Composers Books

I was a rock critic back in the day and I bought "Marty Thau's 2X5" when it came out and was immediately struck by "Shadow Line." Sometimes when you hear a song, you can immediately envision a band on stage charging through it. It blew me away. Hmm. Who are these tones of flesh color?

When I spotted the EP "Up Front," I could hardly get it home, get the shrink wrap off and get the platter on a turntable fast enough. Only five songs, but three were absolute knockouts: "Girl from Baltimore," "Cold, Cold Shoes" and "Vindicators." In fact, whenever I would put "Shoes" on at a party, everybody would hit the dance floor, shouting "Whoa! Who's This?" To this day, I consider it one of the greatest rock and roll dance songs ever written.

Then came "Roman Gods" with more powerhouse stuff, including the title track which has one of the greatest use of horns in rock song I've ever heard.

I have only seen them once, at a small club in Philadelphia. Great show.

It not only puzzles me, it angers me that such great talent has not been met with the reward it deserves. It is absolutely infernal that it has taken the French, who adore them, to keep their fortunes afloat.

It is rare to hear a rock band whose taste in music seems to come out of your own head, like they were reading your thoughts. To me, the Fleshtones are that band. Some contenders are Jonathan Richman, Neil Young and the Feelies.

I think one problem could be their name. It's semi-comical instead of abstract and "cool." Maybe it shoulda just been Flesh.

Anyway, thanks, Joe Bonomo, for giving us the truth and the legend about these enduring, underappreciated rock and roll geniuses.

I just finished the book--WOW, What a great read! This book is MUST READ for any Fleshtones fan and a highly recommended read for anyone interested in the 1970's-80's NYC punk/new wave/garage rock music scene. The Fleshtones have always been one of my all-time favorite bands and they have always seemed very cool every time I've interacted with them at their shows. After reading their bio, I feel like I have a whole new appreciation and respect for the band. So glad the Fleshtones are still preaching their SUPERROCK to the masses!! I am very much looking forward to reading "Sweat, Pt. 2" in another 30 years :)

Joe Bonomo's book is a great journey with the most fabulous live band of the last decades.

From about 1985 onward, I've been a steady fan of the mighty Fleshtones, although I confess that by about 1993 I sort of stopped keeping up with them. But if for no other reason than to understand why "Roman Gods" and "Hexbreaker" have never been reissued on CD, I bought this book. Little did I know how insane the story of the Fleshtones really is.

In a nutshell, "Sweat" reveals that despite the jolly, party-time atmosphere that is the essence of the Fleshtones, the band and its individual members have truly been through hell along the way. The well-documented drug use by this band is nothing short of legendary, and at least one member, Marek Pakulski, ultimately had to leave the group do to his uncontrollable heroin addiction. Other members, particularly Keith Streng and Bill Milhizer, are probably lucky to be alive considering the amount of alcohol they've consumed. As for Peter Zaremba, it's surprising his body didn't just blast off into orbit, with the amount of speed he was taking!

Funny personal story - I saw the Fleshtones in Boston back around 1988, and got a chance to meet them before the show. I'd brought along the cover of my "Fleshtones vs. Reality" CD and Keith, Bill and Peter all cheerfully signed it. But Peter was irked by the fact that the label, Roadrunner, had included one of those anti-drug public service messages inside it. So Peter scribbled over the message and wrote underneath, "Do what thou willst! A.C." (An Aleister Crowley quote) I had no idea at the time just how serious he was!

And then of course there's the most notorious Fleshtone of all, Gordon Spaeth (R.I.P.). Who would have thought that a member of the Fleshtones served several years in prison after killing a man in a drunken fight?!

Author Joe Bonomo does a fantastic job of tracing the band's history over more than 30 years. From the young hipsters prowling lower Manhattan at the dawn of the punk era, through the 80's where at least Europe embraced the band and they enjoyed some celebrity, and on through the 90's to the present, as the bandmates have continued to make music on their own terms, even as material success has eluded them, "Sweat" spares no detail and offers compelling proof that the Fleshtones, albeit on a small scale, are true living legends.

And by the way, why won't I.R.S. allow those classic early albums to be reissued? You guessed it - it's all about money. As much as any band in history, the Fleshtones are a prime example of why major labels suck.

This book is essential for any Fleshtones fan, and even someone who never heard of them should still find "Sweat" to be one hell of a good read.

(p.s. The Fleshtones' brand-new album "Take A Good Look" is their best album ever.)

R&R is not defined by its stars. Although undoubtedly R&R in their hey days Elvis, the Stones or Springsteen do not define the genre. The may make up for its aspirations, but they are not at the core of what R&R is. At its heart R&R is literally thousands of bands busting their chops in the garages and sordid basements all over the world, dreaming to make it in the big league one day. The Fleshtones have been at this game for about 30 years now, never escaping the basement. In a sense they are the text book example of R&R. Joe Bonomo's book "Sweat" captures their ongoing search for ever elusive fame perfectly. Anybody familiar with the band couldn't have thought of a better tittle to this autobiography. The Fleshtones have been guaranteed to give the best R&R show around for as long as they've been together. Yet the subtitle to sweat, "30 Years, 2.000 Shows, 1.000 Blue Whales, No Hits, No Sleep" gives the perfect summary of what to expect when reading "Sweat".

