Best of
Music

2017

They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us


Hanif Abdurraqib - 2017
    Whether he's attending a Bruce Springsteen concert the day after visiting Michael Brown's grave, or discussing public displays of affection at a Carly Rae Jepsen show, he writes with a poignancy and magnetism that resonates profoundly.In the wake of the nightclub attacks in Paris, he recalls how he sought refuge as a teenager in music, at shows, and wonders whether the next generation of young Muslims will not be afforded that opportunity now. While discussing the everyday threat to the lives of black Americans, Abdurraqib recounts the first time he was ordered to the ground by police officers: for attempting to enter his own car.In essays that have been published by the New York Times, MTV, and Pitchfork, among others—along with original, previously unreleased essays—Abdurraqib uses music and culture as a lens through which to view our world, so that we might better understand ourselves, and in so doing proves himself a bellwether for our times.

Sing!: How Worship Transforms Your Life, Family, and Church


Keith Getty - 2017
    God intends for this compelling vision of His people singing—a people joyfully joining together in song with brothers and sisters around the world and around his heavenly throne—to include you. He wants you,he wants us, to sing.

Year of Wonder: Classical Music for Every Day


Clemency Burton-Hill - 2017
    Thoughtfully curated and expertly researched, this is a book of classical music to keep you company: whoever you are, wherever you're from.'The only requirements for enjoying classical music are open ears and an open mind.' Clemency Burton-HillPlaylists are available on most streaming music platforms including Apple Music.

Meet Me in the Bathroom: Rebirth and Rock and Roll in New York City 2001-2011


Lizzy Goodman - 2017
    But as the end of the millennium neared, cutting-edge bands began emerging from Seattle, Austin, and London, pushing New York further from the epicenter. The behemoth music industry, too, found itself in free fall, under siege from technology. Then 9/11/2001 plunged the country into a state of uncertainty and war—and a dozen New York City bands that had been honing their sound and style in relative obscurity suddenly became symbols of glamour for a young, web-savvy, forward-looking generation in need of an anthem.Meet Me in the Bathroom charts the transformation of the New York music scene in the first decade of the 2000s, the bands behind it—including The Strokes, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, LCD Soundsystem, Interpol, and Vampire Weekend—and the cultural forces that shaped it, from the Internet to a booming real estate market that forced artists out of the Lower East Side to Williamsburg. Drawing on 200 original interviews with James Murphy, Julian Casablancas, Karen O, Ezra Koenig, and many others musicians, artists, journalists, bloggers, photographers, managers, music executives, groupies, models, movie stars, and DJs who lived through this explosive time, journalist Lizzy Goodman offers a fascinating portrait of a time and a place that gave birth to a new era in modern rock-and-roll.

Prince and the Purple Rain Era Studio Sessions: 1983 and 1984 (Prince Studio Sessions)


Duane Tudahl - 2017
    

Queen in 3-D


Brian May - 2017
    It's just me." -- Brian May With these words, the author announces the first book ever to be published about the legendary rock band Queen by a member of the band. And certainly the first book of its kind in the world. It's a unique collection of original, highly personal snapshots of Queen in Three Dimensions, from the band's inception in the early '70s right up to the present day, accompanied by the exclusive recollections of founding member and lead guitarist, Brian May. Brian's typically honest account of his experiences within and without the band, including many extreme highs and lows, bravely opens the door to his feelings, beliefs and motivations on this trip though an extraordinary life. This book will entrance millions of Queen fans; but it will also inspire anyone who wonders what they might learn from a man who used his intellect, musical talent, and ability to make the transition from college boy to rock star in just a few years, and then go on building creatively for the next forty! The book is illustrated with over 300 photographs, the majority actually taken by Brian, and mostly in 3-D. These shots of Freddie Mercury, John Deacon, Roger Taylor, and Brian himself, on and off stage all round the world, spring into life when viewed with Brian's patented OWL viewer (supplied free with the book). Through the eyes of Brian's camera you are transported back in time to experience Queen's miraculous 46-year journey as if you were actually there whether in a dressing room, in a car, on a plane, or on stage at Madison Square Garden. The three dimensional stereoscopic images (the precursor of Virtual Reality) immerse and engage you in the atmosphere of the moment as no flat 2-D picture ever could.

Muddy: The Story of Blues Legend Muddy Waters


Michael James Mahin - 2017
    When Grandma Della said the blues wouldn’t put food on the table, Muddy didn’t listen. And when record producers told him no one wanted to listen to a country boy playing country blues, Muddy ignored them as well. This tenacious streak carried Muddy from the hardscrabble fields of Mississippi to the smoky juke joints of Chicago and finally to a recording studio where a landmark record was made.Soon the world fell in love with the tough spirit of Muddy Waters. In blues-infused prose and soulful illustrations, Michael Mahin and award-winning artist Evan Turk tell Muddy’s fascinating and inspiring story of struggle, determination, and hope.

World In My Eyes


Richard Blade - 2017
    Instead, he gives you a jaw-dropping, uncensored insider’s look into the world of music, movies, and television and its biggest stars, starting in the sixties and continuing through to the new century. Richard takes you on a journey that few have experienced: from his early days as a student at Oxford to the wild, lascivious nights of being a disco DJ touring the clubs of Europe, to coming to America and working with Michael Jackson, Barbra Streisand, and Sarah Jessica Parker and finally breaking through into the L.A. radio scene and becoming the number one morning drive personality in California. From his TV and radio shows to his feature films and live gigs, Richard shares stories that have until now remained secret. His unique perspective will take you on the road with Depeche Mode, to Australia with Spandau Ballet, into the recording studio with Morrissey, and onto the main stage at Live Aid with Duran Duran. He opens up about his friendships with Michael Hutchence and George Michael, as well as his passionate love affair with Terri Nunn of Berlin. This is a no-holds-barred look at life, sex, and death, set to a pulsing backbeat of music. For the first time, Richard Blade shares his extraordinary story, allowing us to see the world through his eyes.

The Story Orchestra: The Nutcracker: Press the Note to Hear Tchaikovsky's Music


Jessica Courtney-Tickle - 2017
    Watch the Nutcracker battle the Mouse King, meet the Sugar Plum Fairy and journey to the Land of Sweets, where wonder and excitement await... Including music from: 'The Dance of the Reed Flutes', 'The Waltz of Flowers' and 'The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy'.

Dear Future Historians: Lyrics and Exegesis of Rou Reynolds for the Music of Enter Shikari


Enter Shikari - 2017
    They have become one of the most influential British rock bands of their generation, sharing with their fans a belief that music can inspire change. Dear Future Historians features front-man Rou Reynolds own song interpretations and social commentary alongside all of their lyrics to date.

Dangerous Hearts


K.K. Allen - 2017
    She's his favorite song.Lyric Cassidy knows a thing or two about bad boy rock stars with raspy vocals. In fact, her heart was just played by one. So when she takes an assignment as road manager for the world famous rock star, Wolf, she's prepared to take him on, full suit of heart-armor intact.Wolf is the sexy lead singer for the hottest rock band around with a line-up of guaranteed one night stands. Lyric Cassidy isn't one of them. That's fine with him. Women like Lyric come with fairytale expectations, so it should be easy to stay away. Too bad she's hot as sin with a fiery temper and a mouth that drives him wild.She's also got something to hide. Something he discovers. Something he wants ...Sharing a tour bus, neither of them are prepared for the miles of road ahead and the fierce attraction they feel toward one another--a dangerous combination.(Authors Note: Dangerous Hearts has been rewritten from the original Dangerous Hearts, formally published under Mia McAdams.)

The Most Beautiful: My Life with Prince


Mayte Garcia - 2017
    In The Most Beautiful, a title inspired by the hit song Prince wrote about their legendary love story, Mayte Garcia for the first time shares the deeply personal story of their relationship and offers a singular perspective on the music icon and their world together: from their unconventional meeting backstage at a concert (and the long-distance romance that followed), to their fairy-tale wedding (and their groundbreaking artistic partnership), to the devastating losses that ultimately dissolved their romantic relationship for good. Throughout it all, they shared a bond more intimate than any other in Prince's life. No one else can tell this story or can provide a deeper, more nuanced portrait of Prince - both the famously private man and the pioneering, beloved artist - than Mayte, his partner during some of the most pivotal personal and professional years of his career. The Most Beautiful is a book that will be returned to for decades, as Prince's music lives on with generations to come.

The Raincoats' The Raincoats


Jenn Pelly - 2017
    They had a violin player. They came from Portugal, Spain, and England. Their anarchy was poetic. Working with the iconic Rough Trade Records at its radical beginnings, they were the first group of punk women to actively call themselves feminists.In this short book—the first on The Raincoats—author Jenn Pelly tells the story of the group's audacious debut album, which Kurt Cobain once called “wonderfully classic scripture.” Pelly builds on rare archival materials and extensive interviews with members of The Raincoats, Sleater-Kinney, Bikini Kill, Hole, Scritti Politti, Gang of Four, and more. She draws formal inspiration from the collage-like The Raincoats itself to explore this album's magic, vulnerability, and strength.

The Autobiography of Gucci Mane


Gucci Mane - 2017
    ” —Complex“A cautionary tale that ends in triumph.” —GQ“A revelation and a welcome addition to hip-hop’s literary legacy.” —All Hip Hop The highly anticipated memoir from Gucci Mane, “one of hip-hop’s most prolific and admired artists” (The New York Times).For the first time Gucci Mane tells his story in his own words. It is the captivating life of an artist who forged an unlikely path to stardom and personal rebirth. Gucci Mane began writing his memoir in a maximum-security federal prison. Released in 2016, he emerged radically transformed. He was sober, smiling, focused, and positive—a far cry from the Gucci Mane of years past.Born in rural Bessemer, Alabama, Radric Delantic Davis became Gucci Mane in East Atlanta, where the rap scene is as vibrant as the dope game. His name was made as a drug dealer first, rapper second. His influential mixtapes and street anthems pioneered the sound of trap music. He inspired and mentored a new generation of artists and producers: Migos, Young Thug, Nicki Minaj, Zaytoven, Mike Will Made-It, Metro Boomin.Yet every success was followed by setback. Too often, his erratic behavior threatened to end it all. Incarceration, violence, rap beefs, drug addiction. But Gucci Mane has changed, and he’s decided to tell his story.In his extraordinary autobiography, the legend takes us to his roots in Alabama, the streets of East Atlanta, the trap house, and the studio where he found his voice as a peerless rapper. He reflects on his inimitable career and in the process confronts his dark past—years behind bars, the murder charge, drug addiction, career highs and lows—the making of a trap god. It is one of the greatest comeback stories in the history of music.The Autobiography of Gucci Mane is a blunt and candid account—an instant classic.

Prince: A Private View


Afshin Shahidi - 2017
    He collaborated with Prince longer than any other photographer. Afshin was the only photographer allowed to shoot the legendary 3121 private parties in Los Angeles that became the most sought after invitations in Hollywood; some of those photos are included in this book.Prince: A Private View compiles photographer Afshin Shahidi’s work into a journey through Prince's extraordinary life. With never-before-seen photos, it is the ultimate collection of shots of Prince. Brief, but complete and rich, stories about Shahidi and Prince’s collaboration and time together are alternately incisive, personal, and even funny.

