Music

The first full-length biography of Mal Evans, the Beatles' beloved roadie, assistant, confidant and friend

Summer 1984. I've got the back lounge of this tour bus all to myself, partly because I'm the lead singer but more likely because it means the rest of the band won't have to deal with me for the rest of the day. Just two years earlier I was flunking out at UCLA, working the day shift in a record store, living out of my father's basement. Now I'm living the million-to-one reality of touring the country with my band, The Dream Syndicate, opening for up-and-coming rock darlings R.E.M., and making a big-budget sophomore album for A&M Records. I'm also untethered and unbound, drinking a fifth of Jim Beam every day, barely speaking to my best friend and guitarist, and looking for trouble in all the wrong places. How did I get from there to here? And how do I get out? Stick around and find out. I'll be here, dreaming my dream . . .I Wouldn't Say It If It Wasn't True is a tale of writing songs and playing in bands as a conduit to a world its author could once have barely imagined--a world of major labels, luxury tour buses, and sold-out theaters, but also one of alcohol, drugs, and a low-level rock'n'roll Babylon.Beginning with Wynn's childhood in California in the 60s and 70s, the book builds to a crescendo with the formation of the first incarnation of The Dream Syndicate in 1981 as an antidote to the prepackaged pop music of the era. It charts the highs and lows of the band's early years at the forefront of the Paisley Underground scene alongside Green On Red, Rain Parade, and The Bangles; the seismic impact of their debut album, The Days Of Wine And Roses; the spiraling chaos of the sessions for the follow-up, Medicine Show; the dissolution of the band's first line-up and the launch of a second phase of The Dream Syndicate with Out Of The Grey and Ghost Stories; and more, culminating with the release of the landmark live album Live At Raji's.This is Wynn's story, but it also features some of the biggest and most colorful characters of the period, offering a detailed field guide to the music business that manages to both glorify and demystify in equal measure. And, ultimately, it's a tale of redemption, with music as a vehicle for artistic and personal transformation and transcendence.

Christine McVie - born Christine Perfect - was the quintessentially English rock star, as both the backbone and the beating heart of Fleetwood Mac. Straddling the band''s incarnations to achieve global fame alongside Stevie Nicks, Mick Fleetwood, Lindsey Buckingham and John McVie, the classic line-up, she wrote and performed many of their greatest hits. As famous for their occasionally life-threateningly decadent lifestyles as for their musical brilliance, they were held together by this strong, constant figure whom they dubbed ''the mother'' of the band. It was Christine who contained the flock, regrouped them when they went AWOL, focused and blended their talents and always got them back on track. And yet, as the ''engine'' of the band during their Rumours era - an album which charted the complete romantic disintegration within the band - Christine''s personal life was every bit as tempestuous as those of her bandmates, weathering affairs, divorce, addiction and fiery passion, all of which bled into her now iconic song-writing.Told by an author who herself was friends with Christine, and with new contributions from those who knew her best, Songbird offers a true insider''s view, and deep psychological insight into Christine as a both a woman and a musician - the first, the only, the ultimate picture of a rock legend and a national treasure.

The Official Vintage Guitar magazine Price Guide 2024Nearly 90% of the instruments in today's market are seeing all-time-high valuations. Your collection is worth more than ever! Partnering with 35 of the top guitar dealers in the industry, Vintage Guitar is proud to provide the most accurate values on thousands of models of electrics, acoustics, basses, amplifiers, effects, steels and lap steels, and ukuleles! Knowledge and information are vital in the dynamic world of collectible guitars and gear, and no source provides it better than The Official Vintage Guitar Price Guide. With listings for more than 2,000 brands along with 1,100 photos and 215,000 copies sold, this book is the industry's hands-down leading source of pricing information on guitars, basses, amps, effects, mandolins, and banjos all in one book!

Billy Stanley, Elvis Presley's stepbrother, shares the untold story of the iconic singer's Christian faith--its deep influence on his music, films, relationships, commitment to his family and fans, and his love for the Gospel.