The Fleshtones story starts in a basement in Queens. Much to the dismay of the neighbors, some of the key members of what later would become the Fleshtones, throw legendary Blue Whale parties while churning out raggedy R&R, barely being able to master their instruments. A Blue Whale apparently is quite the toxic mix of various kinds of alcohol, preferably served in big barrels. That loud and lethal mix of three chord R&R would be a constant in the band's bumpy career. It would get them kicked out of their apartments, make them lose record companies, would find them in bloody brawls, turn them in the gutter but would also make living legends out of them. Although there are way to little people to recognize them. For the lucky few who fell under their spell, they are R&R best hidden deities. For the lucky few who stumbled onto their albums the Fleshtones have come to symbolize sweat drenched good times at their shows, roaring saxophones, screeching farfisa organs, rambling guitar riffs, raggedy soul crooning and pure and simple R&R.

The Fleshtones came smashed between the burgeoning Punk scene of NY city in the late seventies and back to basic superstars such as Bruce Springsteen. Like the latter the Fleshtones went back to the core of R&R. They found their inspiration in a time when 45 was king. The core of the Fleshtones, Peter Zaremba and Keith Streng found themselves in their love for the format. Swapping obscure 7" records filled with R&R, ranging from Hank Ballard and the Midnighters to the Strangeloves. At the time when Punk and Springsteen were about to burst wide open, R&R had strayed from its true path. The scene was marred by various horrific super groups, making guitar based intellectual drivel that had very little to do with R&R. Both Punk and Springsteen were a counter reaction to that drivel. The Ramones brought R&R back to its (barely) three minute essence in a loud cartoon like mess. Blondie did much the same, giving R&R a new sense of ice cold cool. Building on the foundations Punk's god fathers, the MC5 and the Stooges, had built, NY busted R&R wide open again.

"Sweat" unravels the mystery why the Fleshtones, despite a killer live reputation and rave reviews, never managed to reap the benefits of that movement. In a sense R&R was the Fleshtones final destination. Though you couldn't accuse the Fleshtones of being a retro act, the strand of R&R they tapped into just didn't gel with the all too self conscious Punk movement, especially in NY where Punk was as much high fashion as it was a new form of musical rebellion. The Fleshtones simply didn't thunder down the same tracks the Punk movement lays down. In Bonomo's excellent write up of that scene it soon becomes clear that the Fleshtones' brand of good times and party hard R&R "danced" to a different beat than the Punk movement where shaking it up was branded out of style. Punk rebelled against the drivel of the day, but wasn't about to put the fun back in R&R. The very fuel that kept the Fleshtones running.

At the same time the Fleshtones never made R&R any grander than it was. Unlike Springsteen who infused his brand of R&R with big dreams and a lingering sense of melancholy. Where R&R was the door to ultra coolness for the Punks, to Springsteen it was the door to something bigger, an escape for his small town background. R&R as a means, R&R as a promise, not an end. To the Fleshtones R&R was the final stop. They live to recreate the exitement on the records of Larry Williams, The Kingsmen, Lee Dorsey and Link Wray. The Fleshtones never aspired to anything bigger, be it a fleeting sense of cool or the realization of bigger dreams. The Fleshtones simply wanted to be R&R and indulge themselves in the accompanying lifestyle of sweaty parties deep into the night, raving live shows, sex & drugs.

It's not that the Fleshtones never dreamed of making it bigger. Bonomo's book is drenched with frustration. The Fleshtones were chasing that same all to elusive dream of R&R stardom. Save for in Paris, where they were treated like R&R royalty throughout the years, they would find that dream always more than an arm's length out of reach. Although their career seemed to be off on a promising start when they got signed at Punk legend's Marty Thau's Red Star label in 1978, the band soon hit that brick wall they would ram in to on various occasions throughout their career. Red Star folded after the recording sessions, the Fleshtones' "American Beat" single fell of radar and their debut album never properly saw light of day.

The Fleshtones would be forever stuck in the basement their story is defined by bad business decisions, botched album preparations, odd production decisions and sometimes disastrous tours drenched in and caused by a haze of alcohol and drugs. Although "Sweat" is superbly written, Joe's subject is what makes the book hard to stomach at times. I don't think that there are a lot of R&R biographies out there that are as honest and confrontational as "Sweat". Even though Joe is clearly a fan, he doesn't spare the band. Peter's and Keith's erratic moods are thrown right in their faces, they come off as troopers of R&R yet seldom as heroes. Through out the book you keep waiting for that release of success and career highs that are trade mark to most R&R biographies. That release never comes. Instead there's this uneasy sense of "what if.......". You can't help but escape the notion that with a little more luck and discipline the Fleshtones would have been inducted in the R&R Hall of fame by now, doing high priced reunion tours. In stead the Flsehtones stumble their way through their career, seemingly forever one step behind or beyond the zeit geist. Never really fitting into the Punk movement, too raggedy to go up against the super stars of the eighties, too upbeat for the chronically depressed Grunge movement and finally too old for the recent Garage revival.

