Music Books

On February 25, 1963, Columbia Records released The Barbra Streisand Album. The first song was "Cry Me a River," and with that a star was born. Barbra Joan Streisand had a zany personality backed by a talent that Stephen Sondheim once described as "one...

Are you obsessed with John Carpenter's iconic music for the Halloween series? Do you thrill to the unforgettable stabs of the Psycho score, or the pounding synth of Goblin's soundtrack to Suspiria? Do you find yourself being pulled into...

'Weird Al' Yankovic is one of music's most beloved figures. A skilled accordion player and songwriter, the California native is known for his meticulous parodies of popular songs, hilarious originals, and, of course, for upbeat polkas!For much of Al's...

How can so many people pledge allegiance to punk, something with no fixed identity? Depending on who and where you are, punk can be an outlet, excuse, lifestyle, escapism, conversation, community, ideology, sales category, social movement,...

In Inside Studio 54, the former owner takes you behind the scenes of the most famous nightclub in the world, through the crowd, to a place where celebrities, friends, and the beautiful people sip champagne and share lines of cocaine using rolled-up...

NATIONAL BOOK AWARD LONGLIST NPR "BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR" SELECTION NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS' CHOICE A virtuosic debut from a gifted violinist searching for a new mode of artistic becomingHow does time shape consciousness and consciousness, time? Do we...

An examination of NASA's Golden Record that offers new perspectives and theories on how music can be analysed, listened to, and thought about - by aliens and humans alike.In 1977 NASA shot a mixtape into outer space. The Golden Record aboard the...

Learning to read and write music is very similar to learning a new language. Music theory is the study of the fundamental elements of music and how it is written.Music Theory For Beginners was developed for anyone interested in learning to read and write...

A handwritten serial number inside a neglected Broadwood square piano built in 1807 launches a captivating quest to uncover the remarkable history of these now almost forgotten musical instruments.

Nightclub, theatre, creative hub, party place, and one of the most important venues in Scotland, Britain and Europe: for almost 25 years, The Arches was the beating heart of Glasgow.In 1991, former punk-turned-theatre director Andy Arnold walked into the...

Morgan Howell paints classic 7" singles and takes into account every crease, every tear, every imperfection-producing a one-off, truly unique artwork, almost identical to the owner's original copy, but blown up, supersize, to 27.6 by 27.6 inches, and...

Gary Moore delighted entire generations with his passionate guitar playing, from the driving rock of Thin Lizzy in the 1970s to his explorations in subsequent decades of jazz fusion, heavy metal, hard rock, blues rock, and more. Throughout that time, he...

The rise and fall of Some Bizzare-the label that introduced the world to Soft Cell, Depeche Mode, and The The-is the great untold story of alternative music.Along with Factory, Mute, and Creation, Some Bizzare was the vanguard of outsider music in the...

Holy Ghost is the first extended study of free jazz saxophonist Albert Ayler, who is seen today as one of the most important innovators in the history of jazz.Ayler synthesized children's songs, La Marseillaise, American march music, and gospel hymns,...

"There were only a handful of people in the world who still really believed in Suede at the time, and five of them were in the band."Brett Anderson, Suede"Suede were Marmite at the time, and I was expecting the press to trash them. Every meeting I had...

Part memoir, part social history, Revolutionary Spirit is the poignant, often hilarious story of a cult Liverpool musician's scenic route to fame and artistic validation. If Morrissey was the Oscar Wilde of the 1980s indie scene, Simpson was its William...

"With this book, the Zappa fan will get a glimpse into Frank that I don't believe any other book written by him or about him expresses. And us Zappa fans love that. Thank you, Co." Steve Vai"I think the best way to start when somebody says something...

'This was a statement: We're on our way back. It signaled to the industry that this band that you thought was over and done ... might not be.'Eddie Trunk (Trunk Nation host)'There's just something about those albums they released from 1983 to 1997 that...

Compiled from over one hundred interviews and years of in-depth research, KEEP MUSIC EVIL tells the full, unexpurgated tale of the infamous psych-rockers The Brian Jonestown Massacre.'They didn't know what to do with us. Anton was drinking, like, a...

'I think they're easily one of the best rock trios anywhere. I don't think they've been equaled.'Andy Summers (The Police)'They were really ahead of their time. If you listen to the music that followed, they really figured things out that took many bands...

'I'm no stranger to failure, and I'm aware it can arrive at any minute-as it often has. You have to keep things close to your chest and be aware of what's really important: the work, not everything around it. If you have faith in the work, then the...

Becoming Elektra tells the incredible true story of the pioneering Elektra Records label and its farsighted founder, Jac Holzman, who built a small folk imprint into a home for some of the most groundbreaking, important, and enduring music of the rock...

"I LIKE ACCIDENTS. I LIKE TO PUT MYSELF IN THE WAY OF MUSICAL HARM. I LIKE BEING AT THE WHEEL OF THAT MUSICAL CAR, AND AIMING IT AT THE WALL, JUST TO SEE WHAT SHAPE THE CAR'S GOING TO COME OUT. IT MIGHT COME OUT AN INTERESTING SHAPE THAT WOULD HAVE TAKEN...