We're Going to Be Friends


Jack White - 2017
    

Picturing Prince: An Intimate Portrait


Steve Parke - 2017
    At least half of the images in the book are exclusively published here for the first time; most other images in the book are rare to the public eye.Alongside these remarkable images are fifty engaging, poignant and often funny written vignettes by Parke, which reveal the very human man behind the reclusive superstar: from shooting hoops to renting out movie theatres at 4am; from midnight requests for camels to meaningful conversations that shed light on Prince as a man and artist.STEVE PARKE started working with Prince in 1988, after a mutual friend showed Prince some of Steve's photorealistic paintings. He designed everything from album covers and merchandise to sets for Prince's tours and videos. Somewhere in all of this, he became Paisley Park's official art director. He began photographing Prince at the request of the star himself, and continued to do so for the next several years. The images in this book are the arresting result of this collaboration.Biographical Notes STEVE PARKE is photo editor for Faerie Magazine. He worked as art director for Prince at Paisley Park for fourteen years. As a photographer, his clients have included Prince, David Bowie, Bon Jovi, Bob Dylan, Sheila E., AC/DC and more. He lives in Baltimore, USA.

Flowers for Sarajevo


John McCutcheon - 2017
    Drasko helps his father sell flowers in Sarajevo, but when war threatens and his father is called to the battlefront, Drasko must take over the flower stall. One morning the boys familiar routine is shattered when a mortar shell hits the bakery, killing twenty-two people. The next day, a cellist from the Sarajevo Opera Orchestra goes to the crater and plays the most beautiful music that Drasko can imagine. Inspired, he looks for ways to ease the sorrow of those around him. Based on real events of the Bosnian War.

Strange Fruit: Billie Holiday and the Power of a Protest Song


Gary Golio - 2017
    This is also the story of two outsiders - Billie Holiday, a young black woman raised in poverty, and Abel Meeropol, the son of Jewish immigrants - whose combined talents created a truly unforgettable song.

This Is the Noise That Keeps Me Awake


Garbage - 2017
    Now, for the first time, the four band members tell the story of that music in their own words. Packed with rare photos and personal snapshots, this book examines how Garbage make their music, and how they’ve kept it together (or not) for more than twenty years.The beautifully designed, large-format coffee-table book is bound with an embossed cloth hardcover and finished with a dust jacket. The edges of the text pages, printed on luxurious matte art paper in six colors, are finished with a stunning pink spot color. This Is the Noise That Keeps Me Awake is a must-have (and perfect gift) for Garbage's fans.Excerpt (In the words of Butch Vig, drummer):It was 1995, we were finishing our debut album, and I was stressed. A lot of music business people had told me it was a mistake to give up full-time music production to start a band. So I ignored them all and took a leap of faith. The simplest reason was that I just wanted to be in a band with my friends. I'd been playing with Duke and Steve for several years, and now we had a new beginning with an X factor: a Scottish singer named Shirley. She seemed like a good fit for our little club of misfits. So we all took that leap.

Hit So Hard: A Memoir


Patty Schemel - 2017
    Their divorce triggered her rebellious adolescence and first forays into drinking at age 11, which coincided with her passion for punk rock and playing drums. Her efforts to come to terms with her sexuality further drove her memorably hard playing, and by the late '80s Schemel was performing regularly in well-regarded bands in Tacoma, Seattle, and Olympia. She met Kurt Cobain at a Melvins show, pre-Nirvana, and less than five years later she would be living with him and his wife, Hole front-woman Courtney Love, at the height of his fame and on the cusp of hers. As Hole's new drummer, Schemel contributed memorable, driving drum parts to hits like "Beautiful Son," "Violet," "Doll Parts," and "Miss World." But the band was plagued by tragedy and addiction, and by the time Hole went on tour in support of their ironically titled and critically acclaimed album Live Through This in 1994, both Cobain and Hole bassist Kristen Pfaff were dead at age 27.With surprising candor and wit, Schemel intimately documents the events surrounding her exit from the band in 1998 that lead to her dramatic descent into a life of homelessness and crime on the streets of Los Angeles and the difficult but rewarding path to sobriety after over twenty serious attempts to get clean. Hit So Hard chronicles the extraordinary coming of age of a musician and an addict during the last great era of rock 'n' roll excess.

My Riot: Agnostic Front, Grit, Guts & Glory


Roger Miret - 2017
    With Roger Miret as front man, legendary band Agnostic Front’s focused fury and aggression defined the times and continue to resonate today.Born in Cuba, Roger Miret fled with his family to the US to escape the Castro regime. Through vivid language and graphic details, Miret recounts growing up in a strange new land with a tyrannical, abusive stepfather and the roles that poverty and violence played in shaping the toughness that became critical to his survival. In his teen years, he finds himself squatting in abandoned buildings with other runaways and victims of similar childhood trauma. Soon he becomes a respected and feared kingpin of the scene, and a protector of its misfits and outcasts.Miret’s gripping memoir is a testament to the perils of growing up too young too fast and finding redemption through sheer strength, perseverance, and courage.Roger Miret is the godfather of the New York hardcore scene. He joined Agnostic Front in 1982. Jon Wiederhorn is the co-author of Louder Than Hell: The Definitive Oral History of Metal, Ministry (with Al Jourgensen), and I’m the Man (with Scott Ian). He has written for Revolver, Rolling Stone, and SPIN, among others.

Dreaming the Beatles: The Love Story of One Band and the Whole World


Rob Sheffield - 2017
    It isn’t another exposé about how they broke up. It isn’t a history of their gigs or their gear. It is a collection of essays telling the story of what this ubiquitous band means to a generation who grew up with the Beatles music on their parents’ stereos and their faces on T-shirts. What do the Beatles mean today? Why are they more famous and beloved now than ever? And why do they still matter so much to us, nearly fifty years after they broke up?As he did in his previous books, Love is a Mix Tape, Talking to Girls About Duran Duran, and Turn Around Bright Eyes, Sheffield focuses on the emotional connections we make to music. This time, he focuses on the biggest pop culture phenomenon of all time—The Beatles. In his singular voice, he explores what the Beatles mean today, to fans who have learned to love them on their own terms and not just for the sake of nostalgia.Dreaming the Beatles tells the story of how four lads from Liverpool became the world’s biggest pop group, then broke up—but then somehow just kept getting bigger. At this point, their music doesn’t belong to the past—it belongs to right now. This book is a celebration of that music, showing why the Beatles remain the world’s favorite thing—and how they invented the future we’re all living in today.

John Prine Beyond Words


John Prine - 2017
    In this book, John Prine curates a selection of his best loved songs. Included are lyrics, guitar chords, commentary from John and over 100 photographs - may never before published - from his personal collection. John Prine has written songs that have become central to the American musical heritage. This former Maywood, Illinois mailman came to prominence with his debut record, 'John Prine' in 1971, which includes classics like, "Angel from Montgomery," "Sam Stone," "Paradise," and "Hello in There." His lyrics speak to the everyday experience of ordinary people, with a simple honesty and an extraordinary ability to connect with the heart.

Pink Floyd All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track


Jean-Michel Guesdon - 2017
    While much is known about this iconic group, few books provide a comprehensive history of their time in the studio. In Pink Floyd All the Songs, authors Margotin and Guesdon describe the origin of their nearly 200 released songs, details from the recording studio, what instruments were used, and behind-the-scenes stories of the tensions that helped drive the band.Organized chronologically by album, this massive, 544-page hardcover begins with their 1967 debut album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, the only one recorded under founding member Syd Barrett's leadership; through the loss of Barrett and the addition of David Gilmour; to Richard Wright leaving the band in 1979 but returning; to Roger Waters leaving in 1985 and the albums recorded since his departure, including their 2014 farewell album, The Endless River, which was downloaded 12 million times on Spotify the week it was released. Packed with more than 500 photos, All the Songs is also filled with stories fans treasure, such as Waters working with engineer Alan Parsons to employ revolutionary recording techniques for The Dark Side of the Moon at Abbey Road Studios in 1972 or producer Bob's Ezrin's contribution in refining Water's original sprawling vision for The Wall.

Tainted Kiss


Terri Anne Browning - 2017
     From USA Today bestselling author Terri Anne Browning, comes a new ROCKER series—Tainted Knights. All it took was one look, one kiss. The promises he made—I should have known better. He was a rock star and I had no time for a guy like him in my life. I fell anyway. I believed his promises. Held onto them and waited. But the thing about rockers is that their private lives are never truly private. Seeing his face on the cover of every national tabloid from California to New York—with a new girl every single time—was the reality check I needed. Now the memory of that first magical kiss was TAINTED. *NEW SERIES *STANDALONE

KPOP BTS QUIZ BOOK: 123 Fun Facts Trivia Questions About K-Pop's Hottest Band


Fandom Media - 2017
     KPOP BTS QUIZ BOOK covers various quiz questions about each member of the group, as well as many interesting facts as a group, such as... "On the November 22, BTS was announced to be officially recognized by THIS organization as a musical group with the most Twitter engagement." "On the very first Episode of American Hustle Life, BTS travels to THIS CITY to learn Hip Hop." "THIS member was an underground rapper in Daegu." "J-Hope said that the kind of super power he would like to have is...?" "When Jimin was asked to describe and compare Rap Monster to something other than a human, he said Rap Monster is like..." "When V celebrated his Birthday (2013.12.30 at MBC Gayo Daejun), he shared birthday with THIS famous singer. He said to V “Hey, is it your Birthday today? It’s mine too! Let’s blow the candle together.” "True or False...? Jungkook's dream when he was little is to become a badminton player, but changed his mind after listening to..." Can you answer the questions? If you can't, that's totally fine cause that's the best way of getting to know your favorite BTS oppa's!

Roots, Radicals and Rockers: How Skiffle Changed the World


Billy Bragg - 2017
    These were Britain's first teenagers, looking for a music of their own in a culture dominated by crooners and mediated by a stuffy BBC. Sales of guitars rocketed from 5,000 to 250,000 a year, and - as with the punk rock that would flourish two decades later - all you needed to know were three chords to form your own group, with your mates accompanying on tea-chest bass and washboard.Against a backdrop of Cold War politics, rock and roll riots and a newly assertive working-class youth, Billy Bragg charts - for the first time in depth - the history, impact and legacy of Britain's original pop movement. It's a story of jazz pilgrims and blues blowers, Teddy Boys and beatnik girls, coffee-bar bohemians and refugees from the McCarthyite witch-hunts, who between them sparked a revolution that shaped pop culture as we have come to know it.

The Prague Sonata


Bradford Morrow - 2017
    To Meta's eye, it appears to be an authentic eighteenth-century work; to her discerning ear, the music rendered there is commanding, hauntingly beautiful, clearly the undiscovered composition of a master. But there is no indication of who the composer might be. The gift comes with the request that Meta attempt to find the manuscript's true owner—a Prague friend the old woman has not heard from since they were forced apart by the Second World War—and to make the three-part sonata whole again. Leaving New York behind for the land of Dvorák and Kafka, Meta sets out on an unforgettable search to locate the remaining movements of the sonata and uncover a story that has influenced the course of many lives, even as it becomes clear that she isn't the only one after the music's secrets.

Sonata: A Memoir of Pain and the Piano


Andrea Avery - 2017
    The heartbreaking story of this mysterious sonata—Schubert’s last, and his most elusive and haunting—is the soundtrack of Andrea's story.Sonata is a breathtaking exploration of a “Janus-head miracle”—Andrea's extraordinary talent and even more extraordinary illness. With no cure for her R.A. possible, Andrea must learn to live with this disease while not letting it define her, even though it leaves its mark on everything around her—family, relationships, even the clothes she wears. And in this riveting account, she never loses her wit, humor, or the raw artistry of a true performer.As the goshawk becomes a source of both devotion and frustration for Helen Macdonald in H is for Hawk, so the piano comes to represent both struggle and salvation for Andrea in her extraordinary debut.

