- Table View
- List View
Broadway to Main Street: How Show Tunes Enchanted America
by Laurence MaslonThe music of Broadway is one of America's most unique and popular calling cards. In Broadway to Main Street: How Show Tunes Enchanted America, author Laurence Maslon tells the story of how the most beloved songs of the American Musical Theater made their way from the Theater District to living rooms across the country. The crossroads where the music of Broadway meets popular culture is an expansive and pervasive juncture throughout most of the twentieth century--from sheet music to radio broadcasts to popular and original cast recordings--and continues to influence culture today through television, streaming, and the Internet. The original Broadway cast album--from the 78 rpm recording of Oklahoma! to the digital download of Hamilton--is one of the most successful, yet undervalued, genres in the history of popular recording. The challenge of capturing musical narrative with limited technology inspired the imagination of both the recording industry and millions of listeners: between 1949 and 1969, fifteen different original cast albums hit number one on the popular music charts, ultimately tallying more weeks at number one than all of the albums by Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles combined. The history of Broadway music is also the history of American popular music; the technological, commercial, and marketing forces of communications and media over the last century were inextricably bound up in the enterprise of bringing the musical gems of New York's Theater District to living rooms along Main Streets across the nation. Featuring new interviews with Stephen Schwartz, Chita Rivera, Steve Lawrence, and prominent record producers and music critics, the story of this commercial and emotional phenomenon is told here in full--from the imprimatur of sheet music from Broadway in the early 20th century to the renaissance of Broadway music in the digital age, folding in the immense impact of show music on American culture and in the context of the recording industry, popular tastes, and our shared national identity. A book which connects cherished cultural artifacts to the emotional narratives at the core of American popular music, Broadway to Main Street: How Show Tunes Enchanted America is an ideal companion for all fans of American musical theater and popular music.
Broken Beauty: Musical Modernism and the Representation of Disability
by Joseph N. StrausPreeminent music theorist and leader in the study of music and disability Joseph Straus presents a truly groundbreaking take on musical modernism--demonstrating in an expansive and vivid multimedia presentation that modernist music is inextricably entwined with attitudes toward disability. In Broken Beauty, Straus argues that the most characteristic features of musical modernism--fractured forms, immobilized harmonies, conflicting textural layers, radical simplification of means in some cases, and radical complexity and hermeticism in others--can be understood as musical depictions of disability conditions, including deformity/disfigurement, mobility impairment, madness, idiocy, and autism. Against the traditional medical model of disability, which sees it as a bodily defect requiring diagnosis and normalization or cure, this new sociocultural model of disability sees it as cultural artifact, something that is created by and creates culture. Straus places this revised model of disability against a wide range of canonical, high-art concert music from the first decades of the century through the 1950s. Broken Beauty illustrates how disability is right at the core of musical modernism; it is one of the things that musical modernism is fundamentally about.
Broken Beauty: Musical Modernism and the Representation of Disability
by Joseph N. StrausPreeminent music theorist and leader in the study of music and disability Joseph Straus presents a truly groundbreaking take on musical modernism--demonstrating in an expansive and vivid multimedia presentation that modernist music is inextricably entwined with attitudes toward disability. In Broken Beauty, Straus argues that the most characteristic features of musical modernism--fractured forms, immobilized harmonies, conflicting textural layers, radical simplification of means in some cases, and radical complexity and hermeticism in others--can be understood as musical depictions of disability conditions, including deformity/disfigurement, mobility impairment, madness, idiocy, and autism. Against the traditional medical model of disability, which sees it as a bodily defect requiring diagnosis and normalization or cure, this new sociocultural model of disability sees it as cultural artifact, something that is created by and creates culture. Straus places this revised model of disability against a wide range of canonical, high-art concert music from the first decades of the century through the 1950s. Broken Beauty illustrates how disability is right at the core of musical modernism; it is one of the things that musical modernism is fundamentally about.