Yet despite all the hard knocks and set backs the Fleshtones have managed to keep that train rolling down the track. They are still living it up on the road, albeit with moderate amounts of drugs and alcohol these days, garanteed to give you one of the best R&R shows you'll ever witness. They seem to have found a stable record deal at Yep-Records, issuing some of the best albums in their career. A new Fleshtones album is slated for early next year. I don't think it will make any dents in the charts. Meaning that quite a few people will deny themselves some of the finest R&R there is to find.

If you are in a group of hardcore U2 fans, and you say, "the U2 bible" or "the Pimm book", they will all know which book you mean. For collectors, bootleggers, and general fans, this is THE book. While Pimm has sadly passed away, well known U2 insider Caroline Von B. has taken over and kept this tradition alive. This is the U2 book that the U2 crew take on the road. Need I say more?

This is the ultimate compendium for the true U2 fan. Not only does it document every single show they've ever played but it gives a lot of background and behind the scenes info on the albums. When I found out this updated version of the book was coming out I got excited and now that I've received it I was not disappointed!

This is the updated version. The first book that came out covered U2 from their earliest stages up through to the beginnings of the Popmart tour. This one carries us through the Popmart tour right through to the end of the Elevation tour. Pretty much every U2 show ever played is covered to some extent, whether it's just with a setlist or a lengthy review. Each tour has a page or so dedicated to an overview and then each show is detailed to some extent. If you're just a fan of the band you'll get a kick out of many of the shows details (the pizza order/delivery from 1992 being fantastic). If you're a collector of shows this book is to U2 fans what Deadbase or those Tapers Compendium books are to Grateful Dead fans. It's either a lot of fun to read or a rich source of information. Just a blast.

On a side note most of the book is written by Pimm Jal de la Parra. I'm not sure if it says it anywhere but apparently he had passed away during the creation of this updated version. A few people had gotten together to finish it off for him. They most certainly did him proud.

Hands-down the best book for collectors, fans, completists and trivia buffs. Compiled from thousands of sources by devoted but objective fans, this book is a good read, reference book and very interesting look inside each tour. As a long time collector, I have always heard that if a setlist exists in this book, there is a recording of that show, somewhere in the world.

This book is hard to put down! Every U2 gig is detailed from setlists to attendance. Lots of photographs, some that have never been seen before. I love it!

Au unforgettable journey through the century written by one of the most open-minded and talented jazz journalist of our time! A MUST and HIGHLY RECOMMENDED READING!!!

The main reason I read this book is because I have become a Billie Holiday fan in the last 2 years and up till now not a true lover of jazz. This book caught my attention when I did a search for books on Billie. There was about 6 to 7 pages on her but I never imagined how long this book would be! Not a bad thing though. I know it took me a long time to read as it is SO detailed and thorough. It was truly an education for me and I have a much greater apprecation for jazz! Gary Giddens is an exceptional author and is obviously a veteran writer and really knows his stuff! A truly well written book. Highly recommended for lovers of jazz and those of us who are just beginning to have a love for it!

The source of Coltrane's 'Impressions' was (Morton) Gould's "Pavanne" and not Ravel's "Pavane Pour Une Infante Defunte" Giddins, however, confuses them on page 484. (After all, what's a pavane among friends?)

As someone who has spent a career reviewing documents and spreadsheets, I have a simple philosophy: if there is one error, I assume that there are others. This cost Gary a star.

Gary Giddins was only a name to me until Ken Burns's JAZZ series aired on PBS in early 2001. While I appreciated all the commentators in that remarkable series, it was the observations of Giddins that I began to eagerly anticipate night after night. He made me SEE music that I knew and loved but whose structure and complexity I had often been unable to grasp. Despite some jazz appreciation classes in college and haphazard collecting of old jazz records over the years, I had not gotten much past the "I know what I like" phase. His passion for music I was less familiar with led me on some rewarding treasure hunts.

I bought "Visions of Jazz" shortly after the conclusion of the Burns miniseries. I devoured it. I have turned to it time and again in the intervening years. Many critics overanalyze their subjects to the point where they suck the life out of the very thing they're attempting to illuminate. Giddins does not have that problem. His prose sings and swings with the elan of his beloved Sarah Vaughan.

Giddins's re-examination of the music of Ellington and Armstrong may seem at first blush to be superfluous; you may think you know all there is to know on that subject. But he proves that even the most accessible jazz figures and their music evolve from and operate within a such a complex idiom that periodic re-evaluation is necessary, and, if approached with respect for both the subject and the reader -- which Giddins has above all else -- it is most welcome indeed.

There are chapters in "Visions of Jazz" about musicians with whom I was completely unfamiliar. But I took a chance and read them, and wound up buying some Matthew Shipp recordings. It's that kind of book. You can take out as much as you put in.

