Music Books

I'm sure I'll love this book. Once I receive it. It's been nearly 3 months since I ordered this...Amazon will no longer be the beneficiary of my internet commerce.

Kind of essential lookback to something we'll never see again. All the messiness, sloppiness & amateurism that had me and my pals going all the time to the FE (Friday Night Late Show Only please!). One of few worthwhile rock books.

I love this book. I frequented the Fillmore East 18 times between 1970 until it closed in June of 71. This book brought back so many memories. The Fillmore East was without a doubt the greatest place to see and hear a concert and I miss it. I am glad that I was able to be a part of the Fillmore East - even got to speak to Bill Graham the night of the last public concert. I am very glad this book was put together and anyone who was there will enjoy it. I sure do miss those days - Thanks Amalie!!! Got anymore tidbits - any chance of a Fillmore East Late Show edition?

This book provides a list of the bands playing each night the Fillmore was open! Great historical insight!

The Fillmore East was not only the Mecca of Rock Music in the late sixties and early seventies, it was also the epicenter of all Rock Music, as well as jazz and performance art from the era. Live at the Fillmore East captures the ambience of the era by capturing not only the acts performing on stage, but the audience's exuberance and the backstage scene in wonderful photography by Amalie R. Rothschild. I'd highly recommend this book to all music lovers, like myself, who have an appreciation for the music of Jimi Hendrix, Janis, The Who, The Grateful Dead (many great pictures of the band on stage), Miles Davis, etc.
A special portion of the book is dedicated to the light shows that were so valuable in those days in highlighting the music as it was being performed. If you ever attended a show at the Fillmore East, this book is a must! If you know the reputation of Bill Graham and the Fillmore East and never attended a show there: this book is a must also! Great forward by Mickey Hart and great text by the author. Buy this book and treasure it for the testament of a great, historical era in music.

A pleasure to read this book. I listen to a classical music station which includes interesting facts about the musicians' private lives. One day a guest mentioned that she knew where the host was obtaining these interesting facts. So it is a secret no longer; it's this book. Lives of the Musicians is light reading with approx. 2 pages of facts per musician, so it is not an in-depth look at their private lives; however put it on your "Fun" reading list. It is a highly amusing book and a great source of dinner conversation. Also Check out Lives of the Artists:Good Times, Bad Times (and What the Neigbors Thought)

My daughter has been studying piano for two years and she is fascinated by the people who score the compositions she learns to play. In school she learns about a different composer each month and always wants to know more when she comes home. She also has a love for anything historical. This book was a great addition to our reference collection because it reaches her on several levels. We happened to come across it at the library and, after reading a few entries, we decided we'd like to buy it. Lots of bookstores stocked the paperback edition, but only Amazon had the hardcover in stock. This is the kind of book you really want in hardcover so that young children can more easily flip through the pages and study the humorous illustrations.

The book includes entries on 20 musicians from a wide range of styles, backgrounds, and historical periods. The entries are engaging for adult readers, yet accessible for a younger audience. My daughter is six and was totally engrossed in the stories of Chopin, Mozart, Clara Schumann and others. I know we will come back to this book again and again.

This is a great book! My piano teacher checked it out from the library and loved it so much I had to buy her a copy! The illustrations are adorable and the bio's are so interesting. A lot of interesting stories that really give the great masters a very human quality! I love reading about the musicians that I'm currently playing! If you are into music and want to know just how human they really were this is a great book!

I got this book for my daughter who is a music teacher. I thought it would be a good reference and teaching tool for her.

My daughter's piano teacher gave her the assignment to read about Mozart as she started her first Mozart Minuet. My daughter was 7 at the time, and although she was reading at above 3rd grade level, I was shocked to find that there was NOTHING available on the internet or in her school library that give her information on composers at HER level. I finally found "Lives of the Musicians" and have actually purchased the book. It's just that good. She is able to read about each composer (for the most part the language is about her level, although she DOES need help with some of the words), and each section is engaging enough to keep her attention.

This book is a must for anyone with a child that wants or is assigned to learn about the great composers.