Broken Greek: Radio 4 Book of the Week
by Pete Paphides'Unflinching and heartwarming' - Adam Kay'Tender, clever and as funny as it gets ... a heart-piercing joy' - Lauren Laverne'An exceptional coming-of-age story [...] Pete Paphides may very well have the biggest heart in Britain' - Marina Hyde'I ADORE this utterly wonderful coming-of-age memoir. Joyful, clever, and a bit heartbreaking' - Nina Stibbe'Heartfelt, hilarious and beautifully written, Broken Greek is a childhood memoir like no other' - Cathy Newman'So wonderfully written, such a light touch. Drenched in sentiment yet not in the least sentimental' - John Niven'It's brilliant. Sad, really funny and beautifully written ... just fantastic' - Alexis Petridis'A truly beautiful book' - James O'Brien'Intoxicating' - Kirsty Wark'Oh, how I love Pete Paphides and this book' - Daniel Finkelstein'Lip-lickingly, dance-around-the-living-room good... A smash hit' Observer'A book that will leave you smiling' Independent 'Wonderful' Record Collector__________'Do you sometimes feel like the music you're hearing is explaining your life to you?'When Pete's parents moved from Cyprus to Birmingham in the 1960s in the hope of a better life, they had no money and only a little bit of English. They opened a fish-and-chip shop in Acocks Green. The Great Western Fish Bar is where Pete learned about coin-operated machines, male banter and Britishness.Shy and introverted, Pete stopped speaking from age 4 to 7, and found refuge instead in the bittersweet embrace of pop songs, thanks to Top of the Pops and Dial-A-Disc. From Brotherhood of Man to UB40, from ABBA to The Police, music provided the safety net he needed to protect him from the tensions of his home life. It also helped him navigate his way around the challenges surrounding school, friendships and phobias such as visits to the barber, standing near tall buildings and Rod Hull and Emu.With every passing year, his guilty secret became more horrifying to him: his parents were Greek, but all the things that excited him were British. And the engine of that realisation? 'Sugar Baby Love', 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart', 'Tragedy', 'Silly Games', 'Going Underground', 'Come On Eileen', and every other irresistibly thrilling chart hit blaring out of the chip shop radio.Never have the trials and tribulations of growing up and the human need for a sense of belonging been so heart-breakingly and humorously depicted.
Brother Ray: Ray Charles' Own Story
by David Ritz Ray CharlesRay Charles (1930-2004) led one of the most extraordinary lives of any popular musician. In Brother Ray, he tells his story in an inimitable and unsparing voice, from the chronicle of his musical development to his heroin addiction to his tangled romantic life. Overcoming poverty, blindness, the loss of his parents, and the pervasive racism of the era, Ray Charles was acclaimed worldwide as a genius by the age of thirty-two. By combining the influences of gospel, jazz, blues, and country music, he invented, almost single-handedly, what became known as soul. And throughout a career spanning more than a half century, Ray Charles remained in complete control of his life and his music, allowing nobody to tell him what he could and couldn't do.As the Chicago Sun-Times put it, Brother Ray is "candid, explicit, sometimes embarrassing, often hilarious, always warm, touching and deeply human-just like his music."
Brother Ray: Ray Charles' Own Story
by David Ritz Ray CharlesRay Charles (1930-2004) led one of the most extraordinary lives of any popular musician. In Brother Ray, he tells his story in an inimitable and unsparing voice, from the chronicle of his musical development to his heroin addiction to his tangled romantic life. Overcoming poverty, blindness, the loss of his parents, and the pervasive racism of the era, Ray Charles was acclaimed worldwide as a genius by the age of thirty-two. By combining the influences of gospel, jazz, blues, and country music, he invented, almost single-handedly, what became known as soul. And throughout a career spanning more than a half century, Ray Charles remained in complete control of his life and his music, allowing nobody to tell him what he could and couldn't do.As the Chicago Sun-Times put it, Brother Ray is "candid, explicit, sometimes embarrassing, often hilarious, always warm, touching and deeply human-just like his music."
