Be Stiff


Book Description

More Than Just A Record Label! Told here for the first time, the complete story of the legendary Stiff Records




Raised on the Roots of Knowledge


Book Description

I had started writing poetry and words since 1971 picking up on the poetic language while reading an album cover. I have since written poetry or Words for close to forty-two years. So, when you the reader explore these writings, be aware of the dates and year that they were conceived. From each year to the next year to the next year, hopefully there is a growth of maturity and experience that exists in each poem. A few poems are A tribute to dear and loved ones as well.




Cletus


Book Description

Traveling across Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas for boots on the ground research, William Brown visited museums, historical parks, libraries, schools and interviewed people who are knowledgeable about the Civil War, slavery and Native Americans in this region. The result is a no holds barred look at the nexus of blacks, Natives and slaveholders, which culminates in hero Cletus’ harrowing, nail biting adventure of escape to the north. Historically accurate, riveting and vivid, Cletus will keep you captivated until the last page.




Embodiment and the New Shape of Black Theological Thought


Book Description

Black theology tends to be a theology about no-body. Though one might assume that black and womanist theology have already given significant attention to the nature and meaning of black bodies as a theological issue, this inquiry has primarily taken the form of a focus on issues relating to liberation, treating the body in abstract terms rather than focusing on the experiencing of a material, fleshy reality. By focusing on the body as a physical entity and not just a metaphorical one, Pinn offers a new approach to theological thinking about race, gender, and sexuality. According to Pinn, the body is of profound theological importance. In this first text on black theology to take embodiment as its starting point and its goal, Pinn interrogates the traditional source materials for black theology, such as spirituals and slave narratives, seeking to link them to materials such as photography that highlight the theological importance of the body. Employing a multidisciplinary approach spanning from the sociology of the body and philosophy to anthropology and art history, Embodiment and the New Shape of Black Theological Thought pushes black theology to the next level.




Gateways


Book Description

Following The Haunted Air, New York Times bestselling author F. Paul Wilson returns with another riveting episode in the saga of Repairman Jack, the secretive, ingenious, and heroic champion of those whose problems no one else can solve. In Gateways, Jack learns that his father is in a coma after a car accident in Florida. They've been on the outs, but this is his dad, so he heads south. In the hospital he meets Anya, one of his father's neighbors. She's a weird old duck who seems to know an awful lot about his father, and even a lot about Jack. Jack's arrival does not go unnoticed. A young woman named Semelee, who has strange talents and lives in an isolated area of the Everglades with a group of misshapen men, feels his presence. She senses that he's "special," like her. Anya takes Jack back to Dad's senior community, Gateways South, which borders on the Everglades. Florida is going through an unusual drought. There's a ban on watering; everything is brown and wilting, but Anya's lawn is a deep green. Who is Anya? Who is Semelee, and what is her connection to the recent strange deaths of Gateways residents-killed by birds, spiders, and snakes during the past year? And what are the "lights" Jack keeps hearing about? Lights that emanate twice a year from a sinkhole deep in the Everglades . . . lights from another place, another reality. If he is to protect his father from becoming the next fatality at Gateways, there are questions Jack must answer, secrets he must uncover. Secrets . . . Jack has plenty of his own, and along the way he learns that even his father has secrets. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.




Complete Poems


Book Description

Containing more than three hundred poems, including nearly a hundred previously unpublished works, this unique collection showcases the intellectual range of Claude McKay (1889-1948), the Jamaican-born poet and novelist whose life and work were marked by restless travel and steadfast social protest. McKay's first poems were composed in rural Jamaican creole and launched his lifelong commitment to representing everyday black culture from the bottom up. Migrating to New York, he reinvigorated the English sonnet and helped spark the Harlem Renaissance with poems such as "If We Must Die." After coming under scrutiny for his communism, he traveled throughout Europe and North Africa for twelve years and returned to Harlem in 1934, having denounced Stalin's Soviet Union. By then, McKay's pristine "violent sonnets" were giving way to confessional lyrics informed by his newfound Catholicism. McKay's verse eludes easy definition, yet this complete anthology, vividly introduced and carefully annotated by William J. Maxwell, acquaints readers with the full transnational evolution of a major voice in twentieth-century poetry.




All Music Guide Required Listening


Book Description

Collects reviews for one thousand enduring classic rock albums ranging from the extremely popular to more obscure works.




Cruel to Be Kind


Book Description

The definitive biography of singer-songwriter Nick Lowe, best-known for "Cruel to Be Kind" and "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding" Described as "Britain's greatest living songwriter," Nick Lowe has made his mark as a pioneer of pub rock, power-pop, and punk rock and as a producer of Elvis Costello, Graham Parker, the Damned, and the Pretenders. He has been a pop star with his bands Brinsley Schwarz and Rockpile, a stepson-in-law to Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, and is the writer behind hits including "Cruel to Be Kind" and "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding." In the past decades, however, he has distinguished himself as an artist who is equally acclaimed for the second act of his career as a tender yet sharp-tongued acoustic balladeer. Biographer Will Birch, who in addition to being a music writer was a drummer and songwriter with The Records, has known Lowe for over forty years and melds Lowe's gift as a witty raconteur with his own authoritative analysis of Lowe's background and the cultural scenes he exemplifies. Lowe's parallel fame as one of the best interviews in the business will contribute to this first look into his life and work--and likely the closest thing fans will get to an autobiography by this notoriously charming cult figure. This is not an authorized biography, but Lowe has given it his spiritual blessing and his management and label are fully on board. Cruel to Be Kind will be the colorful yet serious account of one of the world's most talented and admired musicians.




Rocking My Life Away


Book Description

DeCurtis reveals his ongoing engagement with rock music as artistic forum, source of personal inspiration, and compelling site of cultural struggle in more than 20 years as a critic.




The Strife of the Sea


Book Description

In 'The Strife of the Sea' by T. Jenkins Hains, the reader is taken on a journey through the tumultuous relationship between man and the sea. Hains delves into the harsh realities faced by sailors and the unpredictable nature of the ocean, weaving a tale of adventure, danger, and resilience. The book is written in a gripping and vivid style, with descriptive passages that transport the reader to the heart of the maritime world. Hains' attention to detail and understanding of nautical life make the book a valuable insight into the challenges faced by those who make their living on the sea. Set in the late 19th century, the book captures the essence of a time when seafaring was a perilous occupation with high stakes and fierce competition. T. Jenkins Hains' experience as a naval officer lends authenticity to the narrative, bringing a sense of authority and credibility to the story. Readers interested in maritime history, adventure tales, and the human spirit's endurance in the face of adversity will find 'The Strife of the Sea' a compelling and enlightening read.