Lebrecht compellingly demonstrates that classical recording has reached its end point, but this is not simply an expos? of decline and fall. It is, for the first time, the full story of a minor art form, analyzing the cultural revolution wrought by Schnabel, Toscanini, Callas, Rattle, the Three Tenors, and Charlotte Church. It is the story of how stars were made and broken by the record business; how a war criminal conspired with a concentration-camp victim to create a record empire; and how advancing technology, boardroom wars, public credulity and unscrupulous exploitation shaped the musical backdrop to our modern lives. The book ends with a suitable shrine to classical recording: the author's critical selection of the 100 most important recordings, and the 20 most appalling.Filled with memorable incidents and unforgettable personalities, from Goddard Lieberson, legendary head of CBS Masterworks who signed his letters as God; to Georg Solti, who turned the Chicago Symphony into the loudest symphony on earth - this is at once the captivating story of the life and death of classical recording and an opinionated, insider's guide to appreciating the genre, now and for years to come.

    Ranging from joyous to elegiac, verses touch on love’s delights and follies with elliptical eloquence. Lovely to read aloud or reflect on silently. Photos of African artwork accompany the text.My heart is single and cannot be dividedAnd it is fastened on a single hope;Oh, you, who might be the moon!--Somali love song

    In less than one year, she transformed herself from pop singer to pop icon, thanks to her talent, drive, and oh yes--her fashion. She's reached a new level of "living the fame" with her collection of extreme, often controversial couture. Lady Gaga: Critical Mass Fashion takes an in-depth look at Gaga's litany of eye-popping leotard, asymmetrical dresses, and fashionably impractical heels.Top designers love the Lady--everyone from Armani to Hussein Chalayan to the late lamented Alexander McQueen has taken her under their wings. On message twenty-four hours a day, Lady Gaga never stops. From the fake eyelashes to the faux nails down to her toes, she's living out her ideas of celebrity to the last detail.Visual explosion on screen, on stage, and on the page: that's Gaga's goal. All the of the 120+ images in this book showcase the gorgeous insanity of her vision.

    The alternative music scene had all but died, and pre-packaged pop stars had filled the vacuum. But in a basement apartment in the heart of downtown Toronto, two musicians were forming a creative partnership that would revive the mass appeal of indie music and forever change how we think of a band.In this biography of the ever-evolving indie-rock collective, Broken Social Scene, music columnist Stuart Berman tracks the group's inception by Kevin Drew and Brendan Canning; groundbreaking performances at Ted's Wrecking Yard that raised the band's local status to mythical proportions; Broken Social Scene's meteoric rise upon the release of breakout album You Forgot It In People; the creation of Arts & Crafts records with music-biz maverick Jeffrey Remedios; and life on the road with revolving bandmates, including members of Stars, Metric, The Dears, and international pop sensation Feist.Stuart Berman has drawn from hours of interviews with members and affiliates of Broken Social Scene, and exclusive, never-before-seen photographs, gig posters, and artwork to create a spectacular oral and visual history of this ever-evolving indie-rock collective.

     One innocent mistake… A night out at an exclusive party at a millionaire’s mansion, and now twenty-two-year-old Raven Hartley is in big trouble. Because of him… Gorgeous pop idol Jake Novak is smoking hot and blazingly confident. For him to take an interest in someone like Raven is beyond unthinkable. And now she has a problem… Before the party, Raven Hartley was a waitress, struggling to make ends meet, still running away from the darkness of her past and the betrayal that haunts her. After the party, she’s presented with a choice… Become Jake Novak’s personal escort or have her life destroyed.

    What happens when a broken Marine collides with a girl running from a haunting past? Will the two be each other's saviors or will the havoc, chaos and insanity from their lives consume them?

    This Bundle contains all six books of the Bestselling Series, BEAR CANYON BRIDES! Each book is a stand-alone romance featuring a new couple, and a new happy ending! WANTED: A Bride for a BEAR! In Bear Canyon, the men outnumber the women 3 to 1! What’s a BEAR to do when he wants to find a wife? He places an ad! This series features BBW Mail Order Brides and Sexy, Alpha BEAR Shifters! BEAR SEEKING BRIDE: TRAVIS (Book 1) BEAR SEEKING BRIDE: TYLER (Book 2) BEAR SEEKING BRIDE: TRENT (Book 3) BEAR SEEKING BRIDE: LUKE (Book 4) BEAR SEEKING BRIDE: DREW (Book 5) BEAR SEEKING BRIDE: THORN (Book 6) (Each book is also sold separately!)