Brother Robert: Growing Up with Robert Johnson
by Annye C. AndersonThis intimate memoir by blues legend Robert Johnson's stepsister includes new details about his family, music, influences, tragic death, and musical afterlife.Though only twenty-seven years young and relatively unknown at the time of his tragic death in 1938, Robert Johnson's enduring recordings have solidified his status as a progenitor of the Delta Blues style. And yet, while his music has retained the steadfast devotion of modern listeners, much remains unknown about the man who penned and played these timeless tunes. Few people alive today actually remember what Johnson was really like, and those who do have largely upheld their silence -- until now.In Brother Robert, nonagenarian Annye Anderson sheds new light on a real-life figure largely obscured by his own legend: her kind and incredibly talented stepbrother, Robert Johnson. This book chronicles Johnson's unconventional path to stardom -- from the harrowing story behind his illegitimate birth, to his first strum of the guitar on Anderson's father's knee, to the genre-defining recordings that would one day secure his legacy.Along the way, Anderson not only shares personal anecdotes, but also colorful recollections of Johnson passed down by members of their family -- the people who knew him best. She also outlines the contours of Johnson's working life in Memphis, never-before-disclosed details about his romantic history, and all of his favorite things, from foods and entertainers to brands of tobacco and pomade. Together, these stories don't just bring the mythologized Johnson back down to earth; they preserve both his memory and his integrity.For decades, Anderson and her family have ignored the tall tales of Johnson "selling his soul to the devil" and the speculative to fictionalized accounts of his life that passed for biography. Brother Robert is here to set the record straight. Featuring a foreword by Elijah Wald and a Q&A with Anderson, Lauterbach, Wald, and Peter Guralnick, this book paints a vivid portrait of an elusive figure who forever changed the musical landscape as we know it.
Bruce Springsteen (Pocket Essential Ser.)
by Peter BashamBruce Springsteen grew from a dishevelled, bearded singer of youthful street ballads to become the hottest name in the rock world - twice. The resilience of the New Jersey troubadour has seen him top the album charts in four successive decades, and his epic world tours with the legendarily hard-working E Street Band are still sell-outs well into the new millennium. Once seen as another Bob Dylan wannabe, Springsteen became rock's definitive chronicler of blue-collar life and inheritor of the spirit of Woody Guthrie. When the world needed a compassionate artistic statement, he delivered. This guide examines the growth of Bruce Springsteen's career, from the optimistic youth who wrote Born To Run to the respected heavyweight songwriter of today.
Bruce Springsteen: The Story Behind Every Track
by Jean-Michel Guesdon Philippe MargotinPlease note: this edition is text only and does not contain images.The most in-depth exploration of Springsteen's songs ever written.Spanning nearly 50 years of albums, EPs, B-sides, and more, this is the full story behind every single song that The Boss has ever released. Moving chronologically through Springsteen's long career, expert authors Margotin and Guesdon explore everything there is to know about every single song. No stone is left unturned across 670 pages, from the inspiration behind the lyrics and melody to the recording process and even the musicians and producers who worked on each track.Uncover the stories behind the music in this truly definitive book - a must-have for every Springsteen fan.
Bruce Springsteen and Popular Music: Rhetoric, Social Consciousness, and Contemporary Culture (Routledge Studies in Popular Music)
by William I. WolffThis interdisciplinary volume enters the scholarly conversation about Bruce Springsteen at the moment when he has reinforced his status of global superstar and achieved the status of social critic. Covering musical and cultural developments, chapters primarily consider work Springsteen has released since 9/11—that is, released during a period of continued global unrest, economic upheaval, and social change—under the headings Politics, Fear and Society; Gender and Sexual Identity; and Toward a Rhetoric of Springsteen. The collection engages Springsteen and popular music as his contemporary work is just beginning to be understood in terms of its impact on popular culture and music, applying new areas of inquiry to Springsteen and putting Springsteen fan writing within the same binding as academic writing to show how together they create a more nuanced understanding of an artist. Established and emerging Springsteen scholars approach work from disciplines including rhetoric and composition, historical musicology, labor studies, American history, literature, communications, sociology, theology, and government. Offering context, critique, and expansive understanding of Springsteen and his work, this book contributes to Springsteen scholarship and the study of popular music by showing Springsteen’s broadening academic appeal as well as his escalating legacy on new musicians, social consciousness, and contemporary culture.