The complete story of a legend: Canned Heat. When you read this book, you are with the band year after year. Great itme for anyboby like the music.

I thought this book was really well written and all the stories told throughout were very interesting. Love Canned Heat and it is kind of sad in a way, but it's good to know what happened. Fito rocks!

Being a serious blues player and fan I've never been partial to Canned Heat's music though I'm pretty familiar with it. I did buy the LP Hooker and Heat, which I like. Alan Wilson was a fine harp player for sure and John Lee Hooker was in good form. I'm not going to run out to buy any Canned Heat CDs now, but after having read this book I'm sorry that I never heard Canned Heat live. I once read a comment about Son House to the effect that he doesn't play the blues, he IS the blues. Canned Heat, more than any act in history, based on Fito's account, lived the blues. These poor devils went through a seemingly never ending litany of tragedy, death, injustice and suffering in their incredibly long existence (which continues to this day) and yet they survived. That, after all, is what the blues is all about. Surviving tragedy with strength, humor, love, and often drugs and/or alcohol IS the blues. Few blues performers (and no bands) have paid the dues that Canned Heat has paid. This makes Canned Heat pretty special in my opinion.
Fito's account of the band's journey through the ups and downs of life and show biz is heartfelt, wise, funny and very well written. The book is the best rock biography I've read in a long time, maybe ever. I found myself really caring about the members of the band including the many who only briefly joined and left. The accounts of self-destructive core members Bob Hite, Alan Wilson and Henry Vestine are tragic and inspiring at the same time. Fito doesn't pull any punches when discussing any aspect of the band, it's members or the many managers, wives, girlfriends, bar owners and fans that the band came in contact with. He's a wise soul who understands human nature very well and it comes out in every page of this informative and entertaining book.

I usually don't like biographies too much, but with Fito De La Para, it's different! It's about one third biography, and two thirds the saga of Canned Heat and it's members, and their ill fates. It tells about the life and death of Alan Willson, one THE greatest harmonica players of his time, and fleshes him out in a way that just listening to the old albums can't do. The same thing happens with "the Bear," Bob Hite, and Harvey Mandel, and each of the later members that replace them. Many, Many great pictures! It's drugs and chicks and death, just like the title says, but Fito retains hope throughout, and is a bouyant narator who takes you on his personal ride from illegal alien to superstar to heir to the "World's Premeir Boogie Band!" I read it all, then handed it off to my Dad, with my brother waiting in the wings to grab it next! Get it while you can!

Written by Canned Heat drummer Fito De La Parra, this book is a tell-all tale of rock and roll excess. Only a Latino could pour his heart out the way Fito does here. His love of the blues, love of his fellow band members, his anguish at the deaths of Hite, Wilson and Vestine are expressed here vividly and emotionally. Of particular interest are some great stories about their most loyal fans; bikers, as well as the usual alcohol abuse, over-the-top drug use, and dalliances with females, some of them groupies, including the Plastercasters, The Butter Queen and sweet, sweet Connie. A must-read for all fans of rock and roll, blues and " the road ".

The Bishop writes and speaks from the heart and from a wise standpoint. But don't get it twisted: He writes as a means of communicating with and empowering those who come into contact with his ideas, not as a way to show off. In other words, he writes so that anyone may understand and appreciate. He's a hip-hop scholar, but it doesn't mean that people need a degree's worth of knowledge to grasp his perspective. I'm looking forward to Vol. 2, which I know is about to come out.

This books touches on the spiritual aspects of Rap and Hip Hop. The perspective of the book examines a viewpoint that many writers have overlooked in past publications. A world view of the Hip Hop spirit, it acknowledges the music and culture in relationship to religion, specifically Islam and yoga as the book look to an inner space. Hip Hop and Politics in the Mix looks to the heart and soul of Hip Hop life.

