Which book did you buy today?

[Royal Oak]

Robert Graves's "I, Claudius" (or "Clavdivs" as I used to think as a kid. Saying that, i often wondered who the hell "MUFC" was, and why he was always writing his name on walls).

then you would have enjoyed today's conversation over lunch at work more than i did... (the subject was "when did you first realize that "michael jackson" (as read and pronounced in german) and "michael jackson" (as pronounced correctly on tv and on the radio) were one and the same person?" surprisingly many people could contribute their experiences...)

Would that be pronounced something like "Mish-ale Yack-zen" in German? Been a long time since my German O level, and I've spoken very little since.

[Niko]

Robert Graves's "I, Claudius" (or "Clavdivs" as I used to think as a kid. Saying that, i often wondered who the hell "MUFC" was, and why he was always writing his name on walls).

then you would have enjoyed today's conversation over lunch at work more than i did... (the subject was "when did you first realize that "michael jackson" (as read and pronounced in german) and "michael jackson" (as pronounced correctly on tv and on the radio) were one and the same person?" surprisingly many people could contribute their experiences...)

Would that be pronounced something like "Mish-ale Yack-zen" in German? Been a long time since my German O level, and I've spoken very little since.

"Mish-ale" is not bad i guess though ("ch" is of course not "sh" but one of the sounds that don't exist in english), maybe "Misha-ale" comes even closer... (it's a pretty common first name in german as well...) Yack is good (with the "a" pronounced like the "u" in cup), "son" is closer to "phone" (but with a short "o") then to zen, it's a true "o"...(guess you have to be a kid to find that an ordinary last name but then it might work...)

[Enterprise Server]

didn't buy a book today but a big fan of the WPA project. Here are a few images I took of an actual WPA mural in California. These are close ups of a much larger mural.

Very nice! Do you have more...?

[Enterprise Server]

[Chuck Nessa]

Ann and I are both reading Mojo Snake Minuet by someone called John Litweiler. Ann is partial to the character called Shakeaplenty Okun (aka Shakaplenty Harris) and recently is intrigued by Honeypie Weissendruber!

[paul secor]

Ann and I are both reading Mojo Snake Minuet by someone called John Litweiler. Ann is partial to the character called Shakeaplenty Okun (aka Shakaplenty Harris) and recently is intrigued by Honeypie Weissendruber!

Excerpt: http://books.google.com/books?id=jzCqd3rAh...;q=&f=false

[EKE BBB]

Yesterday I ordered Original Hot Five Recordings of Louis Armstrong (Cms Sourcebooks in American Music) by Gene Henry Anderson (Author) & Michael J. Budds (Editor).

[Big Beat Steve]

(Figuring that this thread is intended to be primarily about music books ...)

Currently reading:

Central Avenue Sounds - Jazz in Los Angeles

Next up (ordered and due to arrive any day now):

Louisiana Hayride Years - Making Muscial History in Country's Golden Age (by H. Logan)

Edited August 11, 2009 by Big Beat Steve

[paul secor]

(Figuring that this thread is intended to be primarily about music books ...)

Why figure that? There's a lot more to read about than just music.

[Niko]

(Figuring that this thread is intended to be primarily about music books ...)

Currently reading:

Central Avenue Sounds - Jazz in Los Angeles

how is it? while i have huge respect for isoardi's work and am really thankful that he does what he does i found myself enjoying the oral histories on the web much more than the two books i've read (the buddy collette and the dark tree), don't know, somehow those books were rather dry, had a tendency to repeat themselves and i was also missing some hard information added to the information from the oral histories (like yesterday when i tried to find out how long tommy trujillo was with tapscott, all the book says he moved in when he was 18 but not when he was born or which year that was or how long he stayed, where he went from there...)... could have said this better, i guess - simply, while i find the subjects real interesting, the books bored me quite a bit (though at least i could finish them...)

Edited August 11, 2009 by Niko

[Big Beat Steve]

(Figuring that this thread is intended to be primarily about music books ...)

Why figure that? There's a lot more to read about than just music.

Because we are on a MUSIC forum here. And I doubt that many out there would be interested in reading about my reads in that other main hobby of mine - collectible cars.

Of course I agree there is more to read than "just" music books. But not everything needs to be laid out in public everywhere (though I have no problem with people using this thread to write about the fiction etc. they are currently reading. It just is that I for myself find this beside the point)

[Big Beat Steve]

(Figuring that this thread is intended to be primarily about music books ...)

Currently reading:

Central Avenue Sounds - Jazz in Los Angeles

how is it? while i have huge respect for isoardi's work and am really thankful that he does what he does i found myself enjoying the oral histories on the web much more than the two books i've read (the buddy collette and the dark tree), don't know, somehow those books were rather dry, had a tendency to repeat themselves and i was also missing some hard information added to the information from the oral histories (like yesterday when i tried to find out how long tommy trujillo was with tapscott, all the book says he moved in when he was 18 but not when he was born or which year that was or how long he stayed, where he went from there...)... could have said this better, i guess - simply, while i find the subjects real interesting, the books bored me quite a bit (though at least i could finish them...)

