Bill Banfield serves as professor of Africana Studies / Music and Society, composition, and graduate history studies at the Berklee College of Music. He is director of the Center for Africana Studies. An award-winning composer, former Pulitzer Prize judge, jazz guitarist, recording artist, and public radio show host, he is the author of six books on music, arts, cultural criticism, and history.

• A Note by Deval PatrickForeword by Robin D. G. KelleyChapter 1: Interviews with Patrick’s Son and DaughtersChapter 2: Introduction: Pat Patrick: An American MusicianChapter 3: Life and Ideas Chapter 4: Developing As A Musician 1949-1960Chapter 5: Artistry, New York 1960-1969Chapter 6: Artistry: New York, 1970-1979Chapter 7: Artistry 1980’s and 1990’s Chapter 8: Works ClosureChapter 9: Interviews with Charles Davis, Richard Evans and Pat PatrickChapter 10: Writings of Pat Patrick, Matter, and NotesChapter 11: Last Days: Interview with sister, Sheila MilesChapter 12: Postlude Chapter 13: ConclusionsChapter 14: Song For Amiri

Jazz saxophonist Laurdine "Pat" Patrick, performed and recorded with such diverse artists as Duke Ellington, Thelonios Monk, Quincy Jones, Nat King Cole, and Marvin Gaye. But he is most associated with the Sun Ra Arkestra, in which he spent much of 35 years laying down the bottom with his baritone saxophone, creating a distinctive sound that is instantly identifiable to anyone familiar with the Sun Ra catalog. A little-known jazz fact is that Patrick's son is Deval Patrick, former governor of Massachusetts. Deval supplied the treasure trove of personal papers, scrapbooks, news clippings, and photographs salvaged from his father's effects that form the bulk of material compiled by Banfield for this treatment. There are also interviews from surviving band members, who provide a glimpse into Patrick's good-natured personality and what it was like to survive in an avant-garde jazz big band while living on a shoestring.