WINNER OF THE PEN/ JACQUELINE BOGRAD WELD AWARD FOR BIOGRAPHY NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “This book is a must for everyone interested in illuminating the idea of unexplainable genius.” —QUESTLOVE Equal parts biography, musicology, and cultural history, Dilla Time chronicles the life and legacy of J Dilla, a musical genius who transformed the sound of popular music for the twenty-first century. He wasn’t known to mainstream audiences, even though he worked with renowned acts like D’Angelo and Erykah Badu and influenced the music of superstars like Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson. He died at the age of thirty-two, and in his lifetime he never had a pop hit. Yet since his death, J Dilla has become a demigod: revered by jazz musicians and rap icons from Robert Glasper to Kendrick Lamar; memorialized in symphonies and taught at universities. And at the core of this adulation is innovation: a new kind of musical time-feel that he created on a drum machine, but one that changed the way “traditional” musicians play. In Dilla Time , Dan Charnas chronicles the life of James DeWitt Yancey, from his gifted childhood in Detroit, to his rise as a Grammy-nominated hip-hop producer, to the rare blood disease that caused his premature death; and follows the people who kept him and his ideas alive. He also rewinds the histories of American rhythms: from the birth of soul in Dilla’s own “Motown,” to funk, techno, and disco. Here, music is a story of Black culture in America and of what happens when human and machine times are synthesized into something new. Dilla Time is a different kind of book about music, a visual experience with graphics that build those concepts step by step for fans and novices alike, teaching us to “see” and feel rhythm in a unique and enjoyable way. Dilla’s beats, startling some people with their seeming “sloppiness,” were actually the work of a perfectionist almost spiritually devoted to his music. This is the story of the man and his machines, his family, friends, partners, and celebrity collaborators. Culled from more than 150 interviews about one of the most important and influential musical figures of the past hundred years, Dilla Time is a book as delightfully detail-oriented and unique as J Dilla’s music itself.

Read the New York Times bestselling memoir that is "revealing, humble, and cool-aunt chatty" about the incredible life that inspired the hit Broadway musical Beautiful . ( Rolling Stone ) Carole King takes us from her early beginnings in Brooklyn, to her remarkable success as one of the world's most acclaimed songwriting and performing talents of all time. A Natural Woman chronicles King's extraordinary life, drawing readers into her musical world, including her phenomenally successful #1 album Tapestry , and into her journey as a performer, mother, wife and present-day activist. Deeply personal, King's memoir offers readers a front-row seat to the woman behind the legend and includes dozens of photos from her childhood, her own family, and behind-the-scenes images from her performances.

There's No Bones in Ice Cream, by Sylvain Sylvain, is the inside story of glam heroes the New York Dolls - outrageous, defiant, sleaze kings, transgender posers, drug casualties and victims, not just of their own excess but of an unsympathetic music industry that simply didn't know how to process them. Sylvain, one of only two surviving members of the original New York Dolls, offers a fly-on-the-wall, sincere and often hilarious account of the rise and fall of the Dolls, the group that flew so close to the sun that they exploded in a fireball that lit the touch paper under punk rock. Though their brief, sensation-filled yet doomed career produced just two albums, the Dolls exerted an influence on rock that changed it forever. A cross between the Rolling Stones and the Sex Pistols, the Dolls became the link in the chain between them, offering a crash course in mischief, cross-dressing and anarchy, but like unheralded prophets of Biblical times they were cast aside until the world finally caught up. "Other people turned the New York Dolls into legends. We just went along for the ride."

This is a revealing, in-depth memoir of Beverly Sills as an international operatic superstar, director of the New York City Opera, mother and wife. In this candid autobiography, Sills finally unleashes the full power of her torrential personality and provides the key to her phenomenal success.

Malcolm McLaren was the instigator of punk rock in the UK. As the creator of the Sex Pistols he orchestrated a movement that has reverberated through the years and changed the face of music, fashion and style. In 1980, he asked music writer Barry Cain to help with his story. Unlike most autobiographies written 40 years after the events this was written at the time with McLaren at his anarchic peak, riding high on his reputation as a pop svengali. It crackles off the page with verve and energy. This is his story told in his own way from his unconventional upbringing to his assault on a cosy music business that would never be the same again.