The definitive guide to the band offering song-by-song analysis, full chronology and gig guide, full bootleg guide, and exclusive interviews with surviving members Pink Floyd formed in London in 1965, signed with EMI in 1967, and recorded their first album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, which was released to immediate acclaim in the same year. Since then, the band has released 15 studio albums and sold over 250 million records. Their eighth album, Dark Side of the Moon, is the highest-selling British album in the world (and fourth overall), at over 40 million copies. Their last album, The Endless River (2014), has sold over ten million copies, and founder members Roger Waters and Nick Mason still (separately) tour the world. Indeed, they hardly need an introduction: their profile remains very high, with millions of fans around the world. Everything Under the Sun will be a high-level, fully sourced and footnoted analysis of the music of Pink Floyd (akin to Revolution in the Head by Ian Macdonald about The Beatles), and the first serious survey of the group's work and achievements. As such, it will also be a cultural history of the UK, seen through the prism of the band. While there is a plethora of books about Pink Floyd and by Pink Floyd former members, none are truly comprehensive or do what this book seeks to do. Some give bald introductions to the songs with analysis, others give stories and anecdotes, and potted histories. But Everything Under the Sun will be the definitive book. In addition to a song-by-song analysis, it will include exclusive band interviews, a full chronology and gig guide, and a full bootleg guide. It will be the go-to book for any Pink Floyd fan.

The only Official ABBA book: now with a brand new chapter featuring never-seen-before pictures from ABBA Voyage

A leading music journalist's riveting chronicle of how beloved band Pearl Jam shaped the times, and how their legacy and longevity have transcended generations.Ever since Pearl Jam first blasted onto the Seattle grunge scene three decades ago with their debut album, Ten, they have sold 85M+ albums, performed for hundreds of thousands of fans around the world, and have even been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In Long Road: Pearl Jam and the Soundtrack Of A Generation, music critic and journalist Steven Hyden celebrates the life, career, and music of this legendary group, widely considered to be one of the greatest American rock bands of all time. Long Road is structured like a mix tape, using 18 different Pearl Jam classics as starting points for telling a mix of personal and universal stories. Each chapter tells the tale of this great band - how they got to where they are, what drove them to greatness, and why it matters now.Much like the generation it emerged from, Pearl Jam is a mass of contradictions. They were an enormously successful mainstream rock band who felt deeply uncomfortable with the pursuit of capitalistic spoils. They were progressive activists who spoke in favor of abortion rights and against the Ticketmaster monopoly, and yet they epitomized the sound of traditional, male-dominated rock 'n' roll. They were looked at as spokesmen for their generation, even though they ultimately projected profound confusion and alienation. They triumphed, and failed, in equal doses - the quintessential Gen-X tale.Impressive as their stats, accolades, and longevity may be, Hyden also argues that Pearl Jam's most definitive accomplishment lies in the impact their music had on Generation X as a whole. Pearl Jam's music helped an entire generation of listeners connect with the glory of bygone rock mythology, and made it relevant during a period in which tremendous American economic prosperity belied a darkness at the heart of American youth. More than just a chronicle of the band's career, this book is also a story about Gen- X itself, who like Pearl Jam came from angsty, outspoken roots and then evolved into an establishment institution, without ever fully shaking off their uncertain, outsider past. For so many Gen-Xers growing up at the time, Pearl Jam's music was a beacon that offered both solace and guidance. They taught an entire generation how to grow up without losing the purest and most essential parts of themselves.Written with his celebrated blend of personal memoir, criticism, and journalism, Hyden explores Pearl Jam's path from Ten to now. It's a chance for new fans and old fans alike to geek out over Pearl Jam minutia-the B-sides, the beloved deep cuts, the concert bootlegs-and explore the multitude of reasons why Pearl Jam's music resonated with so many people. As Hyden explains, "Most songs pass through our lives and are swiftly forgotten. But Pearl Jam is forever."

A revised and expanded version of Popoff's previous Dublin To Jailbreak, based on the author's interviews with Eric Bell, Scott Gorham, Brian Downey, Gary Moore, Brian Robertson, Terry O'Neill and Ted Carroll; Nick Tauber and Ron Nevison; Nigel Grange, Frank Murray and Jim Fitzpatrick. Revealing Phil Lynott in all his dastardly guises.

Celebrating 50 years as a band in 2022, Magnum remain a musical enigma, much loved by legions of fans despite never fitting easily into the sub-genres favoured by rock music critics. Formed in the West Midlands of England around a nucleus of guitarist and songwriter Tony Clarkin and vocalist Bob Catley, the band dabbled with pomp rock and progressive sounds in the late 1970s before achieving success in the 1980s with records like Chase the Dragon, On a Storyteller's Night and their commercial highpoint, Wings of Heaven. They even had two top thirty singles in the UK, with 'Start Talking Love' and 'Rockin' Chair'. The changing musical landscape of the 1990s led to a split, but the band returned in 2001 and continue to release records of remarkable consistency while entertaining live audiences across Europe. This is the first book on the history and music of Magnum. It covers each of the band's twenty-two studio albums, as well as live recordings, compilations and the late 1990s Hard Rain project. Charting the ups and downs in commercial and artistic achievement, it is an essential guide to one of Britain's most underappreciated rock bands.