I Am the Wolf: Lyrics and Writings


Mark Lanegan - 2017
    Lanegan's voice is one of the most distinct and recognizable in rock, but his talents aren't limited to his vocal skills. Lanegan's lyrics are on par with the best of them, exploring with Blake-like insight the stark and scorched emotional terrain that exists somewhere beyond sadness, addiction, trauma, and spiritual longing. With a body of work that now includes seven albums with the Screaming Trees, eleven acclaimed solo albums, three albums of duets with Belle and Sebastian's Isobel Campbell (including the Mercury Prize-shortlisted Ballad of the Broken Seas), and collaborative albums and singles with the likes of Queens of the Stone Age, Moby, Soulsavers, Twilight Singers, and countless others, Mark Lanegan occupies a singular space in rock music. Now, for the first time ever, the reclusive singer presents a comprehensive look at his lyrics, the stories behind them, and the making of his albums. I Am the Wolf is a rare and candid glimpse into the inner workings and creative process of a legend.

Toscanini: Musician of Conscience


Harvey Sachs - 2017
    Like Einstein in science or Picasso in art, Toscanini (1867–1957) transcended his own field, becoming a figure of such renown that it was often impossible not to see some mention of the maestro in the daily headlines.Acclaimed music historian Harvey Sachs has long been fascinated with Toscanini’s extraordinary story. Drawn not only to his illustrious sixty-eight-year career but also to his countless expressions of political courage in an age of tyrants, and to a private existence torn between love of family and erotic restlessness, Sachs produced a biography of Toscanini in 1978. Yet as archives continued to open and Sachs was able to interview an ever-expanding list of relatives and associates, he came to realize that this remarkable life demanded a completely new work, and the result is Toscanini—an utterly absorbing story of a man who was incapable of separating his spectacular career from the call of his conscience.Famed for his fierce dedication but also for his explosive temper, Toscanini conducted the world premieres of many Italian operas, including Pagliacci, La Boheme, and Turandot, as well as the Italian premieres of works by Wagner, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, and Debussy. In time, as Sachs chronicles, he would dominate not only La Scala in his native Italy but also the Metropolitan Opera, the New York Philharmonic, and the NBC Symphony Orchestra. He also collaborated with dozens of star singers, among them Enrico Caruso and Feodor Chaliapin, as well as the great sopranos Rosina Storchio, Geraldine Farrar, and Lotte Lehmann, with whom he had affairs.While this consuming passion constantly blurred the distinction between professional and personal, it did forge within him a steadfast opposition to totalitarianism and a personal bravery that would make him a model for artists of conscience. As early as 1922, Toscanini refused to allow his La Scala orchestra to play the Fascist anthem, "Giovinezza," even when threatened by Mussolini’s goons. And when tens of thousands of desperate Jewish refugees poured into Palestine in the late 1930s, he journeyed there at his own expense to establish an orchestra comprised of refugee musicians, and his travels were followed like that of a king.Thanks to unprecedented access to family archives, Toscanini becomes not only the definitive biography of the conductor, but a work that soars in its exploration of musical genius and moral conscience, taking its place among the great musical biographies of our time.

Riding So High: The Beatles and Drugs


Joe Goodden - 2017
    I bought it from someone who got it from somebody. We never invented the stuff.’ – John Lennon Riding So High charts the Beatles’ extraordinary odyssey from teenage drinking and pill-popping, to cannabis, LSD, the psychedelic Summer of Love and the darkness beyond. Drugs were central to the Beatles’ story from the beginning. The acid, pills and powders helped form bonds, provided escape from the chaos of Beatlemania, and inspired colossal leaps in songwriting and recording. But they also led to break-ups, breakdowns, drug busts and prison. The only full-length study of the Beatles and drugs, Riding So High tells of getting stoned, kaleidoscope eyes, excess, loss and redemption, with a far-out cast including speeding Beatniks, a rogue dentist, a script-happy aristocratic doctor, corrupt police officers and Hollywood Vampires. ‘The deeper you go, the higher you fly…’ ‘An essential new work in Beatles historiography.’ – Erin Torkelson Weber, author of The Beatles and the Historians

BTS: The K-pop Pioneer (Kpop Idol A to Z)


UK Jung - 2017
    However, some of them just disappear after debut, and only a very small minority of k-pop boy groups can become popular. By the way, there is a boy group who has been on the steady rise since its debut and is now considered as one of the most popular k-pop idol groups. Yeah, it’s BTS. As BTS is enjoying a huge popularity at home and abroad, many people in the k-pop world are now saying "The boy group is the future of k-pop." Actually, BTS' success is considered as being very special by people in the k-pop industry. Because BTS is in Big Hit entertainment, which is not as big k-pop agency as SM, YG, or JYP. Achieving success as an idol group of small and medium agency in the k-pop word is much harder than you could ever have imagined, and that’s why BTS deserves to be called “The k-pop pioneer”. Then, what do you think is the reason for BTS’ great success? First, the main reason for BTS' success is that the boy group differentiated itself from other boy groups by doing "real hip hop" music. The group writes its own music and sings about teenager's life, arousing empathy from young k-pop fans. Second, some of BTS fans may disagree, but the members have ordinary looks unlike other pretty k-pop idols. They’re not traditionally good-looking, and frankly speaking, I thought they are too ugly to be idols when I saw BTS for the first time. However, because of this, they could become the hottest idol group. I mean, fans could feel more comfortable and familiar with the members because they do not look like cartoon characters. Third, BTS is an idol group, but its members, Rap Monster and Suga have released their mixtapes just like underground rappers do. By doing so, they stressed the fact that they’re different from other puppet like idols. Especially, Rap Monster, who has polished his rap skills in the Korean underground hip hop scene before debut is getting the spotlight in the k-pop industry by showing off his outstanding rapping ability. He’s been active not only as an idol but also as a rapper, and he was also featured as a rapper in the album of MFBTY, comprised of Tiger JK, Yoon Mirae, and Bizzy who are considered as heavyweights in the Korean hip hop scene. BTS certainly succeeded in fascinating k-pop fans and it’s mainly because of the group’s image as a skilled hip hop idol. Oh, it's not just an image. The BTS members have sufficient performing skills and always prove it on the stage. Unlike other puppet like k-pop idol groups, they enjoy the stage and show high quality live performance. Have you been to BTS’ concert? It’s really gorgeous. So, are you a big fan of BTS? Do you want to know all the stories about BTS members? < BTS: The k-pop pioneer> contains all the things about BTS. The author, who has been working as a k-pop journalist since 2010 gives you answers to all the questions about BTS such as “What are their real personality like?”, “What were they like in school?” and “How did they become k-pop idols?”. The book also includes various stories behind BTS members. So, welcome to the real world of k-pop. Enjoy your time, and love yourself!

Maximum Volume: The Life of Beatles Producer George Martin, The Early Years, 1926–1966


Kenneth Womack - 2017
    Martin’s working-class childhood, his education, and his musical influences at London’s Guildhall School of Music and Drama profoundly shaped his early career in the BBC’s Classical Music department and as head of the EMI Group’s Parlophone Records. These musical influences would become the fount out of which flowed the genius behind his seven years producing the Beatles’ incredible body of work, including such albums as Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Abbey Road. The first book of a two-part series, Maximum Volume traces Martin’s early years as a scratch pianist, his life in the Fleet Air Arm during the Second World War, and his groundbreaking work as the head of Parlophone Records during the 1950s, when Martin saved the company from ruin after making his name as a producer of comedy and spoken-word recordings. In its most dramatic moments, Maximum Volume narrates the story of Martin’s unlikely discovery of the Beatles and his painstaking efforts to prepare their newfangled sound for the British music marketplace. As the story unfolds, Martin and the band craft numerous number-one hits along the group’s progress towards The Ed Sullivan Show and such landmark songs as “Yesterday” and “In My Life”—Beatles tunes that bear Martin’s unmistakable musical signature.

Memphis 68: The Tragedy of Southern Soul


Stuart Cosgrove - 2017
    It was a deeply segregated city, ill at ease with the modern world and yet to adjust to the era of civil rights and racial integration. Stax Records offered an escape from the turmoil of the real world for many soul and blues musicians, with much of the music created there becoming the soundtrack to the civil rights movements.The book opens with the death of the city's most famous recording artist, Otis Redding, who died in a plane crash in the final days of 1967, and then follows the fortunes of Redding's label, Stax/Volt Records, as its fortunes fall and rise again. But, as the tense year unfolds, the city dominates world headlines for the worst of reasons: the assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King.

David Bowie: The Man Who Fell to Earth


Paul Duncan - 2017
    A tour-de-force of science fiction as art form, the movie brought not only hallucinatory visuals and a haunting exploration of contemporary alienation, but also glam-rock legend David Bowie in his lead role debut as paranoid alien Newton. Based on Walter Tevis's 1963 sci-fi fable of the same title, The Man Who Fell to Earth follows alien Newton from his arrival on earth in search of water; his transition to wealthy entrepreneur, leveraging the advanced technologies of his native planet; his sexual awakening with the young Mary-Lou; and then the discovery of his alien identity, his imprisonment, abandonment, and descent into alcoholism. Throughout, Roeg coaxed a beguiling performance from his cast, presenting not only Bowie in ethereal space-traveler glory, but also pitch-perfect supporting performances from Candy Clark, Rip Torn, and Buck Henry. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of this cult movie, TASCHEN's The Man Who Fell to Earth presents a plenitude of stills and behind-the-scenes images by unit photographer David James, including numerous shots of Bowie at his playful and ambiguous best. A new introductory essay explores the shooting of the film and it's lasting impact, drawing upon an exclusive interview with David James, who brings firsthand insights into the making of this sci-fi masterwork.About the series: Bibliotheca Universalis-- Compact cultural companions celebrating the eclectic TASCHEN universe at an unbeatable, democratic price!Since we started our work as cultural archaeologists in 1980, the name TASCHEN has become synonymous with accessible, open-minded publishing. Bibliotheca Universalis brings together nearly 100 of our all-time favorite titles in a neat new format so you can curate your own affordable library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia.Bookworm's delight -- never bore, always excite!Text in English, French, and German

Being Elvis: A Lonely Life


Ray Connolly - 2017
    A godlike entity in the history of rock and roll, this twentieth-century icon with a dazzling voice blended gospel and traditionally black rhythm and blues with country to create a completely new kind of music and new way of expressing male sexuality, which simply blew the doors off a staid and repressed 1950s America.In Being Elvis veteran rock journalist Ray Connolly takes a fresh look at the career of the world’s most loved singer, placing him, forty years after his death, not exhaustively in the garish neon lights of Las Vegas but back in his mid-twentieth-century, distinctly southern world. For new and seasoned fans alike, Connolly, who interviewed Elvis in 1969, re-creates a man who sprang from poverty in Tupelo, Mississippi, to unprecedented overnight fame, eclipsing Frank Sinatra and then inspiring the Beatles along the way.Juxtaposing the music, the songs, and the incendiary live concerts with a personal life that would later careen wildly out of control, Connolly demonstrates that Elvis’s amphetamine use began as early as his touring days of hysteria in the late 1950s, and that the financial needs that drove him in the beginning would return to plague him at the very end. With a narrative informed by interviews over many years with John Lennon, Bob Dylan, B. B. King, Sam Phillips, and Roy Orbison, among many others, Connolly creates one of the most nuanced and mature portraits of this cultural phenomenon to date.What distinguishes Being Elvis beyond the narrative itself is Connolly’s more subtle examinations of white poverty, class aspirations, and the prison that is extreme fame. As we reach the end of this poignant account, Elvis’s death at forty-two takes on the hue of a profoundly American tragedy. The creator of an American sound that resonates today, Elvis remains frozen in time, an enduring American icon who could “seamlessly soar into a falsetto of pleading and yearning” and capture an inner emotion, perhaps of eternal yearning, to which all of us can still relate.Intimate and unsparing, Being Elvis explores the extravagance and irrationality inherent in the Elvis mythology, ultimately offering a thoughtful celebration of an immortal life.

