LOUIS BANKS (HB)

This is the story of a Nepali boy from Darjeeling who became the godfather of Indian jazz.Pushkar Bahadur Budapriti was not only the best trumpet player in Darjeeling of the ‘50sbut he was also an unsparing father every time his son Dambar played a wrong note.When Pushkar became George Banks to gel with the names of his English bandmateshe rechristened Dambar Bahadur Budapriti as Louiz Banks.George was the best music teacher Louiz could ever hope for and the most endearinglesson the young Louiz learnt was a three-step process to become a successful musician:imitation integration and innovation.The musical journey of Louiz Banks the Indian counterpart to the modern-day Jazzlegends like Herbie Hancock and Chick Correa spans over five decades and is steepedin surprising twists and turns. Starting his career as a pianist with a band in Kolkata hefirst went to Mumbai at the invitation of the musical genius R.D. Burman. Inspired bythe opportunities the city presented Louiz soon made Mumbai home and became thenumber one music director for advertisements.Packed with anecdotes shared by the musician himself and those narrated by other musicalstalwarts associated with him the book gives a fascinating insight into life of a dynamicmusician who has extended the boundaries of his craft. The book also goes back intothe nation’s colonial past to search for the roots of Indian jazz and offers a fascinatingglimpse into the socio-political and cultural scenario of the time.This is a delightful biography of a brilliant musician.