The Night People

Covers the formative years, the Harlem heyday, and the on- and offstage experiences of Wells, a premier trombonist who played in the big bands of Benny Carter, Fletcher Henderson, and most notably, Count Basie. Wells intimately describes the perils of the jazz life, including racism encountered by black musicians in the South during the 1930s and 1940s, and the lure of alcohol.