Adisa Banjoko's "Lyrical Swords" is a "must read." If you are looking for legitimate, first-hand knowledge of the Hip-Hop culture, you will find it in this book. Banjoko has a profound knowledge of the community and its potential to change the political mix in America. His book suggests that the many contemplative, spiritual members of the Hip-Hop community are a political force to be reckoned with in the future. This little gem of a book is written in a refreshing, free-style manner, similar to that of the Hip-Hop culture. While it is written in B-boy style (free-style), it is clearly a uniquely intellectual pursuit. Everyone can enjoy this little gem. It is a bridge between those who understand the Hip-Hop culture and those who wish to understand it.

Maria Carr

This book left me with a feeling to do some good for the world and the people around me, but it isn't a tree hugger testament or anything like that (no offense to tree huggers). It also opened me up to some completely different apsects of hip-hop culture that before I hadn't given much thought to. Adisa continues to lay it down, take advantage of the knowledge that the Bishop has to offer. READ THIS BOOK AND YOU WON"T BE LET DOWN.

Banjoko's book is a smart and critical examination of contemporary Hip Hop culture. His analysis does justice to the culture, discussing all of the aspects of Hip Hop and various Rap genres. His colloquial use of language is fun and easy to read and very engaging. It's also very powerful and moving, especially when he speaks directly to the reader.

What struck me most was his demonstration of the wide distinction between the Rap Industry and Hip Hop culture; how the Rap Industry and Hip Hop media represent Hip Hop culture; and the inherent social implications of their representations. I love that he doesn't over-generalize or blame one party over another; he holds everyone accountable for their actions! As a result his book takes on great credibility and his messages even more repect and importance.

This book is a must read for everyone!!! Reading it would be an ENLIGHTENING experience not only for the lover of Hip Hop and the curious layman, but for all U.S. citizens who are bombarded by the dissemination of Hip Hop images in the media everyday.

The product came to my attention during the Christmas Season.
I could not be happier with my decision to purchase it.
I have read it twice and I cannot count how many times my wife has read it.

If you are familiar with this song and realize that it was written by Mark Lowry then having this book also written by him and him performing the song is just great. He puts as much thought in this book as is in the song. They go hand in hand.

The words to this song is the story of the real Christmas. Such a talented man is Mark Lowry. I understand that it is the only song he ever wrote...with one like this one, who needs another one!

I bought this for myself and then went back and ordered more for Christmas gifts. Everyone who received it has commented on the story and the music. It is also a special treat for me to listen to every Christmas season. I just love it.

This CD and book is THE most beautiful and meaningful gift I've ever received. My husband heard the song on the radio and went searching for it at music store where he found the Mark Lowry book/CD. I couldn't stop crying the first time I heard it. To read the birth of Christ through the eyes of His mother, the most Holy Theotokos, brings a new perspective to this great and holy holiday. I encourage everyone reading this review to purchase one for yourself and one for someone you love.

This is a great book. It walks you step by step through learning to play lead. I am doing thing I never thought I would be able to do on a guitar.

I bought this for my 14yo, along with Speed Mechanics for Lead Guitar. They must be good because he leaves them all over the house after he's used them. They keep moving around, so he must be using them.

Great book to become an intermediate lead guitar player. It starts from the very beginning and covers scales (Minor pentatonic, blues, minor natural and dorian), speed exercises, intermediate techniques (natural harmonics, vibrato bar, tapping), timing up to sixteenth note triplets, basic theory and introduction to improvisation. It has good explanations, 171 exercises and 6 songs with full backing band to solo over that make you enjoy as you learn. Exercises and songs are demonstrated on the included CD.
It uses TAB with standard rhythm notation to make learning easier.
This book will be hard for absolute beginners because, although basic techniques (hammer-on & pull-off, bending, finger vibrato, palm muting, artificial harmonics) are explained clearly, the book includes only a few exercises for every basic technique and focuses on more advanced matters. They'd better start with a basic book as Metal Lead Guitar Primer to learn the basics.
Remember Troy Stetina is acclaimed as one of the best instructors world wide.

I have no idea about playing guitar. I bought this book as a gift for my nephew. He wanted me to order especially this (well known) book and said that it is very useful. Now he is very happy and he uses it a lot.

