In this book, author Gene Lees draws on interviews with players, composers, and critics to confront the subject of racism in the jazz community. Since its beginnings, jazz music has been linked to racial and ethnic prejudice in one way or another - both the white racism that for decades ghettoized black musicians and their music, and what Lees shows is an increasingly strident prejudice of some black musicians against their white counterparts. Dave Brubeck describes how racism long made it impossible for white and black players to book tours. An interview with Sonny Rollins reveals the effect of bringing in a white guitarist at a New York performance. Other artists profiled include Horace Silver, Red Rodney, and Benny Golson, who add their own unique experiences to this frank study of racism in its many guises.