Off topic: Rock music and recordings reference books. Your Opinions.
nob...@special-here.com
I'm wondering if you could recommend a favorite reference book (or
music encyclopedia) that you like to use which deals (primarily) with
rock music and artists' biographical history. I'd like to find one
that gives a detailed (and complete as possible) list of 'personnel'
on recordings, as well as charts, dates and record labels (for North
America and the U.K.). The best example I can give you of what I'm
looking for is the book Rock Record by Terry Hounsome and Tim Chambre.
I already know about The Rolling Stone Record Guide and The Billboard
Book Of Top 40 Hits.
Also, does anybody know where I can find a book listing Canadian chart
results (example RPM) and old Cash Box chart results (pretty please)?
While I'm asking can you also suggest a 'good' record price guide.
Your opinions are appreciated.
Russ
TomThunder
Record by Terry Hounsome and Tim Chambre.
>I already know about The Rolling Stone Record Guide and The Billboard
>Book Of Top 40 Hits.
1. Rock On by Norm L. Nite
2. Rock Encyclopedia by Lillian Roxon
(RIP, since updated)
3. The All-Music Guide
(www.allmusic.com) - fine but occaisional errors.
I have never found a music reference that is a be-all or end-all. The all have
their own quirks and most have inaccuracies of some sort...Tom
nob...@special-here.com
snip...
>1. Rock On by Norm L. Nite
>2. Rock Encyclopedia by Lillian Roxon
>(RIP, since updated)
>3. The All-Music Guide
>(www.allmusic.com) - fine but occaisional errors.
>I have never found a music reference that is a be-all or end-all. The all have
>their own quirks and most have inaccuracies of some sort...Tom
>
Thanks for the suggestions Tom. Yes I know only too well about some of
the inaccuracies some do contain.
Russ
BigStar303
<< 1. Rock On by Norm L. Nite
2. Rock Encyclopedia by Lillian Roxon
(RIP, since updated)
3. The All-Music Guide
(www.allmusic.com) - fine but occaisional errors.
I have never found a music reference that is a be-all or end-all. The all have
their own quirks and most have inaccuracies of some sort... >>
I hope the update of Lillian Roxon's "Rock Encyclopedia" was a comprehensive
one, because the original edition had way more than a few "occasional errors."
I'll put in a plug for "Music Hound: Rock" (the fact that I have several
entries in it has nothing to do with this, of course!). The listings of band
personnel are generally very accurate, and include years each member served,
instruments played, etc.
The listings are also extremely comprehensive, covering everything from 50s and
60s greats (and not a few pure Top 40 acts that will never make the Hall of
Fame) to contemporary bands I guarantee you've never heard of!
It also has the advantage of pointing you in the direction of the best in-print
examples of each artist's work, rated on a scale of 5 "bones" (best) to WOOF!
(you get the idea!). Rarities and foreign pressings are also noted under the
"Worth Searching For" heading.
Pretty widely available in major book stores, so you shouldn't have any trouble
locating it.
nob...@special-here.com
Music Hound: Rock sounds interesting. Does this book include web links
or email addresses? Does it include pictures and musical family trees
(such as Roxy Music or Yes)?
Unfortunately, I live in an area where there aren't that many 'good'
book stores so I'd have to order it. I will. of course, look in the
stores. If it wouldn't be too much trouble could you please supply me
with the name of the author(s) and the publisher (book number and
date). It is unlikely that I would ever buy this at an online book
store (I don't buy things online!).
You say you have several entries in this book. Can I be bold and ask
how that came to be? Don't get mad at me for asking...you don't have
to tell me if you don't want. ;)
Again, this book does sound interesting.
Russ
SibExCom
The titles suggested by the other folks who have responded to your original
post are all good ones. You might also wish to consider the following
reference books:
1--The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. (Mine's copyrighted
1995, but there may be a newer edition; the book is packed with history,
profiles and other info on the bands/solo artists.)
2--The Billboard Book of Number One Hits, by Fred Bronson. (It's scope, as the
title would indicate, is limited, but it has a wealth of history and detail on
the artists and their No. 1 songs. Mine is the fourth edition, copyrighted
1997.)
3--The Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock and Soul, by Irwin Stambler. (My edition is
more than 10 years old, so there may be a newer edition available. It has
fewer entries than the Rolling Stone book, but it has some good detail on the
artists it does spotlight, and a substantial number of direct quotes from the
artists themselves.)