As much as I appreciate Giddins's bone-deep love of jazz, his scholarship and wry humor, I also respect him for his fearlessness in making a case for, say, the inscrutable Cecil Taylor. But I am probably a big fan of someone who leaves Gary Giddins cold, and that's OK. The jazz tent is big enough for us all.

Why not 5 stars? The only "perfect" thing in jazz is Ellington's "Just a-Sittin' and a-Rockin."

To the previous reviewer: Mr Giddens was RIGHT. Coltrane's Impressions was based on BOTH pieces of music.

Very comprehensive. Lots of photos, very good history. It did come out a while ago so doesn't have anything about Entwistle's death. But it's a great history of the Who!

The definitive book to have on The Who. Loaded & re-loaded with amazing photographs & anecdotes from a friend of the band who isn't afraid to point out the bad in addition to the good.

I bought this book on its original release back in the 1980's; the updated section to review the years 1983-96 is most welcome. Hopefully, Richard Barnes will release yet another edition that takes into account the years 1997 to the present.

If you're a Who junkie, this book is a must. If you're a new fan, this volume is a fantastic primer into the history of the greatest band there ever was.

This book is an excellent resource for all fans of the classic rock band, The Who. Telling the band's story from their earliest days, the reader will find plenty of detail, interviews, and wonderful photographs to enhance this "amazing journey". The author takes a relatively unbiased stance, leaving out personal opinion in favor of simply stating "the facts".

If you are a fan of The Who, this is certainly a book that deserves a place in your library.

This book is really a great overview of the WHO's career. Starting out when the band started to meet as teenagers and spannig all the way to a few years after Keith's death, this book covers every single recording the WHO did.

Aside from just following the WHO through their career, this book is also jam-packed with those crazy Keith Moon anecdotes and interesting picures.

I really enjoyed this book, and enjoyed seein what one of my favorite bands was really like. I would definately recommend it to anyone who loves the WHO.

As a HUGE Who fan, I first picked up "Maximum R&B" in the late 80's, and recently dug into the updated version.

Richard Barnes was an old art school friend of Pete Townshend's, and remained close to him and the band over the decades. His history of the Who is detailed, mixed with intimiate remembrances, especially of the early days of the band.

Barnes for the most part tells the story with a straight-forward, unbiased eye. He details the tulmultuous relationship between the band members, especially Townshend and Roger Daltrey, and draws on numerous interviews and press articles (the press materials are classic--some very early pix of a very young Detours lineup are among the entertaining bits).

Barnes also examines the Mod movement of the 60's, which was so critical to exposing the Who (for a while the High Numbers) to a hardcore audience.

For Who fans like myself, you may find some minor errors, and Barnes doesn't go too deep into some of the band member's personal lives, except where he seems to have an in. Among these would be Townshend's fascination with Meher Baba, his later drug and alcohol problems, and his later struggles with trying to deal with the Who while establishing himself as a solo artist.

In any case, a fantastic document of the history of one of rock's greatest and most talented bands.

this book is great.You know My auntie just sent me this book and just handled it.You know i can't buy books about backstreetboys,(but maybe i do,but it's hard for me to find one because i'm from the philippines) but luckily i've had a nice auntie in the U.S. who've sent me this book.But you know i'm really worried 'coz my auntie sent it through mail,so i'm afraid it won't come because some BAD people(philippines) just get it if they found it beutiful for them,so i kept on praying and hoping that the book will be sent to me,and luckily i did. I really recommend this G-R-E-A-T B-O-O-K

this book is the best book on the Backstreet Boys that i have ever read. there is a bio on each of the guys, LOTS of hott pics-including younger pics and shirtless pics- and behind the scenes stuff. there are also stories of the pranks that they play on each other and of accidents and funny stuff that happened onstage. every BSB fan should have this book. it is worth every cent and worth getting! i love Brian soo much, he is soo hott and soo sweet! keep the Backstreet pride alive ya'll!

This book is the best!!! I'm a AJ fan and all of the pictures of him are great!!! A must have for any BSB fan!!!!!!!!

i love this book as i said, i realy love the pic's on nick they are soooo beautiful and i love the info, and the pic's on the others of coures but nick most, you must get it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is the best book i have ever read.It tells you everything you need to know about Backstreet. It also gives you their biography,and some of their secerts.So if you haven't read it you better get it=)

This is dificult as it was bought as a Christmas gift for my 86 year old mother in law, who is the world's greatest Elvis fan! This was one thing she didn't have. However, after scanning through it, and loving him myself, I would have bought it for myself as well! It's very well done with so many wonderful pictures that seem to make him jump off the pages. A great find of a great man.elvis

I really enjoyed this book. It was fun to read about Christmas at Graceland and how generous Elvis was. What was the most important to me is the photo of Elvis at Christmas, 1976.

Yes this book is truly the best gift anyone can give the Elvis world.
I have to admit that this is the "BEST" Elvis publication to date.
The photos are beautiful, touching, warm, and holiday-oriented and the information is fantastic.

