Here is the story of a middle-class Jewish kid from Boston who became the founder of the Newport Jazz Festival and, later, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. . George Wein, who pioneered the idea of bringing jazz to people beyond the club circuit, looks back on his long career and unforgettably describes his relationships --sometimes smooth, sometimes tempestuous--with the great figures he's known: Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Thelonious Monk, and Miles Davis, among many, many others. Beginning in 1950 with the opening of his legendary Boston club Storyville, Wein presented jazz in a setting that respected both the musicians and the audience while still earning a profit. Since its founding in 1954, the Newport Jazz Festival has always reflected Wein's vision and grit. Wein opened up a whole new venue to musicians, attracting music immortals as well as aspiring young artists to his outdoor stage. Over the years, Newport became synonymous with jazz festivals in the United States, and it has become the model for similar events worldwide.
Through his work, George Wein has expanded the audience for jazz more than anyone else living today, and has received France's Legion d'Honneur and numerous other awards. Myself Among Others illuminates the personalities, legends and performances of jazz's greatest era.