     Want Alphas who can't be held back by anything in the galaxy if they've made their choice? The Corgan warlords are made for you then! This anthology includes four full novels from the bestselling Alien Warlord's Conquest series, each following a separate warlord on his quest for justice... and the most maddening woman in the universe! The Corgans are a continuation of the stories told in the Brion Brides series. Each book has a happily ever after ending, no cheating and can and should be read as a standalone! BONUS! This bundle also includes the bonus short story, Brocke: Meeting the Parents, a sweet and saucy story of what happens when a bride meets the scariest in-laws in the galaxy! The boxed set includes: Nadar Having suffered through the humiliation of a failed mission with the Flora and the Brion menace, Mara and the rest of the Terran Union fighter pilots are hungry to prove themselves. But for Mara, that chance comes in the form of something completely unexpected - Nadar Brengen. The rebel Corgan warlord who won't take no for an answer when he sees something he wants. And this time, it's her. Daegon Daegon has had enough of seeing the Corgan people wither away. Though the new chieftain is the last man he'd trust to lead his kin, dangers that surround the proud warlord lead him to tough decisions. Trust his heart and the little Terran smartmouth who seems to have run off with it, or trust his head and do things the Corgan way. By killing everything in sight and taking stock later. Well, maybe there's a way to do both. Get the girl and save the world. Soros Soros is more myth than man. The warrior who has trained all the warlords of note, he is feared and respected, lauded and despised in equal measure. Wanting no part in the wars being waged between his own people with the recent upsets in Corgan society, the warlord still finds himself getting swept away in the madness, held at sword-point by one of his own students. It only takes one woman for this warlord to realize that he can remain neutral no longer. It only takes one night for him to realize what is at stake - not only the universe, but her safety as well. Brocke Brocke is the well-kept secret of Corgan society. As the executioner and guard of the Chieftain's private prison, he is what Corgan parents use to scare their kids into behaving, the Guardian. He is the darkness that comes before the light and no nightmare has ever gotten past him. Until now. With Cora's and their unborn child's life is put in danger, only the heartless warlord can be the one to save them both... Brocke; Meeting the Parents With only a few short months spent together, Brocke already knows that Cora is his mate for life. He feels it as surely as he feels the weight of his swords in his hands. Yet introducing her to his parents, one of them being the Chieftain of the Corgan race, well... Even a fierce warlord is allowed a little bit of trepidation, right?

    His quiet, thoughtful exterior hides a complex mind, and a fierce determination to see justice done. Like many of us, sometimes he has to look his demons in the eye, to keep fighting the good fight.This digital box set contains the fifth, sixth, and seventh mysteries in this best-selling series:The Case of the Missing Letter: The priceless Satterthwaite Desk has found its way to the island of Jersey and is on display at the local museum. When a dead body turns up on the museum’s grounds, a turbulent family drama becomes an official police inquiry. Detective Inspector Graham, along with his recently lauded investigative team, must untangle the mystery. But the trail of scandal and deceit soon spills out of the museum, and leads into the darkest corners of the island and beyond.The Case of the Pretty Lady: When a devastating hurricane surges toward the quiet island of Jersey, Detective Inspector Graham quickly finds his life turned upside down. In the wake of the storm, the body of a missing scientist washes ashore. A crime this diabolical takes teamwork to solve, and the Inspector enlists the aid of his three loyal and beloved officers. But are four heads really better than one?The Case of the Forsaken Child: Plagued by devastating memories, Detective Inspector David Graham can’t seem to escape the shadow of anger and guilt clouding his heart. When an undercover cop confides in Graham that her cover is blown, he uncharacteristically underreacts. Soon afterward, when she is killed in a hit-and-run, Graham's feelings of guilt bubble to the surface. If only he had done more…Grab a hot cup of tea and dive into this boxed set quintessentially British mystery series today.