A great package all the way around from cover, to size, to quality. This was money well spent!

Jim Curtin (who I have found to be the top author on Elvis books along with his writer Renata Ginter), is truly top of the line in his publications.

I did notice that Curtin's books lack the fabrications that ALL other Elvis books have. No BS in his books and what a relief!

It is quite nice to sit down and read something nice on Elvis for a change, rather than have to put up with made-up stories and information about his sex life, his drug addictions, his death, his fetishes. God let the man rest in peace.

My request is to have all the publishers publish books ONLY by Jim Curtin and Renata Ginter from now on.

Just imagine, no more bad Elvis book would be ever pushed on the public again! That would be Elvis heaven!

Hey people who know Elvis Presley fans or are you an Elvis Presley fan and don't have this book, buy a copy of the book. In chapter 22, the author Jim Curtin tells the people reading the book that he met Elvis Presley in 1976. This is the first and only Elvis Presley spend Christmas.

And there are aslo pitcures in this book. And one looks pretty funny. It's a Elvis Presley t-shirt from the 90's, and there is a pitcure of an animated Santa Claus tells a person on a phone, "No, No, I said Elves, Send Me Fifty Elves." He has Elvis Presley look alikes but wants elves. (Page 152). I laught at A Very Funny Christmas. Which is on chapter 15. Some of you people might or might not know that Elvis Presley was once poor. And you can read about how he spend his poor Christmases.

I guess you are never to old or young to learn. In 1965, Elvis Presley decide to dress up as Santa Claus and had children on his lap telling him what they want for chirstmas. And when he had bigger children, he tried to get a hold of his laughter, but couldn't and got out of a mall, without people seeing him laugh.

You can aslo read Christmas Quotes by Elvis Presley. Like when he tells that he believed in Santa Claus until he was age 8. He had learn that it was his parents doing the role of Santa Claus. Why do parents use Santa Claus as a excplaimn to children at christmas who brought the presents fr them, and at Easter, when tell it was from the easter bunny, when it really was from them? Isn't that a lie? This is a great book to read whether it's Christmas or not.

I came across this book in a local used book shop.
For some reason this book was not sold outright in the main bookstores.

My first initial reaction to this book, once I flipped through it, was:
too bad: some of the printing is not high quality.
But hey, once I looked through the book and read some of the stories, my second reaction took over:
wow the contents are really nice!
as an Elvis fan, I loved the collectibles and as a result I bought another copy off the net.
one is for my library and the holidays and the other I use as a collectible guide.

This is a GOOD book (a real good one) and its done by someone I really didn't know anything about, nor had I heard of him.
But I did do a check on him, once I liked his book, and he did 6 other books on Elvis.
I will see if this man, who proclaims to be the world's foremost Elvis expert, is the real thing, or another self proclaimer like the "fantastic four" (Lichter, Dowling, Tunzi, Guralnick/Jorgensen)

A hint though: from what I see in this book, this man may actually be the REAL DEAL!
he has quality and intregrity.

Very accesible book & good introduction not only to Duke Ellington but the world of Jazz. I suppose an author is limited by the number of pages how in depth one can get but still I expected a more critical examination of the contradiction of Ellington's public persona w/ his spirituality and how he reconciled these contradictions. That said, I still found Steed's argument convincing, especially his leading up to his sacred music. This is especially a good book for the new initiate to Duke Ellington.

The author's knowledge of Duke Ellington, and descriptions of his compositions is impressive. After studying Ellington's life and compositions through this book more closely, in his music, even when it is not overtly religious, one can quickly see that Ellington did indeed work out his spirituality through his music, as this author so convincingly argues. Of especial interest is the author's conception of spirituality and her deep artistry of both genuinely recognizing Ellington's and making that connection with his music, and how both shaped and influenced his life. This is not a scholarly tome, but rather a wonderfully quick, short read. As one of many old Ellington fans, my guess is that Duke Ellington would have smiled brightly and given his big stamp of approval to this book.

I just got finished listening to the new CDs of Duke Ellington's Sacred Music, picked up at Borders. Wow! While I was listening to this great stuff I was reading this book. And Wow! again. If you want the nitty, gritty, the lowdown, or dope so to speak, on the Duke you'll have to go somewhere else. Miss Steed does give you the whole story but her emphasis is on his work, his artistry, and his legend--what the Good Man left us with--and his Sacred Music, which he said, was not his best work, but his most important work. And it was real, man, this is what I was looking for, someone who really had something new to say about The Man, and knew what they were talking about! Buy this book and get to know the Duke and the man behind the legend.

I just recently joined a book discussion group and last night, during my first meeting we were discussing Janna Tull Steed's new book "Duke Ellington: A Spiritual Biography." In just 192 pages Steed traces Ellington's development from a piano player to bandleader to composer and his truly thrilling and sublime sacred concerts in the last decade of his life. Steed also discusses in depth Ellington's ability to write for the individual voice, or band member, which seems to be, at least partly, what made and marks him as such an extraordinary and perhaps greatest American composer--that and his overwelming dedication to his music and a relentless ability to constantly break new ground.

