Music

What was it like to be John Lennon? What was it like to be the castoff child, the clown at school, and the middle-class suburban boy who pretended to be a working-class hero? How did it feel to have one of the most recognizable singing voices in the world, but to dislike it so much he always wanted to disguise it?

Being John Lennon is not about the whitewashed Prince of Peace of "Imagine" legend--because that was only a small part of him. The John Lennon depicted in these pages is a much more kaleidoscopic figure, sometimes almost a collision of different characters.

He was, of course, funny, often very funny. But above everything, he had attitude--his impudent style somehow personifying the aspirations of his generation to question authority. He could, and would, say the unsayable. Though there were more glamorous rock stars in rock history, even within the Beatles, it was John Lennon's attitude which caught, and then defined, his era in the most memorable way.

There are many books about John Lennon's life and about the music of the Beatles. What is often overlooked is the extraordinary solo work that John produced in the final decade of his life, 1970 to 1980, between the end of the Beatles and his murder in New York in December.

Lennon's life in these years was eventful and fascinating, as was the development of the music he wrote during this period. For the first time, we will be able to showcase the stories behind every one of his solo songs, alongside the lyrics, which have only been printed in song books until now.

The first ever biography focused on the formative and highly influential early years of "rock's first supergroup" (Rolling Stone) Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young--when they were the most successful, influential, and politically potent band in America--in honor of the fiftieth anniversary of Woodstock and the formation of the band itself.

1969 to 1974 were true golden years of rock n' roll, bookmarking an era of arguably unparalleled musical power and innovation. But even more than any of their eminent peers, David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, and Neil Young channeled and broadcast all the radical anger, romantic idealism, and generational angst of their time. Each of the members had already made their marks in huge bands (The Hollies, Buffalo Springfield, The Byrds), but together, their harmonies were transcendent.

The vast emotional range of their music, from delicate acoustic confessionals to raucous counter-culture anthems, was mirrored in the turbulence of their personal lives. Their trademark may have been vocal harmony, but few--if any--of their contemporaries could match the recklessness of their hedonistic and often combative lifestyles, when the four tenacious, volatile, and prodigal songwriters pursued chemical and sexual pleasure to life-threatening extremes.

Including full color photographs, CSNY chronicles these four iconic musicians and the movement they came to represent, concentrating on their prime as a collective unit and a cultural force: the years between 1969, when Woodstock telegraphed their arrival to the world, and 1974, when their arch-enemy Richard Nixon was driven from office, and the band (to quote Graham Nash himself) "lost it on the highway."

Even fifty years later, there are plenty of stories left to be told about Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young--and music historian Peter Doggett is here to bring them to light in the meticulously researched CSNY, a quintessential and illuminative account of rock's first supergroup in their golden hour for die-hard fans, nostalgic flower-children, and music history aficionados alike.

For more than five decades, Olivia Newton-John has been one of our most successful and adored entertainers. A four-time Grammy Award winner, she is one of the world's bestselling recording artists of all time, with more than 100 million albums sold. Her starring roles in the iconic movies Grease and Xanadu catapulted her into super-stardom.

In addition to her music and screen successes, Olivia is perhaps best known for her strength, courage, and grace. After her own personal journeys with cancer, she has thrived and become an inspiration for millions around the world. A tireless advocate for countless charities, her true passion is as the founding champion of the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness & Research Centre in her hometown of Melbourne, Australia. Olivia has always radiated joy, hope, and compassion--determined to be a force for good in the world.

Now she is sharing her journey, from Melbourne schoolgirl to international superstar, in this deeply personal book. Candid and moving, Don't Stop Believin' is Olivia Newton-John's story in her own words for the very first time.

From the Beatles to Prince to Perfume Genius, Glitter Up the Dark takes a historical look at the voices that transcended gender and the ways music has subverted the gender binary.

Why has music so often served as an accomplice to transcendent expressions of gender? Why did the query "is he musical?" become code, in the twentieth century, for "is he gay?" Why is music so inherently queer? For Sasha Geffen, the answers lie, in part, in music's intrinsic quality of subliminal expression, which, through paradox and contradiction, allows rigid gender roles to fall away in a sensual and ambiguous exchange between performer and listener. Glitter Up the Dark traces the history of this gender fluidity in pop music from the early twentieth century to the present day.

Starting with early blues and the Beatles and continuing with performers such as David Bowie, Prince, Missy Elliot, and Frank Ocean, Geffen explores how artists have used music, fashion, language, and technology to break out of the confines mandated by gender essentialism and establish the voice as the primary expression of gender transgression. From glam rock and punk to disco, techno, and hip-hop, music helped set the stage for today's conversations about trans rights and recognition of nonbinary and third-gender identities. Glitter Up the Dark takes a long look back at the path that led here.

-BILL BURR, comedian

I couldn't put the book down-absolutely unbelievable read!

-JOHN MCENROE, New York Times bestselling author of But Seriously and You Cannot Be Serious

I honestly couldn't put [this book] down. Made me nostalgic, sad, and happy too.

-CHRIS SHIFLETT, lead guitarist of Foo Fighters

Essential reading for rock fans everywhere.

