Jazz Journal billed itself as "The World's Greatest Jazz Magazine." It was certainly among the longest lived, publishing continuously since 1948.
Like DownBeat, Jazz Journal was also a family business, and like DownBeat before it, Jazz Journal is now facing closure due to a death in the family. The death of Janet Cook, associate publisher and wife of publisher and editor-in-chief Eddie Cook, has led Eddie to decide to close the doors.
In his announcement, Cook left open the hope that someone would rescue the magazine – as happened with both DownBeat and, following the retirement of Bill Smith, Coda – but no white knights have stepped forward yet.
Sadly, I doubt that anyone will pick up JJI: World recession, and to go with it in this case, JJI never really got into the 21st century - no website, not even an email address. Letters might - or more likely might not - get answered, even with a stamped addressed envelope enclosed, and if they were, many months later.
ReplyDeleteIt would need one hell of a lot of investment - it's only real asset is the congtributors of which there are many knowledgable people: Alun Morgan, Mark Gardner, Steve Voce to name a few, and of course, the name.
I doubt it would remain a UK publication, even if a buyer could be found: it would need somebody with deep pockets and a generous nature - which lets out people like Branson. The only way I could envisage it surviving - perhaps as a quartly would be if teh Ronnie Scott Club wanted a prestige house magazine again.