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And the Band Played On: A Memoir of Music, Mania, and Survival
Paperback
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ISBN13: 9798194317462
Publisher: Independently Published
Published: Aug 23 2026
Pages: 334
Weight: 0.99
Height: 0.70 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
Publisher: Independently Published
Published: Aug 23 2026
Pages: 334
Weight: 0.99
Height: 0.70 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
Amazon Listing Description A Memoir of Music, Mania, and Survival From the outside, James Thomas Jordan seemed to be living a life powered by music. He commanded the field as drum major of the legendary Bayonne Bridgemen, built and led his own big band for more than three decades, became an educator, husband, performer, and leader-and rarely stopped moving forward.
But behind the music, another rhythm was building. For decades, Jordan was living with bipolar disorder. There were exhilarating highs when energy and ambition seemed limitless-and devastating crashes when everything came to a halt. At his darkest moments, simply surviving became the challenge. And the Band Played On is the candid, sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking story of what happened when those two worlds collided. From the intensity and camaraderie of drum and bugle corps to the excitement of leading his own orchestra, from classrooms and relationships to mania, depression, addiction, mistakes, love, and recovery, Jordan tells his story without pretending the journey was simple-or pretty. Along the way, he confronts questions that reach far beyond one diagnosis: What happens when the qualities that help drive your success begin working against you? How do the people who love you survive the journey alongside you? And after you've lost your rhythm completely, can you ever truly find it again? After decades of extraordinary highs, devastating lows, and hard-earned lessons, Jordan eventually discovered something he once thought might be beyond his reach: Steady ground. Hope. And a renewed sense of purpose. This isn't simply a memoir about bipolar disorder. It's a story about music and ambition, mistakes and forgiveness, love and resilience-and the determination to keep going when the path forward seems impossible. For anyone who has ever lost their rhythm-and found the strength to get it back-this story is for you.
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