He can teach anybody."-- Gay Talese, bestselling author of "Honor Thy Father""Scott Speck is a great communicator of classical music.... Concert audiences and readers alike can't help getting caught up in the joy of his subject."-- David Styers, American Symphony Orchestra LeagueOpera is weird. Everybody wears makeup and sings all the time. Even when they're singing your language, which is rare, you still can't understand the words. Women play men, men play women, and 45-year-olds play teenagers. All the main characters seem to get killed off. And when somebody dies, he takes ten minutes to sing about it. Yet, for all its weirdness, an operatic experience is an experience in breathtaking beauty. When you hear a soprano float a soft high C, or a tenor singing a love song, or a full-throated chorus in the climax of a scene's dramatic finale, you can't help getting goosebumps.Want to experience all that beauty for yourself, but don't know where to begin? "Opera For Dummies" is an excellent place to start. Written by an acclaimed conductor and a musical director, this friendly guide tells you what you need to know to: Understand opera from the Baroque and Roman periods through todayInterpret characters, orchestra, chorus, and other playersUnderstand what's happening, both on stage and offChoose the best seatsIdentify famous operasBuild a great collection of opera recordingsLocate opera sites and chat groups onlineWhether you're interested in attending a live opera, want to build a collection of recordings, or just want to be able to talk about opera intelligently, "Opera For Dummies" is for you. Among other things, you'll explore: The words, the music, and the people who sing itThe history of opera and the lives of the great composersGoing to the opera -- including tips for getting tickets, preparing for the opera, dressing for the opera, and moreMusical and theatrical conventions used in operaIn-depth synopses of the world's most beloved operasOn the bonus CD you'll find: More than 60 minutes of music compiled especially for the bookA multimedia piece for PC or MACWonder what it is about opera that can make a grown person cry like a baby? Find out in "Opera For Dummies.

    Illustrated with previously unseen photographs and drawing on over 300 hours of interviews with band members, producers, friends, former lovers and associates, this biography traces the artist's life from his Minneapolis roots through controversial stardom to his rejection of the Prince persona.

    The first two editions of the Rough Guide to Reggae were the top-selling books on the subject, and widely acclaimed by the music press and fans alike. Illustrated throughout with over 400 pictures, many of them exclusive photos, the book also features exclusive interviews with reggaeas top stars, and reviews over 500 albums. 2003 and 2004 have been the most successful years for reggae music on a global scale since the heyday of Bob Marley, with singers such as Sean Paul and Wayne Wonder regularly topping the UK and US pop charts. The new third edition of Rough Guide to Reggae is fully updated to cover this latest wave of Jamaican musicians, while not stinting on newly discovered recordings and reissues of classic albums of the past.

    From choosing a rabbit and preparing its home to training, healthcare, and having fun with your bunny, you get a wealth of expert tips that will have your rabbit (and you) hopping with joy!Jump into bunny basics -- decide whether a rabbit is the right pet for you, discover the different breeds, and find out the best places to adopt your bunnyTake care of creature comforts -- from housing and grooming to feeding and healthcare, provide the best care for your friendPractice bunny "psychology" -- understand bunny body language and sounds, handle behavior issues, and train your bunny to do tricks and use the litter boxEnjoy the wonderful world of rabbits -- play games with your bunny, join clubs and organizations, show your rabbit, and make traveling with bunny easyOpen the book and find:Informative photos and illustrationsDetailed breed descriptionsHow to think like a rabbitTips for handling bad bunny behaviorThe latest on organic cuisine and homegrown feeding optionsGames to play with your rabbitHow to live with an indoor bunny (which is recommended!)Ten signs that require emergency actionA bunch of bunny resources -- from rescue groups to registries to Web sites

    The Book of Bizarre Truths is a 704-page collection of answers to hundreds of provocative questions covering a vast range of topics, from the strange to the sublime.Includes urban legends, old wives tales, misattributed quotes, and corrected so-called facts and trivia that have gained authenticity despite less-than-reliable sources.Topics covered include the animal kingdom, health, origins, traditions, science, history, geography, sports, people, and food.More than 200 questions that are answered, including:Do cows cause global warming?How many ants make a full meal for an anteater?How late is fashionably late?What s the smelliest thing on the planet?Do woodpeckers get headaches?The Book of Bizarre Truths is for readers who expect to be informed, entertained, and humored.

    Written by his manager Dave Lory, Jeff Buckley includes interviews with others who worked closely with him who have never spoken before. For the first time since Jeff Buckley’s untimely death on May 29, 1997, his manager Dave Lory reveals what it was like to work with one of rock’s most celebrated and influential artists. Go on the road and behind the scenes with Jeff, from the release of his debut EP Live at Sin-é to the second album Buckley never completed. Jeff Buckley includes testimony from the many people who worked closely with Jeff both on and off stage and includes never-before-shared intimate scenes that only Lory witnessed, including what went down immediately after Lory got that fateful call, “Jeff is missing.”

