JAZZ : In Brief

*** “In the Mainstream: 18 Portraits in Jazz,” by Chip Deffaa, Scarecrow Press, $45. Deffaa, a young writer, has a surprising ear for jazz’s distant past. All but two of his subjects are 60 or older; ex-maestro Andy Kirk is 94. Deffaa talks to such neglected artists as trumpeter Joe Wilder and particularly composer Bill Challis, who arranged for everyone from Paul Whiteman to Fletcher Henderson. In a few instances the musicians are deservedly obscure and the interviews correspondingly dull. The exorbitant price tag makes this a less-than-mandatory though often valuably informative selection.

Items in this periodic survey of jazz-related books, videocassettes and laser discs are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to five (a classic).