Nervous Man Nervous: Big Jay McNeely and the Rise of the Honking Tenor Sax

In the days before rock 'n' roll was invented, saxophonist Big Jay McNeely was already throwing musical tantrums on stage, dirtying his bright green, banana yellow, or purple suits by flopping on the floor, glowing under fluorescent lights, and driving white, black and Chicano teenagers into such delirium with his piercing 45-minute solos that he was barred from playing at many venues and investigated by a psychiatric board to see if his act was having a detrimental effect on young audiences. Utilizing his original research, as well as dozens of rarely seen photographs, author Jim Dawson guides the reader through Big Jay's personal story, along the way providing a rich historical overview of the role of the "honking" saxophone in Rhythm & Blues music during the 1940s and '50s, as personified by other celebrated exponents such as Illinois Jacquet, Big Jim Waynn, Hal Singer, Wild Bill Moore, Lynn Hope, Joe Houston, Chuck Higgins, Gil Bernal and many more.