Book picks similar to
The Best Of Country Music by John Morthland
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Michael Jackson Treasures
Jason King - 2009
Michael Jackson Treasures pairs a compelling exploration of his story with photographs and memorabilia that illuminate h is fascinating, complicated life. Featuring a number of rare pieces, including selected pages from the Jackson children’s high school yearbook, the patent for the antigravity lean shoes from “Smooth Criminal,” and a fancifully die-cut mask from the Dangerous Tour, Michael Jackson Treasures is a trove of powerful images and ephemera from a truly global superstar.
Dead Elvis: A Chronicle of a Cultural Obsession
Greil Marcus - 1991
As Greil Marcus shows in this remarkable book, Presley's journey after death takes him even further, pushing him beyond his own frontiers to merge with the American public consciousness--and the American subconscious.As he listens in on the public conversation that recreates Elvis after death, Marcus tracks the path of Presley's resurrection. He grafts together scattered fragments of the eclectic dialogue--snatches of movies and music, books and newspapers, photographs, posters, cartoons--and amazes us with not only what America has been saying as it raises its late king, but also what this strange obsession with a dead Elvis can tell us about America itself.
The Ox: The Authorized Biography of The Who's John Entwistle
Paul Rees - 2019
To that incontrovertible end, John Entwistle-the Who's beloved bassist-remains an enigmatic yet undeniably influential figure, renowned as much for his immense talent as for his gloriously oversized-seeming character. However, unlike his fellow musicians, Entwistle has yet to be the subject of a major biography. In the years since his death, his enduring legacy has been carefully guarded by his loved ones, preventing potential biographers from gaining close enough access to write a definitive account of his extraordinary life-until now. For the first time, and with the full co-operation of the Entwistle family,
The Ox
shines a long overdue light on one of the most important figures in rock history. Drawing on his own notes for an unfinished autobiography that he started before his death in 2002, as well as his personal archives and interviews with his family and friends,
The Ox
gives readers a never-before-seen glimpse into the two very distinct poles of John Entwistle. On the one hand, he was the rock star incarnate-larger than life, self-obsessed to a fault, and proudly and almost defiantly so. Extravagant with money, he famously shipped vintage American cars across the Atlantic without having so much as a driver's license, built exponentially bigger and grandiose bars into every home he owned, and amassed an extraordinary collection of possessions, from armor and weaponry to his patented Cuban-heel boots. But beneath this fame and flutter, he was also a man of simple tastes and traditional opinions. He was a devoted father and family man who loved nothing more than to wake up to a full English breakfast, or to have a supper of fish, chips, and a pint at his local pub. After his untimely death, many of these stories were shuttered away into the memories of his family and friends. At long last,
The Ox
introduces us to the man behind the myth-the iconic and inimitable John Entwistle.
Something in the Air: Radio, Rock, and the Revolution That Shaped a Generation
Marc Fisher - 2007
But radio came roaring back with a whole new concept. The war was over, the baby boom was on, the country was in clover, and a bold new beat was giving the syrupy songs of yesteryear a run for their money. Add transistors, 45 rpm records, and a young man named Elvis to the mix, and the result was the perfect storm that rocked, rolled, and reinvented radio.Visionary entrepreneurs like Todd Storz pioneered the Top 40 concept, which united a generation. But it took trendsetting “disc jockeys” like Alan Freed, Murray the K, Wolfman Jack, Cousin Brucie, and their fast-talking, too-cool-for-school counterparts across the land to turn time, temperature, and the same irresistible hit tunes played again and again into the ubiquitous sound track of the fifties and sixties. The Top 40 sound broke through racial barriers, galvanized coming-of-age kids (and scandalized their perplexed parents), and provided the insistent, inescapable backbeat for times that were a-changin’.Along with rock-and-roll music came the attitude that would literally change the “voice” of radio forever, via the likes of raconteur Jean Shepherd, who captivated his loyal following of “Night People”; the inimitable Bob Fass, whose groundbreaking Radio Unnameable inaugurated the anything-goes free-form style that would come to define the alternative frontier of FM; and a small-time Top 40 deejay who would ultimately find national fame as a political talk-show host named Rush Limbaugh.From Hunter Hancock, who pushed beyond the limits of 1950s racial segregation with rhythm and blues and hepcat patter, to Howard Stern, who blew through all the limits with a blue streak of outrageous on-air antics; from the heyday of summer songs that united carefree listeners to the latter days of political talk that divides contentious callers; from the haze of classic rock to the latest craze in hip-hop, Something in the Air chronicles the extraordinary evolution of the unique and timeless medium that captured our hearts and minds, shook up our souls, tuned in–and turned on–our consciousness, and went from being written off to rewriting the rules of pop culture.
The Gilded Palace of Sin
Bob Proehl - 2008
Almost forty years later, front man Gram Parsons, is still spoken of with almost messianic reverence. Patron saint of alt-country, emblazoned with a shining cross, dead at 26. Overshadowed by Parsons, this album remains an anomaly in the country rock genre, a map in miniature of a moment in music, and warrants discussion as more than part of the Gram Parsons legacy.
Chord Chemistry
Ted Greene - 1981
Whether you are just beginning to search beyond basic barre chords or are already an advanced player looking for new sounds and ideas this is the book that will get you there. Designed to inspire creativity this book is a musical treasure chest filled with exciting new ideas and sounds.