Bruce Springsteen and Popular Music: Rhetoric, Social Consciousness, and Contemporary Culture (Routledge Studies in Popular Music)
by William I. WolffThis interdisciplinary volume enters the scholarly conversation about Bruce Springsteen at the moment when he has reinforced his status of global superstar and achieved the status of social critic. Covering musical and cultural developments, chapters primarily consider work Springsteen has released since 9/11—that is, released during a period of continued global unrest, economic upheaval, and social change—under the headings Politics, Fear and Society; Gender and Sexual Identity; and Toward a Rhetoric of Springsteen. The collection engages Springsteen and popular music as his contemporary work is just beginning to be understood in terms of its impact on popular culture and music, applying new areas of inquiry to Springsteen and putting Springsteen fan writing within the same binding as academic writing to show how together they create a more nuanced understanding of an artist. Established and emerging Springsteen scholars approach work from disciplines including rhetoric and composition, historical musicology, labor studies, American history, literature, communications, sociology, theology, and government. Offering context, critique, and expansive understanding of Springsteen and his work, this book contributes to Springsteen scholarship and the study of popular music by showing Springsteen’s broadening academic appeal as well as his escalating legacy on new musicians, social consciousness, and contemporary culture.
Bruce Springsteen, Cultural Studies, and the Runaway American Dream (Ashgate Popular and Folk Music Series)
by Jerry ZoltenThere is little question about the incredible power of Bruce Springsteen's work as a particularly transformative art, as a lyrical and musical fusion that never shies away from sifting through the rubble of human conflict. As Rolling Stone magazine's Parke Puterbaugh observes, Springsteen 'is a peerless songwriter and consummate artist whose every painstakingly crafted album serves as an impassioned and literate pulse taking of a generation's fortunes. He is the foremost live performer in the history of rock and roll, a self-described prisoner of the music he loves, for whom every show is played as if it might be his last.' In recent decades, Puterbaugh adds, 'Springsteen's music developed a conscience that didn't ignore the darkening of the runaway American Dream as the country greedily blundered its way through the 1980s' and into the sociocultural detritus of a new century paralysed by isolation and uncertainty. Bruce Springsteen, Cultural Studies, and the Runaway American Dream reflects the significant critical interest in understanding Springsteen's resounding impact upon the ways in which we think and feel about politics, religion, gender, and the pursuit of the American Dream. By assembling a host of essays that engage in interdisciplinary commentary regarding one of Western culture's most enduring artistic and socially radicalizing phenomena, this book offers a cohesive, intellectual, and often entertaining introduction to the many ways in which Springsteen continues to impact our lives by challenging our minds through his lyrics and music.
Bruce Springsteen, Cultural Studies, and the Runaway American Dream (Ashgate Popular and Folk Music Series)
by Jerry ZoltenThere is little question about the incredible power of Bruce Springsteen's work as a particularly transformative art, as a lyrical and musical fusion that never shies away from sifting through the rubble of human conflict. As Rolling Stone magazine's Parke Puterbaugh observes, Springsteen 'is a peerless songwriter and consummate artist whose every painstakingly crafted album serves as an impassioned and literate pulse taking of a generation's fortunes. He is the foremost live performer in the history of rock and roll, a self-described prisoner of the music he loves, for whom every show is played as if it might be his last.' In recent decades, Puterbaugh adds, 'Springsteen's music developed a conscience that didn't ignore the darkening of the runaway American Dream as the country greedily blundered its way through the 1980s' and into the sociocultural detritus of a new century paralysed by isolation and uncertainty. Bruce Springsteen, Cultural Studies, and the Runaway American Dream reflects the significant critical interest in understanding Springsteen's resounding impact upon the ways in which we think and feel about politics, religion, gender, and the pursuit of the American Dream. By assembling a host of essays that engage in interdisciplinary commentary regarding one of Western culture's most enduring artistic and socially radicalizing phenomena, this book offers a cohesive, intellectual, and often entertaining introduction to the many ways in which Springsteen continues to impact our lives by challenging our minds through his lyrics and music.