-BRIAN KOPPELMAN, co-creator and showrunner of Billions

For more than two decades, The Black Crowes topped the charts, graced the cover of Rolling Stone, and reigned supreme over MTV and radio waves alike with hits like Hard to Handle, She Talks to Angels, and Remedy. But as the old cliché goes, stardom can be fleeting, and the group's success slowly dwindled as the band members got caught up in the rock star world and lost sight of their musical ambition. On any given night, they could be the best band you ever saw-or the most combative. Then, one last rift in 2013 proved insurmountable for the band to survive. After that, The Black Crowes would fly no more.

Founding member Steve Gorman was there for all of it-the coke- and weed-fueled tours; the tumultuous recording sessions; the incessant fighting between brothers Chris and Rich Robinson; the backstage hangs with legends like Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, and the Rolling Stones. As the band's drummer and voice of reason, he tried to keep The Black Crowes together musically and emotionally. In Hard ToHandle-the first account of this great American rock band's beginning, middle, and end-Gorman explains just how impossible that job was with great insight, candor, and humor. They don't make bands like The Black Crowes anymore: crazy, brilliant, self-destructive, inspiring, and, ultimately, not built to last. But, man, what a ride it was while it lasted.

From the iconic musicians Tegan and Sara comes a memoir about high school, detailing their first loves and first songs in a compelling look back at their humble beginnings

High School is the revelatory and unique coming-of-age story of Sara and Tegan Quin, identical twins from Calgary, Alberta, who grew up at the height of grunge and rave culture in the nineties, well before they became the celebrated musicians and global LGBTQ icons we know today. While grappling with their identity and sexuality, often alone, they also faced academic meltdown, their parents' divorce, and the looming pressure of what might come after high school. Written in alternating chapters from both Tegan's and Sara's points of view, the book is a raw account of the drugs, alcohol, love, music, and friendship they explored in their formative years.

A transcendent story of first loves and first songs, High School captures the tangle of discordant and parallel memories of two sisters who grew up in distinct ways even as they lived just down the hall from each another. This is the origin story of Tegan and Sara.

What do George Clooney, Zooey Deschanel, Ryan Gosling and James Franco all have in common? Answer: they all play the ukulele and now, with this easy step-by-step guide, you can too! With just this book and your ukulele in hand, you'll learn basic music skills, how to care for your instrument, and how to play some simple tunes. Whether you're looking to impress your friends with spontaneous singalongs, or just want to strum solo, How to Play Ukulele is the perfect entryway to the wonderful world of ukulele.

This blazingly intimate biography of Janis Joplin establishes the Queen of Rock & Roll as the rule-breaking musical trailblazer and complicated, gender-bending rebel she was.

Janis Joplin's first transgressive act was to be a white girl who gained an early sense of the power of the blues, music you could only find on obscure records and in roadhouses along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast. But even before that, she stood out in her conservative oil town. She was a tomboy who was also intellectually curious and artistic. By the time she reached high school, she had drawn the scorn of her peers for her embrace of the Beats and her racially progressive views. Her parents doted on her in many ways, but were ultimately put off by her repeated acts of defiance.

Janis Joplin has passed into legend as a brash, impassioned soul doomed by the pain that produced one of the most extraordinary voices in rock history. But in these pages, Holly George-Warren provides a revelatory and deeply satisfying portrait of a woman who wasn't all about suffering. Janis was a perfectionist: a passionate, erudite musician who was born with talent but also worked exceptionally hard to develop it. She was a woman who pushed the boundaries of gender and sexuality long before it was socially acceptable. She was a sensitive seeker who wanted to marry and settle down--but couldn't, or wouldn't. She was a Texan who yearned to flee Texas but could never quite get away--even after becoming a countercultural icon in San Francisco.

Written by one of the most highly regarded chroniclers of American music history, and based on unprecedented access to Janis Joplin's family, friends, band mates, archives, and long-lost interviews, Janis is a complex, rewarding portrait of a remarkable artist finally getting her due.

Selected by Harper's Bazaar as one of the Best New Books of 2017 (So Far)
A Library Journal Fall Editors' Pick

Nearly 50 years' worth of critical efforts to solve Mitchell's mysteries have now been rounded up in Barney Hoskyns's Joni: The Anthology....what comes through most consistently is a possessive impulse, a desire to really know an artist whose fierce privacy has often seemed at odds with the impression of intimacy conveyed by her music. --The Atlantic

Nine Grammys. More than ten million albums sold. Named one of the greatest singers and songwriters of all time by Rolling Stone. Joni: The Anthology is an essential collection of writings on Joni Mitchell that charts every major moment of the famed troubadour's extraordinary career, as it happened.

From album reviews, incisive commentary, and candid conversations, Joni: The Anthology includes, among other things, a review of Mitchell's first-ever show at LA's Troubadour in June of 1968, a 1978 interview by musician Ben Sidran on jazz great Charles Mingus, a personal reminiscence by Ellen Sander, a confidant of the Los Angeles singer-songwriter community, and a long director's cut version of editor Barney Hoskyns' 1994 MOJO interview. A time capsule of an icon, the anthology spans the entirety of Joni's career between 1967-2007, as well as thoughtful commentary on her early years.

In collecting materials long unavailable, rare, or otherwise difficult to find, Joni: The Anthology illuminates the evolution of modern rock journalism while providing an invaluable and accessible guide to appreciating the highs--and the lows--of a twentieth century legend.

"Once I crossed the border, I began to write and my voice changed. I no longer was imitative of the folk style. My voice was then my real voice and with a slight folk influence, but from the first album it was no longer folk music. It was just a girl with a guitar that made it look that way."--Joni Mitchell, 1994