Incredibly Strange Music, Volume II
V. Vale - 1994
French of Family Affair) "singing" songs by Bob Dylan, and tons more
Chuck D. Presents This Day in Rap and Hip-Hop History
Chuck D - 2017
In the more than 40 years since the days of DJ Kool Herc and "Rapper's Delight," hip hop and rap have become a billion-dollar worldwide phenomenon. Yet there is no definitive history of the genre-until now. Based on Chuck's long-running show on Rapstation.com, this massive compendium details the most iconic moments and influential songs in the genre's recorded history, from Kurtis Blow's "Christmas Rappin'" to The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill to Kendrick Lamar's ground-breaking verse on "Control." Also included are key events in hip hop history, from Grandmaster Flash's first scratch through Tupac's holographic appearance at Coachella. Throughout, Chuck offers his insider's perspective on the chart toppers and show stoppers as he lived it. Illustrating the pages are more than 100 portraits from the talented artists specializing in hip hop.
Trouble Boys: The True Story of the Replacements
Bob Mehr - 2016
With full participation from reclusive singer and chief songwriter Paul Westerberg, bassist Tommy Stinson, guitarist Slim Dunlap, and the family of late band co-founder Bob Stinson, author Bob Mehr is able to tell the real story of this highly influential group, capturing their chaotic, tragic journey from the basements of Minneapolis to rock legend. Drawing on years of research and access to the band's archives at Twin/Tone Records and Warner Bros. Mehr also discovers previously unrevealed details from those in the group's inner circle, including family, managers, musical friends and collaborators.
John Thompson's Easiest Piano Course - Part 1 - Book Only
John Thompson - 1982
This comprehensive boxed set assembles Books 1-4 of this classic method. The books feature colorful, amusing characters and illustrations, and the four accompanying CDs contain backing tracks to make learning and practicing even more fun. This unique package features a built-in storage carton!
Willie: An Autobiography
Willie Nelson - 1988
Told with frankness, warmth and earthy humor, here is Willie's story: his depression ere childhood; his stormy marriages; his will experiences with drugs, booze and women; his long rise to stardom; his musical and personal experiences with Waylon Jennings, Julio Iglesias, Kris Kristopherson, Johnny Cash, Ray Charles, Loretta Lynn, George Jones, Frank Sinatra and Linda Ronstadt.
Armed Forces
Franklin Bruno - 2005
Over 50,000 copies have been sold Passionate, obsessive, and smart. Nylon an inspired new series of short books about beloved works of vinyl. Details Franklin Bruno s writing about music has appeared in the Village Voice, Salon, LA Weekly, and Best Music Writing 2003 (Da Capo). He has a Ph.D. in Philosophy from UCLA, and his musical projects include Tempting: Jenny Toomey Sings the Songs of Franklin Bruno (Misra) and A Cat May Look At A Queen (Absolutely Kosher), a solo album. He lives in Los Angeles.
God Save the Kinks: A Biography
Rob Jovanovic - 2013
After a little noticed debut and a follow-up that had failed to chart at all, Pye Records were threatening to annul the group’s contract. But with its unforgettable distorted guitar riff, 'You Really Got Me’ went on to reach No.1, entering the US Top Ten later the same year. Followed by a string of hits, it marked the breakthrough of one of Britain’s most innovative and influential bands, and a turning point in the fortunes of two brothers whose troubled story is as tumultuous and characterful as the music they produced: Ray and Dave Davies. Born into a deeply musical working-class family in London’s Muswell Hill, Ray and Dave grew up in a city recovering from the bombs and privations of the Second World War, and, more than any other musicians of the Sixties, they crafted the soundtrack that made it swing again. In songs such as ‘Dedicated Follower of Fashion’, ‘Sunny Afternoon’ – which toppled The Beatles to become the hit of Summer 1966 – ‘Waterloo Sunset’, ‘Days’ and ‘Lola’, they drew on music hall, folk and rhythm and blues to craft a peculiarly English pop idiom, inspiring generations of songwriters from David Bowie to Jarvis Cocker and Damon Albarn.Pocked by sibling rivalry, furious on-stage violence, walkouts, overdoses, a career-throttling ban from the US, gross self-indulgence, and the band's curious rebirth as Eighties stadium rockers, the story laid bare in God Save The Kinks is one of the greatest in British pop history.
Parental Advisory: Music Censorship in America
Eric Nuzum - 2001
The vilification of popular music by government and individuals has been going on for decades. Now, for the first time, Parental Advisory offers a thorough and complete chronicle of the music that has been challenged or suppressed -- by the people or the government -- in the United States.From Dean Martin's "Wham, Bam, Thank you Ma'am" to Marilyn Manson's Antichrist Superstar; from freedom fighters such as Frank Zappa and in-your-face rappers such a N.W.A. to crusaders such as Tipper Gore, this intelligent and entertaining book shows how censorship has crossed sexual, class, and ethnic lines, and how many see it as a de facto form of racism. With nearly one hundred fascinating photographs of musicians, record burning, and controversial cover art; illuminating sidebars; and a decade-by-decade timeline of important moments in censorship history, Parental Advisory is by turns frightening and hilarious -- but always revealing.
Beat The Devil (Kindle Single)
Mishka Shubaly - 2013
Over three decades, his affliction has spawned immeasurable chaos, destruction and debauched good times. While his rivals have graced the covers of Spin and Rolling Stone, Shubaly's projects inevitably flame out in the eleventh hour. Is he finally ready to give up his lifelong dream for good?