Music Books

This book is beautifully written. The words on the page flow like musical notes. This book is a valuable addition to any home or school library and a great way to introduce children to the types of musical instruments. I love the way the book introduces the instruments one at a time and gives the vocabulary for the number of instruments in the orchestra each time a new instrument is added (solo, duo, trio, quartet, quintet, etc.). At the end of the book, the author shows how all of the instruments join together to create music "that we all adore."

Great picture book to use in the classroom from preschool through 4th grade. For 3rd through 4th graders, you could use this book as an engaging tool to discuss musical terms, context clues, alliteration, adjectives, prefixes.

This is my 4 y.o.'s favorite book. We had read it to her so many times that she has memorized it. She can name every instrument and tells me which ones she likes the best. A plus plus.

I purchased this for my Kindermusik class, and the only thing that would've made it better would've been a real violin. It is a charming book, and it wasn't too long even for 3 year olds.

My just-turned-3 year old likes this book, and so do I. It has deepened his curiousity about and enthusiasm for instruments and the music they make, and it has inspired him to play his miniature guitar both as a 'violin' and a 'cello' (though he knows he needs a bow!).

I like the illustrations very much, and the verse is also fun to read.

I was very happy that he liked the book so well--when the Amazon package arrived, he was hoping for a book about excavators--his other passion! I'm glad to say he was not at all disappointed, once he saw the pictures.

This book is one of my standard gifts to families with small children. It's a great way to introduce them to poetry, music, and art. It's a great vocabulary builder, too--I've read it to my 4th-6th grade choir and had to explain musical terms to them. Fun sounds and interesting pictures to explore!

Reading (or more accurately, experiencing) this elegant volume of memorabilia recalls dead ideals, not just of decorous celebrity behavior, but of the quiet conviction of deeds rather than publicized pronouncements from Hollywood's movie stars. This book captures a sense of a life lived in the limelight, but never blinded by it, and conveys an archetypal and emotional journey through a minefield of tempting superficialities, all the way to self-discovery and meaning.

It's moving to see and feel how Audrey Hepburn's roles reflected her best selves at every turn -- resolutely alert, attuned, engaged, yearning, striving, feminine, human -- and be reminded of how a life can really be exemplary, after all.

This is a wonderful collector's item for Audrey Hepburn fans. I opened the box, and, after looking through the pages, had no other words but "wow". There are 34 removable items of memorabilia. These include a partial script from Breakfast at Tiffany's, many letters to and from Ms. Hepburn herself, postcards, pictures, photo albums, tickets of movies and programs of plays she's done, and many many other items.

The book is done in a scrapbook format, and beside all of the removable items, has countless photographs with many of them having never been published or from her friends and family's private collections.

This book could have easily cost over $100, and I thank the ones who have put it together for allowing the fans to be a part of such intimate moments and items.

this is a very cute and amazing book about audrey hepburn.. it is a treasure,must have item.

With nearly thirty films tackled and under her belt, Audrey Hepburn is no doubt a household name, but how many really understood what went on inside of the personal life of Audrey Hepburn?

This stunning compolation of extrodinary copies of documents, family photos, playbills, and ticket stubs is a credit to her name. It shows her eloquence, style, grace, poise, and even some mystique as we get to experience a sliver of her private life, without invading the caverns of her mind.

Although not written from an autobiographical standpoint, it is easy to immerse yourself in her thoughts, because of the personal letters and dictations. Erwin writes about her beautifully, and lets the reader experience her life in the best way possible.

As a fan of Audrey Hepburn's, I read the information about this book and anticipated it's arrival. However, it arrived in a shrink-wrapped package with the corners dented badly. Since it is a type of scrapbook, the corners dramatically took away the beauty and quality of the book. The content of the book includes life-long pictures and memorabilia of Audrey's life and are a good representation of her experiences and choices. And so I would recommend the book without the mishandling.

While the song is adorable and the pages are nice and sturdy, what I really like about this book are the illustrations. They are vibrant and clear and my son loves looking at this book over and over again. He is 16 months, so it is easy for him to point out animals and ask what they are. I like how the whale goes from being a baby, to a larger whale in the book and how different pages are shown with different perspectives. One page has a view from where the bird is flying in the sky--so the bird is large and the whale is small because he is swimming in the sea below. Another page has a broad view of the icebergs, sea, sky and northern lights. I am very impressed with the clarity and creativity of the illustrations in this book--and of course the song itself is fun to sing!

