In this delightful collection of anecdotes, Michael Colgrass invites the reader into his private encounters with Igor Stravinsky, Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein, Dizzy Gillespie, and a host of other key figures in American music. Maverick to the core, Colgrass also writes about romancing a Cold War spy in Bucharest, composing a ballet overnight for the Joffrey Ballet, and playing a gig for a stripper that landed him a job in West Side Story. His anecdotes - often humorous and profound - describe a pivotal era in American music that shaped this Pulitzer Prize-winning composer. A "must read" for music lovers.