Bruce Springsteen - The Stories Behind the Songs: Bruce Springsteen by Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone Journalist (Stories Behind The Songs Ser.)
by Brian HiattImportant insight into the work of a truly great songwriter.Updated to include the albums Western Stars and Letter To You and packed full of insightful stories from Springsteen's long career, Bruce Springsteen: The Stories Behind the Songs takes a detailed look at each and every one of his tracks, providing a unique look at this rock legend's method, as well as some of the many anecdotes and tales that are prolific in his long music history.The legend of Bruce Springsteen may well outlast rock 'n' roll itself. And for all the muscle and magic of his life-shaking concerts with the E Street Band, it comes down to the songs – music that helped define the best version of the United States for itself and the rest of the world; that bridged the gap between Bob Dylan and James Brown, between Phil Spector and Hank Williams; and that somehow managed to make New Jersey seem like a promised land. Deeply researched, laced with insight from decades of fandom and original reporting, this book is an exhaustive and unique look at the writing, recording and significance of Springsteen's singular catalog of songs – the first book to cover every officially released track, from hits to obscurities, from 1974's Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J. to 2014's High Hopes.
Bruce Springsteen's Born in the USA (33 1/3)
by Geoffrey HimesWhen Bruce Springsteen went back on the road in 1984, he opened every show by shouting out, "one, two, one, two, three, four," followed by the droning synth chords of "Born in the U.S.A." Max Weinberg hit his drums with a two-fisted physicality that cut through the swelling chords. With a rolled-up red kerchief around his head and heavy black boots under his faded jeans, Springsteen looked like the character of the song, and from the very first line ("Born down in a dead man's town") he sang with the throat-scraping desperation of a man with his back against the wall. When he reached the crucial lines, though, the guitars and bass dropped out and Weinberg switched to just the hi-hat. Springsteen's voice grew a bit more private and reluctant as he sang, "Nowhere to run. Nowhere to go." It was as if he weren't sure if this were an admission of defeat or the drawing of a line in the sand. But when the band came crashing back at full strength-building a crescendo that fell apart in the cacophony of Springsteen's and Weinberg's wild soloing, paused and then came together again in the determined, marching riff-it was clear that the singer was ready to make a stand.
Bruckner-Handbuch
Neue Sicht auf Anton Bruckner. Zu Lebzeiten erst spät gewürdigt, zählt der Komponist heute zu den großen und einflussreichen Symphonikern des 19. Jahrhunderts. Die Meinungen über Bruckners Werke gingen von Anfang an auseinander. Die widersprüchlichen Standpunkte zu seiner Person und seinem Schaffen setzen sich bis heute fort. Das ausführliche Handbuch zu Leben, Werk und Rezeption erleichtert den Zugang zu dem kontrovers rezipierten Komponisten und vermittelt neue Perspektiven jenseits von Stereotypen.
Bruised, Never Broken
by Phil CoulterAs the composer of some of Ireland’s best-loved songs, not to mention a host of global hits, Phil Coulter has been a mainstay of Irish cultural life for decades. But this is a position that has been hard won, often in the face of extraordinary personal and political upheaval, most of which has, to date, been kept hidden from public view.Heartfelt and wry, meditative and entertaining, Bruised, Never Broken is the story of the author’s remarkable rise from modest beginnings on the streets of post-war Derry to the summit of the global charts, as a composer and confidante to a host of the era’s biggest stars, such as Van Morrison, Luke Kelly, Cliff Richard and Sandie Shaw.Poignantly, it is also a hymn to the place that made him, a city as complex and troubled throughout Ireland’s middle decades as any on Earth, yet a source of constant inspiration and consolation.
BTS: Icons of K-Pop
by Adrian BesleySeven men. Seven years. 31 million Twitter followers. 11 billion YouTube views. 13 billion Spotify streams. Sold out world tours. BTS are a global phenomenon – this is their story. This fully revised and updated edition of the bestselling biography covers their journey from debut to Map of the Soul: 7, and looks at how this group of guys from South Korea have taken over the world. RM, Jin, SUGA, j-hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook can sing, dance and rap, and write and produce their own music too. From humble beginnings at a small agency to topping charts all over the world, their story is truly incredible, and testament to the amazing talent and hard work of each of the members. Their dedicated fanbase, ARMY, have supported them through thick and thin, celebrating triumphs alongside their idols and pushing them to ever-greater heights. Extensively researched, and written in an upbeat and accessible style, this book interweaves the backstories of each of the members with the narrative of the band as a whole, their modest debut and their astonishing rise to fame in their home country and beyond. It also includes 16 pages of full colour photographs of the band performing, posing and having fun.