I love this book and the accompaning CD. My grandsons who are now 13 had this book when they were infants, and were still singing the songs when they were 5. I gave it as a gift to my God Daughter, and this one was a gift for my first Great Grandson. Raffi writes stories and songs that children should grow up with. I am positive I will give this book and CD again.

This book is great even if you don't know the music. My little guy 'reads' along while listening to the Raffi CD, but you don't need the CD to enjoy the book. The pictures are terrific for the child and adult. My son insists on reading this every night at bedtime, and that's okay with me!

My sister is a principal and highly recommeded this book for my grandchildren. THey love to read and sing so what better gift than to have it all wrapped into one.

Baby Beluga is a fantastic book for the class I work in. The three and four year old special ed students LOVE this book along with Raffi's music being played. I strongly recommend it for any child. I'm purchasing the book and the CD for my nephews who do not have any disabilities because I know they'll love it too.

I have yet to read this book, but it is in good condition.

This book is one of the best autobiographies I've ever read. Not only is it filled with details of Patti's life, it also takes you to the lessons that she's learned from the time when she was a shy little girl, to life as a megastar. This book will truly touch your heart as you cheer on the diva that is Patti LaBelle.

Patty LaBelle is amazing. She has an incredible voice, a career full of ups and downs, and can bring down the house in concert. This book is just another triumph for a lady who deserves all the accolades she receives. With absolute honesty, she reveals so much about her life--from sexual abuse to the fear of dying of cancer like her sisters and good friend--you feel that Ms. LaBelle has given you all that she can. Throughout her life, she has faced a good deal of challenges but has emerged with a positive attitude about life and can still entertain with the best of them. I have seen her in concert 3 times and she blew me away each time. This book does the same. After reading the dismal biography of Aretha Franklin (From the Roots), I realized what a gem this is. If you wanna read a really good book about an incredible entertainer, give this one a go. Its worth every penny!

PATTI takes you on a journey-from the Bluebelles, to LaBelle and through her solo career. She talks about her battles with her self-esteem, record companies, men and THE TRAGIC deaths of sisters. Did you know that NONA had a nervous break down during one the LaBelle concerts-and was taken to the hospital in restraints? WOW! This lead to the break-up of LaBelle! Pick this one up and you'll find out much more.

Congratulations, A reflective autobiography with some depth and truth. Before reading Patti's, I read Aretha's, which I ultimately felt like tossing in the middle of the street! Great job! I thought the book was very inviting to the personal side of Patti. I have always admired how forthcoming she has been with the public in relation to her late sisters. This book can truly encourage one to live life, as well as love and appreciate life.
However, there are a few things I would like to clear up, which I found inaccurate or inappropriate. The Jackie Wilson episode I found rather distasteful, particularly since he is not around to defend himself(it was o.k. to slander Al Green). Also, as I had to do with Gladys in her book, I need to clarify a few inaccurate points you raised in your book. In reading your relationship with Atlantic Records in the 1960's, one is left with the impression your group wasn't given a fair shot due to the success of Aretha. Well, that's not totally true, since you were with the label two years before she signed on. It just wasn't your time yet! Now is your time. You sound greater and look more beautiful than ever. You have a wonderful spirit in which people adore you far and near. You are truly a blessing. Wonderful job.

yeas the most popular book on sir winston but mistakes are in it and volume three will appear after a 20 years break .

The finest biography of Churchill (and one of the best biographies of anyone else) ever written. Manchester is unequaled in providing a balanced, thorough and readable product. Only down side is that he died before completing the third and final book on Churchill.

William Manchester is a tremendous writer. A man like Churchill deserved to have his biography writted by a writer as gifted as him.
I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting, not only to learn much about the great man Churchill, but also to have their mind expanded and stretched by excellent literature like this. There are not many people writing like this today, sadly enough.
This is not an easy read, in fact most people will do well to have a dictionary near by - but it is worth it. Drink deeply and you will learn so much more than you would have thought possible about the world from the late 19th century up through WWII.
Drink it up! 6 stars.

