If you want household-name bios and memoirs, you’ll have to wait a few more weeks for the fall releases. Now is the time for more obscure — but I would argue, more interesting — tomes by and/or about Jesus And Mary Chain, The Gits, English Beat, obscure blues artists, classic cartoon music, Krautrock, Black British sounds and more. Read all about ’em:
Never Understood: The Jesus And Mary Chain
By William Reid & Jim Reid
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “For five years after they’d swapped sought-after apprenticeships for life on the dole, brothers William and Jim Reid sat up till the early hours in the front room of their parents’ East Kilbride council house, plotting their path to world domination over endless cups of tea, with the music turned down low so as not to wake their sleeping sister. They knew they couldn’t play in the same band because they’d argue too much, so they’d describe their dream ensembles to each other until finally they realised that these two perfect bands were actually the same band, and the name of that band was The Jesus And Mary Chain. The rest was not silence, and picking up those conversations again more than 40 years later, William and Jim tell the full story of one of Britain’s greatest guitar bands for the very first time — a wildly funny and improbably moving chronicle of brotherly strife, feedback, riots, drug and alcohol addiction, eternal outsiders and extreme shyness, that also somehow manages to be a love letter to the Scottish working-class family.”
Mia Zapata And The Gits | A Story of Art, Rock, and Revolution
By Steve Moriarty
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Seattle band The Gits and their charismatic front person Mia Zapata were on the verge of international rock stardom. But on July 7, 1993, days before their third U.S. tour, Zapata, the band’s 27-year-old singer-songwriter, was assaulted and murdered by a stranger. Zapata’s death sent chilling ripples through progressive communities throughout the U.S. She became a cause-celebre for women’s rights activists outraged by the brutal killing and lack of law enforcement support. This book reclaims Zapata’s story to focus on the art she and The Gits created and not her tragic end. Much has been written and said about her murder, yet Zapata’s life and work remain overshadowed by her death. Zapata’s friend and bandmate Steve Moriarty tells the story from their first meeting to their last goodbye. While first-year students at college, they discovered the power of punk and found an outlet for their progressive ideas through music. Zapata, Moriarity, and fellow students Matt Dresdner and Andy Kessler attended a show by Dead Kennedys that inspired them to start a band fueled by Mia’s provocative lyrics. They quickly gained critical praise and dedicated fans. They shared stages with Beck, Nirvana, Mudhoney, Joan Jett, Bikini Kill, L7 and more who expected The Gits to be the next big thing. The Gits’ story is more than a biography; it’s a testament to the ability of artists and musicians to challenge the status quo and the power of friendship to change the world.”
English Beat | Soul Salvation: A Gen-X Love Letter
By Marc Wasserman
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Part Gen X memoir and part English Beat oral history, this book takes a detailed look at the making of, response to, and influence their third album Special Beat Service had on fans and musicians like Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, Adam Duritz of Counting Crows, Elvis Costello and Pete Townshend of The Who. Soul Salvation includes a foreword by Jay Boberg, the president of IRS Records who worked to break the band in America during 1982-’83 and features extensively researched interviews, insights and anecdotes from band members, record company executives, music critics and notable fans. Soul Salvation is the first book of its kind to explore The English Beat’s unique story and its massive influence on a generation of American music fans and the birth of ’80s indie-rock. Soul Salvation is Marc Wasserman’s followup to 2021’s SkaBOOM!: An American Ska & Reggae Oral History.”