Actually I am progressing quite fast, Niko, and find it very interesting.

I see your point about the shortcomings of presenting history through ORAL history that focuses on telling an individuals' entire life, though, and honestly, I was a bit wary and disappointed when I found out that this entire subject was presented through a string of individual recollections by a selected and limited number of people. I've read "The World of Swing" by Stanley Dance before (which does more or less the same thing, i.e. highlight the Swing era through oral autobiographical recollections by of a limited number of swing-era musicians) and indeed this book presents this subject of black jazz in L.A. up to the 50s in more or less the same way.

Actually I would have preferred finding a book that covers the entire topic much more evenly and thoroughly and from a documentary approach. In particular because such specialized (local) histories fill gaps that really are hardly ever covered thoroughly in other jazz history books.

If it was to be in the form of ORAL history at all, then I'd have preferred the way that Ira Gitler's "Swing To Bop" has been written, i.e. with the structure being provided by the authour and the way HE presents the evolution of history, and the oral testimonials are interwoven to vividly illustrate the aspect of history that is being covered at that particular point of the book. IMHO "Swing To Bop" is unsurpassed in the way oral recollections are put to work to make musical history come alive to the reader.

That said, I'd still rate it a good and recommended book, but as it is (and as you say too), if you want to have a history of Central Avenue itself (separated from an individual's life, i.e. history) you really have to go to and fro in the book and piece a lot of information on Central Avenue as such together from what the individual persons have to say and remember. And it is to be feared that a lot of undoubtedly important and interesting aspects of the OVERALL picture (but that none of the interviewees happened to remember in detail or that were of little importance to their own lives) probably are not covered adequately.

To get an idea of a different approach to the subject (history of a LOCAL or regional aspect of jazz), check out the books on Kansas City Jazz or, as an even more extreme approach, "BEFORE MOTOWN" by Bjorn & Gallert (history of pre-1960 jazz in Detroit). EXTREMELY scholarly (you can easily get lost in the countless footnotes) but extremely thorough and highly interesting for those who want to have a reference work on that aspect of jazz. And this one IMHO REALLY does manage to document and preserve almost everything that might ever be said on that subject for posterity

Edited August 12, 2009 by Big Beat Steve

[AllenLowe]

I'm reading too much these days, dipping into the following: (a lot of this is re-reading):

Lawrence Levine - Black Culture and Black Consciousness

Bio of Zora Neale Hurston (can't remember the author; I'm at work now)

Mystery Train - Greil Marcus - best discussion of the change in hillbilly music through Elvis that I've ever seen

Mules and Men (by Hurston) - lotsa folklore, the real thing - I think I may become a voodoo priest

Guitar Man - can't remember the author; lousy book anyway, the guy doesn't know basic music history

John LaPorta's autobiography - this one is ESSENTIAL for anybody who is reading this; hilarious stuff on Tristano; reminds us about Zita Carno, classical pianist, first Coltrane transcriber, baseball fanatic

Aline Crumb's autobiography - R. Crumb's wife, has the same problems for me as his work - great drawings, mediocre writing -

Kentucky Ham - WIlliam Burrough's Jr - in which the son proves that he is a FAR better writer than the old man -

Kerouac - early stories - interesting, more as autobiography, like Vanity of Duluoz

Mingus - by Janet Coleman, Al Young - the Janet Coleman stuff is terrific -

Edited August 12, 2009 by AllenLowe

[Dave James]

The Road to Woodstock - Michael Lang.

FWIW (two books that feed my WWII Jones):

Hitler's Mountain - The Fuhrer, Obersaltzberg and the American Occupation of Bertchesgaden.

The Reich Chancellery and the Fuhrerbunker Complex

Allen, with regard to Kerouac, who'd have thought this guy practically invented fantasy baseball?

Up over and out

[king ubu]

Ordered two by Greil Marcus, Mystery Train and the one about the Basement Tapes - should arrive any day now.

Recently received that Rock'n'Roll Family Trees book - quite interesting I find though I won't actually "read" it, rather just flip around and pursue some paths.

Also ordered Karl Loewith's autobiography.

[sidewinder]

Recently received that Rock'n'Roll Family Trees book - quite interesting I find though I won't actually "read" it, rather just flip around and pursue some paths.

Didn't know there was a book on it. I only remember seeing the TV series put out by BBC - which gets sporadic episode repeats.

[medjuck]

(Figuring that this thread is intended to be primarily about music books ...)

