If you’re like me — and heaven help you if you are — you’re probably reading about music when you’re not listening to it. Here are the latest titles to add to your list:
Ruffhouse: From the Streets of Philly to the Top of the ’90s Hip Hop Charts
By Chris Schwartz
THE PRESS RELEASE: “As a struggling musician trying to catch a break in 1980s Philadelphia, Chris Schwartz navigated the crime-infested, morally bankrupt music industry to build one of the most successful hip-hop record labels in the world. That label was Ruffhouse, which launched the careers of Nas, The Fugees, Cypress Hill, and others, dominating the charts and generating global revenues of over one billion dollars. Schwartz and his partner, Joe Nicolo, built Ruffhouse from one desk and a phone to one of hip-hop’s most revered record companies while simultaneously struggling with drug addiction and alcoholism. A story of money, greed, envy, betrayal, violence, addiction, loss, and redemption, not to mention a whole lot of music, Ruffhouse reveals the inside story of the record companies, recording studios, tour buses, private jets, mansions, radio stations, and concert halls at the height of hip-hop’s 1990s heyday, while also uncovering the darker side of the business, from police stations to rehab clinics, courtrooms to prisons. Narrated in Schwartz’s own candid, searing prose, Ruffhouse is a gripping portrayal of hip-hop culture and its transition to a global commercial platform.”
Iron Maiden: Book of Souls
By Alison James
THE PRESS RELEASE: “Iron Maiden: Book of Souls is the ultimate book to cover every possible aspect of the band’s amazing 40-year career. Iron Maiden: Book of Souls is the celebration of the band, providing their story in beautiful illustrations including posters, and rare photos of the band’s most high-profile gigs throughout their career. Fans can now get closer to the band than has ever been possible before. Written by the critically acclaimed journalist Alison James, it features superb imagery of the band, as well as exclusive photographs of Maiden memorabilia. In total Iron Maiden: Book of Souls contains around 100 colour and black and white photographs of the band and posters and tickets of their greatest concerts.”