This is a very good analysis of Churchill, a thorough and colorfull portrait of a man I consider to be the greatest man of the 20th century. I have only two complaints, first I would have liked to have known more about his life with his wife and children. I also would have liked to have known what he thought of the Lusitania sinking. Not only does Manchester say nothing about Churchill's role in this business but the word Lusitania is not mentioned at all in nearly 2000 pages. Very strange. The letters of Churchill point out the chivalrousness and romantic nature that the public has not seen. All in all - very good and well worth a good read.

This fully lives up to its reputation as perhaps the best biography ever written. Manchester does a peerless, masterful job filling in the background colors and giving a complete picture of Churchill from a young man into his early fifties. As Manchester emphasizes, this background was essentially the decline and fall of the British Empire and the aristocracy who ran it. Manchester's main point, that Churchill was a Victorian who also lived in the twentieth century, is brilliantly made. Churchill himself is presented in all his perplexing, influriating splendor: an impetuous, charming, ambitious genius who all too often jumped out of the plane without a parachute. If you wish to know why he was rejected by the British people at the polls just after his greatest triumph (and job done) this fascinating volume of his early triumphs and memorable failures is indispensible (answer: they needed his boistrous energy in war but they didn't trust him in peace

This CD set took me from working the night shift at our town's local 7-11 straight to the lofty heights of the music business. Its a downright miracle. Its no coincidence that every single other reviewer gives this CD series 5 stars and as well as heaping on well deserved praise. If I didn't know Ty's work to be the message from God that it is, I would question the veracity of all these testimonials and wonder whether Ty or Ty's mother has a lot of email accounts. But since we know that's not true, we can go on enjoying the veritable gold nuggets of wisdom about today's music business crammed onto these CDs. I only hope that we can get Ty to turn his mighty mental powers to solving some other of the world's great challenges such as poverty and disease. If he does, these calamities won't stand a chance.

Are you tired of getting turned down by music companies? I was. I got this book from a friend for my birthday. So, I figured, `what have I got to lose?' The book surprised me. Cohen gives you everything you need to know about getting a start in the music industry. It has useful contacts and insider tips that give you an edge on the everyday musician. If you're serious about your music and want to get it in the right hands, get this book.

Ty Cohen has done it again. He has made the music industry so easy to understand and anyone can use the strategies that he provides. Cohen is able to show us all that being a musician with your own record label is possible and easy. Through a simplified process, any aspiring musician can implement these plans and put them into action within 21 days. If you are in the music industry, there is no better guide for getting a record label running on a small budget but still be successful and make money. My business is in a better place since "stumbling" across Ty Cohen's resources.

Thank you for putting together this resource for the music business. It certainly has given me some additional contact info and some other little surprises I'll keep secret.

The e book will be on my desktop to compliment some other resource books I have aquired in the last several months.

Thanks Ty for a great resource...

Lou
BackStage Pass

Great resource for any musicians out there that need to get their product into the right hands. Loaded with tons of useful contacts for all aspects of the music business from sales,distribution, legal etc. Easily downloaded and excellent customer service form Ty Cohen and his team at Platinum Millenium!

This was a good read, full of helpful info and contacts. A bit lengthy but other than that is was cool.

Has a lot of helpful himts for how to get your music out...

Book arrived so quickly and is in pristine condition, thank you thank you thank you :-D

This is a great book full of contacts and resources where you can get exposure for your band. The majority of the book is a convenient collection of contact info such as email addresses, postal addresses, phone numbers and websites. There's also a helpful "how to" tips section. I recommend buying this item.

If you are a independent musician, you can't afford NOT to have this book. This book is incomparable. I have made so many contacts and have been introduced to so many new services and and products. I am currently using to services to help aid in the distribution of my music that I found in the Indie Bible. The money I saved in one month, paid for the Indie Bible. Then you have the contacts. UNBELIEVABLE!!! These contacts are so complete and organized that is hard to imagine how the author did it. It has every radio station that will play your music, plus every written and online publication that will review your music. I will never let an edition slip by me.