The Troy Stetina series is definitely the best instruction books series you can find today. It is well-explained, you get great exercises and songs to play and you gradually feel your skills increasing. Highly recommended.

David Niven was not always a star. He had to go away and learn his trade in "B" movies before being allowed to enter the big time. He learnt that trade well but, unlike some who were destined to become greats of Hollywood, he also put his entire acting career on hold whilst he served as an officer in a fighting unit throughout WW2.

This book tells the first half of his life's story and what a story it is. Like every biography ever written, the best bits do not happen at the beginning, so some readers, therefore, might find it slow going at first. Though many will not. But then we meet the rich and famous stars of Hollywood from another era and learn a little about each of these people and their various relationships as we move from one to another and sometimes back again.

Written in David Niven's own hilarious style, there is so much humour here that you "will" find yourself insisting others read this book. In fact, it is so funny - especially his descriptions of the wrong use of English words by foreign movie directors, one finishes the book in the knowledge that had David Niven not become an Oscar-winning movie star, he would easily have achieved great success as a writer.

The underlying theme, of course, is David Niven's life and, as one reviewer has already said, this book leaves you wishing you had met this man. Me too.

NM

Celebrity autobiographies are exercises in exhibiting the overexposed. However, dignity and discretion are assumed by the reader. Consequently, the author is oblidged to spend the entire book repeating, in essence, "I don't mean to brag but..." Also, celebrity autobiographies are famous for their creativity. David Niven's is pretty par for the course. I doubt if more than 25% of the incidents included happened exactly as described, if at all. All the better for the reader. The truth is usually rather dull or unpleasant. The narrative itself is very readable in a relaxed chatty style. Who knows if he even wrote it himself. You never know. Maybe he wrote the bare bones out and gave it to a ghostwriter to pad it and make it sound like "David Niven" wrote it. Wouldn't be the first time. Who cares? It's a fun story filled with famous people being interesting.

David Niven was not always a star. He had to go away and learn his trade in "B" movies before being allowed to enter the big time. He learnt that trade well but, unlike some who were destined to become greats of Hollywood, he also put his entire acting career on hold whilst he served as an officer in a fighting unit throughout WW2.

This book tells the first half of his life's story and what a story it is. Like every biography ever written, the best bits do not happen at the beginning, so some readers, therefore, might find it slow going at first. Though many will not. But then we meet the rich and famous stars of Hollywood from another era and learn a little about each of these people and their various relationships as we move from one to another and sometimes back again.

Written in David Niven's own hilarious style, there is so much humour here that you "will" find yourself insisting others read this book. In fact, it is so funny - especially his descriptions of the wrong use of English words by foreign movie directors, one finishes the book in the knowledge that had David Niven not become an Oscar-winning movie star, he would easily have achieved great success as a writer.

The underlying theme, of course, is David Niven's life and, as one reviewer has already said, this book leaves you wishing you had met this man. Me too.

NM

Let me explain what I mean.

First of all, from the very beginning pages of the Book, I could sense the smooth flow of thoughts, pouring out of MAN Niven, not ACTOR Niven.

Second, I could also feel for MAN Niven and what he went through in his youth and early manhood.

David Niven is a born storyteller. He should have dared direct movies as well. He would have succeeded splendidly because one of the very first requirements for a director, both on stage, as well as on camera, is to know how to tell a story, and tell it in a coherent and organized way.

That he had chosen not to do it, means that he was aware of his limitations and probably preferred to stick with what he knew best: acting.

I bought this book just by chance at Heathrow, while traveling to New York, feeling bored to death by the many security checks and formalities to be undergone these days, in order to be able to travel from point A to point B on the globe.

I had absolutely no idea what it was all about, but the title intrigued me, also because I had heard about it some years ago, but didn't pay appropriate attention to it at that time.

So, here I went and bought it. Finally on board of my flight carrying me to the U.S., I opened it and before I knew better, I had already landed at JFK having read half of it.

I could have blasted the pilot for that, but it wasn't his fault. I am a slow reader. I have to savor all the finesses contained in a book, given that the same is worth the effort. Believe me, "The Moon Is A Balloon", is such a book.

