university of texas press
Music
03American Music 34Forthcoming
v i s i t u s o n l i n e at
utexaspress.com Front Cover: Vic Chesnutt. Photo by Danny Clinch.
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
AMER ICAN MUS IC
Rolling Stone 10 Best Music Books of 2015 NPR’s Best Books of 2015
“Gives a tremendous sense of what friendship with [Chesnutt] was like, for good and for bad, and leaves the reader feeling his absence even more once the book has ended.” —ROLLING STONE
“[Hersh’s] observations . . . always ring with a harsh lyrical truth . . . an eloquent, heartbreaking testament.” —PITCHFORK
“A raw, poetic memoir . . . a last, wonderful example of Chesnutt at his most charismatically mischievous.” —THE GUARDIAN
“Not only one of the best books of the year, it’s one of the most beautiful rock memoirs ever written.”
Don’t Suck, Don’t Die Giving Up Vic Chesnutt BY KRISTIN HERSH Fo re wo r d b y A m an da Pe t ru s i c h re l e a se d ate | 2015 43/4 x 7 inches, 200 pages, 10 b&w photos ISBN 978-1-4773-1136-3 $14.95 | £9.99 | C$20.99
paperback, hardcover*, ebook* UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
—NPR
“Hersh’s language is vivid and conversational, as descriptive and elliptical as her own music.” —SALON
*Denotes different ISBN
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t bone burnett A Life in Pursuit l l oy d s a c h s
T Bone Burnett A Life in Pursuit BY LLOYD SACHS
This first critical appreciation of T Bone Burnett reveals how the father of Americana music and producer of artists ranging from Robert Plant and Alison Krauss to B.B. King and Elvis Costello has profoundly influenced American music and culture. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 1 6 6 x 9 inches, 240 pages, 19 b&w photos ISBN 978-1-4773-0377-1 $26.95 | ÂŁ17.99 | C$30.50
hardcover, ebook*
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
AMER ICAN MUS IC
Praise for T Bone Burnett “T Bone Burnett proves that a producer can make as much of an artistic impact as a performer. Enjoyable, sparkling prose.” —GEOFFREY HIMES,
music writer for the Washington Post and former senior editor of No Depression and Paste
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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From the East Los Angeles barrio to international stardom, Los Lobos traces the musical evolution of a platinum-selling, Grammy Award–winning band that has ranged through virtually the entire breadth of American vernacular music. “Los Lobos: Dream in Blue, offers overwhelming evidence that the band deserves to glide its way into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.” —LOS ANGELES TIMES
“Morris writes with care and insight about each Los Lobos record, providing rich geographical, cultural, and historical context along the way.” —THE HUFFINGTON POST
“Both informative and engrossing . . . Chris Morris is to be commended for putting the story of this most American of bands to paper, and Los Lobos will satisfy the most ardent of fans. Highly recommended.”
Los Lobos Dream in Blue
BY CHRIS MORRIS r ele as e dat e | 2 0 1 5 51/2 x 81/2 inches, 182 pages, 12 b&w photos ISBN 978-0-292-74823-1 $22.95 | £15.99 | C$29.95
hardcover, ebook*
— T H E B I G TA K E O V E R
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
AMER ICAN MUS IC
In the spirit of Carl Wilson’s Let’s Talk About Love, Madonnaland takes us on a revelatory road trip through the quirky hinterlands of celebrity and fandom and the quest to make music that matters in the face of relentless commercialism. “Obscure and the intriguing.” —NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW
“Simone’s book is more than a portrait of Madonna and the people who love her, it’s a reflection on the nature of pop music fandom.” —MICHAEL SCHAUB, Men’s Journal Best Books of March, 2016
Madonnaland BY ALINA SIMONE
“A profound and hilarious stream-of-consciousness funfair ride through the postmodern theme park of super fans, celebrity, taste, and capitalism.”