"This book should be seen as a diary filled with writings, poetry, cut-outs, collages, photographs, and drawings printed on the stationary papers which keep the memory of my journeys." Marina Abramovic Never before published, this self-curated, intensely personal collection of travel notes and sketches by the world's most revered performance artist offers readers a kind of iconography of Abramovic's daring and utterly original body of work. An artist's notebooks are arguably the most authentic means of understanding her process, techniques, and impulses. And, for a performance artist, a rare, permanent record of how she develops her craft. Compiled over the course of four decades on stationery from various hotels, and other temporary residences, this collection of Marina Abramovic's original drawings, collages, poetry, writings, cut-outs, photographs and doodles offers glimpses of a brilliant mind in constant motion. Beautifully produced and packaged, it takes readers on a journey through Abramovic's thoughts-and traces the evolution of the most fruitful phase of her career. "My home was everywhere I went because my home was my own body." With the archival material elegantly reproduced in their original size on high-quality paper, this collection offers Abramovic's enormous fanbase unprecedented access to her creative process.

A beautifully illustrated celebration of Dolly Parton's iconic sense of style through entertaining personal stories and 450 full-color photographs, including exclusive images from her private costume archive.In Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones, global superstar Dolly Parton shares, for the first time, the full story behind her lifelong passion for fashion, including how she developed her own, distinctly Dolly style, which has defied convention and endeared her to fans around the world.Featuring behind-the-scenes stories from Dolly Parton's life and career, and the largest reveal of her private costume archive, this gorgeously photographed book spotlights her most unforgettable looks from the 1960s to now. The sky-high heels, famous wigs, bold makeup, eye-catching stage clothes - she shares them all. Along the way, Parton discusses memorable outfits from her past, from the clothes her mother would sew out of feed sacks (including her "Coat of Many Colors") and the bold dresses and hairdos that shook up Nashville, to the bunny suit on the cover of Playboy, evening wear at Studio 54, costumes from her most famous film and TV roles, and the daring styles that continue to entertain and inspire today.Filled with candor, humor, and lots and lots of rhinestones, Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones is a shining tribute to one of the most beloved musicians in history, a treasured keepsake for anyone who loves Dolly Parton, and an indispensable guide to forging your own path to beauty and confidence.

For 13 years, Peter Hince lived the rock 'n' roll dream. As head roadie for Queen he had a front row seat and backstage pass to some of the greatest moments in music.Now, he is opening up his incredible archive and sharing hundreds of photographs and mementoes - many never seen before - as well as stories and memories from life inside rock 'n' roll history.Queen Uncovered is packed with images and ephemera from this truly unique collection, covering life on the road and in the studio, backstage and on-stage, relaxing at parties, filming iconic music videos and much more besides.

R.E.M. Album by Album tells that story, tracing the band from its formation in 1980 when four young men sought respite from the difficulties of real life by starting a covers band, right up until their eventual split in 2011.

Tonight It's a World We Bury explores a range of tendencies centralto black metal and uncovers their potential as critiques of capitalism.

Backstreet Boys: 30th Anniversary Celebration is an illustrated tribute to of one of the most prolific and iconic groups in pop music today.

Authored by acclaimed rock writer Martin Popoff, AC/DC at 50 provides a visually stunning and authoritative celebration of the legendary Aussie rockers on their 50th anniversary.

Faith, Hope and Carnage is an enthralling work by the renowned author, Nick Cave. Published in 2023 by Canongate Books Ltd., this book is a remarkable addition to the literary world. The genre of the book is not explicitly mentioned, but knowing Cave's previous works, one can expect a blend of gripping narrative and profound thoughts. The title itself, Faith, Hope and Carnage, suggests a tumultuous journey, possibly a struggle between belief, optimism, and destruction. Cave, with his exceptional storytelling skills, is sure to take readers on an unforgettable ride. Canongate Books Ltd., known for its diverse and quality publications, has once again proved its discerning eye for excellent literature by bringing this book to the public. This book is a must-read for those who appreciate thought-provoking literature.

Organized as a chord per spread, for the left and right hands, this is a handy, comprehensive reference for jazz, pop, rock and soul musicians playing the piano or keyboard at various levels. It teaches yourself the essential piano chords, and more.