Music Books

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=)

The Beatles on Apple RecordsThis is more a piece of art than a book. Meticulously researched and beautifully presented on glossy paper this documents those amazing years for the Beatles on Apple.

John Lennon likened Apple to a spinning top that you set spinning and see where it goes. Apple records had some successes and no one could argue with the quality of the Beatles music on Apple. Take this one home, put on the white album and enjoy.

Another great book by Spizer! If you're a collector here's the info you
need. If you're a fan of detail go no further! and it's pure eye candy
as well!!

Amazing book, massive amounts of information on all of the band's Apple releases (from Hey Jude on). This is for the HARDCORE collector, with info on label copy, different pressings, etc. You can skip through a lot of that if it doesn't matter to you, but there's a ton of great info in here. After I bought this one and read through it I had to buy Spizer's other Beatles books. Good lord they're heavy... And absolutely necessary.

I love this book. I met Bruce twice. hes very insightful and knows what hes talking about. Fabulous book, if you want a real deep education in the later 60's beatles albums and conflicts. Once, i thaught i would sit and read it for 5 minutes and i was so caught up in the book, an hour had passed by, didn't even know it. great book. get this!!!

I could not put this book down. It was like reading a mystery novel. Strange thing to say about a "coffee table" book. It not only covers the tiniest details for the avid collector (such as record number, label typeface, and pressing location), but also covers details about when and how the music was made (such as what recording studio was used, the dates the recordings were made, who was in the studio, who played what, etc.). I was lucky to have met Bruce Spizer and get an autographed copy. I look forward to reading his other books.

I am a guitar player. I wanted to get a Les Paul Historic model. They make them now identical to the originals made in 57-60. I bought the book so I could pick out a guitar as close to an original as I could find. The book gave me the knowledge of what the originals looked like and I picked out a guitar that I wouldn't have picked out unless I had the book to work with.

Greg Hough

Beauty of the 'Burst is an overall good book. The photography is excellent, the layout is clear and the printing (critical, since color plays an important part in the discussion of these guitars) is really well done.

The book is definitely for aficionados of the sunburst Les Paul only. What you have are several hundred pages dedicated to one model of guitar, all with the same paint job and hardware. Obviously it's a very special guitar, and those people hooked on LP 'bursts will love seeing all the subtleties between instruments.

There are a couple of areas where I feel the book falls slightly short, but they're minor. In the section following the photographs ("Science Of The 'Burst", where they analyze every aspect of the guitar from the finish to the wood) there are some small factual errors such as the thickness of the maple top-plate. Not a huge deal, but in a book that gets into such minutia and makes such a big deal about the smallest of features, I feel they were obligated to get things like this correct. A person using some of these specifications to evaluate an instrument might be thrown off the mark.

The other thing that slightly annoyed me was the hyperbole used to describe every single instrument. One of the features people love about these guitars is the figured maple top. Some are nicer than others (just a fact of production, not to mention that this was a non-priority for Gibson at that time), yet every guitar is given the "this is the most unbelievable example" treatment. The plainest maple top will be gushed over, sighting something like the "wonderful fading of the color" or the "amazingly straight grain-lines that run the length of the top." Hey, it's some faded paint and wood with grain lines! I was waiting for them to rave about "the incredible way Les Paul's have mass, are affected by gravity and take up THREE dimensions (height, width AND depth)."

Nit-picking aside, it's a very well done book which I enjoy looking at. It also is a terrific collectors tool as well as a nice paean to one of the great, iconic instruments of the 20th century. Recommended.

I couldn't put it down until I read it all.

The delivery was beforehand. The condition is reasonably good. I was so happy that I could surprise my boyfriend on his birthday.

Amazing book! Lots of the vintage burst Les Paul, with photos and specifications. A must have for any Les Paul fan.

My man BFG. Nice tunes , nice beard, real nice cars, but MAN: those guitars are incredible!! Sharp dressed indeed...!

You dont have to be a ZZ Top fan to like this book , that's just an added Bouns . This book showcases both
Billy Gibbons one of a kind collection of Car's , and Guitars . One especially famous Guitar by Houston legendary Luthier Huey "The Axehandle" Wilkinson . I bought 6 of them , and gave them out as Christmas gifts .

Hey if you play guitar you need to buy this book and soak yourself in the aesthetic and philosphy of the Reverend Billy G. If this guy and Little Steven were running the world, (or just the record and radio industries), we would all be a lot better off. Cool cars and cooler guitars... what more do you want??

WOW. Awesome pictures and great stories. My husband is a ZZ Top enthusiast and I am so glad I bought this book for him. It also has some great pictures of cars Billy collected and since my family is a "racing family" this book was perfect! Well worth the money!