Deeper Blues: The Life, Songs, and Salvation of Cornbread Harris
By Andrea Swensson
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “From the heart of the Minnesota blues comes the story of James “Cornbread” Harris Jr., the songwriter, pianist, and consummate bluesman whose seventy years making music helped to shape the Minneapolis Sound. “I am a blessed dude,” Cornbread tells Andrea Swensson, taking us along on his musical journey from a first gig entertaining fellow soldiers during the Second World War to his years playing across Minnesota. Following Cornbread’s extraordinary life story, Deeper Blues is a unique history that evolves into a heartfelt tale of reconciliation and forgiveness, all to the tune of the legendary musician’s signature sound. Cornbread’s career started in the 1950s, when he played with the Augie Garcia Quintet and cowrote their hit Hi Ho Silver. A tireless entertainer, he has been performing live ever since, influencing an entire generation of musicians credited with putting Minneapolis on the map in the 1980s — including his long-estranged son, Grammy-winning Rock And Roll Hall of Famer James “Jimmy Jam” Harris III. Going beyond the music, Deeper Blues turns toward family, atonement, and peace when the pair reunite after a five-decade separation and perform together on stage. A rich mix of present-day anecdotes and historical vignettes, animated by voices from Cornbread’s life and the Twin Cities music scene, underscored by the bluesman’s original lyrics of heartache and hope, Deeper Blues tells a singular story — one imprinted on the history, heart, and soul of Minneapolis.”
With The Beatles: From The Birth Of Ringo To Now And Then
By Patrick Humphries
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Patrick Humphries was there for the 1963 tsunami of Beatlemania — he still has his fan club membership card. Inside With The Beatles, he shares previously unknown details of the band’s third film; Paul McCartney talks about the Lennon/McCartney songwriting credit; George Harrison reflects on Beatlemania; Ringo Starr discusses his skiffle roots. He reveals how Lonnie Donegan almost acted as go-between to coax John Lennon out of his New York exile. There are first-hand accounts of Liverpool and Hamburg that paint a picture of The Beatles’ roots, plus an exhaustive analysis of their American breakthrough. There are fly-on-the-wall accounts of Paul rehearsing for a world tour, and of The Beatles’ Love musical in Las Vegas. There are interviews with George Martin, Cavern DJ Bob Wooler, E Street Band drummer Max Weinberg and Tom Jones, who reveals discussing plans for him and Elvis Presley to recruit The Beatles as their backing band. Following the story from the birth of Ringo in 1940 to the group’s breakup in 1970, With The Beatles also tells the story of how the band’s brand continues to live on long after their demise. With unique access to archives, interviews and all media, Patrick Humphries traces The Beatles’ progress in cyberspace, on film and in print — and reveals how the group dominates auction house sales, including an interview with Antiques Roadshow on the group’s enduring appeal. With The Beatles is a new look at the enduring impact and legacy of the world’s most influential band.”
Speaking Words of Wisdom: The Beatles and Religion
By Michael McGowan
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “More popular than Jesus.” Despite the uproar it caused in America in 1966, John Lennon’s famous assessment of the Beatles vis-à-vis religion was not far off. The Beatles did mean more to kids than the religions in which they were raised, not only in America but everywhere in the world. By all accounts, the band were the most significant musical group of the 20th century. Their albums sold in the millions, and the press was always eager to document their activities and perspectives. And when fan appreciation morphed into worship, Beatlemania took on religious significance. Many young people around the world began to look to The Beatles — their music, their commentary, their art — for meaning in a turbulent decade. Speaking Words of Wisdom is a deep dive into the band’s relationship to religion through the lenses of philosophy, cultural studies, music history, and religious studies. In the 1960s, The Beatles facilitated a reevaluation of our deepest values. The story of how they became modern-day sages is an important case study for the ways in which consumers make culturally and religiously significant meaning from music, people, and events.”
Rebel With A Cause: Roots, Records And Revolutions
By Darcus Beese
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The must-read memoir from Darcus Beese — the first black president of Island Records and one of the greatest A&Rs of his generation. From growing up as a teenager on the streets of West London to running one of the biggest record labels in the world in New York, this is a truly remarkable rags-to-riches tale. Rebel With A Cause is the story of how a teenage apprentice hairdresser from Fulham worked his way up from teaboy to head one of the U.K.’s biggest and most successful record labels, signing and nurturing some of the greatest artists of the 21st century, from Amy Winehouse and Jessie J to U2 and Florence And The Machine. But this is also the story of a young man raised in musically fertile and politically febrile times. His activist parents Darcus Howe and Barbara Beese were tireless campaigners for racial equality at a time when racism was rife, not only on the streets, in schools and on the terraces, but also in the highest institutions of power. Fighting for equality — for himself and for his artists — has therefore been a key part of Darcus’s life. This is the incredible tale of an indomitable leader, an industry pioneer and rebel with a true cause.”