Dear Evan Hansen: Vocal Selections


Benj Pasek - 2017
    The winner of six Tony Awards, including Best Original Score and Best Musical, Dear Evan Hansen has struck a remarkable chord with audiences and critics everywhere. With advanced ticket sales in excess of $20 million and its soundtrack debut at #8 on the Top 200 Album Billboard chart, it is on track to be one of the most successful Broadway musicals of all time. The show officially opened on Broadway on December 4, 2016, after a successful Off-Broadway run. The musical features a score by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul who were both personally involved in editing and approving the Hal Leonard Vocal Selections. Pasek and Paul won an Oscar for Best Original Song for being the lyricists behind "City of Stars" from La La Land . They have also received numerous awards for their previous stage productions A Christmas Story, The Musical; Dogfight; James and the Giant Peach; and Edges . The folio is arranged for voice with piano accompaniment and includes 13 songs from the soundtrack, including: Anybody Have a Map? * Disappear * For Forever * Good for You * If I Could Tell Her * Only Us * Requiem * Sincerely, Me * So Big/So Small * To Break in a Glove * Waving Through a Window * Words Fail * You Will Be Found.

In Dreams: An Intimate Portrait of Roy Orbison: The Authorized Story


Alex Orbison - 2017
    Roy Orbison died in 1988 but he's hardly forgotten. Raised in rural Texas, Orbison became one of the pioneers of rock and roll in the 1950s, sharing the famed Sun Records with Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash. He achieved superstar status in the 1960s, writing and releasing a series of smash singles, such as Oh, Pretty Woman, Only the Lonely, and Crying, plus many others that remain the most well-known songs of the era. IN DREAMS features rare memorabilia from Roy's career, much of it unseen for decades. This stunning biography, written by his sons along with Jeff Slate, tells the true story of their father's remarkable life, including his personal tragedies, reinventions, and untimely death.

Finley (Decoy Dynasty #1)


K.T. Fisher - 2017
    When his band, Lunacy is in the market for a female vocalist, they discover rising star, Riley James. She’s gorgeous, has a rocking body and an even more rockin’ voice. She’s perfect for the band, and as soon as Finley sets eyes on her, he knows he has to have her, but the longer Finley gets to know Riley, the more he realises she’s also perfect for him. However, Riley doesn’t fall for his charms and fights him off at every turn but how long can she deny the sexy, determined Finley Parker? After the dramas of her ex-boyfriend, Riley doesn’t trust men so easily because all they seem to want her for is a one way ticket to fame and she’s not interested in becoming another notch in Finley’s bed post. She despises players and men who think they run the world because women literally throw themselves at their feet, but one thing Riley doesn’t know, is that Finley won’t give in so easily, he knows how hard to fight for something he truly wants and he has his eyes set on the beautiful Riley.

Nick Cave: Mercy on Me


Reinhard Kleist - 2017
    1957) is a Renaissance man. His wide-ranging artistic output—always uncompromising, hypnotic, and intense—is defined by an extraordinary gift for storytelling. In Nick Cave: Mercy on Me, Reinhard Kleist employs a cast of characters drawn from Cave’s music and writing to tell the story of a formidable artist and influencer. Kleist paints an expressive and enthralling portrait of Cave’s childhood in Australia; his early years fronting The Birthday Party; the sublime highs of his success with The Bad Seeds; and the crippling lows of his battle with heroin. Capturing everything from Cave’s frenzied performances in Berlin to the tender moments he spent with love and muse Anita Lane, Kleist’s graphic biography, like Cave’s songs, is by turns electrifying, sentimental, morbid, and comic—but always engrossing.

What Does This Button Do?: An Autobiography


Bruce Dickinson - 2017
    As Iron Maiden’s front man—first from 1981 to 1993, and then from 1999 to the present—Dickinson has been, and remains, a man of legend.But OTT front man is just one of the many hats Bruce wears. In addition to being one of the world’s most storied and well-respected singers and songwriters, he is an airline captain, aviation entrepreneur, motivational speaker, beer brewer, novelist, radio presenter, and film scriptwriter. He has also competed as a world-class level fencer. Often credited as a genuine polymath Bruce, in his own words (and handwritten script in the first instance!), sets forth many personal observations guaranteed to inspire curious souls and hard-core fans alike.Dickinson turns his unbridled creativity, passion, and anarchic humour to reveal some fascinating stories from his life, including his thirty years with Maiden, his solo career, his childhood within the eccentric British school system, his early bands, fatherhood and family, and his recent battle with cancer.Bold, honest, intelligent and very funny, his memoir is an up-close look inside the life, heart, and mind of one of the most unique and interesting men in the world; a true icon of rock.

The Echo of Music


Amelia C. Adams - 2017
    Now, having nearly lost her voice, she lives in retirement in the town of Topeka, Kansas, singing only rarely for charity events. Her prize possession is her family's heirloom piano, a cherished reminder of her former life. Nathan Perry, piano tuner, has come around regularly to maintain her beloved instrument, but he disappeared one day without a word to Orinda Lou. When he finally returns, he's full of secrets, hiding his whereabouts and his reasons for leaving. When she learns what has kept him away, will that destroy all the seeds of romance that have begun to bloom between them?

Some Distant Sunrise


Elliott Downing - 2017
    But the fresh start she hopes to make with him has one catch: She died of an overdose four months earlier, and she's come to talk him into joining her...Some Distant Sunrise is a powerful, gritty dark-fantasy novella about junkies and ghosts, music and suicide, obsession and regret, and living through what remains after everything you've loved is gone.

First Avenue: Minnesota's Mainroom


Chris Riemenschneider - 2017
    This book chronicles the club's storied past, beginning with its impressive inaugural show in April 1970 (Joe Cocker's "Mad Dogs & Englishmen" tour) and through its oft-maligned disco era of the late 1970s. In the 1980s, it earned global attention as the hub of Prince's "Purple Rain" and the incubator for widely revered, wild-eyed indie-rock bands such as the Replacements, Husker Du, Soul Asylum, and Babes in Toyland. More recently, it survived corporate competitors, bankruptcy, and a bitter ownership battle to become one of the most successful independent clubs in the country and ground zero to Minneapolis's thriving community of hip-hop and indie-rock acts. Amidst all that history, the book is interlaced with anecdotes, quotes, and occasionally cloudy memories from musicians, employees, and regulars--many of whom are as unique as the club itself. Chock full of concert photos and memorabilia collected from professional photographers and average fans alike, the book is a lavish celebration of a rock 'n' roll landmark.

Ruth and Martin’s Album Club


Martin Fitzgerald - 2017
    Make them listen to it two more times. Get them to explain why they never bothered with it before. Then ask them to review it.What began as a simple whim quickly grew in popularity, and now Ruth and Martin’s Album Club has featured some remarkable guests: Ian Rankin on Madonna’s Madonna. Chris Addison on Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On. Brian Koppelman on The Smiths’ Meat is Murder. JK Rowling on the Violent Femmes’ Violent Femmes. Bonnie Greer on The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds. Martin Carr on Paul McCartney’s Ram. Brian Bilston on Neil Young’s Harvest. Anita Rani on The Strokes’ Is This It. Richard Osman on Roxy Music’s For Your Pleasure. And many, many more.Each entry features an introduction to each album by blog creator Martin Fitzgerald. What follows are delightful, humorous and insightful contributions from each guest as they have an album forced upon them and – for better or worse – they discover some of the world’s favourite music.Ruth and Martin’s Album Club is a compilation of some of the blog’s greatest hits as well as some exclusive material that has never appeared anywhere before. Throughout, we get an insight into why some people opt out of some music, and what happens when you force them to opt in.

Pink Floyd: Their Mortal Remains


Victoria Broackes - 2017
    Lavishly illustrated throughout with material from the band’s archive, including never-before-seen photographs, ephemera, and more, this book examines what makes Pink Floyd unique, from the mythology underpinning their output  to their musicianship, epic staging, and performance impact. With a photographic section devoted to the band’s 15 albums, the book explores the lasting Pink Floyd phenomenon. Five essays address what has made Pink Floyd unique, and contextualize their continued impact: 1. “Lift Off”: Syd Barrett, Pink Floyd and the London undergroundJoe Boyd examines the character and musical legacy of Syd Barrett, as the mythologized founder of Pink Floyd and icon of late 1960s British counterculture, drawing on the author’s personal acquaintance with Syd Barrett.2. “What Have We Done to England?” Pink Floyd and the lure of the pastoralRob Young places Pink Floyd in a wider visual tradition, exploring their “British” appeal.3. A Long Term Prospect Jon Savage on how Pink Floyd negotiated a transition from single releases to concept albums between 1967 and 1970.4. “Painters, pipers, prisoners”: the musical legacy of Pink FloydHoward Goodall explains how Pink Floyd escaped the musical constraints of the three-minute single and exploited the potential of longer-form pieces in the mid-1970s, developing their signature sound and style in Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here and continuing to hone this over subsequent albums.  5. Great Gigs in the Sky: Pink Floyd on stageVictoria Broackes and Anna Landreth-Strong chart the band’s live acts, from the psychedelic light shows in 60s London to huge stadium concerts, with particular reference to their successful collaboration with architect and set designer Mark Fisher (1947–2013).Their Mortal Remains: The Studio Albums: A chronological, album-by-album history of the band, each album is introduced by Mark Blake and accompanied by insights from Aubrey “Po” Powell.

Mozart: The Man Revealed


John Suchet - 2017
    Austrian-born to a tyrannical father who worked him fiercely; unhappily married to a spendthrift woman; a child-like character ill at ease amid the aristocratic splendor of the Viennese court; a musical genius who died young thus depriving the world of future glories.Yet only that last point is actually true. In this comprehensive biography, John Suchet examines the many myths and misunderstandings surrounding the world's best-loved composer. From his early days as a child prodigy performing for the imperial royal family in Vienna to the last months of his short life, driven to exhaustion by a punitive workload, one thing remained constant: his happy disposition.Through trials and tribulations, grand successes and disheartening setbacks, Suchet shows us the real Mozart—blessed with an abundance of talent yet sometimes struggling to earn a living. His mischievous nature and earthy sense of humor, his ease and confidence in his own incredible abilities; these were traits that never left him. His music has brought comfort to countless generations; his life, though brief, is no less fascinating.

Love Song


K.G. Fletcher - 2017
    He beats out the rhythm. But will their passionate chorus be their last?As a backup singer on tour, Casey lives for the late nights and wild after-show parties. But her world is rocked when a charming stand-in drummer shows her the kind of love she’s only sung about. Except just as their hearts are beating in time, she receives a terrifying text saying her sister’s life is in jeopardy. Wounded by a bitter breakup, Sam channels all his energy into his new barn-loft music studio. But after accepting a gig with a local touring band, the last thing he expected was to fall for the troupe’s party-girl. So when she suddenly announces she has to leave to protect her sis, he drops his sticks to be by her side.After Casey learns her abusive ex-brother-in-law has found their home address, she fears her family’s rocky past will scare away her gorgeous percussionist. And Sam worries with Casey and her sibling sharing an apartment, the dangerous psychopath could turn off the lights on both their lives.Will the musical couple find harmonic bliss, or have they played their final duet?Love Song is an electrifying standalone romantic suspense novel. If you like steamy friends-to-lovers stories, and darkly topical issues, then you’ll adore K.G. Fletcher’s edge-of-your-seat thriller.