During my entire stay in the U.S. I carried the book around and kept on reading it - I should actually say - devour it. When I finally came to its end I felt disappointed.

Not by the book and magnificent tales and accounts it contains, but having come to a point where there was nothing more to read.

This is a book that will leave you with a "hunger" to read more about MAN David Niven and what he has to say about his experiences.

It is not just what he says, but how he says it.

The descriptions of the people he met, the places he visited, the moods and colors of his world, all come to life vividly.

Perhaps because I am a stage director, interested in directing movies, I may have a distorted vision on this, but I could actually visualize what David Niven was describing.

Various wild images a la Charles Dickens, especially at the very beginning of the book, sprung out of my mind (even "The Turning of the Screw" popped up - go figure why...).

Then, while he was describing his experiences with the schooling system in England, I visualized sorts of crazy images half-ways out of "Goodbye, Mr. Chips", mixed with "Blackboard Jungle" and/or "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" - the male version that is.

Later the encounter with his first love affair (I won't reveal more about it, you must read by yourself), I had flashes of "Of Human Bondage" and "Great Expectations".

His Malta adventure in the Army, almost sprung out from very early forties war movies, or thirties movies with Clark Gable.

Now I realize how deformed my professional mind is, but indeed I could feel being transported there, in his "Balloon", in his world, and felt part of his tragicomic life.

David Niven takes you by the hand and leads you into his secret garden, in which you discover the ugly sides of life, but also the very splendid tiny little pleasures that make his and everyone else's life pleasurable and indeed, worth living.

It is funny to think that David Niven's "Balloon" closely resembles to the one Jules Verne's created in "Around the World in 80 Days", and while this was a total work of fiction, Niven's own takes you much farther, than just around the world.

It takes you into a lesson of lived life, told by a human being who has truly learned from his mistakes and learned from them what life is truly all about.

The lesson though, never comes from a pulpit, it comes as a highly entertaining and fascinating account of experiences, at times very funny, at times very grim, but never, never boring.

I was stunned to finally witness that even a person like Niven, that was alive for most of my lifetime, could still enthrall and grip me with his writing style.

I usually have always avoided reading modern authors, or biographies of modern personalities, except maybe Science Fiction books (Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury or Arthur C. Clarke), since they all seem to resemble each other.
It is a continuous ego-trip with lots of whining and gossiping involved, but no true and genuine life experience and wisdom shared, and if is at all shared, it is in the form of "...let me tell you how to change your life, into a successful business-like one...".
Lots of preaching from insignificant and dull people I wouldn't even like to meet in person, even if I had a chance to do so.

David Niven never preaches, he just tells you how it was and the ways he managed to work himself out of trouble and into a very useful and respectable life.

I absolutely love his book.

Alas, David is not among us anymore, because if he were alive today, I would absolutely want to know and meet him in person, and perhaps even work with him.

I am over fifty, but I get a sense that with a person like him, I could still learn a lot in matters of life and how to survive even the most adverse of situations in it.

Dear readers, allow me to suggest this book to all of you. You won't regret it. This is not just another boring autobiography.
This is a man's heart opened up to the world, for the best and the worst.

David Niven's soul lies in his lines and comes alive when these lines are read.

Bless you David, wherever you may be, my thoughts are with you.The Moon's a Balloon

I just want to quickly add to all these other five-star reviews that this is one of the most inspirational books I have ever read. David Niven candidly bares his vulnerabilities and lets us in on the obstacles and hurts he endured. I read this at a time that I felt I was drifting and this made me feel much better. There are amusing stories about Hollywood and the rest of the world in the old days. Blessings to David Niven. It's a breeze of a read and I envy those of you who have it yet to enjoy for the first time!

When I received this book, I was mildly interested, having been a Beatle fan in my youth. I had not really followed the career of George Harrison post-Beatles, though I was aware of his bigger hits, and enjoyed his music. I had the generally accepted view that Harrison was a bit eccentric, reclusive, and mysterious. I was, therefore, not an intense Harrison fan, and not very educated about his music.

