Book Review
Ernie Harburg, with Eve Silberman and Larry Behnke, Liberty, Equality, Consensus and All That Jazz at The Del Rio Bar. Ann Arbor: Huron River Press, 2009. 159 pages. $17.95.
BY LARS BJORN
Ernie Harburg is the main author of a book about the Del Rio, one of the main spots for jazz in Ann Arbor from 1970 to 2004. Harburg was the original co-owner of the bar with his wife Torry and jazz pianist Rick Burgess. Burgess is the person mainly responsible for theinitiation of free live jazz on Sundays, but he also played a role in setting policy with regard to the recorded music to be heard during the rest of the week. In addition, Burgess was often the pianist and bandleader. Bassist Ron Brooks also played a role in booking groups at the Del Rio, which must have contributed to his opening of the Bird of Paradise in the eighties. Brooks was also a member of Mixed Bag, one of the regular groups at the Del for many years.
The strength of the book is that it makes the Del Rio come alive as a countercultural institution in Ann Arbor, particularly with regard its innovative cooperative management system. Democracy in the workplace was one of the ideals of the time and this book is a case-study in the trials and tribulations of making it work in practice. While there are several references to the Sunday jazz sessions, what was played by whom is not the central theme of the book. What the book manages to do is give the reader a very good idea of who some of the hipsters were who hung out at the Del and why they were so comfortable there. The Del is sorely missed by many, including those, like me, who mainly came there for live jazz.
You can find the book online and local bookstores. It is a very good read.