We love the upbeat original songs and my 2 1/2 year old requests this cd to be played when we're getting bored in the house. I came home one day to find the kids dancing with our nanny. Needless to say, whether for signing or pure enjoyment it is a great product everyone can enjoy together. Parents will find that the songs are easy enough to remember to sing along and practice signs when changing diaper, feeding time, bath time, etc... which are perfect routine activities to introduce signs to your baby and toddler. As an instructor who has seen participants enjoy the activity book and cd I highly recommend the item. www.sign4baby.com

I use this in my sign language classes I teach to babies, toddlers, children, adults, and special needs. It is a BIG hit, everyone loves it, everyone gets involved, and after class my clients want to purchase one. I have received e-mails after classes letting me know that they just love it and find it very helpful in learning the signs. Parents love the detailed information and illustrations in the book it is very easy to understand and shows what signs to use for babies. Well worth your investment.
www.signsforlife.biz

The pick me up cd is a central component of my early literacy sing and sign program that I offer to preschools and kindergartens in the central and seacoast regions of NH. Sign language combined with music gives students the opportunity to use mulitple processes to internalize vocabulary information. As I subcontract with schools, I have become the students' favorite specialist and have watched them blossom and grow in their signing vocabulary. Students learn by doing and when complimented with music they internalize the information with greater speed and efficiency. If you aren't having fun with this product you need to to rethink what you are doing because this is all about a large dose of fun with learning.

I use this product every week I teach my Baby Sign Language Classes in Houston, Texas and love it. The songs are a little silly, but the kids love them. Unfortunately, I find myself singing them all the time and get annoyed, but they are a great way to practice and get yourself comfortable with signing during daily activities. I highly recommend it!

I love the way the book is set up. A baby in the corner of a picture tells moms what to sign first when starting the songs with their young child. As the child starts to sign back, the basic signs for each song can be signed. They also have additional signs in the corner on the right. So when the child has mastered the basic signs and is ready for more, there is more to teach.
Signing helps children become better readers. This song book is a good start in the process. For more information on how signing helps children become better readers, check out the book Hands on LiteracyHands On Literacy

Much has already been said about the quality of the book. I personally find that the book is a due tribute. I also must say that I have not found something on Kubrick of comparable depth.

On the content side, I would have liked to see more info on the projects that were not realized, especially on "Napoleon". And I didn't find a lot of value on the CD, since it's a spoken track instead of some audiovisual material. Nevertheless, as I said before, I haven't been able to find anything comparable to this book on Kubrick. The written material is of excellent quality, as are the pictures and graphics.

I see that Taschen is issuing a new version for it's 25th anniversary. As I understand it, it will be out on Oct/2008.

In conclusion, I am the proud and happy owner of an excellent piece of work.

I have been a Kubrick fan since I was 7 and saw "Paths of Glory" - it was the only film I ever saw that I NEEDED to know who directed it, and, what other movies of his were out there. That was 30 years ago, and I still keep all his films seperate from anything else in my collection! This book is simply INCREDIBLE! Buy it if you can.....no true Kubrick fan should be without this......it is MIND BLOWING! A true work of art covering the work of a true artist. We will not see Stanley's talent and caliber in any other film maker, at least not in my lifetime. Bravo, Stanley!

If it wasn't for its hefty weight, the book is one of the items I'd take with me if my house was on fire - without hesitation. I can't even imagine how long it took for the Taschen team to assemble this incredible book; it tries to do justice to recollect Kubrick's body of work in the form of a portable archive. Seeing this book in person is an experience in itself. The conceptual design is simply impressive: details like the texture of the binding mimicking that of a real archive is a start.

A CD of a rare uncut interview with Stanley Kubrick included in the book is a real gem. The interview takes place during Kubrick's career in its earlier years, and it provides an insight of the director that no other text interview has been able to accomplish - precisely for the reason that you hear Kubrick's voice and his unfiltered opinions. Then, of course, you have a piece of 2001's film strip as an added bonus. It's just too much for a book! And I say that gratefully.

The first part of the book is filled with glossy stills of all the films made by Kubrick. It's nice, and glossy, but the real reason I purchased this book is for part two.