Having now finished the book, I feel so much more informed. Simon Leng writes excellently about George's music and what was driving it, as well as it's importance in Harrison's life and faith. Simon has been meticulous in his research, and sensitive in his discussion of a private and passionate man. Though he has far more musical knowledge than I, I found the book easy to read, and fascinating in it's detail about every song written or recorded by Harrison in his solo career. So much so, in fact, that I am off to buy a George Harrison album or two! Thanks, Simon.

I was given this book when I was convalescing in hospital. To be honest I would not have chosen a book about the life and music of George Harrison. However, from the very first chapter I found myself being drawn along a path of exploration about the life's work of George, a person whom I now realise had a tremendous influence on the musical tastes of my entire generation (I'm 52) and the generations that have come after me.
Sure, before reading the book I knew who many of the influential characters were such as Ravi Shankar, John Barham, Eric Clapton and of course the Beatles. But I didn't realise how closely their lives were intertwined and how their geniuses spun off each other.
Most of all I was struck by the spiritual influences on George. How he wasn't really searching for money or fame. It was the music and it was pursuing excellence as a means to knowing one's inner self.
Simon Leng's writing is concise, witty, even satyrical in places. At the same time the author shows himself to be very learned, thoroughly researched and very organised in terms of discography, cross references and building his line of argument in a chronological timeframe.
'The Music of George Harrison : While My Guitar Gently Weeps' by Simon Leng is easy to read, it keeps your interest and it leaves you with a feeling of enrichment.

Having already read a number of books about the Beatles I was hoping for a good insight into George Harrison and his music and this does not disappoint! The author provies an excellent balance between being informative about Harrison's music without falling into the "trainspotter element" of writing about an artist. The book is well researched and highly entertaining with a pleasant dry sense of humour. Especially interesting are the details of Harrison's early work and influences and the Clapton connection. If you are looking for a god insight into Harrison's work or dimply a damm good read, then look no further!
Highly recommended!

Not only does this book tell about George's solo work in non-technical, easy to read language, it also gives some great biographical information. In writing about his strenths as well as his shortcomings as a songwriter, singer, and musician, Leng neither idolizes nor condemns, but portrays George as a human being who made mistakes like everyone. His respect for George and his work clearly comes through. I highly recommend this book!

When I received this book, I was mildly interested, having been a Beatle fan in my youth. I had not really followed the career of George Harrison post-Beatles, though I was aware of his bigger hits, and enjoyed his music. I had the generally accepted view that Harrison was a bit eccentric, reclusive, and mysterious. I was, therefore, not an intense Harrison fan, and not very educated about his music.

Having now finished the book, I feel so much more informed. Simon Leng writes excellently about George's music and what was driving it, as well as it's importance in Harrison's life and faith. Simon has been meticulous in his research, and sensitive in his discussion of a private and passionate man. Though he has far more musical knowledge than I, I found the book easy to read, and fascinating in it's detail about every song written or recorded by Harrison in his solo career. So much so, in fact, that I am off to buy a George Harrison album or two! Thanks, Simon.

Weather you in the business or getting into it, this book is essential. Even if you have a lawyer. Good insight...

This book is so crammed with info and knowledge coupled with insight into practices of the industry and courts its like attending a credited law school.With basic torts and concideration of all parts and many elemental workings of the industry.It is a must have.

This is comprehensive & each chapter was written by another expert, so you're bound to like something!

This can be a substitute to the book: "Everything You Need To Know About The Music Business" (Donald Passman)

This book was a required text in my Legal Problems of the Recording Industry class. I'm passionate about the music industry and can give a good debate, but am far from being a "legal mind." This text is great for those, like me, are not the best students in legal courses. This text breaks down real contracts/ agreements into easy to understand formats, section by section. If it wasn't for this text I wouldn't have made an A in the course. This book should be required reading for those in the music business as well as the musicians who will be facing these agreements. Plus, it's like my professor said 'remember, everything is negotiable - don't get screwed in your contract!'

