His friends included Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Ben Webster, Charlie Mingus and a host of others, but in many ways he was closest to Charlie Parker (known as 'Bird') and Billie Holiday (known as 'Lady' or 'Lady Day'). In chronicling his own experiences, Scott adds to our insight and understanding of these two icons in jazz. Tony Scott began writing his memoirs in 1973, and author and film director Ean Wood has worked closely with him on this final draft.