4--The Heart of Rock and Soul, by Dave Marsh (I've always liked Marsh's
writing even though I don't always agree with him. His stuff is always
interesting, and he possesses both a knowledge of, and love for, the music,
both of which are essential if one is going to write about pop music. This
book is less a reference than it is simply a "good read," but every now and
then he serves up a bit of trivia that'll make me say, "Wow, I didn't know
that.")
I'm unsure of the availability of these titles, Russ, but if they're out of
print, the major online booksellers may be able to locate copies for you if
you're interested in pursuing any of them. Hope this info helps.
T.M. Hatter
nob...@special-here.com
snip...
>1--The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. (Mine's copyrighted
snip...
>2--The Billboard Book of Number One Hits, by Fred Bronson. (It's scope, as the
snip...
>3--The Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock and Soul, by Irwin Stambler. (My edition is
snip...
>4--The Heart of Rock and Soul, by Dave Marsh (I've always liked Marsh's
Hi T.M. Hatter,
Thanks for taking time out to respond. Two that you've suggested I
have but in earlier editions (or I have variations of them). I really
should update them as they are in a sorry state (the glue is no longer
holding the covers to the books themselves). The Irwin Stambler book
sounds interesting. I can read Dave Marsh but sometimes he does make
comments I'm not sure I agree with, yet I can understand why he makes
them. He's good though.
I'll be sure to add you titles to my list (along with the other
suggestions that I've received). Thanks again.
Russ
Today's favorite listened to tune:
Nighttown Boy by Horslips
SibExCom
You're welcome for the suggested reading.
Also, I'll tell my wife there's someone else "out there" besides her who
listens to Horslips. She'll be delighted.
TomThunder
someone else "out there" besides her who
>listens to Horslips. She'll be delighted.
I have a couple of their albums (on vinyl)
'The Man Who Built America' & 'The Belfast Gigs'. I don't recall having seen a
release (of any kind) in a local record store in ages...Tom
Rebecca L. Brindle
my buddy when I lived in Ireland. He writes music columns for The Evening Herald,
Hot Press and now DJ's a Sunday (I think) radio program for new Irish music FM104
in Dublin. I used to have breakfast with him (and Tom pacheco and all the other
Yank musicians living our neighborhood) every day during that time ('88 - '90) at
the now defunct Kylemore danish place in Ranelagh, Dublin 6 - south of midtown (or
rather - south of O'Connell Bridge and Trinity College -- gee.....I'm getting
nostalgic -- Dublin is such a cool town!) Eamonn is a great guy and one of the
main innovators of the new music scene in Dublin since the mid 1980's. We always
pushed him on doing a Horslips reunion but I don't think he wanted to live the
craziness of touring again. Can't blame him! There is some great video of
Horslips available as I recall but I'll have to search for it. : >
Beki
TomThunder wrote:
--
http://www.mp3.com/woodstock
http://www.mp3.com/~beki
SibExCom
I don't know if Horslips' albums are still available on CD, but as of a few
years ago, at least a dozen of the band's CDs had been put out by the
Belfast-based Outlet Recording Company. Both of the titles you mentioned in
your post were among those being offered.
T.M. Hatter
J B
Turning other people in the U.S. on to them always felt like sharing a
special secret fishing spot with a friend.
Saw them live in the student center of a local U.S. college in 1978.
I've wanted an electric mandolin ever since, but I don't think I could
make it scream like Charles O'Connor did!
James V. Bohen
<reb...@lsoft.com> wrote:
>Horslips! Those albums are very hard to find! Eamonn Carr (Horslips drummer) was
>my buddy when I lived in Ireland. He writes music columns for The Evening Herald,
>Hot Press and now DJ's a Sunday (I think) radio program for new Irish music FM104
I like them too. I saw them in '78 at Rutgers University in New
Brunswick, N.J., and again a few days later at William Paterson
College in Wayne, N.J., and interviewed Carr backstage at that gig. A
year or two later I interviewed him again at Mercury Records for the
"Short Stories" album and saw the band at The Show Place in Dover,
N.J. Johnny Fean sang a great version of "Shakin' All Over" at that
gig.
Jim Bohen
Rebecca L. Brindle
play drums when the band got together. He became an excellent drummer in a very short
period of time! He told me that after we watched a clip of Horslips from some TV thing
they did very early on. I thought he was someone who had been playing since birth but
he said he had only been playing for about a year at the time that clip was filmed.