    Oxford Street is a sea of long hair and flared jeans; prog rock prevails. But Ron Watts, the 100 Club’s “rock night” manager, has witnessed the impromptu and chaotic gigs at High Wycombe College of Art. He invites the Sex Pistols to start a residency in central London, and over the next eighteen months, everything changes.            Unlike many writers, Phil Strongman was actually at the 100 Club punk festival in September 1976 and witnessed punk’s violent and dramatic rise. After tracing its underground roots in New York and Detroit, Strongman shows how the Sex Pistols and the Clash, along with their confreres, took rock ’n’ roll closer to the edge than any band before them. But after the outrage over the Pistols’ legendary outburst on Bill Grundy’s TV show catapulted the band into the center of a press feeding frenzy, it was swiftly eclipsed by the blossoming of a new movement in time for the Queen’s Silver Jubilee. Punk had traveled from the underground to the mainstream in the space of six months.            Based on new interviews with Malcolm McLaren, Jah Wobble, Glen Matlock, Roadent, and many more, Strongman vividly re-creates the punk eruption and charts its spread across Britain and to the West Coast of the United States. Thirty years after its inception, UK punk has found its definitive account in Pretty Vacant.

    Her poems are intimate and real. They speak of lovers, friends, family, and self, with a powerful emotional honesty that makes you smile in self-recognition. My Song for Him Who Never Sang to Me is Merrit's first book.

    With it landed Bowie s Stardust alter-ego: A glitter-clad, mascara-eyed, sexually-ambiguous persona who kicked down the boundaries between male and female, straight and gay, fact and fiction into one shifting and sparkling phenomenon of 70s self-expression. Together, Ziggy the album and Ziggy the stage spectacular propelled the softly spoken Londoner into one of the world s biggest stars.A key passenger on this glam trip into the stratosphere was fellow Londoner and photographer Mick Rock. Rock bonded with Bowie artistically and personally, immersed himself in the singer s inner circle, and, between 1972 and 1973, worked as the singer s photographer and videographer.This collection, featuring around 50 percent previously unpublished images, brings together spectacular stage shots, iconic photo shoots, as well as intimate backstage portraits. With a lenticular cover of different headshots, it celebrates Bowie s fearless experimentation and reinvention, while offering privileged access to the many facets of his personality and fame. Through the aloof and approachable, the playful and serious, the candid and the contrived, the result is a passionate tribute to a brilliant and inspirational artist whose creative vision will never be forgotten.

    A landmark compilation of popular music, this collection contains Paul Simon's lyrics from his first album in 1964 to the present, now with 2011’s So Beautiful Or So What?

    He's confronted the HOA. He's even taken on Santa himself. He doesn't usually win. These are the tales of the Dumb White Husband and they are all available here in this collected edition.This handsome volume includes:Dumb White Husband vs. the Grocery Store - John would rather sit and watch the game, but his wife needs some things at the store. Can he complete the list and get back in time to see the end of the game?Dumb White Husband vs. Halloween - Every Halloween, Chris has the scariest house on the block and gives out the best candy. But, this year, someone is showing him up and he'll stop at nothing to find out who.Dumb White Husband vs. Santa - Erik has planned the perfect Christmas for his family. The plan is foolproof, bulletproof and flame retardant. Nothing can undo the hours of planning and preparation. Nothing except maybe odd-shaped packages, ill-timed fruitcakes or an errant neighborhood Santa Claus.Dumb White Husband vs. the Tooth Fairy - Erik always has a plan and he's sure he would have figured out the whole Tooth Fairy thing eventually. But, when his three-year-old son takes a frisbee to the mouth, he's forced to speed things up. Between neighborhood kids with big mouths and unhelpful dentists he's going to need to improvise. Will he bend to the pressure of inflation? Will he get caught in the act? And, what do you do with those teeth anyway?Dumb White Husband for President (A novella) - There comes a time in every man's life when he must stand for the things he believes in. John doesn't believe in bagging his grass. So, when a new allergy-prone neighbor gets the HOA to require it, there's only one thing he can do - run for President of The Creeks of Sage Valley Phase II.John, Chris and Erik put aside most of their differences to run a campaign that they hope will see John elected as President and end the meddling of the rule-loving new kid on the block. Will they succeed? It's doubtful.

    And in the process of building myself back up, I learned that you are allowed to leave some pieces behind-you are allowed to become the person you design yourself to be.'A collection of notes and poetic reflections, journaling how April learned to let go of everything that was holding her back in order to grow into the person she deserved to become.Bloom for Yourself II is a book you can plant in your soul and return to each time you feel ready to let go and grow.April Green's second book in the 'Bloom for Yourself' series gives readers even more help and guidance in overcoming pain and heartache. Her words are shared by thousands of people all over the world, including Jenna Dewan and Shantel Vansanten.The 'Bloom for Yourself' books are written for anyone feeling lost, alone, depressed or unworthy. They are books to be read many times over as you come to experience April's extraordinary gift for helping you understand that you are never truly alone.