Showing titles in Music

Come on an album by album exploration of Talking Heads, David Byrne, Tom Tom Club and Jerry Harrison. No stone will go unturned as we retrace their path from humble beginnings at New York's infamous CBGB to their induction to the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame.

Acclaimed journalist Randall Sullivan follows Russell Poole, a highly decorated LAPD detective who in 1997 was called to investigate a controversial cop-on-cop shooting, eventually to discover that the officer killed was tied to Marion “Suge” Knight’s notorious gangsta rap label, Death Row Records. During his investigation, Poole came to realize that a growing cadre of black officers were allied not only with Death Row, but with the murderous Bloods street gang. And incredibly, Poole began to uncover evidence that at least some of these “gangsta cops” may have been involved in the murders of rap superstars Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur.

Dylan, who began working on the book in 2010, offers a masterclass on the art and craft of songwriting. He writes over 60 essays focusing on songs by other artists, spanning from Stephen Foster to Elvis Costello, and in between ranging from Hank Williams to Nina Simone. He analyses what he calls the trap of easy rhymes, breaks down how the addition of a single syllable can diminish a song and even explains how bluegrass relates to heavy metal. These essays are written in Dylan’s unique prose.

Banker-turned-writer Nels Abbey offers an alternative and entertaining look at business and economics through the rise and triumph of Hip-Hop. This is the story of how rap industrialists—like Jay-Z, Suge Knight, Sylvia Robinson, Puff Daddy, 50 Cent and Bryan 'Birdman' Williams—took chronic economic pain and turned it into champagne. With a business acumen often acquired in the streets, these moguls created and sustained a multi-billion-dollar industry—leaving Greek mythology-worthy stories of success and failure, betrayal and revenge in their wakes.

The smooth veneer of the duo's songs made Steely Dan popular and famous in the 1970s, but the polish glossed over the underlying layers of anger, disappointment, sleaze, and often downright weirdness lurking just beneath the surface. The elliptical lyrics—were—and continue to be-an endless source of fascination. What kind of person was capable of writing such songs? Donald Fagen has always kept his true self hidden behind walls of irony, confounding most journalistic enquiries. Nightfly cracks open the door to reveal the life behind the lyrics.

Lin-Manuel Miranda's groundbreaking musical, Hamilton, is as revolutionary as its subject: the poor kid from the Caribbean who fought the British, defended the Constitution, and helped to found the United States. Fusing hip-hop, pop, R&B and the best traditions of theater, this once-in-a-generation show broadens the sound of Broadway, reveals the storytelling power of rap and claims the origins of the United States for a diverse new generation. Hamilton: The Revolution gives listeners an unprecedented view of both revolutions.

Face the Music is the shocking, funny, smart, inspirational story of one of rock’s most enduring icons and the group he helped create. Stanley mixes compelling personal revelations and gripping, gritty war stories that will surprise even the most steadfast member of the KISS Army. He takes us back to his childhood in the 1950s and 60s, a time made more painful thanks to a physical deformity. Born with a condition called microtia, he grew up partially deaf, with only one ear. But this instilled in him an inner drive to succeed in the most unlikely of pursuits: music.

Among the noise and clamour of the Britpop era, Blur co-founder Graham Coxon managed to carve out a niche to become one of the most innovative and respected guitarists of his generation—but it wasn't always easy. Graham grew up as an Army kid, moving frequently in his early years from West Germany to Derbyshire and Winchester before settling in Colchester, Essex. A shy child, he had a thing for eating soil and drawing intense visions; his anxiety was tempered by painting and a growing love of music. These twin passions grew into obsessions.

James Hetfield, with whom many years ago Mustaine founded a band known as Metallica, once observed, with some incredulity, that Mustaine must have been born with a horseshoe up his ass. That's how lucky he's been, how fortunate he is to be pulling breath after so many close calls. And Hetfield is right. Mustaine has been lucky. He has been blessed. But here's the thing about having a horseshoe lodged in your rectum: It also hurts like hell. And you never forget it's there.

This is the first comprehensive history of goth music and culture. John Robb explores the origins and legacy of this enduring scene, which has its roots in the post-punk era. Featuring sound and original music, and read by the author in his distinctive narrative style, this is a truly atmospheric audiobook that takes you right into the heart of the history of goth.

Desolation is the story of Lamb of God’s lead guitarist and co-lyricist Mark Morton's lifelong quest for clarity and self-acceptance, and shows how the pressures of career success and personal battles eventually came into conflict with Morton's dedication to the creative process. Intertwined with addiction, self-destruction, and the path to eventual surrender and recovery, Morton also reveals the greatest personal tragedy of his life: the death of his two-day old daughter, plunging Morton further into hopelessness.

A consummate insider as the girlfriend of Lindsey Buckingham, Fleetwood Mac singer and guitarist, Carol Ann Harris leads fans into the very heart of the band's storms between 1976 and 1984. From interactions between the band and other stars - Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, and Dennis Wilson - to the chaotic animosity between band members, this memoir combines the sensational account of some of the world's most famous musicians with a thrilling love story. The parties, fights, drug use, shenanigans, and sex lives of Fleetwood Mac are presented in intimate detail.

Join Marc Riley and Rob Hughes as they rifle through the fascinating world of one of the greatest rock stars the world has ever known. There'll be laughter - there'll be tears, all brought on by stories of escapades with David Bowie and friends. All 71 episodes of this Podcast are now available to buy on a branded USB stick in a branded tin box. Including bonus material there’s over 40 hours worth of Bowie related audio. Available here… https://atozofdavidbowie.company.site Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Suggs is one of pop music's most enduring and likeable figures. Read by the author himself with the assured style and wit of a natural raconteur, this hugely entertaining and insightful autobiography takes you from his colourful early life on a North London council estate, through the heady early days of Punk and 2-Tone, to the eighties, where Madness became the biggest selling singles band of the decade.

Although Greenwich Village takes up less than a square mile in downtown New York, rarely has such a concise area supported and nurtured so many groundbreaking artists and genres. Musician used the Village’s smokey coffeehouses and clubs to chronicle the tumultuous Sixties, rewrite jazz history, and take rock & roll into eclectic places it hadn’t been before. Based on new interviews with surviving participants, previously unseen and unheard archives, and author David Browne's years immersed in the scene, Talkin’ Greenwich Village lends the saga the epic, panoramic scope it has long deserved.

The true story of a theatrical dream—or nightmare—come true…the making of the Spider-Man musical.

When her father died, singer songwriter Roxanne de Bastion inherited a piano she knew had been in her family for over a hundred years. But it is only when she finds a cassette recording of her grandfather, Stephen, playing one of his compositions, the true and almost unbelievable history of the piano, this man and her family begins to unravel.

Simon Reynolds's first book in eight years is a celebration of music that feels like a taste of tomorrow. Sounds that prefigure pop music's future - the vanguard genres and heroic innovators whose discoveries eventually get accepted by the wider mass audience. But it's also about the way music can stir anticipation for a thrillingly transformed world just around the corner: a future that might be utopian or dystopian, but at least will be radically changed and exhilaratingly other.

This much-loved collection is full of action songs, calming songs for bedtime and happy songs to dance to – perfect for the classroom, choirs and for singing at home or in the car with mummy, daddy, grandma or granddad. In the magical world of Apusskidu, children learn about animals and birds, counting, colours, transport, history and tales from around the world, as well as experiencing the pure enjoyment of these wonderful songs that have been loved for 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.