re l e a se d ate | 2016
— A M A N D A PA L M E R
And Other Detours into Fame and Fandom
51/2 x 81/2 inches, 138 pages, 1 b&w photo ISBN 978-0-292-75946-6
$16.95 | C$23.99 paperback, ebook*
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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Mary J. Blige by Andrew Eccles/AUGUST
AMER ICAN MUS IC
REAL LOVE NO DRAMA THE MUSIC OF
MARY J. BLIGE DA N N Y A L E X A N D E R
Real Love, No Drama The Music of Mary J. Blige BY DANNY ALEXANDER
Tracing the whole sweep of Mary J. Blige’s career through the critically acclaimed 2014 album, The London Sessions, this is the first serious look at the music and cultural impact of one of the most important musical artists to emerge in the past quarter century. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 1 6 51/2 x 81/2 inches, 208 pages, 8 b&w photos ISBN 978-0-292-75943-5 $24.95 | £16.99 | C$28.50
hardcover, ebook* UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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A PURE SOLAR WORLD
SUN RA and t he Birt h of
AFROFUTURISM Paul Youngquist
A Pure Solar World Sun Ra and the Birth of Afrofuturism B Y PA U L Y O U N G Q U I S T
Surveying the range of Sun Ra’s extraordinary creativity, this book explores how the father of Afrofuturism brought “space music” to a planet in need of transformation, supporting the aspirations of black people in an inhospitable white world. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 1 6 6 x 9 inches, 362 pages, 24 b&w photos ISBN 978-0-292-72636-9 $27.95 | £18.99 | C$36.50
hardcover, ebook*
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
Sun Ra and members of the Sun Ra Arkestra, early 1970s
“I am bowled over. Youngquist explains—better than anyone before and, in many particular regards, for the first time—how Sun Ra’s poetically logical illogic and musically purposeful nothingness offered, and offers, a pathway for escaping the often-degrading experience of being African American in America. Youngquist dances seamlessly between hip insider talk and scholarly observation, between fiction and history, between celebration and criticism. This book is terrific, sensational. What a delight.” — B A R R Y K E R N F E L D . editor of The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz and author of What to Listen for in Jazz Sun Ra UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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A who’s who of American popular music fills this lively memoir, in which Ray Benson recalls how a Philadelphia Jewish hippie and his bandmates in Asleep at the Wheel turned on generations of rock and country fans to Bob Wills–style Western swing. “The man is a trip, literally and figuratively . . . a real relaxin’ ride with a mellow fellow.” —LIBRARY JOURNAL
“A pleasure for fans of Benson and the band.” —KIRKUS REVIEWS
“Benson has a treasure trove of outlandish anecdotes, assorted nuggets of wisdom, and a deep and vast wealth of musical knowledge to share.” — P O P M AT T E R S
“Ray Benson is something—creative, fun, entertaining—you’ll love this book!” — D O L LY PA R T O N
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Comin’ Right at Ya
How a Jewish Yankee Hippie Went Country, or, the Often Outrageous History of Asleep at the Wheel BY RAY B E N S O N A N D DAV I D M E N C O N I r ele as e dat e | 2 0 1 5 51/2 x 81/2 inches, 200 pages, 23 b&w photos ISBN 978-0-292-75658-8 $24.95 | £16.99 | C$32.50
hardcover, ebook*
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
AMER ICAN MUS IC
“Huffman offers an admiring portrait of an often restless though always canny songwriter... Huffman’s book will make us want to pick up Prine’s albums and listen to them once again or for the first time.” — P U B L I S H E R S W E E K LY
“The unlikely success of the reluctant performer makes for fascinating reading.” —KIRKUS REVIEWS
“Huffman’s writing should remain as a valuable resource for future John Prine biographers and music historians.”
John Prine
In Spite of Himself BY EDDIE HUFFMAN
From singing mailman to Nashville legend, John Prine traces the crooked road traveled by the brilliant songwriter responsible for “Angel from Montgomery,” “Sam Stone,” and “Paradise.”
—NO DEPRESSION
“Huffman successfully aggregates numerous accounts of Prine, and while touching upon Prine’s personal life he mostly, and most important, sticks to the music.” —BOOKLIST
re l e a se d ate | 2015 6 x 9 inches, 224 pages ISBN 978-0-292-74822-4 $24.95 | £16.99 | C$28.50
hardcover, ebook* UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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Praise for Country Music, U.S.A. “With Country Music, U.S.A., Bill Malone wrote the Bible for country music history and scholarship. This groundbreaking work, now updated, is the definitive chronicle of the sweeping drama of the country music experience.” —CHET FLIPPO,
former Editorial Director, CMT and CMT.com
“The most accurate, complete, and serious study of country music ever published.” —NASHVILLE TENNESSEAN
“It will stand as a basic source of reference [on] country music for many years to come—probably forever.” —STEREO REVIEW
“A splendid book. . .impressively documented, and. . .beautifully written.” —JOURNAL OF SOUTHERN HISTORY
“For almost two decades, Bill Malone’s Country Music, U.S.A. has stood as the book in its field; this new edition secures that position. Scholars, music lovers, and general readers will all find it rewarding, —JOURNAL OF THE WEST