Steed's grasp of Ellington and his music, particularly Ellington as a composer is tops. She draws on the enormous archives at the Smithsonian Institution but also on extensive firsthand interviews with scores of people who were intimately familiar with Duke Ellington and his music, and especially his development of his sacred music and concerts. It is in the area of the sacred concerts that Steed breaks new ground but also her focus of Ellinton as composer, as well as his oft forgotten important work in Hollywood. Her outstanding achievment is that she accomplished this in 192 pages. Steed covers the entire scope of Ellington's remarkable life and career and her insights are very welcome and as engaging as they are informative.

I picked this book up after reading Joan of Arc in this Lives and Legacies Series. This new book delivers everything it promises. I'm a real biography nut with an interest in a very broad range of subjects (and that's just what this series delivers) but have little time to immerse myself in a 500 or 700 page reading. So it's great to be able to pick up these short biographies, get a great read, and then decide if I want to explore a subject in further depth. But I can tell you with both these books, short as they are (192 pages), they are still very in-depth, scholarly and but still accessible to the popular audience. Duke Ellington was a particular pleasure as I knew nothing about his Sacred music and Concerts, nor have I run across anything that examines so fully the films that him and his orchestra were featured in, and which by the way Ellington had a significant role in developing. Author Janna Steed offers up a terrific little gem with this new book on Duke Ellington.

For me this was an amazing discovery. I read a review of it in a literary magazine in the waiting room of my optician and when I got home I immediately ordered it from Amazon.
What caught my eye in the review were the names of the inhabitants of the February House - Auden, Britten,McCullers... in that amazing year. I knew of their work individually but to read of them living under the same roof was a revelation.What a cauldron of creativity! All against the background of the war in Europe and the period leading up to Pearl Harbour.As I read the book I felt as though I were there. I hope that someone will make a documentary about it or better still a dramatised reconstruction. The two Truman Capote films have blazed the trail.

A friend just recommended this book to me and it's fabulous!!! I live in an artist bldg and it's nothing compared to the energy of Middagh Street. The book is a great read and the research is most impressive. I cannot wait to read the one she's writing about the Chelsea Hotel!

Thomas Wolf once famously said "only the dead know Brooklyn." There might be some truth in that, but some of us know Brooklyn, N.Y.,U.S.A., pretty well,and are still very much alive. Quite a few people are aware of Brooklyn's brownstone belt, that swath of historic houses stretching from the East River to Prospect Park and beyond. Many of these people would declare Brooklyn Heights the ultimate Brooklyn brownstone neighborhood. It's beautiful, and gets scenic views of Manhattan. It's got history galore--an important Revolutionary War battle was fought here;and it's been, and still is,home to a lot of well-known important people.

One little-known fact is that a number of celebrated people shared a house on Middagh Street, in 1940-41, right in the middle of the Second World War. That house, which came to be known as February House-- a number of its residents had February birthdays-- has long since been torn down to make room for the Promenade that provides storied views of Manhattan. But among occupants of February House were poet W.H.Auden, writer Carson McCullers, writers Jane and Paul Bowles,composer Benjamin Britten, and stripper Gypsy Rose Lee.

Writer Sherill Tippens has produced an interesting, pleasantly gossipy book about the house's residents and their accomplishments. Jane Bowles began "Two Serious Ladies," her only completed novel here. The young lesbian Carson McCullers had just tasted, at the age of 23, great success with her novel "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter." She began two other great successes, "The Member of the Wedding," and "The Ballad of the Sad Cafe," between drinking bouts, right here on Middagh Street.

Auden and Britten, both homosexual, but not involved with each other, were being raked over the coals at the time by the British press for choosing to sit out World War II in the U.S. But they were working: they collaborated on the opera "Paul Bunyan,"not critically well-received. Auden who continued to live in the Heights, on his own, to pursue his lifelong, unrequited love for the young American Chester Kallman, was working hard in the interstices of his personal soap opera: He produced "The Double Man" in February House. Britten produced "Peter Grimes;"considered one of the great masterpieces of 20th century opera. Meanwhile, he pursued his own personal soap opera: many critics believe this opera echoes developments with his partner, tenor Peter Pears, at the time.

The most unexpected resident of February House would have to be Gypsy Rose Lee, burlesque artiste. She was talked into joining the fun by George Davis, homosexual himself, fiction editor of "Harpers Bazaar" magazine, whose idea February House was, and who worked hard to keep it alive. Davis had published some of his own writing, but he was best known for the talented writers he kept on discovering.

In Gypsy Lee's case, she brought some money, a lot of common sense,and a cook to Middagh Street. The house's residents needed all the above. Her reward for her support: George Davis, great editor, midwifed her book, "The G-String Murders," a publishing sensation for many years.