I just saw Billy and the boys at the Bell County Expo Center in Texas last week, and they rocked the house like they were 20 year-olds. When I flew back home to California, I had this book that I'd ordered a week earlier on my doorstep. It has lots of great photos and is an easy read.

Billy starts out writin' like a good ol' boy but includes some of them ten dolla' words eventually. He reminds me of my cousins, who always try to fool the city slickers into thinkin' they's just some country hicks but end up with most o' the chips.

Billy's living an interesting life, and he knows how to tell about it quickly, without bogging it down. In short, it reads kind of like a ZZ Top song.

This is an excellent book for learning how to play the blues. It includes music theory and clear explanations of various styles. The accompanying CD is very helpful and ends with 7 full songs in differing styles.

This is a great step by step introduction to blues riffs, chords and solos. I only have two complaints: firstly, it is somewhat inconsistent in the ability level that it targets. It assumes that you can sight read well, transpose into other keys, work out complicated fingering yourself etc, yet it also spends a lot of time on very simple scales and chords. A beginner will be confused a lot of the time, a good pianist trained in other styles will find much of it boring, and someone in between (like me) will alternate between the two states. Secondly, the CD is annoying in that there are so many tracks - 88 if I remember rightly. Every short exercise, even only a few seconds, has its own track, and many have both slow and fast versions.

If you are a beginner, you will need a more comprehensive book (not necessarily blues specific) to help you along. If you are a bit better than that, I would suggest using the book in reverse order. Listen to the full length songs at the end and learn the ones you like. Then work backwards to figure out the building blocks and how to use them yourself.

I'm a blues guitarist and I'm in the early stages of learning to play piano, so I can't give the most credible of reviews of this book yet, but I can tell you that it's chock-full of really, really, REALLY excellent comps and vamps and licks. So far I'm only able to work on the simplest of the stuff early in the book, but I've listened to the CD the whole way through, and it's just one example after another after another of killer riffs, the kind of stuff that makes me think, "YES...that is what I want to be able to play." In all kinds of blues styles.

This is definitely *not* a beginner book. As I said, most of it is still way beyond me. It's not a "here's what the half-rest looks like" kind of book, nor will you find guides for fingering. One of the first signs that told me that this book is still over my head is that it shows chords like, say, a 9th chord, with all five notes shown, in a key where it appears to me that there's no possible way one hand can hit all of those notes. Does the experienced player just hit a broken chord? Is it supposed to be a two-handed chord, even though it's shown in the bass clef, and there are also notes in the treble clef? I don't know.

So this is a book for people who already have some piano playing ability. But the material is terrific, and there's a ton of it. If I can ever learn to play all, or even half, of the stuff in this book, I'll be a happy man.

This is a very well written book. The author does a great job of first explaining a concept and then showing how it can be applied, far better than other similar books I have read. I have found it easy to apply the ideas in this book to create my own riffs.

It would be hard to cover the entire spectrum of blues in a single book, and this book does not accomplish that. What it does well is to introduce a set of commonly used patterns and phrases which can be used to build a basic vocabulary of blues phrases and comping patterns.

If you are on a budget and don't have a lot of free time, but still want to sit down at a party or open mike and wail the blues, this is the book for you. In chapter 2 you get 20 or so authentic left hand patterns. In chapter 3 you learn a variety of chords from basic triads to sharped fifths and ninths with various timing tricks for comping. And you play those over the left hand patterns you learned in chapter 2. In chapter 4 Harrison introduces the grace note technique and takes it thru Dr. John's "famous lick". That's 90% of what you need to play convincing blues. The key is that Harrison keeps everything in two measure units that you can easily combine. You aren't confronted with a 4 bar melody as in some other books, wondering, "Why am I playing this?" This book dosen't cover everything, but if you learn to play the exercises in this book you will sound good. If you have a few extra bucks, buy Tim Richard's book for a complementary approach.

I feel that the book is an excellent manual documenting the brilliant production of CABARET by one of the great theatrical directors of our times. Sam Mendes. It is readible; it's well laid out;includes personal comments and historical facts and notes/interviews; and is an interesting insight into how the show was staged including costume sketches, the conversion of the former NY Studio 54 into a "classy" cabaret, etc. The photographer brings all contents to life and the whole work borders on being a topnotched manual of all theatrical arts.

I just got this book. It is so neat. I couldn't stop reading it. I love Broadway shows, and this book tells so much that I want to know. The pictures in this book are also great! I have yet to see the show but this book almost makes you feel right in the theater. I fyou want a goog Braodway book, this is a VERY good choice!