Got to Be Something Here: The Rise of the Minneapolis Sound


Andrea Swensson - 2017
    Paul history as longtime music journalist Andrea Swensson takes us through the neighborhoods and venues, and the lives and times, that produced the Minneapolis Sound. Visit the Near North neighborhood where soul artist Wee Willie Walker, recording engineer David Hersk, and the Big Ms first put the Minneapolis Sound on record. Across the Mississippi River in the historic Rondo district of St. Paul, the gospel-meets-R&B groups the Exciters and the Amazers take hold of a community that will soon be all but erased by the construction of I-94. From King Solomon’s Mines to the Flame, from The Way in Near North to the First Avenue stage (then known as Sam’s) where Prince would make a triumphant hometown return in 1981, Swensson traces the journeys of black artists who were hard-pressed to find venues and outlets for their music, struggling to cross the color line as they honed their sound. And through it all, there’s the music: blistering, sweltering, relentless funk, soul, and R&B from artists like Maurice McKinnies, Haze, Prophets of Peace, and The Family, who refused to be categorized and whose boundary-shattering approach set the stage for a young Prince Rogers Nelson and his peers Morris Day, André Cymone, Jimmy Jam, and Terry Lewis to launch their careers, and the Minneapolis Sound, into the stratosphere. A visit to Prince’s Paisley Park and a conversation with the artist provide a rare glimpse into his world and an intimate sense of his relationship to his legacy and the music he and his friends crafted in their youth.

Language of the Spirit: An Introduction to Classical Music


Jan Swafford - 2017
    In Language of the Spirit, renowned music scholar Jan Swafford argues that we have it all wrong: classical music has something for everyone and is accessible to all. Ranging from Gregorian chant to Handel's Messiah, from Vivaldi's The Four Seasons to the postmodern work of Philip Glass, Swafford is an affable and expert guide to the genre. He traces the history of Western music, introduces readers to the most important composers and compositions, and explains the underlying structure and logic of their music.Language of the Spirit is essential reading for anyone who has ever wished to know more about this sublime art.

Rodigan: My Life in Reggae


David Rodigan - 2017
    Perhaps it's because while his wider musical and professional milieu has been in constant change, his boundless enthusiasm has been constant. Reggae's been lucky to have him' Ian Harrison, MOJO 'Rodigan was a major part of my childhood, he played the hottest tunes and in a style that just resonated with me and millions like me. Being able to contribute anything to a man that filled my life with such joy is an honour, respect, David Rodigan' Ian Wright'David is a pioneer in Reggae music. As a selector and radio personality, his vast knowledge of Jamaican music and its culture has helped to educate and fascinate music lovers around the world; he's an amazing son of the music, and an icon. We couldn't have made it this far without him' ShaggyThis is the unlikely story of David Rodigan: an Army sergeant's son from the English countryside who has become the man who has taught the world about Reggae. As the sound of Jamaica has morphed over five decades through a succession of different genres - from Ska and Rock Steady, to Dub, Roots and Dancehall - Rodigan has remained its constant champion, winning the respect of generation after generation of Reggae followers across the globe.Today, at the age of 63, he is a headline performer at almost all the UK's big music festivals, as well as events across the world. Young people revere him and he is a leading presenter on the BBC's youth network 1Xtra as well as a regular fixture at leading nightclubs such as London's Fabric and at student unions throughout the land. And he continues to go into the heartlands of Reggae, to the downtown dancehalls of Kingston and Montego Bay in Jamaica to compete in tournaments against the greatest sound systems. And yet, for all of this, David Rodigan is the antithesis of the stereotype of an international dance music DJ. 'I look like an accountant or a dentist,' he admitted to The Independent a decade ago. A man of impeccable manners, Rodigan prepares for a big sound clash by retiring to his hotel bed with a Thomas Hardy novel before taking a nap and then a cup of espresso before heading to the club. Rodigan is the inside story of this apparent paradox. It tells how a boy from Kidlington has become an admired international ambassador for a music form that remains as proud as ever of its African roots, a sound that emanates from and fiercely represents the ghetto poor. He now reaches across the age groups, from teens through to those of his own vintage. At the pinnacle of his career, Rodigan has become the DJ for all generations. 'David Rodigan is a force of nature. His spirit and passion are a rare and wonderful thing. He has dedicated his life to carrying the torch for Reggae music and is hugely respected all over the world for his knowledge and talent as a broadcaster and a DJ. Long may he reign on our stages and on our airwaves' Annie Mac

Sinful Rhythms (The Black Lilith Series, #4)


Hazel Jacobs - 2017
    She’s got a huge family she loves, a pile of books in her ‘to be read’ pile, and a best friend she’s never met. D came into her life accidentally via an X-rated picture sent to the wrong number one late night five months ago, and the pair of them have been trading texts and secrets ever since.When D invites her to finally meet at a rock concert, in person, because he has a job opportunity for her, she discovers that her hilarious dorky best friend D is the world-famous Dash Todd, from Black Lilith. The job he’s lined up for her is shadowing Black Lilith for their Sinful Rhythms tour and writing an article about them for Rolling Stone! That’s the sort of thing that launches careers. But when Tessa tries to coax Dash into a more serious relationship, she realizes that things aren’t as easy as she thought they would be. Dash makes her weak in knees, but he goes cold the moment she tries to get serious. After so many years of effortless sex with groupies, she can hardly blame him for wanting to avoid commitment.When another man vies for Tessa’s attention, she needs to decide whether to pursue a relationship with someone who is actually interested or to wait for her rockstar best friend.

Detours


Tim Rogers - 2017
    He's a contradiction: a hard drinking rock star with the soul of a poet; a wordsmith and a raconteur, a romantic and a realist, a bon vivant op-shop-dressed dandy. He's the wild man of Australian rock n' roll, a man who loves footy, who was brought up in the wild emptiness of Kalgoorlie, but he's now an urban hipster - a legend of Australian rock music, more at home in St Kilda than the bush.In this offbeat and immensely charming literary memoir, Tim Rogers talks about what it is to be a man, about accepting who you are, about masculinity, love, drinking, footy, his father, being a dad, anxiety, and above all, his continuing, magical, ever-present muse - music.It is by turns revealing, warm, self-deprecating, intimate, shocking, confessional, sharp, funny and immensely engaging.

Turn the Page


Sydney Logan - 2017
    Drugs. Rock and roll.Life in the fast lane is nothing new to Corbin James.After completing his second stint in rehab, Corbin heads home to Riverview, determined to leave the music world behind and focus on his family, his songwriting, and his sobriety.Crippled with debt but determined to make it on her own, Jolie Daniels pours her heart and soul into the town's bookstore. When Corbin finds his debut album in Jolie’s discount bin, sparks fly between the pretty bookstore owner and the rock star musician.Corbin knows he’s nowhere near good enough for a sweet girl like Jolie . . . but he wants to be.When a record label approaches Corbin with the chance to make a musical comeback, he doesn’t think twice before saying no. He’s ready to settle down, and he wants to do it with Jolie. However, when her beloved bookstore is threatened with foreclosure, Corbin finds himself signing a contract that will take him away from home and back on tour for three months.Can Corbin resist the temptations of the tour? Or will the loneliness of the road resurrect all the demons he’s worked so hard to bury?

The Jacksons: Legacy


The Jacksons - 2017
    Created with unprecedented contributions from Jackie, Tito, Marlon, Jermaine, and Michael's esate, The Jacksons is an uplifting, feel-good scrapbook from one of the most-famous musical families in the world.This rare publishing event combines exclusive interviews, anecdotes, and quotations from the brothers and their inner circle with a mind-blowing selection of never-before-seen visual material from the family collections. The Jacksons contains personal family pictures; ephemera shots of the first guitars the boys ever held; top photographer Harrison Funk's exclusive coverage of their professional lives, including their stellar Victory tour; photos of Michael Jackson on tour with his brothers at the time of the release of Off The Wall (1979) and during 1982, when Thriller, the best-selling album of all time, was first released; editions of teen and black culture magazines featuring the family; and piles of mass-market merchandise, including a Jacksons-branded cereal boxes with 7" records attached. Visually reminiscent of their hit cartoon show, The Jacksons will provide legions of fans with a rare look at their favorite family.

Hold Tight: Black Masculinity, Millennials & the Meaning of Grime


Jeffrey Boakye - 2017
    

The Dance of the Violin


Kathy Stinson - 2017
    He chooses a piece of music, which his teacher suggests may be too difficult, but Joshua is determined. It’s a piece of music he loves. At the competition, Joshua experiences the usual jitters. Once his name is called, he strides to the stage and begins to play, but almost immediately, he makes a mistake. As he is about to walk off the stage, he asks the judges if could try again. They agree, and this time, the playing is impeccable. Dušan Petricic’s brilliant illustrations full of movement and color, capture the sounds made by Joshua’s violin, from the missed notes to the swirling, uplifting strains of the perfectly executed piece. Children will readily empathize with Joshua’s misstep, but they will also learn that there is always a second chance.

Step By Step Mixing: How to Create Great Mixes Using Only 5 Plug-ins (Audio Issues #1)


Bjorgvin Benediktsson - 2017
     Learn a Proven Step By Step Mixing Process That's Helped Thousands of Musicians Like Yourself Make Amazing Mixes in Their Home Studio, Using Only EQ, Compression, Reverb, Delay, and Saturation "This is the NO BS guide to taking your mixes to the next level! Björgvin has been teaching and writing about recording for a decade, and really understands that stuff that we all struggle with in the home studio. Step By Step Mixing takes you through the full process of making sure your mixes rock from ruff to radio ready!" -Lij Shaw, Award winning Producer and Podcaster of Recording Studio Rockstars Let Me Ask You This: Do you fight to make all your instruments fit together in a busy mix? Do you struggle to EQ each instrument to sit in their frequency range without getting in the way of everything else? Do you tear your hair out finding the right compression setting for each track? Do you have a hard time using reverb and delay without cluttering up your mix? Do you get confused by saturation and how to use it to get a warmer sounding mix? If you answered yes to one of those questions - don't worry - you're not alone. If you want to make better mixes immediately in your home studio that translate to every speaker system, whether you're working on demos for your band of mixing records for your clients, grab Step By Step Mixing right now. Here's What You'll Learn Inside: Learn to get organized and simplify your mixing process to create more mixes that sound better in less time Learn practical EQ tips to make all of your instruments fit in your mix Learn to use compression to create punchy and tight mixes Learn to use reverb and delay to add space and depth to your mixes without cluttering up the song and making yourself sound like an amateur Learn everything you need to know about saturation to add that secret sauce to your songs that make people take notice of your skills Learn an invaluable process to getting your mix to translate to any speaker or sound system Step by Step Mixing covers the theory behind each processor while giving you simple to use, practical audio tips you can use to improve your mixes. Every chapter is broken down as such: Explanations on the theory behind what the plug-ins do and how to use them: You’ll get a thorough walkthrough of the various regions of the frequency spectrum. You’ll understand exactly how to use your compressors. You’ll learn all about the various reverb and delay settings (some reverbs are just too complex!) and you’ll get very familiar with using saturation (without overloading and distorting your mixes!). Common Problems and Their Practical Solutions: After you understand how each processor works we’ll talk about some real world scenarios. I’ll give you some practical and easy to use tips to make your mixes jump out of the speakers. Once you've mastered these five processors above you’ll be ready to make a killer mix in your home studio, whether you’re working on demos for your band or mixing records for your friends and

Pick


K.E. Osborn - 2017
    But for me it's not just a word, it's a legacy, a lifeline, my name. My life has been crazy—ups a downs like the highest rollercoaster you've ridden. On tour with the world’s biggest rock stars and on my way to being one myself. Then I met her. The woman who ruined me completely. Fast forward through the shit storm that was my life—I lost the girl, I lost my band. Hell, I lost it all. My only choice was to run. And running was the best thing for me. Because I ran into a pink haired beauty and everything started falling into place. My band reformed and we’re pushing to be right up there with the best of the best. But when you’re fighting to get to the top, is the pressure too much to keep your band, and the girl? In the end, if your heart’s in danger, can love truly be enough?