“A book to be read, re-read, and savored.” —SOUTHWEST REVIEW
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
AMER ICAN MUS IC
Country Music, U.S.A. Third Revised Edition B Y B I L L C . M A L O N E A N D J O C E LY N R . N E A L
“Considered the definitive history of American country music” by the Los Angeles Times, this fortieth-anniversary edition of Country Music, U.S.A. traces the music from the early days of radio through the first decade of the twenty-first century. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 1 0 6 x 91/4 inches, 686 pages, 76 b&w photos ISBN 978-0-292-72329-0 $34.95 | £23.99 | C$47.95
paperback
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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Merle Haggard The Running Kind BY DAV I D C A N T W E L L
Focusing on the most prolific decades in the career of this complex, often contradictory artist, David Cantwell explores the life, times, and enduring impact of Merle Haggard’s singularly American music. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 1 3 5 x 8 inches, 294 pages ISBN 978-0-292-71771-8
$19.95 | ÂŁ13.99 | C$25.95 paperback, ebook*
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
AMER ICAN MUS IC
Dwight Yoakam
A Thousand Miles from Nowhere BY DON MCLEESE
Award-winning music journalist Don McLeese offers the first musical biography of the electrifying artist who has most successfully bridged the disparate worlds of commercial country and alternative/Americana/roots music, Dwight Yoakam. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 1 2 5 x 8 inches, 232 pages ISBN 978-0-292-72381-8 $19.95 | ÂŁ13.99 | C$25.95
paperback, ebook* UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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Lightnin’ Hopkins, 1972. Photo by Philip Melnick
AMER ICAN MUS IC
“Mojo Hand covers all the pivotal moments in his fascinating life.” —MOJO
“Without overloading the reader, O’Brien and Ensminger present all manner of fascinating information about Hopkins: his complex personality, his attitude towards whites, his image as a hipster, his wiley business sense, and his influence on John Coltrane. The pages fly by quickly.” — D O W N B E AT M A G A Z I N E
Mojo Hand The Life and Music of Lightnin’ Hopkins BY TIMOTHY J. O’BRIEN AND DAV I D E N S M I N G E R
Through vivid oral histories backed by extensive research, Mojo Hand tells the story of one of America’s greatest bluesmen, whose deeply authentic songs and unique style shaped modern roots, blues, rock ’n’ roll, and folk music.
“The biography maintains a focus centered on Lightnin’ and his music. He has crafted a fascinating, wellresearched look at a true blues legend, and helps us understand the social environment that created such powerful music.” —MARK THOMPSON, Crossroads Blues Society of Northern Illinois
r e l e a se d ate | 2013 6 x 9 inches, 294 pages, 10 b&w photos ISBN 978-0-292-76214-5 $28.95 | £19.99 | C$37.50
paperback, ebook* UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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The Flatlanders Now It’s Now Again B Y J O H N T. D A V I S
Spotlighting three legends of American music—Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, and Butch Hancock, The Flatlanders recounts the band’s epic forty-year journey from a living room in Lubbock, Texas, to the release of their extraordinary long-lost demo, The Odessa Tapes. re l e a se d ate | 2 0 1 4 5 x 8 inches, 228 pages ISBN 978-0-292-74554-4 $19.95 | £13.99 | C$25.95
paperback, ebook*
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
AMER ICAN MUS IC
Ryan Adams
Losering, a Story of Whiskeytown BY DAV I D M E N C O N I
A prominent music journalist with behind-the-scenes access chronicles the rise of singer-songwriter Ryan Adams from his North Carolina, alt-country roots with Whiskeytown to rock stardom, including stories about the making of the albums Strangers Almanac and Heartbreaker. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 1 2 5 x 8 inches, 224 pages ISBN 978-0-292-72584-3 $19.95 | ÂŁ13.99 | C$25.95
paperback, ebook* UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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SU B JEC T S E C T IO N
Doug Sahm 22
U N I V E R S I T Y O F T E X A S P R E S S | S U B J E C T T K C ATA LO G
AMER ICAN MUS IC
Texas Tornado
The Times and Music of Doug Sahm BY JAN REID WITH SHAWN SAHM
The first biography of the Sir Douglas Quintet and Texas Tornados founder Doug Sahm, a rock and roll innovator whose Grammy Award–winning career spanned five decades from the late 1940s to 1999. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 1 0 6 x 9 inches, 216 pages, 65 b&w pages ISBN 978-0-292-72244-6 $22.95 | £15.99 | C$29.95
paperback, ebook* UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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From mind-melting psychedelia and surreal treatments of Texas iconography to inventive interpretations of rock and roll, western swing, and punk, this book offers the definitive, long-overdue survey of music poster art by legendary Texas artists. “Showcases a slice of the city’s long celebration of live music.” —WALL STREET JOURNAL
“Vibrant. . .” —VOGUE
Homegrown
“Tracks the shifting aesthetics of Texan poster artists responding to psychedelia, rock, and punk.”
Austin Music Posters 1967 to 1982
— S L AT E
EDITED BY ALAN SCHAEFER E S S A Y S B Y J O E N I C K PAT O S K I A N D NELS JACOBSON
“A sprawling illustrated monument to Austin music and culture.”
