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'Speakeasies to Symphonies' and 'Cosmic Music' chronicle 2 jazz greats

NPR | By Kevin Whitehead
Published April 13, 2026 at 10:51 AM CDT

Critic Kevin Whitehead reviews biographies of two musicians who transcended jazz, and to whom recognition was slow in coming: James P. Johnson, born in 1894, and Alice Coltrane, born in 1937.

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Kevin Whitehead
Kevin Whitehead is the jazz critic for NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross. Currently he reviews for The Audio Beat and Point of Departure.
See stories by Kevin Whitehead
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