The First Book of Jazz
New York: Franklin Watts, Inc., 1955. First edition. Hardcover. Small 4to. [6], 1-65, [1] pp. Grey cloth with black lettering and decorations on the front board, black lettering on the spine. Illustrated black and white endpapers and pastedowns. A stamped price of $1.95 on the front flap of the dust jacket. Pictures (in-text black and white illustrations) done by Cliff Roberts. Music selected by David Martin. Inscribed and dated by Hughes on the half-title page: "Especially for Noel - Sincerely Langston New York January 10, 1955." Freeman's Blog, "A Dynamic Friendship: Nöel Sullivan and Langston Hughes". The book is inscribed to Noel Sullivan, a gay singer who resided in California and was a close friend and confidant of Hughes. The two men met in 1932, and over the course of 20 years Sullivan would at times act as a financial patron for Hughes. Sullivan let Hughes reside in a few of his properties when the author was struggling financially. When Sullivan died he left Hughes the sum of $2,000. Hughes' landmark work The Ways of White Folks was dedicated to Noel Sullivan. During their long friendship Hughes' inscribed several books to Sullivan. With the paper insert from a vinyl record: The Story of Jazz for Children narrated by Langston Hughes with Documentary Recordings. The record was released by Folkways in 1954, the record was tied-in to the publication of the book. The insert is a pamphlet, unpaginated, with white wrappers printed in black, staple-bound, with black and white illustrations, measuring 18 cm x 18 cm. A bright and charming children's book, signed by one of the leaders of the Harlem Renaissance. A fabulous introduction to jazz music for young readers. Very Good / Near Very Good. Item #000017300
The gutters gently toned; jacket is price-clipped, with a few chips and traces of rubbing.
Price: $3,500.00