100 Songs


Bob Dylan - 2017
    His words are consistently funny, alive to the sound of language, and of course appealingly cryptic.” —The New York Times Book Review A new collection of Bob Dylan’s most essential lyrics—one hundred songs that represent the Nobel Laureate’s incredible range through the entirety of his career so far.Bob Dylan is one of the most important cultural figures of our time, and the first American musician in history to win the Nobel Prize for Literature. 100 Songs is an intimate and carefully curated collection of his most important lyrics that spans from the beginning of his career through the present day. Perfect for students who may be new to Dylan’s work as well as longtime fans, this portable, abridged volume of these singular lyrics explores the depth, breadth, and magnitude of one of the world’s most enduring bodies of work.

Good Things Happen Slowly: A Life in and Out of Jazz


Fred Hersch - 2017
    His prodigious talent as a sideman--a pianist who played with the giants of the twentieth century in the autumn of their careers, including Art Farmer and Joe Henderson--blos-somed further in the eighties and beyond into a compositional genius that defied the boundaries of bop, sweeping in elements of pop, classical, and folk to create a wholly new music. Good Things Happen Slowly is his memoir. It's the story of the first openly gay, HIV-positive jazz player, and a deep look into the cloistered jazz culture that made such a status both transgressive and groundbreaking. It is a remarkable, at times lyrical evocation of New York in the twilight days of post-Stonewall hedonism, and a powerfully brave narrative of the illness that led to Hersch's two-month-long coma in 2007, from which he would emerge to create some of the finest, most direct and emotionally compelling music of his career.

Rush: Album by Album


Martin Popoff - 2017
    Formed in Toronto in 1968, the rock trio Rush has gone on to multiplatinum success behind the distinctive high register and virtuosic bass-playing of frontman Geddy Lee, the legendary drumming and lyric-writing of Neil Peart, and the guitar heroics of Alex Lifeson. Despite having just four chart-topping singles since the release of their debut LP in 1974, Rush has nonetheless sold more than 25 million albums in the U.S. and more than 40 million worldwide. The Canadian trio may be the definition of an "album band," and this new book from prolific rock journalist and acknowledged Rush authority Martin Popoff pays tribute to the band's discography by moderating in-depth, frank, and entertaining conversations about all 20 of Rush's studio albums. Inside, the author gathers 20 rock journalists and authors who offer insights, opinions, and anecdotes about every release. Together, the conversations comprise a unique historical overview of the band, as well as a handsome discography. Popoff also includes loads of sidebars that provide complete track listings, details on album personnel, information on where and when the albums were recorded, and sidebar facts about the albums, their songs, and the band.

George: A Memory of George Michael


Sean Smith - 2017
    Sometimes his two worlds would collide with shattering consequences.Bestselling biographer Sean Smith has gone back to the neighbourhoods of North London to trace the astonishing journey of a sensitive but determined boy who grew up to be one of the biggest British pop stars of all time.Along the way, he talks to those close to George, revealing the real man – funny, articulate, intelligent and generous spirited – who hid behind the powerful image he created.He reveals the complex relationship with his high-achieving Greek-Cypriot father; the unconditional love of his mother; his teenage relationships with girls; and his first tragic love affair with another man.George’s career began falteringly with a schoolboy band, exploded with Wham! before he became a solo phenomenon. But at the height of his fame, the world seemed to turn against him. Smith describes his despair at losing the two people who mattered most, how he sought consolation in drugs, his notorious ‘coming out’ and how he ended up in jail.His health failed him and he died heartbreakingly alone on Christmas Day, 2016.Affectionate yet honest and moving, George is both a celebration of George Michael’s music and a lasting tribute to a decent and much-loved man.

All in the Downs: Reflections on Life, Landscape and Song


Shirley Collins - 2017
    In her new memoir, All in the Downs, Collins tells the story of that lifelong relationship with English folksong—a dedication to artistic integrity that has guided her through the triumphs and tragedies of her life. All in the Downs combines elements of memoir—from her working-class origins in wartime Hastings to the bright lights of the 1950s folk revival in London—alongside reflections on the role traditional music and the English landscape have played in shaping her vision. From formative field recordings made with Alan Lomax in the United States to the “crowning glories” recorded with her sister Dolly on the Sussex Downs, she writes of the obstacles that led to her withdrawal from the spotlight and the redemption of a new artistic flourishing that continues today with her unexpected return to recording in 2016. Through it all, Shirley Collins has been guided and supported by three vital and inseparable loves: traditional English song, the people and landscape of her native Sussex, and an unwavering sense of artistic integrity. All in the Downs pays tribute to these passions, and in doing so, illustrates a way of life as old as England, that has all but vanished from this land.Generously illustrated with rare archival material.

Play Me: A Rock Chamber Boys Novel


Daisy Allen - 2017
    Things every Rockstar should remember without fail: Don’t Fall in Love With A Woman Who Loves Her Privacy. But sometimes we need to learn things the hard way. Cadence: I’ve done everything right when it comes to gathering emotional baggage and living a hermit lifestyle. Have break up to end all break ups: check! Vigorously avoid all men for 8 years: check! Meet sexiest rock star alive...hate him on sight: check! ...or so I thought. I want to hate him, but there’s something about Sebastian that is just impossible to resist. Not that I haven’t tried. But try being on the receiving end of those bottomless jade green eyes, knowing its attached to that ripped body, I’d like to see how long you’d hold out. He’s special. And something about him makes me want to tear down all my walls. It could be how he knows his way around the stage, my bed and my body, or the irresistible offer that he’s making that could change my life forever. But it would mean letting go of a past that just won’t let ME go. Sebastian: Seriously, lusting after a woman who’s sworn off men? I should know better. But I can’t help it. I can feel it in my heart, my music, my coc-, er, my body, that she’s special. That smart and sexy brunette, who understands me more than I do myself. I just have to get her to admit that she feels the same. And I will do whatever it takes. Money and fame is nothing if I can’t use it to get what I want. And I want her. In my arms, in my bed, in my life. Ironically, my fame’s the one thing she doesn’t want, and the world isn’t letting her forget it. So what happens when Sebastian’s burning desire for Cadence clashes with her crippling fear of scrutiny? Find out in this hot and steamy Rockstar romance - Book One in the Rock Chamber Boys series. **Each book can stand alone and are HEA endings with no cliff hangers or cheating**

Vinyl . Album . Cover . Art : the complete Hipgnosis catalogue


Aubrey Powell - 2017
    Founded in 1967 by Storm Thorgerson, Aubrey “Po" Powell, and Peter Christopherson, Hipgnosis gained a legendary status in graphic design, transforming the look of album art forever and winning five Grammy nominations for package design. Their revolutionary cover art departed from the conventional group shots favored by record companies of the day, resulting in groundbreaking, often surreal designs inextricable from the major albums of many of the biggest names in the history of popular music: AC/DC, Black Sabbath, The Police, Genesis, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Paul McCartney, Syd Barrett, The Who, Wings, Yes, and XTC, to name but a few.Arranged chronologically, Hipgnosis: The Complete Album Covers features stunning reproductions of every single Hipgnosis cover—more than 300 in total—for the first time, along with pertinent insights from the rock ’n’ roll legends whose albums are featured and behind-the-scenes photography. The text, written by Powell, and with contributions by Peter Gabriel, Robert Plant, and Nick Mason, brims with information that illuminates the album art and the compelling stories behind each cover’s creation.

Straight Edge A Clear-Headed Hardcore Punk History


Tony Rettman - 2017
    Straight edge created its own sound and visual style, went on to embrace vegetarianism, and later saw the rise of a militant fringe. As the 'don't drink, don't smoke' message spread from Washington, D.C., to Boston, California, New York City, and, eventually, the world, adherents struggled to define the fundamental ideals and limits of what may be the ultimate youth movement.

Double Exposition


Jerica MacMillan - 2017
    . . Needing to fill a gap in my schedule, I walk into the campus coffee shop and come face to face with the girl of my dreams. Smart, witty, and passionate. She doesn't flinch when she finds out about my pop star past, instead saying I need more musical education. She becomes my muse, my inspiration, and my cowriter. Polishing my songs and making them shine. And when a video of me playing one of my new songs goes viral, my life explodes in a second chance at the dream I thought was over six years ago. But if I take this opportunity, will our relationship survive? If you love sizzling chemistry, sexy rockstars, and heroines who know what they want, download Double Exposition and start this epic series today!

Studio 54


Ian Schrager - 2017
    Now, in the first official book on the legendary club, co-owner Ian Schrager presents a spectacular volume brimming with star-studded photographs and personal stories from the greatest party of all time. From the moment it opened in 1977, Studio 54 celebrated spectacle and promised a never-ending parade of anything goes. Although it existed for only three years, it served as a catalyst that brought together some of the most famous and creative people in the world. It quickly became known for its celebrity guest list and uniquely chic clientele. From the cutting-edge lighting displays to its elaborate sets, it was the beginning of nightclub as performance art. Now, Studio 54 explores this cultural zeitgeist and gives us Schrager's personal firsthand account of what it was like to create and run the most famous nightclub of our age. With hundreds of photographs, many of which have never been seen before, of the celebrities and beautiful people and engaging stories and quotes from such cultural luminaries as Liza Minelli, David Geffen, Brooke Shields, Pat Cleveland, and Diane von Furstenberg, this exciting volume depicts the wild energy and glittering creativity of the era. One of the most important cultural landmarks of the twentieth century, Studio 54 continues to inspire with its legendary glamour. This exhilarating volume is a must-have for style and fashion aficionados today.

The Unexpected Love Story of Alfred Fiddleduckling


Timothy Basil Ering - 2017
    Captain Alfred is sailing home with new ducks for his farm when his little boat is caught in an unexpected and mighty storm. Everything aboard the ship is flung to the far reaches of the sea, including the very special and beautiful duck egg he had nestled safely inside his fiddle case. But perhaps all is not lost: the little duckling stumbles out of his shell and discovers Captain Alfred's fiddle, floating not too far away in the waves. And when the duckling embraces the instrument with all his heart, what happens next is pure magic. Through an enchanting read-aloud text and beautiful artwork, award-winning author-illustrator Timothy Basil Ering shares a thrilling and fantastical story of a farmer, a gentle old lady, a dancing dog, and one brave, tiny duckling that will warm the heart.

Untypical Girls: Styles and Sounds of the Transatlantic Indie Revolution


Sam Knee - 2017
    Featuring hundreds of rare photographs of scenes from post-punk to Riot Grrl across both sides of the Atlantic, this is a key counter-cultural fashion resource.

An Outlaw and a Lady: A Memoir of Music, Life with Waylon, and the Faith that Brought Me Home


Jessi Colter - 2017
    Colter became a successful recording artist, appearing on American Bandstand and befriending stars such as the Everly Brothers and Chet Atkins, while her songs were recorded by Nancy Sinatra, Dottie West, and others. Her marriage to Eddy didn’t last, however, and in 1969 she married the electrifying Waylon Jennings. Together, they made their home in Nashville which in the 1970s, was ground zero for roots music, drawing Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Shel Silverstein, and others to the Nashville Sound. And Jessi was at the center of it all, the only woman on the landmark Wanted: The Outlaws album, the record that launched the Outlaw Country genre and was the first country album to go platinum. She also tasted personal commercial success with the #1-single “I’m Not Lisa.”But offstage, life was a challenge, as Waylon pursued his addictions and battled his demons. Having drifted from the church as a young woman, Jessi returned to her faith and found in it a source of strength in the turmoil of living with Waylon. In the 1980s, Waylon helped launch the super group The Highwaymen with Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson, and the hits kept rolling, as did Waylon’s reckless living. Amid it all, Jessi faithfully prayed for her husband until finally, at Thanksgiving 2001, Waylon found Jesus, just months before he died. An Outlaw and a Lady is a powerful story of American music, of love in the midst of heartache, and of faith that sustains.

reputation / Volume 2


Taylor Swift - 2017
    In these two uniquely different collectible magazines, you will find a variety of art created and curated by Taylor herself including her music, her paintings, her handwritten lyrics and more. This will be the only window of this kind into the creation of Taylor's sixth studio album, reputation.Inside of the Volume 2 Magazine, you will find the reputation Standard CD in a double gate-fold holder with the Standard reputation album cover artwork printed on the front and back. You will be able to easily detach this holder from the magazine, and it will have the disk in one sleeve, and the Standard CD booklet in the other.

