I'm currently reading Eva Peron's biography.
How about you folks?
How about you folks?
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Anybody singing the blues is in a deep pit yelling for help - Mahalia Jackson
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0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic. mississippijohnhurt1928
I'm currently reading Eva Peron's biography.
How about you folks? CF
I used to read all the time . . . . damn blues obsession has me reading my Penguin Guide to Recorded Blues too often!! But I am reading a really good Shakespeare bio by A. L. Rowse at the moment & I'll be tackling this Jelly Roll bio afterwards:
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Just finished Songsters And Saints by Paul Oliver, one of the best books on pre-war African-American music I've ever read. I'm taking a week off to catch up on some Baseball essays, then jumping into Blue Monday: Fats Domino and the Lost Dawn of Rock and Roll.
mississippijohnhurt1928
then jumping into Blur Monday: Fats Domino and the Lost Dawn of Rock and Roll. I read that one over the Summer and it was great! You'd be surprised how many people who later became friends of Fats despised him in his early days as a performer. Have recently read Oliver Sacks' latest book, Musicophilia - Tales of Music and the Brain, an investigation into the many normal and abnormal neuro-psychological states related to music in various ways. Sacks is a brilliant writer who never loses touch with the human aspect of the case studies he describes. And he sure describes a lot of very abnormal cases, from people who see colors or have tastes occur in their mouths when they hear music (synesthesia), to people who hear nothing but clanging pots and pans when the rest of us hear a beautiful piano concerto (amusica - of which he even experienced two short occurances). He discusses how the ability to remember and even learn songs is one of the last memories to go in various dementias, and the incredibly heartbreaking William's syndrome, which is a condition of very low IQ, yet profound musical abilities, yet unlike a savant, which he also discusses. All this tied to a scientific discussion of the brain and the relative functionality of lobes and amygdalas and such. It is fascinating, and at the same time horrifying, as he describes various conditions that may befall musicians, some enhancing their music and some ending their careers.
For anyone who enjoys, plays and particularly those who perform music, of any kind, this book should be on your summer list. I found it very inspiring. All for now. John C. Waxwings' post made think that I have forgotten to thank him for suggesting Paul Olivers' book "The Savannah Syncopators", which I managed to find in the local library.
I think the findings about African roots of the blues in the book are interesting, but somewhat vague (which is by no means Olivers' fault). The book didn't shed much new light considering the "swung eighth notes" thread either, which is why I probably forgot to mention it. Nevertheless, anything Oliver ever wrote seems to be worth reading. Cheers Pan Pages: [1] Go Up
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