BTS: The Unauthorized Fan Guide
by Helen BrownBTS: Kings of K-Pop is the must-have commemorative celebration of BTS, the Korean boy band with a global army of fans.With their talent, dedication, clever choreography, and catchy blend of pop, hip-hop and R&B, this must-have fan book offers an extensive look at what makes the Bangtan Boys so memorable. Packed with fascinating facts and sensational secrets around how the band got together and their rise to fame, to their first number one and beyond, this book takes fans up close and personal with RM, J-Hope, Suga, Jimin, V, Jin and Jungkook. Filled with pages of brilliant photos and including an advanced quiz, this is the ultimate book for ARMYs as well as new K-Pop fans everywhere.
BTS: 100% Unofficial – Everything You Need to Know About the Kings of K-pop
by Malcolm MackenzieBTS are an international sensation in the world of K-pop! This boyband has sold out arenas, topped charts and gained an army of fans all over the world.
BTS - The Ultimate Fan Book: Experience the K-Pop Phenomenon! (The Ultimate Fan Book)
by Malcolm CroftExperience the K-Pop phenomenon of BTS in this best-selling Ultimate Fan Book! BTS are much more than just a group of seven talented individuals, they are a band acclaimed for their record-smashing, barrier-breaking, trend-setting dance-pop and hip-hop tunes and personal philosophies. Featuring brand new content and sensational new photos, BTS - The Ultimate Fan Book includes everything you need to know about Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V and Jungkook, as well as the BTS ARMY.A celebration of the K-Pop phenomenon, exploring in stunning technicolour detail the group's origins, members and super rise to success, this Ultimate Fan Book is beautifully accompanied by photographs showcasing the band's kaleidoscope of personalities and passions that have made them famous. BTS are more than just a boy band – they are a way of life.
Buddy: The definitive biography of Buddy Holly
by Philip NormanBuddy Holly is the best-known yet most elusive and enigmatic of all Rock 'n' Roll legends. Now Philip Norman, who has won international praise for his biographies of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and Elton John, has written the definitive story of a short but extraordinary life. Buddy's records are played, and his memory is cherished, the world over. Yet the full story of his meteoric rise and tragic fall has never been told. Philip Norman uses his unique skills to give a revealing, sometimes shocking but always warmly affectionate portrait of America's mythical Rock 'n' Roll era and its brightest and most enduring star. 'Excellent ... [Norman's] cogency and thoroughness make this biography as welcome as the unstoppably fresh songs his idol left us' Sunday Times
Buddy Holly: Learning the Game
by Spencer LeighBuddy Holly died in 1959. He was just 22 years old.Don McLean called that fatal day ‘The Day the Music Died’. But Buddy’s music hasn’t died and he left behind a wonderful legacy. With his animated voice, trademark black glasses, Fender Stratocaster and inimitable songs, Buddy and his music live on and continue to influence subsequent generations of musicians. His solitary UK tour was crucial to the British beat explosion of the early 1960s, spawning the Beatles, the Hollies and the Rolling Stones. Without Buddy Holly, today’s popular music would, almost certainly, be radically different.Spencer Leigh discusses the importance of this legendary figure through his music, his life, his image and his legacy. There are fascinating interviews with those who knew him best – his young widow Maria Elena, his band members the Crickets, Des O’Connor who compered his 1958 tour as well as musicians, songwriters, friends, fans and many others who worked with Buddy.It is inevitable that we remember the giants: Elvis, the Beatles, Freddie Mercury, David Bowie, but Buddy Holly’s death enables us also to acknowledge the less well-known musicians who died with him, 17-year-old Ritchie Valens and the outlandish Big Bopper. What emerges from Spencer’s research is an insight into Buddy’s short, impulsive life as well as an account of his continuing legacy. Packed with facts, including US and UK discographies, this book provides an invaluable wealth of information.