Tales of adventure, misadventure, love and loss - this collection of non-fiction short stories from the Australian rock legend turned writer is vintage Jimmy. Outrageous, witty, warm and wise, Killing Time shares more than forty yarns reflecting an epic life - from an encounter with a soul legend in Memphis, a night in a haunted studio in upstate New York, and a doomed haircut in Thailand to a madcap misunderstanding in a Japanese ski resort, a family feud on a remote coral atoll, and an all-too-revealing appearance for a Sydney charity. PRAISE FOR KILLING TIME: "A moving and deeply felt kaleidoscope of life, love, family, music, friendship and the fragility of time. Barnes proved his storytelling mettle with his memoirs. But in Killing Time he has refined his unique voice with this wildly entertaining suite of tales, anecdotes, observations and reflections that can have you laughing out loud on one page and moved to tears on the next. It is all here, the joys and fears of parenthood, the search for your sense of place, fortune-tellers, the loss of beloved pets, bad golf, ghosts, backstage stories, celebrities, the homeless, and the wonder of being alive, all told with searing honesty. What sets Barnes's writing above the rest is that it comes from an authentic and soulful place. His work cannot help but ring true, like the strike of a tuning fork." Matt Condon "Jimmy Barnes is never a bystander. Stories happen to him. He not only remembers every circumstance, he has the ability to distil the moment in a way that's both poetic and uncontrived. He's funny, chaotic, insightful and heartbreaking. Jimmy is truly a natural-born storyteller. It's like writing has just been waiting for him to arrive. And now, he's here." Mandy Nolan

(Book). This fifth installment in the Modern Drummer Legends series features over 50 pages of extensive and in-depth interviews plus over 40 pages of drum transcriptions with Kenn's own analysis and details from his sessions with Elton John, Mick Jagger, Glenn Frey, John Bon Jovi and others. Never before seen pictures from Kenny's private collection are also included, and as a special bonus, you'll have access to an exclusive online audio recording of Kenny's senior percussion recital, performing a Violin Concerto on Marimba! 152 full-color pages!

The vast and surreal musical catalog of Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, once unknown to all but a small circle of friends and peers on the early-2000s LA freak scene, has grown tremendously in listenership and notoriety, becoming both a touchstone for the era and an acknowledged influence on our weirdo pop present. But while the tunes have been canonized, criticized, and endlessly dissected, the unique circumstances leading to their creation remain mysterious. Now, on the heels of the Ariel Archives set of comprehensive reissues undertaken by Mexican Summer, Untitled APHG Book sets out to tell the unvarnished story of the Haunted Graffiti era in scrapbook form. Drawing from a massive trove of documentation and ephemera as well as archival interviews and reflections from friends, witnesses, and collaborators, the book is a document of relentless creative pursuit--and a celebration of the fertile and undersung artistic community that fed one of the most singular musical projects of the new century.

This book is a more personal history than has ever before been written by or about Marianne Faithfull. Anecdotal, conversational, intimate and revealing, this is her no-holds-barred account of her life, her friends, her triumphs and mistakes. A decade after the publication of ‘Faithfull’, one of the most acclaimed rock autobiographies of all time, Marianne Faithfull is back, vowing periodically leave her wicked ways behind and grow up, but finding that somehow strange things keep happening. A wry observer of her slightly off-kilter world, Marianne muses nostalgically about afternoons languishing on Moroccan cushions at George and Pattie's, getting high and listening to new songs. She fondly recalls the outlandish antics of her Beat friends Allen Ginsberg and William Burroughs; is frequently baffled at her image in the press (opening the paper to read of her own demise: 'Sixties Star in Death Plunge'); terrified by the curse sent by Kenneth Anger; mortified by her history of reckless behaviour; not to mention her near-death experience in Singapore while looking for an opium den. Marianne peoples her anecdotal memoir with legendary characters one can imagine only Marianne assembling around her, both the eccentric and the beautiful, from Henrietta Moraes and Donatella Versace to Sofia Coppola, Juliette Greco, and Yves St. Laurent's dog. Here is Marianne on the dark side of the sixties and the bright side of the nineties, which saw her collaborating with the likes of Blur and Jarvis Cocker; compelling recollections of an unconventional childhood in her father's orgiastic literary commune to a hilariously decadent few days at Lady Caroline Blackwood's deathbed. Here she is her blossoming movie career, on her records as subliminal autobiography. This is as intimate a portrait as we've ever had of Marianne, as she meditates on sex and drugs, confronts her alter-ego, the Fabulous Beast, and faces her own mortality in her battle with breast cancer. Since her last book Marianne has, in her own words, 'made quite a few records, gone on many tours, tried to play it straight, and... Well, the rest is the subject of this book.'