Neu Klang: The Definitive History Of Krautrock
By Christoph Dallach
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “West Germany, 1968. Like everywhere else in the Western world, the young generation is pushing for radical change, still suffering the aftereffects of the Second World War. Many stream out of the lecture halls and onto the streets. Some into the underground. And some into the practice basements, in search of the soundtrack of the movement. The unique and adventurous sounds that German bands like Can, Neu!, Amon Düül, Popul Vuh, Tangerine Dream, Faust, Cluster or Kraftwerk produced back then, now known as Krautrock, are considered a blueprint for modern rock music. And the stream of their creative admirers and continuators has been constantly widening since the first fans like David Bowie and Iggy Pop: whether Blur, Aphex Twin, Sonic Youth, Radiohead or Red Hot Chili Peppers. In Neu Klang, Christoph Dallach interviewed its pioneers, including Irmin Schmidt, Jaki Liebezeit and Holger Czukay of Can; Neu!’s Michael Rother; Dieter Moebius of Cluster; Klaus Schulze of Tangerine Dream; Karl Bartos of Kraftwerk, Brian Eno and many others. Their answers combine to form an oral history that points far beyond the individual band histories: on the one hand, into the past, to Nazi teachers, post-war parental homes, free jazz, terrorism, LSD and extremely long hair; but just as much into the future, to global recognition, myth-making, techno or post-rock.”
Beyond the Bassline: 500 Years of Black British Music
By Paul Bradshaw
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The story of Black British music is a 500-year journey from the court of King Henry VIII to the Ends of South London; from Africa to the Caribbean to the U.K. and back; from subterranean shebeens and church halls to royal command performances and sold-out stadiums; and from outsider influence to domestic chart domination. It is a story that grapples with the slave trade, the prejudice of unwelcoming institutions and the bias of ignorance while ultimately celebrating the creativity and perseverance of the pioneers and today’s digital age innovators. Published alongside the major British Library exhibition, Beyond The Bassline is a landmark volume of essays, features and interviews which traces a new timeline underpinned by the Black artists and musicians who, over centuries, have shaped Britain’s unique and globally significant musical culture. Illustrating this vibrant history which traverses musical genres from classical, gospel and jazz through to reggae, jungle and Afrobeats are more than three hundred images including contemporary and classic photographs, paintings, posters and record sleeves. Introduced by the exhibition’s curators, Dr. Aleema Gray and Mykaell Riley, and edited by Paul Bradshaw, music journalist and publisher of Straight No Chaser magazine, Beyond the Bassline tells its essential story through specially commissioned pieces from musicians, composers, DJs, writers and photographers, as well as important voices in politics and history.”
Hanna-Barbera, The Recorded History: From Modern Stone Age To Meddling Kids
By Greg Ehrbar
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Whether it’s Tom and Jerry, Scooby-Doo, The Jetsons, Yogi Bear, Top Cat, Huckleberry Hound, or hundreds of others, the creations of the Hanna-Barbera studio continue to delight generations worldwide. The groundbreaking company employed thousands in the art and business of animation. Some of them were vintage-era veterans, others were up-and-coming talents, some of whom found blockbuster success at other studios. The power of the sounds that Hanna-Barbera crafted to accompany the compelling visuals was a key factor in its spectacular success. Legendary vocal performances and signature sound effects evoke countless visual images. Catchy music cues and theme songs are recalled instantly.”
Pink Floyd in Comics!
By Nicolas Finet, Tony Lourenco & Thierry Lamy
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Do you really know Pink Floyd? This comics documentary retraces the history of the group, from their meeting to the solo adventures of the artists. A great opportunity to revisit famous episodes in the life of the mythical group and explore what made their approach to music absolutely inimitable. These 28 comprehensive chapters to explore all of their musical and cultural heritage. As for all bestselling volumes in this series, this is a mix of articles illustrated with photos providing the facts and comics chapters providing the feel. Get the behind-the-scenes real story and trip on Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Wish You Were Here, Money, Time and so many other ex-temporal albums and hits which simply never fade!”