"I have been seeking P.F. Sloan, but no one knows where he's gone"'P.F. Sloan' by Jimmy Webb"Absolutely none of 'em could beat ol' P.F."Lester Bangs, Rolling Stone magazineWhat's Exactly The Matter With Me? is a first-person account of an extraordinary...

Return Of The King tells the story of a tumultuous period in the life of Elvis Presley. By 1967, The King Of Rock'n'Roll was all but washed-up, thanks to a string of bland movie roles and lackluster records. But within a year he had roused himself,...

When Cream broke up in 1968 it was by no means a foregone conclusion that it would be Eric Clapton who would enjoy continued commercial success. After all, it was Jack Bruce who had the looks, and who co-wrote and sang all the band's major hits,...

'I was raised with an artist's mentality; my first 25 years were spent as somebody who wanted to live among graphics and artwork and illustration, and then for the next 30 years it was all music. Recently, I've reverted into the arts, combining...

'I can be scratching around at home on an acoustic guitar, or singing a funny little idea into my phone, and all of a sudden, it becomes a beautifulfully fledged song. And I'm asking myself, how did we do that again? I still find that...

'Here on the shore, twenty years later, my message in a bottle has reached dry land. Words about our life, his death but mostly love and our journey to the end.' - Olivia HarrisonOlivia Harrison presents Came the Lightening a book of...

'These guitars have been really good tools; they're not just museum pieces. They all have a soul and they all come alive.' Eric Clapton'In his own words, Clapton tells his story through the history of his instruments.'Rolling StoneInSix-String...

'When I wrote and recorded these songs originally, I never would have expected the fantastic audience response all these years later; it's amazing.' Jeff LynneThe music of Jeff Lynne is beloved by fans all over the world and...

Now Is the Time to Invent offers a definitive portrait of the vibrant indie-rock scene that flourished in the mid-1980s and reached its creative peak in the 1990s. More than 60 profiles and interviews, taken from the pages of the acclaimed independent...

The Go-Betweens recorded six albums that are among the finest work of the 1980s, earning them a reputation as the ultimate cult band and the lasting esteem of their peers, from R.E.M. to Sleater-Kinney. In 2000 they returned to making records - and...

This is an encyclopedic, large-format book containing hundreds of illustrations. While not geared toward making conventional instruments, Musical Instrument Design provides all the information that anyone (amateur or professional) should ever need to...

This is the untold story of black music its triumph over racism, segregation, undercapitalised record labels, media discrimination and political anxiety told through the perspective of the most powerful office in the world: from Louis...

Detroit 67 is the story of Motor City in the year that changed everything. Twelve chapters take you on a turbulent year-long journey through the drama and chaos that ripped through the city in 1967 and tore it apart in personal, political and interracial...

When the visual artist H.R. Giger, best known for his biomechanical creature and set design for seminal 1979 sci-fi-horror film Alien, encountered Debbie Harry, the punk icon and lead singer of globally successful New Wave band Blondie, the results were...

Leeds, 1980. Amid the violence and decay, the city was home to an extraordinarily vibrant post-punk scene. Out of that swamp crawled the Sisters of Mercy. Over the next five years, they would rise from local heroes to leading alternative band, before...

The legendary music impresario (and producer of bands likeThe Yardbirds and Wham!)tells his life story in a series of mesmerisingly candid vignettes.Sour Mouth, Sweet Bottom: Lessons from a Dissolute Lifeis the book Simon Napier-Bell's fans have always...

Black Vinyl White Powder is the definitive story of five decades of British Pop - now in paperbackWhether penning hits for Dusty Springfield, discovering Marc Bolan or managing a series of stellar acts ranging from the Yardbirds to Wham! - Simon...

Song Noir examines the formative first decade of Tom Waits' career, when he lived, wrote and recorded nine albums in Los Angeles; from his soft, folk-inflected debut, Closing Time (1973), to the abrasive, surreal Swordfishtrombones (1983)...

When rock 'n' roll burst into life in the 1950s the shockwaves echoed around the world, amplified by images of untamed youth projected on cinema screens. But for the performers themselves showbusiness remained in control, contriving a...

Positive Vibrations tells of how reggae was shaped by, and in turn helped to shape, the politics of Jamaica and beyond, from the rudies of Kingston to the sexual politics and narcotic allegiances of the dancehall. Insightful and full of incident, it...

It began with The Beatles' 'Helter Skelter'. It was distilled to its dark essence by Black Sabbath. And it has flourished into a vibrant modern underground, epitomised by Newcastle's Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs. This is the evolution of heavy...

Nashville is a city of sublime contrasts, an intellectual hub built on a devotion to God, country music and the Devil's pleasures. Refined and raucous, it has long represented both culture and downright fun, capable of embracing pre-Civil war mansions...

Exploring the explosion of the Who onto the international music scene, this heavily illustrated book looks at this furious band as an embodiment of pop art. 'Ours is music with built-in hatred.' - Pete Townshend, cofounder of the...

The compelling story of one of America's most adventurous jazz musicians.Ornette Coleman's career encompassed the glory years of jazz and the American avant-garde. Born in segregated Fort Worth, Texas, during the Great Depression, the...

A vivid, absorbing new biography of Dmitry Shostakovich.Dmitry Shostakovich was one of the most successful composers of the twentieth century - a musician who adapted as no other to the unique pressures of his age. By turns vilified and feted by Stalin...