George Davis continued to live at 7 Middaagh Street after its time as an artistic commune had passed. After Kurt Weill's death, Davis married his widow, Lotte Lenya, and devoted his life to introducing America to Weill's great works,such as "Three Penny Opera,"from which we get "Mack the Knife."

There are some informative photographs, extensive notes and acknowledgements in February House. Tippins evidently did a lot of primary research, but she managed to organize the voluminous results in a very readable style. February House well rewards the reader.

Sherill Tippins has done an amazing job of finding the significant narrative threads in the chaotic convergence of creative lives that occurred in the months before Pearl Harbor when Harper's Bazaar editor George Davis and British expatriate poet W.H. Auden rented a brownstone on 7 Middagh Street in Brooklyn Heights and actively recruited other creative artists to live with them. Among the co-renters were Carson McCullers who had recently published her highly acclaimed first novel, "The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter," soon-to-be famous British composer Benjamin Britten and his parnter, singer Peter Pears, unpublished novelists Paul and Jane Bowles, Broadway set designer Oliver Smith, writer Richard Wright and his wife, and burlesque sensation Gypsy Rose Lee, who it turns out was the most reliable in the rent-paying department and joined the little "creative commune" on the condition that she could bring her own cook and maid. Her fiscal reliability and drive along with Auden's willingness to take on the unpleasant role of house disciplinarian (collecting rent and other "dues" and establishing and enforcing many house rules) are probably sufficient explanation for why this menage managed to last the two or three years it did.

Tippins wisely focuses her attention on the leading figures (without neglecting to name the many others who partied but did not reside at 7 Middagh--Salvador and Gala Dali, Lincoln Kirstein, George Balanchine, Erika Mann and her brothers Klaus and Golo, to name a few). One passer-through, Anais Nin, christened the dwelling "February House" because so many of the residents had February birthdays. Tippins has a good knowledge of the works of these creative people and is able to see how one of the artists intentionally or inadvertantly influenced a subsequent work of one of his or her co-residents. For example, McCullers was struggling with the novel that would later become "The Member of the Wedding" when she was able to appropriate an experience from Chester Kallman's childhood to explain her heroine's profound sense of alienation and abandonment (Kallman was Auden's lover).

Tippins other great achievement here was her ability to slice through history and palpably recreate the political atmosphere in pre-war New York and to do so in a way that reflects on both British and US perspectives. She takes a good hard look at the criticism expatriates like Auden, Christopher Isherwood, Britten, and Pears faced from the British press and fellow artists who chose to remain in Great Britian during the war. She is similarly insightful in her analysis of the role the Mann family had in trying to get an apathetic America to respond to the European crisis. A lesser writer might not have bothered with these issues and chosen to report only the salacious and saleable anecdotes about the goings-on of the February House residents.

I highly recommend this book to anyone even passingly interested in one of the artists who lived at 7 Middagh Street (you're sure to learn something new), to anyone who ever wondered how great works of art come about, or to anyone interested in knowing how history and art intersect. I'm sure I'm going to use Tippins's Selecte Bibliography as a basis for future Amazon.com purchases.

Sherill Tippins' volume fills a tantalizing gap that fans of Auden, McCullers, Britten, and Gypsy Rose Lee have long wished could be filled. Most overdue is Tippins' portrait of George Davis: failed literary wunderkind; editor extraordinaire (who "discovered" McCullers and got much-needed writing jobs for her and W. H. Auden in the lean months before Pearl Harbor); husband to Lotte Lenya and the catalyst that re-invented her for American audiences in Marc Blitzstein's staging of Weill's "Threepenny Opera"--the list goes on and on. Davis and Auden are central to Tippins' account and to the amazing colony of artists who called 7 Middagh Street in Brooklyn Heights their home in 1940-41. But Tippins gives everyone in that circle his/her due. Her depictions of Auden's rocky romance with Chester Kallman, of Benjamin Britten's coming to terms with his artistic destiny in England, not America, and Gypsy Rose Lee's ability to charm and disarm everyone she met are more than engaging--they are extremely moving.

Tippins' research is exhaustive and impeccable, and she lets her characters speak naturally and eloquently. I could not put this book down and practically read it at one sitting. I was hungry for the kind of information Tippins delivered, and I finished the book with the deepest satisfaction. Gracefully written, carefully organized and researched, and extremely relevant: this book wins on all counts.

I am a big fan of the Doors, and Jim Morrison (went to his grave in Pere La Chaise twice) and I had long been looking for a coffee table book on Jim that was both interesting to look at and a fine read, too. This pop-up book has pockets and slides of letters, photos and mementos so well reproduced they look like originals; it's a must-have for anyone who loves arts and crafts and The Doors! Enjoy it!!

I am a devoted Jim Morrison/Doors fan but wasn't aware of this book until my nephew mentioned it to me while we were at a Ozzie/Rob Zombie concert. I promised to give it to him for his birthday. I bought it from Amazon and before I wrapped it I spent at least two hours going through it. This is the most well-conceived, cohesive, unbelievably put-together book I have ever seen. I could not stop going through it and taking all the papers out of their pockets and reading Jim Morrison's letters to his mother, report cards, letters to Jim from his pastor, teachers, etc. Every insert looks like the original document. I cannot say enough good things about this book. I gushed over it so much I hope my kids get the hint and give it to me for Mother's Day!