Part two, or "The Creative Process", is filled with a lot of archival materials for each of Kubrick's films - especially pre-production materials: production notes, correspondences, and etc. You learn a lot about how Kubrick prepares for his films by seeing just a tiny fraction (undoubtedly) of what he does before he actually goes into production - it is one of the reasons that explain the long intervals between the director's releases. In addition, the book has an extensive collection of interviews with the director from various sources. But it is little treasures like the former that make this book special.

If you are a serious fan of the master director that is Stanley Kubrick, this is the next thing to have in your possession after the DVDs. Taschen made a serious effort in paying homage to Kubrick's work as a book publisher, and they have succeeded. They could've made a lazy effort in disguise to simply profit off of Kubrick's name, but they didn't, and for that they have my respect.

Amazon now has this book available for pre-order for an October 1, 2008 release date, for $44.10 from a $70 retail cost. Look under 'The Stanley Kubrick Archives [ILLUSTRATED] (Hardcover)'. I would like information on book dimensions as the first print run was on average 40 by 30cm.

Lucky me! I scored a copy of this and I have to say it is the best book on a film artist I've ever seen. The previous reviewers weren't kidding--this thing is huge! Too large and heavy to be read anywhere but on a large flat surface, but that's not a complaint, unless you're lugging it across an airport like I did.

A spectacular book that you'll refer to repeatedly. I pored over it for hours. The first half is devoted to an incredible array of pristine stills from each film. The second half is focused on every film with a plethora of on-set photos and interviews with cast & crew. The book is helpfully tabbed by film.

A stunning look into one of the greatest of all filmmakers. So well designed that my friends were awed by its beauty. And that 70MM film strip--holy cow! IMHO, it's worth the price for just for that.

Shelby Foote's Stars in Their Courses provides the perfect balance to Bruce Catton's Gettysburg: The Final Fury. While Catton's history unfolds largly from the Union perspective, Foote walks the reader through the same battle from the Confederate perspective. I appreciate Foote's professional attitude. He is careful not to assign undue blame or indulge in excessive "what ifs". Instead he describes the strategic and tactical logic behind the battle, what led to its eventual outcome, and how crucial decisions were made during the fighting. This is a well written book, though, as someone has said, it would have been nice to have better and more frequent maps. Foote is the quintessential southern civil war historian, and you will not be disappointed with this relatively quick read.

Actually sought this out to give as a gift to a very big fan of Shelby. This work is tremendous and for the fan or the enthusiast a brilliant read.

Bought this after I went on a self guided tour of Gettysburg one gray winter day, and wanted to learn more than I did or could remember from Elementary/High School.

Wonderfully written. I just wish there were more of the maps in the book to refer to as he talks about the movements.

Highly recommended

I could write a long review about how good this book is but that would be a diservice to the author. We lost a great historian when Shelby Foote passed. He was a historian who prefered to be remembered as a novelist. As a proud Vermont Yankee, professional historian, and living historian of that period, I tend to get cranky about revisionist views or the whole Sourthern "lost cause" foolishness. However, Mr. Foote, a proud southerner, wrote about the most important event in our nation's history without the prejudice or regionalism, so many bring to the topic. He could write excellent history and tell the story with the readability of a novelist.



We are poorer for his passing but the body of work he left behind on the Civil War will remain some of the must have items in any serious collection of books about that second birth of our nation.



We'll miss you Shelby but thank you for what you left behind.

Foote isn't just a historian who writes, he's (IMHO) first and foremost a writer who really knows his history. What that means is that in his books, you get great narratives that draw you in, but the story stays true to the facts and isn't over-dramatized.

This book strikes the perfect balance between giving enough detail that you can follow the key events clearly, but then not getting so bogged down in details that you get bored or lost in them. He is great about sprinkling in stories that bring in the 'human element' and make the story come alive. I especially liked how he handled the contention between Longstreet and Lee over tactics at Gettysburg.

I'd recommend this book to anyone, but especially to someone who knows a bit about the Civil War but wants to flesh out their understanding of this key battle.

One last thing... the book has no index so going back to find information later is difficult. Why no index?

Sad to hear that Foote has passed on and that there will be no more wonderful books from him like this one.