People think music business is all about creation and keeping the fans happy. Well it mostly is but a young artist can become stuck in all that legal stuff. For somebody who is new that can be very difficult and people could take advantage of this and try to cheat you so this book is about all the legal involved aspects of the music business. This book will offer you a detailed explanation of everything that concerns the people in the music business. After you read it you will know what to avoid and understand the issues as they are explained in an easy and franc manner.

This revised edition of a musician's classic handbook offers even more exclusive interviews and information on what really happens behind closed doors, revising thirteen chapters covering all aspects of the music industry, from royalties and attorney fees to the costs of bookkeepers and managers. Musicians and any library catering to them will find Borg uses his experience as a touring artist and music educator to provide key insider's observations about common and hidden pitfalls throughout the industry, making for an invaluable set of lessons.

This book basically covers everything you need to know as a professional musician, from club gigs to arena rock. The information is clearly and concisely laid out, and in a way that is very easy to navigate. I would greatly recommend this book to any aspiring musician.

This book is full of tons of usefull information,and can serve a guide to help non experienced musicians on their journey.

This book is absolutely great if you are working in, or aiming to work in the music industry. The information is extremely useful and helpful, and without reading it, I would not have known about many of the important topics and common terms that this book covers. I highly recommend this book, it is easy to read and interesting and a must have for anyone who wants to get into the industry.

Bobby Borg has penned an excellent guide to the music industry. The 288 page soft cover book, "The Musician's Handbook" is jam packed with clear information on what you need to do to accomplish your goals.

Building from Chapter 1: Important Tips to Consider On Your Path to Success to the Afterword: The Future of the Music Business, Bobby lays out the tips, techniques and tools to help you build your career and avoid many of the pitfalls of the music industry.

While there are a number of music industry books that describe how to deal with copyrites, finding the key players in your career, what to look for in a record deal etc Bobby takes it a step further. In the first chapter, Bobby shares dozens of tips to help you get started - the basics. For the new musician starting out Chapter 1 is a true gift that can save literally hours of time. When my singer/songwriter daughter was making her first demo we felt showing her range and diversity was key. Even though she knew she wanted to sing pop, we spent hours looking for songs that would show how she could "sing everything". We weren't sure how many songs to include on her CD, what her press kit should include etc. We figured this out through trial and error and asking lots of questions, had we had Bobby's book we could have saved a lot of time. My daughter has been approached with tons of offers both real and fake. We have learned to not take things at face value, to check everything out, to get things in writing. We spent a lot of time that you can save by reading the first chapter. This first chapter also includes info on what makes a song a hit, networking and more.

Though the book explains some pretty complex information, Bobby writes in a clear, easy to read style and includes lots of anecdotes to spice up the text. Each chapter covers the topic in great detail. The chapter on Live Performing and Touring for example, covers the nitty gritty of the costs and realities of live performing. Information runs the gamut from the early stages of touring to touring in the big leagues, different ways you can be paid, contracts and riders, getting the gigs and more. And it includes fascinating little sidenotes like the Top Ten Rider Countdown (Iggy Pop requested a Bob Hope impersonator be backstage!)

Chapters include Chapter 1: Important Tips to Consider on Your Path to Success Chapter 2: Band Membership Chapter 3: Contract Employment and Self-Employment Chapter 4: Solo Artist and Employer Chapter 5: Your Attorney Chapter 6: Your Personal Manager Chapter 7: Your Business Manager Chapter 8: Your Talent Agent Chapter 9: Your Record Producer Chapter 10: Record Royalties, Advances and Deals Chapter11: Music Publishing Chapter 12: Live Performing and Touring Chapter 13: Merchandising Afterword: The Future of the Music Business. Borg also includes an index at the back, so you can access the information you need quickly. A number of resources are given throughout the text; where to share your music for podcast purposes, unions, performining rights organizations, recommended books etc.

Overall an outstanding resource for the new musician and an excellent guide and sourcebook for the accomplished artist. Highly recommended!

~ Lee Mellott