This book is absolutely delicious. It is filled with gorgeous, glossy photos of the entire beautiful cast, with lots of attention paid to my favorite, Alan Cumming. This book is a must have for any Cabaret fanatic. Even my roommate, who isn't really a fan, couldn't help but read it cover to cover! This book is breathtaking.

I've seen the movie, the revival, and I remember the original production with Joel Grey from my childhood....but nothing ever beats the book! A complete script, with stage directions and brilliantly captured moments of the play; a thick and hearty slice of life backstage at one of Broadway's most fun and intriguing shows-- get it now!

This is the next best thing to seeing Cabaret in studio 54! Pictures of the Roundabout theater production light up this book and tells the story of the revived new musical. This book does not tell the story of the Liza Minelli version, or any of the other Cabaret versions, but of that of the revival. I have seen the new production in person, and can only say that this is the next best thing...and the book even has the whole libretto in it!

A wonderful book. I loved it as a child, and going back to read it as an adult I realize that there are a lot of things that I missed. I remember my teacher reading it aloud in class--wonderful!

The movie, although very nice, has only a superficial resemblance to the book. For one thing, it moves the time a generation or so back. For another, in the book both parents are alive, rather than Caracticus Pott's being a widower; consequently, there is no romance.

I could very well wish that a new movie be made, NOT a musical and following the original plot.

Just like when I was a kid at my moms knee listening to her read this to me I wsa again transported to another time. This audio is great. Kids and adults alike will fall inlove with this audio book. Some what diffrent than the movie staring Dick Van Dyke. which is always a welcome suprise.

It is a charming and delightful story that you will love to read to your children. I read this book to my 6 year old. She loved it!! We both wish we could find more books about this wonderful family and car.

I remember the 1968 movie based on this novel fondly, but had never picked up the novel itself until just the other day. I was surprised at how different the book is. Although Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang herself is very similar in both, the plot of the story is much different. I enjoyed this simple little story, with Fleming's humorous asides, very much. Those asides reminded me of the "Series of Unfortunate Events" books I have read and I would be interested in learning if Lemony Snicket drew from Fleming's story style for his own series. This is a fun, quick story that most kids will enjoy. I do, however, fear that the admittedly crude illustrations in my original edition would not be as popular with modern children.

The story of Caractacus Pott, his family, and that wonderful magical car is one of the best children's stories you will ever read. Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond, tells a fantastic story about Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, the magical flying car that can even turn into a boat! It's a delightful story, filled with crooks and gangsters, and you won't be sorry you bought this fantastic little book. Should be added to every child's bookshelf. Just delightful! The book is so much better than the movie, eliminating that silly Vulgaria story. If you want to read the story Ian Fleming intended, you'll have to buy the book. You won't be sorry.

I finally bought a guitar and started taking lessons. This is the book my instructor teaches from and I can't beleive how quickly it progresses to playing actual songs. It keeps my interest, so I know I'll be flying solo soon enough.

Recently I enrolled in a school of music. I was aprehensive at first (I didn't want to have to practice little children's music) but soon was happy to hear that my instructor uses this book. When I first looked thru the book I could see that it was meant for serious students. I appreciate the methods used here. The music that one must practice is beautiful and I really get a sense of accomplishment when I "get it right". I would recommend this lesson book to all instructors.

This book was originally purchased from a music store in Montreal, Quebec, Canada for my grandson who was visiting from the Czech republic. His music teacher recommended it as a great basic tool for learning to read music and understand the basics of the guitar. With the help of this book he was able to show Joni that in order to be a great guitar player, no matter what type of music, a good foundation in reading music is essential.
After Joni returned home to the Czech Republic, the book was stolen from him. His father sent me the co-ordinates to allow me to easily replace it by ordering it from Amazon. Thanks. (PS, it was on sale at the time and I paid less for this copy than for the original).

This book offers enough exercises to obtain a well practiced hand before moving into harder pieces. Other books seem to offer you building blocks, then show you the pyramide, but miss connecting the two. Shearer does an excellent job of helping all the pieces come together.

this is the ideal next book in the excellent Aaron Shearer classical guitar learning books. I like these books a lot. Very good buy for the price.

Exactly what, I asked myself, is a Diva?

Well, according to most dictionaries I checked, Diva is a noun, and it describes a "distinguished female operatic singer; a female operatic star." Synonym: prima donna

Hmmm. I've noticed in today's usage, Diva seems to be applied to anyone who is at the pinnacle of their career, or knowledge, or special in some other way. Let's find out if it applies here.

