Almost everyone closely associated with me in the course of
a long life in music--and in a changing America--has a place
in the pages which follow. I hold them all in affeetion and re-
spect， and I have tried to make this evident in the text.
I must offer a special salute， however， to several of
my oldest companions on the journey: Fletcher Henderson，
Bill Basic， Benny Goodman， and Teddy Wilson.
I have always been grateful to the late Goddard Lieb-
erson， the brilliant president of Columbia Records， for his
unfailing friendship and support. He was the conscience of
the record business and its boldest innovator. My gratitude，
as well， to Bob Altshuler， the head of Columbia Records
public relations， for tirelessly touting my successful records
and minimizing my failures.
I want to acknowledge the unstinting assistance of
Frank Driggs and Michael Brooks， who for years have done
much of the legwork for which I received credit.
Of my many wonderful cousins not already men-
tioned， Shirley Burden and Watson Webb have been of
enormous help. And so has John Berg， the fine art director
of Columbia Records.
Thanks， too， to my old friend Willis Conover， who
encouraged me to reminisce on tape some twenty years ago
md gave me the notion that there might be a story in my
mstructured life. By the fortunate coincidence that Irving
Fownsend and I retired from Columbia Records at about the
ame time， a man who knows me as well as any in the world
xas able to help make this book a reality. For patiently and
killfully untangling the facts of my life， Irving， many thanks.
kny errors which may crop up， of eourse， are mine.
Finally， an appreciative nod to Adie Suehsdorf， the
host knowledgeable and ereative editor in my experience.
Fhe fact that he is also a lover of jazz made our collaboration
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