Currently reading:

Central Avenue Sounds - Jazz in Los Angeles

how is it? while i have huge respect for isoardi's work and am really thankful that he does what he does i found myself enjoying the oral histories on the web much more than the two books i've read (the buddy collette and the dark tree), don't know, somehow those books were rather dry, had a tendency to repeat themselves and i was also missing some hard information added to the information from the oral histories (like yesterday when i tried to find out how long tommy trujillo was with tapscott, all the book says he moved in when he was 18 but not when he was born or which year that was or how long he stayed, where he went from there...)... could have said this better, i guess - simply, while i find the subjects real interesting, the books bored me quite a bit (though at least i could finish them...)

Because of the picture (Obama as the Joker) I though this was from Berigan and thought it was nice to see him posting on something other than politics. Can two people use the same picture?

[medjuck]

I've started Pynchon's new book. So far not liking it as much as I thought I would.

[king ubu]

Recently received that Rock'n'Roll Family Trees book - quite interesting I find though I won't actually "read" it, rather just flip around and pursue some paths.

Didn't know there was a book on it. I only remember seeing the TV series put out by BBC - which gets sporadic episode repeats.

This is the one I got, I think:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rock-Family-Trees-...6969&sr=1-1

Not sure I actually got that 2-in-1 or just a one volume edition, but I don't mind... it ends mostly around 1980 (meaning you only get the beginnings of bands like Talking Heads or Patti Smith Group covered), but that's not a big issue I think, as mostly I'll be interested in exploring more 60s and early 70s stuff anyway.

On the other hand, it seems very "white"... rock in general is white of course (white college boys I guess), but where it gets most fascinating to me is where it crosses over to blues and country and gospel and folk and soul and whatever, such as with The Band, for instance, where Curtis Mayfield becomes and influence etc. That's not part of the book, alas, as the book is sort of straight and person-based, not influence based (it would be a tough job to do such "trees" going by influences rather than by personal continuity... though it would be endlessly fascinating I guess).

[sidewinder]

Recently received that Rock'n'Roll Family Trees book - quite interesting I find though I won't actually "read" it, rather just flip around and pursue some paths.

Didn't know there was a book on it. I only remember seeing the TV series put out by BBC - which gets sporadic episode repeats.

This is the one I got, I think:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rock-Family-Trees-...6969&sr=1-1

Not sure I actually got that 2-in-1 or just a one volume edition, but I don't mind... it ends mostly around 1980 (meaning you only get the beginnings of bands like Talking Heads or Patti Smith Group covered), but that's not a big issue I think, as mostly I'll be interested in exploring more 60s and early 70s stuff anyway.

On the other hand, it seems very "white"... rock in general is white of course (white college boys I guess), but where it gets most fascinating to me is where it crosses over to blues and country and gospel and folk and soul and whatever, such as with The Band, for instance, where Curtis Mayfield becomes and influence etc. That's not part of the book, alas, as the book is sort of straight and person-based, not influence based (it would be a tough job to do such "trees" going by influences rather than by personal continuity... though it would be endlessly fascinating I guess).

Thanks for the info on this - it obviously ties in with that old TV series of the same name, which came out originally in the late 80s/early 90s I think. I remember Pete Frame being credited on the programmes.

Some of those programmes actually touched on the jazz scene of the 60s/70s when people like Chris Spedding and bands such as Hatfield and the North and Egg were mentioned. Quite fascinating to us students of this scene. Will add this to my 'reading list'.

[king ubu]

Yeah, some of those bands turn up, Crimson, Soft Machine as well I think... and yes, it's indeed the same guy from the BBC series (I only read about that), and I think these "family trees" were printed one by one somewhere, originally, and only later on collected in books.

[Niko]

for canterbury bands there is also this site of family trees

http://www.macgraphic.co.jp/ich/

wish they were easier to read but still...

[A Lark Ascending]

Yeah, some of those bands turn up, Crimson, Soft Machine as well I think... and yes, it's indeed the same guy from the BBC series (I only read about that), and I think these "family trees" were printed one by one somewhere, originally, and only later on collected in books.

They were done by achap called Pete Frame in the 70s for a wonderful little magazine called Zigzag that came out irregularly and focussed on album-type rock.

One was spruced up for the cover of the first Fairport Convention compilation:

The inner gate of this had one too from around the same time:

Edited August 27, 2009 by Bev Stapleton

[Erik Weidinger]

Robert Graves's "I, Claudius" (or "Clavdivs" as I used to think as a kid. Saying that, i often wondered who the hell "MUFC" was, and why he was always writing his name on walls).

It is a great book. Do you also have 'Claudius the God'? Also by Robert Graves.

If one do not want to read the book, the DVD (or five if you count) is great. A year ago I had a cold and some fever, my grandmother told me to have a lot tea with rum. It was a rather psychedelic experience.

[BruceH]

"Renegade"--by Richard Wolffe (Don't know when I'll get around to reading it.)