Coulda' fooled me!
; >
Beki
"James V. Bohen" wrote:
--
--
Beki Brindle
http://www.mp3.com/woodstock
http://www.bestweb.net/~beki
nob...@special-here.com
It's good to know I'm not the only one still listening to Horslips.
Inform your wife, for me, she knows good music when she hears it. ;)
The album which contains the track Nighttown Boy is taken from
Dancehall Sweethearts from 1974.
I also have Nighttown Boy as an edited 'promo' single that was
released by RCA (the flip side features We Bring The Summer With Us),
but the single never went anywhere on the charts.
---
Hi Tom,
I don't have The Belfast Gigs but I do have The Man Who Built America
and I just love that title track.
When did The Belfast Gigs come out, and how does it sound?
In my reply to T.M. Hatter above you noticed that I have Dancehall
Sweethearts. The other albums I have are The Tain (1973), Aliens
(1977) and Short Stories/Tall Tales (1980).
---
In general, you can see that I'm missing a few albums but I value the
ones that I do have. It's good to see that some of their albums have
made it to cd (I didn't know that so I'll keep my eyes open for them).
One thing about Horslips I found was that they could switch (or adopt)
new styles with each new album and remain consistent (well, at least I
thought so anyway).
Enjoy your albums and guard them well. ;)
Russ
Today's favorite listened to tune:
Gravelstone Cottage by Slack Alice
nob...@special-here.com
I never noticed your post until after I had replied to the other
thread. Oh, I love Horslips and I wish I could've found more of their
albums. Back in 1974 when I first heard of them straight through to
the end of the band, I always had trouble getting their albums. I was
counting my lucky stars when I found a few of their albums in a delete
bin somewhere. I appreciate it that you shared your thoughts here - in
The Byrds group of all places. Wow! ;) I wonder if there are any web
sites dedicated to Horslips. Well, thanks again!
Rebecca L. Brindle
forgotten about this band until you guys started talking about them!
Eamon (it's 1 'n' -- I had forgotten!) was managing bands and already an
established writer/columnist when I met him and I was only about 12 years
old when they were in their heyday so I was just buying my first copy of
ZoSo and Heavy Horses -- that's about all I knew of Celtic Rock. Check it
out though: I found a couple of great sites which indicate re-masterings
and re-releases of all the albums on CD! I haven't had time to peruse
them completely but here they are:
http://www.horslips.com/
http://www.horslipsrecords.com/
and for available CD's/Vinyl/and cassettes:
http://www.101cd.com/ogrp01.asp?artist=HORSLIPS
: >
Beki
nob...@special-here.com wrote:
--
http://www.mp3.com/woodstock
http://www.mp3.com/~beki
James V. Bohen
> I wonder if there are any web
>sites dedicated to Horslips.
Jim Bohen
nob...@special-here.com
>I've got the Horslips album in the octogonal cover. Is that "Happy to Meet,
>Sorry to Part"? Or am I mixing that up with another one?
If I recall correctly Happy To Meet was their first widely released
album back in 1973. I don't know about the cover as I haven't heard
this one. There were likely some regional releases but I wouldn't know
about them. I'm too far away. Nighttown Boy was from their third album
Dancehall Sweethearts.
>If you're into mandolin-driven British folky stuff, check out Lindisfarne
>sometime.
Yes Lindisfarne were very good from what I've heard. Sadly I only have
one album (Finest Hour) and one single (Lady Eleanor/Down, but both of
these songs are on the album as well). Road To Kingdom Come from the
above album stands out as a favorite of mine. Actually, I haven't
listened to them in ages but will now that you brought them up. ;)
Russ
Today's favorite listened to tune:
All I Wanna Be by Nanette Workman
nob...@special-here.com
>Sorry to not get back to you sooner but I've been having ISP access problems
>for two days straight that have just now been straightened out.
Well, it's good to know your back! You gave me the info I needed. I'll
definitely give this book serious consideration. Thanks again.
nob...@special-here.com
Russ
Today's favorite listened to tune:
All I Wanna Be by Nanette Workman
snip...
nob...@special-here.com
Thanks Jim!
Rebecca L. Brindle
have "The Man Who Built America" but none of the others.
: >
Beki
nob...@special-here.com wrote:
> Russ
> Today's favorite listened to tune:
> All I Wanna Be by Nanette Workman