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Billy Strayhorn: Jazz Composer Gets His Due

"Take the A Train" was the Ellington Orchestra's signature tune. But the composer was Billy Strayhorn. Forty years after his death, a new documentary examines the life of the unassuming pianist and composer.

Guests:

Robert Levi, writer/producer/director of Billy Strayhorn: Lush Life

David Hajdu, author of Lush Life: A Biography of Billy Strayhorn; music critic for The New Republic

Alyce Claerbout, Billy Strayhorn's niece; vice-president of Billy Strayhorn Songs, Inc.; executive director of Jeff Lindberg's Chicago Jazz Orchestra

Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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