Beneath the Underdog: His World as Composed by Mingus is the autobiography of jazz bassist and composer Charles Mingus. It was first published in 1971, by Alfred A. Knopf.
Mingus worked on his autobiography for more than two decades.[1] One newspaper indicated in October 1961 that the book "is due out in a couple of weeks".[2] The following year, The New York Times reported that author Louis Lomax was collaborating with Mingus in the writing and editing of "an eight-year-old, portly, angry manuscript of 1,500 pages", and that publishers in France and Japan had bid for the book.[3] The original proposed title was Memoirs of a Half Yellow Schitt Covered Nigger.[4]
It was finally published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1971.[5] The published form, edited by Nel King, reduced the original manuscript by more than two thirds.[5][6] Before editing, the typescript contained mostly dialog; a lot of the prose was formed during King's second edit.[4] She chose to retain the pimp stories, thereby giving them greater prominence than in the original manuscript; this decision may have been related to the commercial success of Iceberg Slim's book, Pimp, in the late 1960s.[4]
Receptionedit
The reviewer for the journal Notes commented that "the reader is forced to plow through page after page of erotica (some might label it pornography) in order to ferret out the most basic kind of information about the man and his music."[7]The Washington Post's reviewer stated that the book is "sexual fantasy and tortured personality conflict", and complained that there was little information about Mingus' music or those he played with.[8]The Observer's reviewer believed that "Mingus has made a contribution to recent American literature that even his well-wishers could not have anticipated", and stressed that the bassist had described "what it feels like to be an artist – actually be it, in a world that is not only trying to stop you being an artist but has tried to stop you being human in the first place."[9]
Writer Toby Litt stated that "His autobiography is that of a profoundly troubled, often bitter man who never feels loved enough but constantly undermines those loves offered to him."[10]
Mingus' last wife, Sue Mingus, indicated that the book was an account of "the superficial Mingus, the flashy one, not the real one."[1]
Legacyedit
The original manuscript was acquired, along with other material documenting Mingus' life, by the Library of Congress in 1993.[6]
Readings from the book were included in Hal Willner's recording, Weird Nightmare: Meditations on Mingus.[11]
^West, Hollie I. (May 15, 1971) "Bass Viol Book". The Washington Post. p. C4.
^James, Clive (August 15, 1971) "Jim Crow in the Jazz World". The Observer. p. 23.
^Litt, Toby "Penguin Readers' Group" September 4, 2014, at the Wayback Machine. Penguin. Retrieved August 30, 2014.
^Fusilli, Jim (November 18, 1992) "On Records: Power Pop". The Wall Street Journal. p. A14.
Bibliography
Southern, Eileen (1972). ""Beneath the Underdog", by Charles Mingus". Notes. 29 (1).
October 30, 2023
beneath, underdog, world, composed, mingus, autobiography, jazz, bassist, composer, charles, mingus, first, published, 1971, alfred, knopf, hardcover, editionauthorcharles, mingusoriginal, title, world, composed, minguscountryunited, stateslanguageenglishgenre. Beneath the Underdog His World as Composed by Mingus is the autobiography of jazz bassist and composer Charles Mingus It was first published in 1971 by Alfred A Knopf Beneath the UnderdogHardcover editionAuthorCharles MingusOriginal titleBeneath the Underdog His World as Composed by MingusCountryUnited StatesLanguageEnglishGenreNon fictionPublisherAlfred A KnopfPublication date1971Media typePrintPages366 pp ISBN9780394436227 Contents 1 Background 2 Reception 3 Legacy 4 Further reading 5 See also 6 ReferencesBackground editMingus worked on his autobiography for more than two decades 1 One newspaper indicated in October 1961 that the book is due out in a couple of weeks 2 The following year The New York Times reported that author Louis Lomax was collaborating with Mingus in the writing and editing of an eight year old portly angry manuscript of 1 500 pages and that publishers in France and Japan had bid for the book 3 The original proposed title was Memoirs of a Half Yellow Schitt Covered Nigger 4 It was finally published by Alfred A Knopf in 1971 5 The published form edited by Nel King reduced the original manuscript by more than two thirds 5 6 Before editing the typescript contained mostly dialog a lot of the prose was formed during King s second edit 4 She chose to retain the pimp stories thereby giving them greater prominence than in the original manuscript this decision may have been related to the commercial success of Iceberg Slim s book Pimp in the late 1960s 4 Reception editThe reviewer for the journal Notes commented that the reader is forced to plow through page after page of erotica some might label it pornography in order to ferret out the most basic kind of information about the man and his music 7 The Washington Post s reviewer stated that the book is sexual fantasy and tortured personality conflict and complained that there was little information about Mingus music or those he played with 8 The Observer s reviewer believed that Mingus has made a contribution to recent American literature that even his well wishers could not have anticipated and stressed that the bassist had described what it feels like to be an artist actually be it in a world that is not only trying to stop you being an artist but has tried to stop you being human in the first place 9 Writer Toby Litt stated that His autobiography is that of a profoundly troubled often bitter man who never feels loved enough but constantly undermines those loves offered to him 10 Mingus last wife Sue Mingus indicated that the book was an account of the superficial Mingus the flashy one not the real one 1 Legacy editThe original manuscript was acquired along with other material documenting Mingus life by the Library of Congress in 1993 6 Readings from the book were included in Hal Willner s recording Weird Nightmare Meditations on Mingus 11 Further reading editExcerpt from a 2016 biography of Charles MingusSee also editList of jazz biographiesReferences edit a b Rockwell John January 9 1979 Charles Mingus 56 Bass Player Bandleader and Composer Dead The New York Times p A1 Young Masco October 21 1961 The Grapevine Pittsburgh Courier p A21 Shelton Robert August 27 1962 Jazz Man Is Changing His Beat The New York Times p 17 a b c Yaffe David 2009 Fascinating Rhythm Princeton University Press chapter 4 a b Southern 1972 p 34 a b Harrington Richard June 2 1993 Mementos of Mingus Library of Congress Acquires Works of Composer The Washington Post p B1 Southern 1972 p 37 West Hollie I May 15 1971 Bass Viol Book The Washington Post p C4 James Clive August 15 1971 Jim Crow in the Jazz World The Observer p 23 Litt Toby Penguin Readers Group Archived September 4 2014 at the Wayback Machine Penguin Retrieved August 30 2014 Fusilli Jim November 18 1992 On Records Power Pop The Wall Street Journal p A14 BibliographySouthern Eileen 1972 Beneath the Underdog by Charles Mingus Notes 29 1 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Beneath the Underdog amp oldid 1084568720, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