    This experience gave Carducci a unique perspective on music and "Rock And The Pop Narcotic" is perhaps the only book of popular music criticism that attempts to achieve a genuine aesthetic of rock music. The content runs the gamut of music, touching on everything from the Allman Brothers to Husker Du to Black Flag.

    Comprised entirely of exclusive interviews, many with artists who have never spoken about their careers before, this tome begins the project by examining three facets of the genre in detail, returning to the subject of Norwegian Black Metal, discussing Polish Black Metal and telling the story of the subgenre of Depressive/Suicidal Black Metal.

    This volume, Volume A, covers American Literature from its beginning to 1820.

    In 1987, Lawrence Livermore founded independent punk label Lookout Records to release records by his band The Lookouts. Forming a partnership with David Hayes, the label released some of the most influential recordings from California’s East Bay punk scene, including a then-teenaged Green Day. Originally operating out of a bedroom, Lookout created "The East Bay Punk sound,” with bands such as Crimpshrine, Operation Ivy, The Mr. T Experience, and many more. The label helped to pave the way for future punk upstarts and as Lookout grew, young punk entrepreneurs used the label as a blueprint to try their hand at record pressing. As punk broke nationally in the mid 90s the label went from indie outfit to having more money than it knew how to manage.

    In the summer of 1964, aged twenty, Ray Davies led The Kinks to fame with their number one hit ‘You Really Got Me’. Within months, they were challenging The Beatles and The Rolling Stones in the charts, swamped by fans and renowned for the rioting at their gigs. Over the next three decades, Davies wrote a string of enduring classics – ‘All Day and All of the Night’, ‘Sunny Afternoon’, ‘Waterloo Sunset’, ‘Lola’ – that secured his status as one of the handful of people to have redefined pop culture over the last fifty years.But Ray’s journey from working-class Muswell Hill to the Rock ’n’ Roll Hall of Fame was tumultuous in the extreme, featuring breakdowns, bitter lawsuits, spectacular punch-ups and a ban from entering the USA for almost four years. His relationship with his brother Dave, The Kinks’ lead guitarist, is surely the most ferocious and abusive in music history. Based on countless interviews conducted over several decades, this richly detailed and revelatory biography presents the most frank and intimate portrait yet of Ray Davies, and promises to be the definitive biography of this most fascinating and complicated life.

    The fights, the bands, the brawls, the haircuts, the egos, and much more—the definitive book about the infamous music magazine. For 60 years, since it was founded in 1952, the New Musical Express has played a central part in the British love affair with pop music—and has been essential for American connoisseurs to remain in-the-know as well. This authoritative history is an insider's account of the high times and low lives of one of the world's most influential music magazines. It explains the stories behind the stories that kept readers coming back week after week—the office brawls, the former staffers who launched their careers there (Tony Parsons, Julie Burchill, Nick Kent, Mick Farren, Steve Lamacq, and Stuart Maconie), and the bands who owe their success to the magazine. Snotty, confrontational, enthusiastic, and sarcastic: the new issue of the NME was the high point of any music fan's week, whether they were listening to The Beatles, Bowie, or Blur.

    #4 on Publishers Weekly's Bestselling Gardening Books list! This new, completely revised edition has over 500 new photographs, 400 new illustrations, 400 new plants and trees, the latest pest control recommendations, fruit and vegetable recommendations, new tips and plants specifically for Southern Texas, plus everything in the first edition.

    Now, to celebrate a decade of delighting opera fans and foes alike, musical historian and humorist David Barber has prepared a special revised and expanded edition of his hilarious bestselling history of opera. Chapters such as Serious Buffoonery, Teutonic Tunesmiths and, of course, Italian Sausage Machines display Barber's rapier wit and knack for knowing fascinating, if sometimes useless, information about music, musicians and the offbeat world they live in. This expanded edition includes new material ranging from Strauss to ragtime, opera to the Tenor Menace. From Italian castrati to German Ring-bearers, from Handel's fights with rival sopranos to Puccini's nicotine habit, the author of Bach, Beethoven and the Boys and Tenors, Tantrums and Trills delivers a funny yet informative, irreverent yet affectionate history of serious music's most serious art form as only he can - and as only he would dare to do.

    Who even am I, and how will I keep going? We need someone in our corner to travel this journey with us and help keep our spirits up. This book is a gentle guide for navigating loss, grief or other sad times - a resource both for those who are downhearted and those supporting a loved one. With thoughtful advice on dealing with friends and family; healthy tips for eating and exercise when you don't feel like it; and a just-keep-yourself-going '101' for when you're feeling very low. It's the bolstering force we need to feel a bit closer to ourselves, or find a bit of peace. For years Pip Lincolne has had a dedicated readership through her blog Meet Me At Mike's and frankie magazine. She wrote When Life is Not Peachy during some tough times of her own, in the hope that what she learned might help someone else feel a little better some day.