Parental Discretion Is Advised: The Rise of N.W.A and the Dawn of Gangsta Rap


Gerrick Kennedy - 2017
    Dre, Ice Cube, MC Ren, and DJ Yella caused a seismic shift in hip-hop when they decided to form N.W.A in 1986. Suddenly rap became gangsta and relevant on the West Coast. With their hard-core image, bombastic sound, and lyrics that were equal parts poetic, lascivious, conscious, and downright in-your-face, N.W.A spoke the truth about life on the streets of Compton, California—then a hotbed of poverty, drugs, gangs, and unemployment.Their ’hood tales offered a sharp contrast from the cozy, comfortable images of thriving middle-class life emanating from television screens across America. For the group, making music was not about being nice or projecting a false reality. It was all about expressing themselves.Going beyond the story portrayed in the 2015 blockbuster movie Straight Outta Compton, through firsthand interviews, extensive research, and top-notch storytelling, Los Angeles Times music reporter Gerrick Kennedy transports you back in time and offers a front-row seat to N.W.A’s early days and the drama and controversy that followed the incendiary group as they rose to become multiplatinum artists.A riveting and illuminating work of music journalism, Parental Discretion Is Advised captures a special moment in rap music, when N.W.A made it altogether social, freaky, enterprising, and gangsta. They forced us all to take notice. For that alone, their story must be told.

Lovely Creatures - The Best of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds 1984-2014


Nick Cave - 2017
    Book as part of the Lovely Creatures Deluxe Edition Box Sethttp://www.nickcave.com/music/nickcav...

Rock Me Baby


Jesse Jordan - 2017
    I was his muse. Rocky was the bad boy next door, but unlike any I'd ever known. Slightly dangerous with a passion for rock that we both shared, I yearned to feel the taste of his lips. The caress of his touch. It never came. After we graduated, we went in different directions. But not before I put my dream down on a single piece of paper. Now, five long years later, I'm struggling to make my way in an industry where mercy is for the weak and secrets can destroy you. He's the leader of the hottest band on the scene, and I've been brought in to produce their next album. He's still sexy as hell, and we're on the cusp of music greatness... But will my secret destroy me before I can pick up the pieces of my heart?

Stranded in the Jungle: Jerry Nolan's Wild Ride: A Tale of Drugs, Fashion, the New York Dolls and Punk Rock


Curt Weiss - 2017
    In spite of numerous opportunities for success, he became a tragedy. Jerry Nolan came out of New York in the 1970s as part of two of the most influential and infamous bands of the time, the proto-punk New York Dolls and Johnny Thunders' Heartbreakers. Jerry had what it took to be a star, but his battles with heroin continually stymied his career and ultimately ended his life. Despite this, he is remembered as a cross between a Martin Scorsese film character and jazz legend Gene Krupa: a stylish, urban, wisecracking, trendsetting raconteur, who was also a powerhouse drummer. Stranded in the Jungle: Jerry Nolan's Wild Ride - A Tale of Drugs, Fashion, the New York Dolls, and Punk Rock tells Jerry's story through extensive research and interviews with those closest to him: bandmates, friends, lovers, and family members, including new interviews with members of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame bands the Sex Pistols, the Ramones, Talking Heads, and Blondie. It gives firsthand accounts of not only Jerry's life and struggles but the earliest history of punk rock in both New York and London, highlighting his notorious and incendiary musical partner, Johnny Thunders.

Johnny's Cash and Charley's Pride: Lasting Legends and Untold Adventures in Country Music


Peter Cooper - 2017
    In Johnny’s Cash & Charley’s Pride: Lasting Legends and Untold Adventures in Country Music, Cooper chronicles his many “in the mix” tales since arriving in Nashville in 2000 to cover the country music scene for the Tennessean. Filled with untold stories and newly revealed histories, it is an informal yet well-studied inside view of country music’s greatest characters and pivotal moments. Now a senior director at the Country Music Hall of Fame, Cooper’s stories are akin to a curated behind-the-scenes tour of country music. Spanning nineteen chapters, Cooper offers an original take on the formative days at WSM and engaging introductions to an ensemble cast of country music’s icons, quirks, and golden-but-hidden personalities. With a gem on every page, Cooper has crafted a perceptive, smiling, and atypical immersion into the world of country music that will keep any music fan engaged with its wit, passion, and authenticity.

Mr Pikes: The Story Behind The Ibiza Legend


Tony Pike - 2017
    the real Hugh Hefner BOY GEORGE Tony created the concept of the boutique hotel. PAUL OAKENFOLD Roguish and very appealing. I like ebullient, charming characters. GRACE JONES I found extraordinary peace at Pikes, and Tony Pike is the best host... the number one ! JOAN BAEZ There's no place like Pikes. You arrive... then a few days later you come round again without fully knowing quite what happened... but you know it was great. KYLE SIMMONS (BASTILLE) I have never seen a man so happy in a leopard skin thong as Tony ! SHIRLEY KEMP (WHAM) Thanks for a fab time, Tony FREDDIE MERCURY

David Bowie: A Life


Dylan Jones - 2017
    Drawn from over 180 interviews with friends, rivals, lovers, and collaborators, some of whom have never before spoken about their relationship with Bowie, this oral history weaves a hypnotic spell as it unfolds the story of a remarkable rise to stardom and an unparalleled artistic path. Tracing Bowie's life from the English suburbs to London to New York to Los Angeles, Berlin, and beyond, its collective voices describe a man profoundly shaped by his relationship with his schizophrenic half-brother Terry; an intuitive artist who could absorb influences through intense relationships and yet drop people cold when they were no longer of use; and a social creature equally comfortable partying with John Lennon and dining with Frank Sinatra. By turns insightful and deliciously gossipy, DAVID BOWIE is as intimate a portrait as may ever be drawn. It sparks with admiration and grievances, lust and envy, as the speakers bring you into studios and bedrooms they shared with Bowie, and onto stages and film sets, opening corners of his mind and experience that transform our understanding of both artist and art. Including illuminating, never-before-seen material from Bowie himself, drawn from a series of Jones's interviews with him across two decades, DAVID BOWIE is an epic, unforgettable cocktail-party conversation about a man whose enigmatic shapeshifting and irrepressible creativity produced one of the most sprawling, fascinating lives of our time.

Drive


Stephanie Fournet - 2017
    They are phony, unfaithful, and never home — even when it matters.Six years ago, an accident left her shattered, and even now, Rainey can’t trust herself behind the wheel of a car.But when she meets Jacques Gilchrist, the sweet, soulful, and heart-stoppingly handsome Uber driver, Rainey discovers she can forget her fear when she’s with him.Until she learns he’s a musician. And worse than that, he’s good. Too good.Jacques Gilchrist has tried for years to break out of the small-town music scene, but as soon as he meets Rainey, he can’t stop writing songs about her. He’s about to take the world by storm, but if he wants Rainey by his side, Jacques will have to prove he’s nothing like her father.He’s determined, even if he has to drive her across the country to do it.

The Weight of Sound


Peter McDade - 2017
    Friendships fade. The music is all that remains. This is the weight of sound. The Weight of Sound, a debut novel by writer and musician Peter McDade, carries readers through 25 years in the life of Spider Webb. Spider as a teenager announces to his parents that he will skip high school graduation and move to Athens, Ga. to launch his musical career in the town that gave birth to R.E.M. and the B-52s. A chorus of narrators, including bandmates, roadies, girlfriends, record executives, and fans, reveal what happens behind the music of a touring musician on the rise in an industry whose business model in the 90s is on the decline.This is not a tell-all memoir about sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll. It is a poignant look at the way that music molds and shapes who we are as people—not just the musicians and artists, but the listeners and fans who make sense of their world through the songs. As readers follow Spider, they will also follow the trail of the music he makes: from the music of The Beatles that bonded Spider to his father to the music he made with his friends, music produced in studio and played live, music that outlived several bands and relationships. Each chapter of the book corresponds to an original song, co-written by the author and performed by musicians from across the country. Readers will access the music by using a special code found within the book’s pages.

La La Land: Music from the Motion Picture Soundtrack


Justin Hurwitz - 2017
    Written and directed by Damien Chazelle, La La Land tells the story of Mia Emma Stone, an aspiring actress, and Sebastian Ryan Gosling, a dedicated jazz musician, who are struggling to make ends meet in a city known for crushing hopes and breaking hearts. Set in modern day Los Angeles, this original musical about everyday life explores the joy and pain of pursuing your dreams. Our matching folio features 10 piano/vocal/guitar arrangements from the award-winning soundtrack featuring original songs by Justin Hurwitz with lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.

Clutch


S.M. West - 2017
     Flighty. Stupid. That’s what my sisters think of me. I’m tired of being misunderstood. With a suitcase in hand and the ocean as my beacon, I’m charting my own path. Yet, barely a day on the road, I almost crash and burn. Running into Silas Palmer, a sexy-as-sin rock star, changes my life. Silas makes me feel … Exceptional. Aimless. He’s always known his course. And even now, when he’s abandoning fame and fortune, he knows what he wants. Me. But life is never that simple.

Stand Up and Sing!: Pete Seeger, Folk Music, and the Path to Justice


Susanna Reich - 2017
    Coming of age during the Great Depression, Pete saw poverty and adversity that would forever shape his worldview, but it wasn't until he received his first banjo that he found his way to change the world. It was plucking banjo strings and singing folk songs that showed Pete how music had the incredible power to bring people together.Using this gift throughout his life, Pete encouraged others to rally behind causes that mattered--fighting for Civil Rights, ending the Vietnam War, or cleaning up the Hudson River. For Pete, no challenge was too great, and what started out as a love for music turned into a lifetime of activism and change. His greatest talent--and greatest passion--would become an unforgettable part of American history.

Desire (South Bay Soundtracks Book 1)


Amelia Stone - 2017
    Ever since her husband died and the bottom dropped out of her life, leaving her body locked down and her heart completely and utterly frozen. But then her best friend railroads her into a double date to "get her back out there." Much to her surprise, the ice keeping her locked in place begins to thaw, melting into something that almost resembles desire. Suddenly, Larkin finds herself enticed by the idea of exploring that desire. The only problem? The man currently taking a blow torch to the walls around her heart is not her date. Graham Morris knows he should not be lusting after Larkin Michaels. Everything from her bag lady wardrobe to the haunted look in her eyes - not to mention her status as his date's best friend - screams "stay away." Problem is, Graham doesn't want to stay away. He wants to draw closer, to be the shoulder she so desperately needs to cry on, the lover who unlocks the passion hidden underneath all those layers of sorrow. He wants to be the man to keep her heart safe for her, for now and always. But will Larkin let him? Will she finally be able to let go of her first love and see the man in front of her, waiting to be her forever love?