So u thwe st er n Wr i t er s Co l l e c t i o n Se rie s, Th e Wi t t l i f f Co l l e c t i o n s r e le a se d ate | 2015
— P O P M AT T E R S
81/4 x 113/4 inches, 176 pages, 136 color photos ISBN 978-0-292-77239-7 $29.95 | £20.99 | C$38.50
Right: Willie Nelson’s 4th of July Picnic. © Jim Franklin.
paperback
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
A MERI CA N M U S IC
Bonfire of Roadmaps B Y J O E E LY
Acclaimed singer-songwriter and Flatlanders band member Joe Ely creates an authentic picture in verse and drawings of a musician’s life on the road. re l e a se d ate | 2 0 0 7 51/2 x 81/2 inches, 196 pages ISBN 978-0-292-75629-8 $17.95 | £11.99 | C$23.95
paperback, ebook*
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
AMER ICAN MUS IC
Honky Tonk Hero B Y B I L LY J O E S H AV E R A s s i s t e d b y B r ad R ea ga n
In this autobiography by the man Willie Nelson says “may be the best songwriter alive today,” Billy Joe Shaver recounts his long struggle to break into the music business in Nashville and the success that came when Waylon Jennings recorded his songs on the 1973 album Honky Tonk Heroes, which became a landmark of outlaw country music. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 0 5 6 x 9 inches, 208 pages ISBN 978-0-292-70613-2 $19.95 | £13.99 | C$25.95
hardcover UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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Roky Erickson, a fearless troubled genius who helped invent psychedelic music. 1972.
AMER ICAN MUS IC
The Improbable Rise of Redneck Rock BY JAN REID
Musical magic hit Austin in the early 1970s. At now-legendary venues such as Threadgill’s, Vulcan Gas Company, and the Armadillo World Headquarters, country, rock-and-roll, blues, and folk musicians came together, creating the iconic sound and scene Jan Reid vividly deatils in this classic. re l e a se d ate | 2 0 0 4 6 x 9 inches, 399 pages, 80 b&w photos ISBN 978-0-292-70197-7 $29.95 | £20.99 | C$38.95
hardcover, ebook*
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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Whiskey River (Take My Mind) The True Story of Texas Honky-Tonk BY JOHNNY BUSH WITH RICK MITCHELL Fo r ew o r d b y Wi l l i e Nels o n
The legendary singer-songwriter who wrote Willie Nelson’s signature song “Whiskey River” tells about his life in honky-tonk music. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 0 7 6 x 9 inches, 278 pages, 43 b&w photos ISBN 978-0-292-71490-8 $24.95 | £16.99 | C$28.50
hardcover
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
AMER ICAN MUS IC
Progressive Country How the 1970s Transformed the Texan in Popular Culture BY JASON MELLARD
An examination of the transformative 1970s through the lens of central Texas’s counterculture, from the cosmic cowboys of the Armadillo World Headquarters to Américo Paredes and the performance folklore movement. 2 01 3 Co r al H o rt o n Tu l l i s Memo r ia l Pr ize fo r Bes t Bo o k o n Texas His t o r y r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 1 3 6 x 9 inches, 288 pages, 17 b&w photos ISBN 978-0-292-77193-2 $28.95 | £19.99 | C$37.50
paperback, ebook* UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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AMERICAN MUSIC
Merry Christmas from the Family BY ROBERT EARL KEEN
Singer-songwriter Robert Earl Keen’s hilarious, definitely skewed Christmas carol. This book with accompanying CD has sold over 50,000 copies. re l e a se d ate | 2 0 0 5 61/2 x 73⁄8 inches, 76 pages, ISBN 978-0-292-71266-9 $16.95 | £10.99 | C$21.95
hardcover
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UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
AMER ICAN MUS IC
The Road Goes On Forever and the Music Never Ends BY ROBERT EARL KEEN
Celebrating the twentieth anniversary of his classic anthem “The Road Goes on Forever,” acclaimed singer/songwriter Robert Earl Keen offers fans a personal, beautifully designed songbook and photo album with lyrics and sheet music for twenty-four favorite songs. r e l e a se d ate | 2 0 0 9 81/4 x 103/4 inches, 128 pages of photos and art ISBN 978-0-292-71999-6 $39.95 | £27.99 | C$51.95
hardcover UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
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sneak preview
Forthcoming
Guitar Stories BY CHARLES HOLLEY r e l e a s e d at e | sprin g
2017
Friend of the Devil The Outlaw in Song from Robin Hood to Rap BY JOHN KRUTH r e l e a s e d at e | fall
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2017
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
sneak preview
Forthcoming
Chrissie Hynde Up the Neck BY ADAM SOBSEY r e l e a s e d at e | spr in g
2017
Next Time You See Me The Life and Times of Michael Bloomfield BY DAV I D DA N N r e l e a s e d at e | fa ll
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS | MUSIC
2017
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