A.B. Spellman

Alfred Bennett Spellman (born August 12, 1935), is an African-American poet, music critic, and arts administrator. He first received attention for his 1965 book of poems entitled The Beautiful Days. In 1966 he published a book on the history of African-American music entitled Four Lives in the Bebop Business (aka Black Music: Four Lives; Random House. From 1975 to 2005 he worked as an arts administrator for the National Endowment for the Arts. He has been instrumental in supporting jazz in the United States.