In a tribute to the great musical loves of his life, the popular musician and performer tells the story of his legendary career as America's favorite interpreter of classical popular music and his love affair with Tin Pan Alley and friendship with Ira Gershwin. Reprint.

The Jazz Book of Two Lifetimes NEA Jazz Master saxophonist Dave Liebman and pianist Richie Beirach have enjoyed a fifty-year friendship on and off the bandstand. They've performed with Miles Davis, Elvin Jones, Stan Getz, Chet Baker, Freddie Hubbard, and their own bands. Ruminations and Reflections takes readers on a rollicking journey through their musical lives. Along the way, they share their views on jazz education, prominent musicians, and musical preparation. Liebman and Beirach pay tribute to their musical mentors, tour their discography, and suggest essential recordings to study. The book's conversational style will delight students, professionals, and music lovers alike. "We really don't have an exact name for musicians like Dave and Richie. Across decades of recordings and concerts, their aspirations obliterate the definitions of any single genre. This volume reveals the deep insight and wisdom required to resolve their shared quest for meaning in music. Both are master players who continue to strive for what goes beyond and what lies beneath. Reading their words and following their stories in this wonderful book affirms the feeling that they share on the bandstand as one of the great long-term partnerships in this music." - Pat Metheny A masterclass in the art and skill of jazz Ruminations and Reflections is more than just a jazz biography, it is a masterclass in how to improvise, jazz theory, how to listen to jazz, and the business of being a musician in today's world. Never shy, these two friends share fascinating and revealing stories of growing into their musical selves, late night hangs with legendary musicians, and the jazz life. Known for their virtuosity and playing free, Liebman and Beirach share their secrets for preparing for the ultimate exercise of musical improvisation. Both musicians use their deep devotion to classical music as a basis for improvisation, crossing genres and boundaries to create spontaneous and beautiful musical experiences. As veteran educators, Dave and Richie share their wisdom and life lessons to keep the legacy of jazz improvisation and free jazz alive. Jazz musicians and students will find value in their masterful analysis of duo playing, comping, and musical leadership. For fans of jazz masters and legends Ruminations and Reflections showcases never before told anecdotes and opinions about musical legends including, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, McCoy Tyner, Jack DeJohnette, Wayne Shorter, Michael Brecker, Randy Brecker, Chick Corea, Lee Konitz, Sonny Rollins, Herbie Hancock, and Wynton Marsalis. Jazz fans will delight in the in-depth analysis of over twenty of this duo's best recordings, providing insight and history to this important discography. A journey through modern jazz history Jazz aficionados will enjoy the personal accounts of their formative years in Brooklyn, developing a passion for music that has lasted a lifetime. A road trip through Brooklyn and Manhattan sets the scene for reminiscences about the New York City jazz scene today and in days gone by. Jazz clubs like Birdland and the Village Vanguard come to life with tales of the musicians who played there. Ruminations and Reflections chronicles the intersection of jazz and rock and roll in the fertile early 1970's New York loft scene. Beirach and Liebman were pioneers in the jazz fusion era and recount tours, jam sessions, and recordings with their bands Lookout Farm and Quest. They continue to marvel audiences in any musical setting. Along their journey, Liebman and Beirach have created a legacy of excellence and dedication to fans, fellow musicians, and the music. This book is a celebration of musical lives well-lived and a gift to us all.

The biography of a precocious and little-known Basque composer, Juan Crisóstomo Jacobo Antonio Arriaga y Balzola (1806-1826). Born in 1806, Arriaga wrote an octet at age 11, composed his first opera when he was 13, entered the Paris Conservatory at age 15, and published his String Quartets Nos. 1, 2, & 3 when he was 18. He died in 1826 at age 20.