Mosaics: The Life and Works of Graham Collier
by Duncan Heining
(Equinox, £39.95)

GRAHAM COLLIER once pithily explained that “jazz happens in real time, once.” True, but there is more than enough fine music on his records, from 1967's Deep Dark Blue Centre to the posthumous Luminosity of 2014 to keep on playing the marvellous sounds that he and his bandmates created.

[[{"fid":"4932","view_mode":"inlineright","fields":{"format":"inlineright","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":false,"field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":false},"link_text":null,"type":"media","field_deltas":{"1":{"format":"inlineright","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":false,"field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":false}},"attributes":{"class":"media-element file-inlineright","data-delta":"1"}}]]The life of the composer, bassist, bandleader, jazz author and educator, who was born in Tynemouth in 1937 and died in Crete in 2011, was one singularly marked with contrasts and brave innovations and they are ably set down in Duncan Heining's biography.

Raised in Luton in a working-class home — his father worked in Vauxhall Motors — Collier joined the army on leaving school, was stationed in Hong Kong, learned bass and trombone and played in military bands. On demob he migrated to Boston in the US, studied at Berklee College and began a life in jazz.