The only book on the legendary band that included Lester Young, Count Basie, and Ralph Ellison The Blue Devils have received very little attention from jazz historians, though the band members and the writer Ralph Ellison (who sometimes sat in with them) spoke with conviction about their sterling musicianship and their legendary ability to defeat all competitors in battles of the bands. In a literal sense, the band survived for ten years, from its founding in 1923 to its demise in 1933. In a figurative sense, the band continued for more than half a century because, as members Jimmy Rushing, Lester "Prez" Young, Oran "Hot Lips" Page, and Count Basie became jazz legends, their "apprenticeship" in the Blue Devils authenticated them as genuine jazzmen, real troupers ready to play for any and all occasions. Even as their fame grew, they always remained true to the group, believing, "Once a Blue Devil, always a Blue Devil." Chronicling the ten years the band was officially together, with a peek at what the Devils became after they disbanded, Douglas H. Daniels provides a corrective to most accounts of musical groups. He delves into the potent social and cultural history of the Depression to show its influence on the group"s founding as well as on the players" careers. This meticulously researched history of an iconic jazz band rescues them from undeserved obscurity and clears away the fog of neglect. Praise for Douglas H. Daniels"s Lester Leaps In: "A groundbreaking account of one of the great figures of twentieth-century music and the rich cultural heritage that made a Lester Young and this wonderful art possible." --Robin D. G. Kelley, author of Freedom Dreams and Yo" Mama"sDisfunktional!