Our Diva in this book is one Aubrey James, the reigning Queen of Country, residing at the top of the charts for over ten years. We meet Aubrey onstage at a CMA special. She's exhausted. Her boyfriend pops out onstage and publicly proposes. The ring is thrust on her finger. He leaves, she steps up into the spotlight - and the Diva takes a dive. Total wipe-out.

As she recuperates, she learns she has been cruelly betrayed by a former band member. Her "story" has been sold to a major tabloid. Up to this point, Aubrey has kept her very public life separate from her private life. Now, she realizes she's going to have to open up and talk about the real Aubrey James.

She chooses the venue for her interview, but they change her scheduled interviewer. A person from her past she'd rather forget. Now she faces her past--her personal life--on more than one front.

Aubrey James refuses to become a victim. She is strong. She faces everything head-on. No hiding, no prevaricating. Brought up by Christian parents, at their death, Aubrey moves away from her faith. Yet, though she doesn't realize it, her 'faith' never left her. When things happen to her, accusations thrown at her, she handles them with grace, though she doesn't realize that. Some of those things made ME angry. I wanted Aubrey to lash out in anger, throw something, do something--anything. But she didn't.

And she remains a Diva.

I loved this book. I highly recommend this title, even if you don't reach much Chick-Lit.I believe this is Rachel's strongest book to date It is not a "girlie" book - it is full of depth and rich with symbolism. Get it!

extremely well written. the characters dont feel like they were pushed and forced into being and the conversations and story feels natural. extremely good book and i would recommend it to everyone. i enjoyed the storyline in that it could be read by anyone, man or woman. its a chick lit thats not too romancey.

Diva NashVegas is the touching story of a country music superstar trying to get back in touch with herself, her faith, and her love for music. In the first few pages of the book, the main character, Aubrey James, bursts forth as a glitzy, glamorous star of the stage who has everything that anyone could ask for - love, money, success. But it doesn't take long for the reader to get to know the inner turmoil of Aubrey's life as she has learned to deal with the loss of her parents, the betrayals by lovers, and the duplicity of former band members, all while under the bright spotlight of the public eye. Now, recognizing that there is nowhere left to run and hide from the mistakes and misfortunes of her past, Aubrey decides to face them head on by doing a one on one interview with Scott Vaughn, one of the co-anchors of Inside NashVegas. Rachel Hauck does an amazing job of bringing to life the complex character of Aubrey James whose larger-than-life, diva persona is balanced perfectly with that girl-next-door, down to earth quality that makes Aubrey irresistibly relatable despite her status as a country singing legend. Aubrey's encounters with Scott span the gamut of emotions from embarrassing and nerve racking, to compassionate and even comedic. The moments where Aubrey dreams of her mother will touch the heartstrings of anyone who has ever felt sad and alone and wanted nothing more than to crawl inside a warm, motherly embrace. Turning the pages on the growth of a woman on the brink of a breakdown as she turns into someone enjoying the process of regaining her faith is a joy to witness!
--Amey Libman, Author of Heart of Blue

I loved this book. I read it during down time at work but had to be very careful... due to the fact that I busted out laughing at the antics between Aubrey and Scott. Singed eye-brows, the driving lesson, teaching Aubrey to cook.

I found Hauck's writing to be down to earth, weaved with love and humor. Aubrey was so well-rounded that I could relate to bits and pieces of her personality. Scott was such an easy character to love. He would be a lot of fun to hang with. When I neared the end of the book, I found myself procratinating to finish it. I didn't want the story to end.

I am going to buy this book for my 12 year old niece. I know she will love it.

Diva NashVegas is a good, fluffy read but it's not quite as good as Lost in NashVegas. As a heroine, I found Robin Rae to be more relatable than Aubrey James. Honestly, in the beginning chapters, I didn't like Aubrey very much at all- she seemed too cocky (I realize that she is supposed to be a `diva'- so this characteristic is fitting but still annoying), pessimistic, and at the same time, weak and spine-less (had a hard time standing up to her schmoe of a boyfriend/fiancé/live-in lover). There were more than a few instances where I tried to yell through the book at her for not making a bigger deal about things that were in fact a big deal. Another point of contention was her living with her boyfriend- granted, her faith wasn't that strong in the beginning but, still, for a Christian fiction book it bothered me how sugar-coated it all seemed- it was written and handled in too blasé a manner, as if it wasn't a big deal that they were living and sleeping together. And there was really no remorse, regret, or anything from Aubrey after the fact, never realizing or admitting that it was a mistake.

Still a good quick read but a disappointment after the fun of Lost in NashVegas and the plucky Robin Rae. Although the plot was predictable, I'm not giving up on Ms. Hauck; I just hope the next story in more in the lines of the first and not this mediocre second installment.

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.