[The published version of the following text contained editing errors, this is the unedited version.] Milford Graves: A Mind-Body Deal Mark Christman, Celeste DiNucci, and Anthony Elms, eds. (Inventory Press/Ars Nova Workshop) by Pierre Crépon For a former member of the 1960s avant-garde, Milford Graves has received quite a lot of press. The bibliography is expansive but scattered, and Milford Graves: A Mind-Body Deal’s 256 pages make up the first volume entirely dedicated to the drummer. The book was spawned by a museum exhibition of the same name, which ran in Philadelphia in 2020-21, the year Graves passed, and which was presented by Ars Nova Workshop and the Institute of Contemporary Art. It gathers more than a dozen texts of length and a wealth of visual material ranging from pictures and flyers to original artworks, much of which likely to be new to most readers. Some texts have been published elsewhere (a 2002 Down Beat profile, a conversation with Vodou priest and consultant Jean-Daniel Lafontant), but much will likewise be new. The book opens with full-pages shots of the large three-story house in Jamaica, Queens where Graves started to live ca. 1970. They provide first glimpses of his varied areas of activity: a collection of herbs, programming books, mural artworks. Essays and interviews expand on those facets and on yet more. “How can we share something so uniquely experiential in essay form?,” editor Celeste DiNucci writes to introduce a piece about Yára, the martial art Graves created, encapsulating the general line of inquiry. The outlines of the image that emerges do not fundamentally differ from prior documentation of Graves, but the picture gains in depth. Cardiologist Carlo Ventura provides much more details on Graves’ heart research than can generally be found in profiles, saxophonist Hugh Glover recalls a trip to FESTAC ’77 in Nigeria, Japanese dancer Min Tanaka gives elements on his collaborations with Graves. Interestingly, music is not what takes center stage. The book’s main protagonist is the “Professor,” as many people called Graves, not the drummer who took part in the 1960s free jazz revolution. The book contains little about that context: saxophonist Giuseppi Logan, a significant early partner, is for instance barely mentioned. On p. 79, Graves frames his contribution to 1960s political events as nearly incidental, a statement at odds with his reproduced Cricket contributions: interesting insight can be gained from the book’s internal dynamics. Milford Graves: A Mind-Body Deal makes no claim about being the last word on Graves, but it is more than a standard exhibition catalog and provides welcome entry points into the drummer’s intricate world. The exhibition continues to tour nationally and will be at Bennington College’s Usdan Gallery from February 27 to April 27, 2024.