Books by Robert Reynolds

Charles Westover grew up in a small midwestern town,learning guitar at an early age. After graduating high school, he joined the Army, married and shipped off to Europe where he honed his singing and guitar skills. Back home, Westover joined a local band while working at a carpet store.Soon he co-wrote, ""Runaway,"" one of the great rock and roll songs of the era and took on the stage name Del Shannon. Shannon went on to record many more hits and became a superb interpreter of the songs of other. He was the first American recording artist to cover a Beatles'' tune, wrote Peter and Gordon''s ""I Go to Pieces,"" and produced hit records for Brian Hyland and and the rock group, Smith. At a time when his career seemed to be on the upswing, Shannon''s live ended tragically at his Southern California home. A rock legend himself, he would eventually be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.If you appreciate the great rock singers of the past, you will want to read The Music of Del Shannon.

Luck was with Bobby Goldsboro when Roy Orbison came through the area on tour. Orbison took on Goldsboro's band and Bobby stuck with him for the next three years. Bobby went solo and soon scored a modest hit with "Molly," a song that he despised. A short while later, however, he scored a top ten song with his own "See the Funny Little Clown." Other hits followed but his superb "Broomstick Cowboy" was mistakenly seen by many radio stations as a Vietnam War protest songs and they refused to play it. Going against the grain, a Detroit station did air it and it became #1 in that area. His "Honey" was the top record for 1968 reaching #1 on every chart. "Watching Scotty Grow" was also a big hit. The early 70s saw the excellent "Summer (The First Time)" make waves. England voted it the best summer song ever. Bobby hosted a top-rated TV variety program, The Bobby Goldsboro Show, wrote and produced an Easter special for Disney and took up oil painting, of which his art is highly regarded.

In the 1950s, country music merged with the rising new fad called "rock and roll" to form what would become known as "Rockabilly." In short, Rockabilly was fast paced, guitar and bass driven ditties with thundering rhythms. The songs were often less than memorable made up with a conglomeration of silly lyrics and phrases like "bop,""shake,""mama," and"go cat!" Cars, especially Cadillacs, and colors, pink and black, were prevalent in many of the songs. Songs like "Oobie Doobie," "Ubangi Stomp," "Be Boppin' Baby," and "Rockin' In the Congo" were common record chart contenders. Many up and coming country crooners would go on to achieve widespread acclaim as names like Presley, Holly and Orbison conquered radio station playlists. They, among others, would become R&R legends. Others like Jack Scott, Boyd Bennett, and Dale Hawkins, found success to a lesser degree in the new genre. It's many of these "lesser knowns" that Hepcats & Rockabilly Boys explores. Here are some of their stories...

The 4 Seasons & Frankie Valli, rank among the top American vocal acts of all time. Collectively, they amassed seven #1 hits, 18 Top Ten, and an incredible 61 singles in the Hot 100. They also placed 32 LPS on the top albums charts. Their hit making years spanned more than a half-century. Their hits include: Sherry, Big Girls DonÕt Cry, Walk Like a Man, Rag Doll, Working My Way Back to You, CanÕt Take My Eyes Off of You, My Eyes Adored You, December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night), GreaseÉ Their stardom was no overnight success, as they struggled through lean years and recorded many flops while searching for that elusive hit record. The rag-to-riches story has been told via an award-winning Broadway musical & a Clint Eastwood produced motion picture. Learn about the hits, misses, obscure album tracks and B-sides as they sang their way from delinquents to esteemed members of the R&R Hall of Fame. The book examines the music they made famous and tells of all the glorious years that passed between.

Tranquil woodland lives are turned topsy-turvy when Jowls, a malicious canine, is taken in at a nearby farm. The dog's violent upbringing plagues him making him the bane of farm and forest creatures. Encounters between Sebastian Rabbit and Jowls are hostile and trouble for the rabbit ensues. It's a tale of flight and fright. The story's climactic ending threatens animals and humans alike. Meet such memorable characters as the rabbits, Sebastian and Mari, callous Jowls, the mouse and squirrel families, Mole, Toad and conniving Snake in this stirring page-turner of a tale written an audience of both young and old! The Rabbit's Tale demonstrates how vastly different adversaries can rally together to the well being of all.

VANILLA DOO-WOP shares accounts of white vocal groups originating along the Atlantic Coast, during the fifties and sixties. Many of these artists became music legends, recording endearing hits. Others achieved notoriety as one-hit wonders with but a single tune as their legacy. In Vanilla Doo-Wop, read how a melody written for one promising groupwas unceremoniously given to another and became a Top Five hit. See how a popular group declined a song that would be recorded by theirformer lead singer and become one of the top R&R songs of all time. Learn of the vocalist whose hit record came out while he served militaryduty. He later joined one of America's most successful rock groups tosing lead on their biggest hit ever. Stroll down Memory Lane as we recall many of the era's great songs--"e;Little Star,"e; "e;Hushabye,"e; "e;Baby Blue"e;--sung by some of the finestdoo-wop artists. These intriguing stories are all here, plus many more in VANILLA DOO-WOP.

A thrilling read that takes place in rugged Northern Michigan, the Great Lakes and Canada.The disappearance of a fishing boat goes unnoticed during a violent storm on Alpena's Thunder Bay. A mysterious canister and an unidentified body washes ashore. The canister's deadly contents alarm authorities. Discovery of the sunken boat sets off aninvestigation on both sides of Lake Huron as U.S. and Canadian authorities try to unravel the mystery before tragedy occurs.Throughout this tale of mystery and intrigue, love blossoms between the story's pivotal character and an old sweetheart. Set alongMichigan's idyllic Thunder Bay, this timely thriller is framed by pristine waters, treacherous schemers and rekindled romance,all brought to life with an array of colorful characters.

In 1991, Mount PInatubo awoke after 500-yrs dormancy. Nearby, America's Clark Air Base evacuated military personnel and dependents to Subic Bay Navy Base. One thousand Air Force and civilians remained to safeguard Clark AB. A series of violent volcanic eruptions hurled ash, rock and gas into the sky. At the same time Typhoon Yunya blew in off the Pacific and earthquakes repeatedly rattled the Philippines countryside. As the rain-laden ash fell back to earth, aircraft hangars, warehouses, homes and buildings crashed to the ground as muddy ash covered the terrain. When the eruptions let up, military officials began evacuating tens of thousands from the country while those deemed mission-essential began salvage operations. This is a true account of this historic event from the perspective of a small group of civilians who were present throughout.

A temporary truce has been agreed upon between South Vietnamese and Communist aggressor forces for Tet, the Vietnamese New Year. Similar initiatives have been tried in the past with little success. During Tet 1968, the Communists initiated attacks along the entire length of the country, including direct assaults on major cities and military installations, small outposts and the American embassy, in Saigon. With pathos and humor, Dragon Fire relates the exciting tale of a U.S. Navy security force tasked with safeguarding a cargo-offloading ramp near the only bridge leading into the city of Da Nang.