Excellent collector's edition book for any Jim Morrison/The Doors fan. Full of never before published pictures, handwritten lyrics and letters by Jim Morrison. A must buy for any Doors fan.

My husband loved this book and all it has to offer. This is for a true fan of The Doors and collectors.

The Jim Morrison Scrapbook *****

With the abundance of material that has been released and re-released and alternately released from the Jim Morrison estate in the past decade very little of it has been any good. It is mostly things that had already been released on one thing or another deeming it pointless to own, but not The Jim Morrison Scrapbook. Oh-no! This is phenomenal and a must have for Doors-geeks like myself. This shows sides of Morrison rarely or never shown.

Chronicling the genius from birth, poet, songwriter, lover, performer, and death. This is a book explaining all of those things about the man, but with actually tangible documents like his will, report cards, letters, his handwritten lyrics, rare seen photos; some of which have never been released to the mass public.

The Jim Morrison Scrapbook is the first in a series of "scrapbooks" being released of famous legends. As of right now a Bob Dylan, and John Lennon version is also available. This is essential for all rock fans! A must read!

Sad, but not hopeless, biographical account of a young musician stricken with a horrifying illness. Heartfelt & honest without being overly sentimental. Written in a captivating & sometimes humorous tone, not witholding any details. I have been reading this as a physician, and will recommend the book to any young patients I have with grave illnesses.

I purchase this book many years ago simply because I was a big ebtg fan. I casually knew what he had been thorugh and felt terrible for him, but was going through the process of losing and then grieving for a loved one.
When I read the book, it offered me a perspective on what life may have been like for my loved one as he suffered illness. What a wonderful gift Ben Watt has given. He writes without self-pity, in his lyrical style without being flowery or glossing over the ugliness of illness. I am so glad that he survived for selfish reasons-the music he (&Tracey) has(have) produced (before and after the illness) has been a diverse gift to the world.
And I am so greatful that he wrote this book. Experiencing the death of a loved one through being a spectator to horrible illness, was, in a strange way one of life's best gifts to me. No I didn't learn to be greatful for my health and all that crap-I learned that true joy comes from giving to another and expecting nothing in return. Ben Watt's Patient, gave me an extra perspective on that experience, and sometimes helps me to remember the life-lesson from it all.
In summation, read Patient for more of Watt's lyrical writing, read it to find a surprisingly good story with plot twists and turns, read it to learn what severe illness truly is. Fascinating. A gift-thank you.

I'd been a fan of EBTG for quite awhile before this book came out. Their soothing music has always been a favorite so I was really interested to see what this book was all about.

It turned out to be a very disturbing account of Ben Watt's freak-show illness, blow by blow. His commentary is riveting and one gets the feeling that he does not feel sorry for himself in the least, but instead follows his own story as if he is an observer who also happens to be its main character.

I was heartened to read toward the end of the book Watt's own musings on what may have brought all his health problems about. Though he left it vague, his illness seems to be among those new "diseases of civilization" caused by many factors in our surroundings that lead to hard-to-define ailments where environmental toxicity and the overuse of pharmaceutical medicines are certainly not to be discounted.

In any case it seems that his passion for music transcended all, and was at least in part a contributor to his recovery. Most of all he deserves a thanks for telling his story, unadulterated. For sure it has made this reader not feel so isolated.

The fact that Watt's story lacks a significant plot (outside of the onset, diagnosis, and treatment of his rare condition) is largely forgivable. For those of us who know Watt primarily as a musician/songwriter, the somewhat static storyline here is acceptable. All that's missing from "Patient" is Everything But The Girl's enlightening bed of music to be heard under Ben's delicately articulated prose. Typical of many great songs, Watt occasionally blurs the line between the first- and third-person narration, and "Patient" is better off for it. Perhaps even better than the great writing, though, is the genuine and intimate portal into the lives of Ben and Tracey rarely afforded to EBTG fans. It's a relatively short read, but each page gives plenty to be absorbed as the result of Ben's crafty alliteration and his uncensored, yet careful, approach to the fog of medical lexicon. Not for the weak of heart--or stomach--Watt's book exacts distinct feelings of sobriety and contemplation...with an ending portrait that expertly convey's his trademark understated hope.

I'll admit I picked this up mostly out of curiosity as a longtime fan of Everything But the Girl. What kept me reading, however, was Ben Watt's skill as a writer. His story is gripping and harrowing, but told with a dry wit and wonderful observations. This book is not just about one man coming to terms with serious illness, but how that experience affected his relationships with his loved ones and his view of himself. This would be a great book for anyone in the health care field to read; it gives you a sense of the patient as a full human being, not just a "problem" to be fixed. Ben Watt's writing skills are as strong as his ample skills as a musician/songwriter. This book has my highest recommendation.