Before Seattle Rocked


Book Description

Seattle is a music town with rich, deep roots that have influenced the culture and identity of its civic life for decades. In a society that appreciates music but is ambivalent toward the profession of making it, the importance and contribution of Seattle's musicians have been routinely overlooked in historical accounts of the city. Kurt Armbruster fills that gap in this far-reaching and entertaining panorama of Seattle music from the 1890s to the 1960s, "before Seattle rocked." For this once-remote city, music forged links as real as those created by railroads and steamships. Classical music embodied the middle-class aspirations for gentility and cosmopolitan stature; jazz and blues gave Seattle's small African American community a vehicle for affirmation and economic advancement; ethnic music helped immigrants adjust to a new home; songs and drumming kept the memories of the Duwamish alive in a changing world. Before Seattle Rocked is enlivened by personal anecdotes and memories from many of Seattle's most beloved musicians and is enriched by historic photos of the changing music scene. Watch the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyo22tC6PkQ&feature=channel_video_title Before Seattle Rocked was made possible in part by a grant from 4Culture's Heritage Program.




That American Rag


Book Description

To mark the 100th anniversary of Scott Joplin's Maple Leaf Rag, authors Jasen and Jones have written a fascinating history of the ragtime era throughout the United States. Following the craze as it spread from St. Louis through the mid-West & South, to the West & finally to the East Coast & New York, they provide a cultural history of America through its popular culture.







O'Neill


Book Description

The turbulent, often tragic life of America's greatest playwright, Eugene O'Neill, is laid bare in this acclaimed and insightful biography.




Geyer's Stationer


Book Description




Why Study the Media?


Book Description

`It's easy to be snobbish about media culture; the great merit of Roger Silverstone's book is to make the reader understand just how important that culture is' - Richard Sennett, New York University `A remarkable book which argues for a new paradigm for the study of the media' - Daniel Dayan, Centre National de la Recherche `A persuasive and sophisticated discussion of the role of the media in modern life at the threshold of the twenty-first century' - Ellen Seiter, University of California `A very important book, one that moves media theory and argument on at long last. This is an attempt to get people to think differently about the media - not ju




Tin Pan Alley


Book Description

For nearly a century, New York's famous "Tin Pan Alley" was the center of popular music publishing in this country. It was where songwriting became a profession, and songs were made-to-order for the biggest stars. Selling popular music to a mass audience from coast-to-coast involved the greatest entertainment media of the day, from minstrelsy to Broadway, to vaudeville, dance palaces, radio, and motion pictures. Successful songwriting became an art, with a host of men and women becoming famous by writing famous songs.




Nirvana - A Tour Diary: My Life on the Road with One of the Greatest Bands of All Time


Book Description

When Nirvana first exploded onto the music scene in 1991 with the anthemic 'Smells Like Teen Spirit', few people could've predicted their subsequent global impact. No one knew then that Nevermind would become one of the seminal albums of the decade, selling over 30 million copies worldwide and spearheading a whole new 'grunge' movement. In so doing, the band's lead singer Kurt Cobain was transformed into one of music's most enduring and iconic figures.As drummer for the British group Captain America - one of the two support bands on Nirvana's Nevermind UK tour - Andy Bollen had a ringside seat at the exact moment that Nirvana went massive. Afforded the sort of access a journalist could only dream of, Andy Bollen wrote up his own personal diary in Nirvana's dressing room. Here, he spoke candidly to Cobain: from his fears of losing original fans to his love of the Bay City Rollers. He saw firsthand how Nirvana worked, the relationships that made them tick and the dynamic that made them one of the great bands.Nirvana - A Tour Diary is a warm, affectionate, funny and, at times, brutally honest account, written by a guy on the periphery, waiting in the wings, a mixture of Woody Allen's Zelig and Cameron Crowe's Almost Famous. Drawing on diaries kept at the time, the book brings to life a pivotal moment in rock history making it a must-read for the many millions of Nirvana fans and lovers of iconic rock stories everywhere. If you ever wanted to know what it was like to be there, backstage, at the start of the Nirvana phenomenon, then read on ...




Song Sheets to Software


Book Description

This second edition of Song Sheets to Software includes completely revised and updated listings of music software, instructional media, and music-related Internet Web sites of use to all musicians, whether hobbyist or professional. This book is a particularly valuable resource for the private studio and classroom music teacher.