The Blow Hole Rock Hard Box Set


Tabatha Vargo - 2017
    There's nothing sexier than a bad boy who becomes tame for the woman he loves, and it takes some special women to tame these boys! USA TODAY BESTSELLER Playing Patience Perfecting Patience Finding Faith Convincing Constance Having Hope "Breathtaking, heart-wrenching, and beautiful." ~Prisoners of Print "This was one of the best books I've read this year." ~Ana's Attic Book Blog "The moments of beauty and tenderness interspersed throughout a story of such cruelty, emotional turmoil, and heartache will remain with you for a long time to come." ~Totally Booked Blog

Coda (Kindle Single)


Jonathan Biss - 2017
    What’s eluded him is why a young person by modern standards is so fixated on that final phase. Coda is Biss’s intimate interrogation of expression (both his heroes’ and his own) and a powerful ode to music’s ability to communicate the ineffable—even, one might say, a last word.Pianist Jonathan Biss shares his talent, passion, and intellectual curiosity with classical music lovers in the concert hall and beyond. This season Biss continues his latest Beethoven project, Beethoven/5, for which the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra has co-commissioned five composers to write new piano concertos, each inspired by one of Beethoven's. In 2016-2017 Biss began examining, both in performance and academically, the concept of a composer's “late style,” and has put together programs of Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Britten, Elgar, Gesualdo, Kurtág, Mozart, Schubert, and Schumann's later works, both for solo piano and in collaboration with the Brentano Quartet and Mark Padmore. In early 2017 he released the sixth volume of his nine-year, nine-disc recording cycle of Beethoven’s complete piano sonatas. Biss studied at Indiana University and at the Curtis Institute of Music, where he joined the piano faculty in 2010. He led the first massive open online course (MOOC) offered by a classical music conservatory, "Exploring Beethoven's Piano Sonatas," which has reached more than 150,000 people in 185 countries, and he will continue to add lectures until he covers all the sonatas. His bestselling eBook, "Beethoven’s Shadow," published by RosettaBooks in 2011, was the first Kindle Single written by a classical musician. Cover design by Adil Dara.

Punk Avenue: Inside the New York City Underground, 1972-1982


Phil Marcade - 2017
    From backrooms of Max’s and CBGB’s to the Tropicana Hotel in Los Angeles and back, Punk Avenue is a tour de force of stories from someone at the heart of the era. With brilliant, often hilarious prose, Marcade relays first-hand tales about spending a Provincetown summer with photographer Nan Goldin and actor-writer Cookie Mueller, having the Ramones play their very first gig at his party, working with Blondie’s Debbie Harry on French lyrics for her songs, enjoying Thanksgiving with Johnny Thunders’ mother, and starting the beloved NYC punk-blues band The Senders. Along the way, he smokes a joint with Bob Marley, falls down a mountain, gets attacked by Nancy Spungen’s junkie cat, become a junkie himself, adopts a dog who eats his pot, opens for The Clash at Bond’s Casino, opens a store named Rebop on Seventh Avenue, throws up in some girl’s mouth, talks about vacuum cleaners with Sid Vicious, lives thru the Blackout of 1977, gets glue in his eye, gets mugged at knife point, plays drums with Johnny Thunders’ band Gang War, sets some guy’s attache-case on fire, listens to pre-famous Madonna singing in the rehearsal studio next to his, gets mugged at gun point, O.D.s on heroin, gets saved by a gentle giant named Bill, lives at night… Never sleeps…  A very funny book.

Only One Woman


Jane Risdon - 2017
    Renza falls head over heels for heartthrob guitarist Scott. But after a romantic summer together they are torn apart when Renza’s family moves away.December 1968. On the night she believes to be her last, Stella meets Scott at a local dance. He’s the most beautiful boy she’s ever seen and if this one night is all they have, she’ll take it.As the final colourful year of the sixties dawns, the question is: can there be only one woman for Scott?

Rock My World (Cornish Love Stories:Jess Book 1)


Ruth Saberton - 2017
    Wealthy and wickedly handsome, Nick is accustomed to female adoration but Jess is unimpressed. He’s hot, he has a great body and, yes, he’s talented but Nick’s assumption she’ll do far more than just his makeup makes Jess determined to prove him wrong. A notorious playboy recently caught up in a huge scandal, rock legend Nick is intrigued to meet a girl who can resist him. This makes Jess perfect for the very unusual plan he has in mind - if Nick can only convince her to go along with it. When Nick makes an offer she can’t refuse, and as the attraction between them grows, it’s only a matter of time before Jess’s world is rocked to its very foundations…

Of Potato Heads and Polaroids: My Life Inside and Out of Pearl Jam


Mike McCready - 2017
    Not many bands have achieved a status needing no adjective or description. Pearl Jam has. And fewer still have had an insider, much less a member, obsessively capture onstage and offhand pics of the experience-the friends, family, and fans...and one very famous plastic toy. Luckily for uslead guitaristMike McCreadydid-trusty Polaroid camera in hand.Documenting years of touring and travels, McCready snaps meetings with heroes and inspirations from all walks of life; time spent with crazy friends and family; and momentsfeaturing wildly artistic takes on art, nature, and architecture. Also: he once rocked a fab grey shift. And true to form for one not taking things too seriously, Mike sometimes had his pal, Mr. Potato Head, pop in and share in the fun.As wonderfully intimate as group "selfies" with the likes of Neil Young, Questlove, Jimmy Page, Ann and Nancy Wilson, Joey Ramone, Johnny Ramone, The Edge, Ben Harper, Peter Buck, Paul McCartney, Mike Mills, Sting, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, Carrie Brownstein, Robert Plant, Peter Frampton, Dave Grohl, Gene Simmons, Bono, Jack White, Danny Clinch, Lady Gaga, Laura Dern, Dustin Hoffman, Judd Apatow, Will Ferrell, Leslie Mann, Jimmy Fallon, Mira Sorvino, Tim Robbins, Hugh Jackman, Venus Williams, and Kate Hudson are, it's the massive homage to the band's fans taken from stage view, in places from the Pacific Northwest to Peru, from Brussels to Bolivia, that brings McCready's manic intimacy come roaring to life.Of Potato Heads and Polaroidsis the scrapbook for our rockstar world-friends, family, and fans. With some wattage. And a great deal of fun and good times.

The Strokes: The First Ten Years


Cody Smyth - 2017
    This is a peerless window into the group through the lens of a close friend who was there before it even began.Handsomely housed in an exceptional package that combines premium art paper for the photography and a textured stock for the text sections, including a special dust jacket design, the book features hundreds of color and black and white images of the band in public and in private. A truly personal look at the rise of this singular band, which is still relevant and a top draw worldwide.Cody Smyth has been shooting professionally for nearly twenty years, working for clients such as Vanity Fair, NME, Nylon, Dazed & Confused, MTV, and Ford Models.Mick Rock is known as "The Man Who Shot the Seventies" for his iconic images of Syd Barrett, David Bowie, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, Queen, and more. His most recent book is Mick Rock: The Rise of David Bowie, 1972-1973, published by Taschen.Gabriel Kuo began his career working in the music industry at Rolling Stone, Sony Music, and MTV. He then formed the design studio BRM, working with clients such as Adidas, ESPN, and Heineken, as well as projects for Ghostface Killah, Maroon 5, The Misshapes, and Kanye West.

Mute: A Visual Document From 1978 - Tomorrow


Terry Burrows - 2017
    Through the music of its tight-knit community of artists—ranging from Cabaret Voltaire, Nick Cave’s The Birthday Party and Moby to Depeche Mode, Erasure, and Goldfrapp—it has had an incalculable impact on popular music for forty years.Daniel Miller created Mute to release his debut single (“Warm Leatherette”/ “T.V.O.D.”), a pioneering electronic sound with a defiantly DIY punk attitude. Mute quickly established a reputation for cultivating the experimental, releasing cutting-edge industrial sounds, and chart-topping electronic music by the likes of Depeche Mode and Yazoo. The label was equally at home with the savage punk of Nick Cave’s The Birthday Party and—to critical acclaim—his next outfit, The Bad Seeds. It also proved to be an Internet pioneer, launching the online site Mute Liberation Technologies in 1994.Mute features stunning artwork and photography—much of it previously unseen—and revelatory behind-the-scenes insights from the vibrant cast who have worked with the label.

Poppy and the Orchestra: Storybook with 16 musical instrument sounds


Walter Foster Creative Team - 2017
    Press the button in each enchanting scene to hear the vivid sound of a real instrument playing classical music.  Poppy and the Orchestra takes children and their grownups on a musical adventure to the symphony. On this adventure, Poppy meets new friends who introduce him to the sounds of individual orchestral instruments. With 16 buttons to push and hear, listen to the sounds of the different instruments as you follow along with the story: the clarinet, the piano, the violin, the double bass, the xylophone, the piccolo, the celesta, the cello, the flute, the bassoon, and…the orchestra of The Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saëns!  Vibrantly illustrated by Magali Le Huche, Poppy and the Orchestra is the perfect introduction to classical music and the instruments of the orchestra for kids—one the family will enjoy returning to again and again.  Discover even more musical adventures with: Poppy and the Brass Band, Poppy and Mozart, and Poppy and Vivaldi.

Complicated Fun: The Birth of Minneapolis Punk and Indie Rock, 1974-1984 --- An Oral History


Cyn Collins - 2017
    Radio stations played Top 40 music; bars and clubs booked only rock cover bands and blues bands. Meanwhile, cities like New York, Detroit, and London were spawning fresh and innovative--and loud and raw--sounds by musicians creating a new punk and rock movement. A small but daring group of Twin Cities musicians, artists, entrepreneurs, and enthusiasts wanted a piece of that action. To do it, they had to build it themselves.Complicated Fun brings together the recollections of the men and women who built Minnesota's vibrant and vital indie rock scene. Through interviews with dozens of musicians, producers, managers, journalists, fans, and other scenesters, Cyn Collins chronicles the emergence of seminal bands like the Suicide Commandos, the Hypstrz, Curtiss A, Flamingo, the Suburbs, Husker Du, the Replacements, and more. The subjects reflect on the key role that Oar Folkjokeopus record store, Jay's Longhorn bar, and Twin/Tone Records played by providing outlets for hearing, performing, and recording these new sounds.Complicated Fun explores the influences, motivations, moments, and individuals that propelled Minneapolis to its status as a premier music scene and, in turn, inspired future generations of rockers.

Grady (Must Love Rock Stars)


Gretchen Rily - 2017
     Building a rock and roll empire isn’t easy, but Bourbon Suicide is doing it with every sold-out concert, platinum album, and smart business decision. The son of an eighties rock band singer and a video vixen, Grady knows how to play the part, if he can just avoid the burnout. Combine chemicals, detonate, get a beautiful effect…or burned to the bone. While Grady was skateboarding naked, Evie was putting herself through a technical theater program by working at a fireworks company. A woman in a man’s world, she can handle the pyro and out-swear the other roadies, but one misstep can have her doing corporate picnics. A rock tour is unlike any office on earth, but sex with the client is still a bad idea. The arrogant rock star persona hides a man who wants to take care of the people he loves. He shows that side far less often than he does his back dimples, but once Evie sees it, enemies quickly become friends, then lovers. As she gets further and further into their world, Evie finds a family she never expected. Grady, the man, would do anything to keep his fire woman. Grady Baker, rock star, could cost Evie her career. And their empire. The is the first standalone HEA in the Must Love Rock Star series.

Soldier Song: A True Story of the Civil War


Debbie Levy - 2017
    . .And there was one song that reminded them all of what they hoped to return to after the war.Defeated in the battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia, the Union soldiers retreated across the river. There, a new battle emerged as both armies volleyed competing songs back and forth. With the Christmas season upon them, however, Federals and Confederates longed for the same thing. As the notes of "Home, Sweet Home" rose up from both sides, they found common ground for one night.Interwoven with soldiers' letters and journal entries, this is a true story of duty and heartbreak, of loyalty and enemies, and of the uniting power of music. Debbie Levy's moving text and Gilbert Ford's vibrant, layered illustrations come together to create an unforgettable tale of American history.