Eric Clapton: The Autobiography by Eric Clapton

$14.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: very good

Eric Clapton is far more than a rock star. Like Dylan and McCartney he is an icon and a living legend. He has sold tens of millions of records, played sell-out concerts all over the world and been central to every significant musical development of his era. His guitar playing has seen him hailed as 'God '. Tracks such as 'Layla', 'Sunshine of Your Love', 'Wonderful Tonight' and 'Tears in Heaven' have become anthems for generations of music fans. Now for the first time, Eric tells the story of his personal and professional journeys in this pungent, witty and painfully honest autobiography. But the rock star lifestyle has had a darker side too. In more than forty years at the forefront of his profession he has twice survived near fatal addictions to drugs and alcohol, the deaths of close friends such as Jimi Hendrix and John Lennon, the death of his own young son, the break-up of marriage and the disintegration of countless relationships with a succession of beautiful women. Eric was born an illegitimate child to a Canadian airman in 1945 and raised by his grandparents. Until the age of 9 he believed his absentee mother to be his sister. When the truth was revealed he felt a sense of abandonment and isolation which was eventually to drive him to despair and addiction. From his early teens his solace was the guitar. At the age of eighteen he joined the Yardbirds and from then on his legendary status was assured. In 1966 the world's first super group, Cream, was formed and at the age of 22 Eric was a world superstar. During his later solo career, his love for George Harrison's beautiful wife, Pattie Boyd drove him to the hell of drug addiction and by the 70s he had disappeared from public view. But Eric fought back and produced platinum albums such as 'Slowhand' and eventually married Pattie. But the love of his life didn't last. Alcohol took over. In the late 80s the marriage disintegrated, and Eric had a son, Connor, with an Italian supermodel. But Connor was tragically killed in a freak accident. Eric's elegy to his son, 'Tears in Heaven', became one of the biggest selling singles in history. These are the memoirs of a survivor, someone who has reached the pinnacle of success, who has had it all, but whose demons have never left him.At the age of 60 Eric is cured of alcoholism and is in a long term relationship with three young daughters. He is now ready to tell his story as it is, hiding nothing, with a directness and searing honesty that will make this book one of the most compelling memoirs of our time. First published 2007. ...Show more

The House: The Dramatic Story of the Sydney Opera House and the People Who Made It by Helen Pitt

$16.00 NZD

Category: Architecture | Reading Level: very good

The best-loved building in Australia nearly didn't get off the drawing board. When it did, the lives of everyone involved in its construction were utterly changed: some for the better, many for the worse. Helen Pitt tells the stories of the people behind the magnificent white sails of the Sydney Opera H ouse. From the famous conductor and state premier who conceived the project; to the two architects whose lives were so tragically intertwined; to the workers and engineers; to the people of Sydney, who were alternately beguiled and horrified as the drama unfolded over two decades. With access to diaries, letters, and classified records, as well as her own interviews with people involved in the project, Helen Pitt reveals the intimate back story of the building that turned Sydney into an international city. It is a tale worthy of Shakespeare himself. 'A drama-filled page turner' - Ita Buttrose AO OBE'Helen Pitt tells us so much about the building of the Sydney Opera House we've never heard before' - Bob Carr, former Premier of NSW'Australia in the seventies-mullets, platform shoes and, miraculously, the Opera House. At least we got one of them right. A great read.' - Amanda Keller, WSFM breakfast presenter ...Show more

Every Poster Tells a Story: 30 Years of the Frontier Touring Company by Eloise Glanville and Sarah Morgan (eds)

$45.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: very good

This book is a pictorial history based on the 30 plus years that The Frontier Touring Company has been promoting live music concerts - from pubs and clubs, to arenas and stadiums; performance intimate and unplugged, to dynamic and grandiose.

The Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock and Soul by Irwin Stambler

$25.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: very good

This reference book covers four decades of pop and soul music from Buddy Holly to Herbie Hancock with hundreds of new entries such as Madonna, U2 and Prince. There are over 600 entries with each one providing information on the star's musical significance, often drawing on personal interviews.

An Annotated Bibliography of Oceanic Music and Dance with Supplement by Mervyn McLean

$35.00 NZD

Category: Music | Series: Polynesian Society Memoir No. 41 | Reading Level: very good

If I Only Had Time by John Rowles

$20.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: near fine

John Rowles had the popular music world at his feet in Britain in 1969. Managed by Peter Gormley, the same man who ran Cliff Richard's career, Rowles had two hits in the British top 20, 'If I Only Had Time' and 'Hush Not A Word To Mary'. Forty years later John admits that if had stayed in the UK he coul d have laid the base for a multi-million dollar career. But homesick for the sun, the 21-year-old Kiwi gave it all up for Hawaii in 1970, and signed up as a caberet star at the famous Royal Hawaiian Hotel on Waikiki Beach. It had been a sensational rise for the kid from Kawerau who left home at 15 to play guitar. Basing himself in Hawaii, John's stellar career continued with regular trips all over the USA and appearing on television. He travelled back and forth to New Zealand and Australia regularly and released numerous albums, featuring best-selling hits such as 'Cheryl, Moana Marie' and 'Tania'. Following a highly successful Farewell Tour of New Zealand where he performed over 25 sold out two-and-a-half hour shows with his six-piece band, John Rowles recalls a lifetime of achievements in his highly illustrated autobiography. He speaks candidly to Angus Gillies about the highs and lows of his professional and personal life. ...Show more

The Lives and Times of the Great Composers by Michael Steen

$14.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: near fine

Michael Steen's "Great Composers" was originally published in 2003. A lifetime's work and almost 1000 pages long, it has since become 'the' reference point and key read on the biographical backgrounds to classical music's biggest names. Authoritative and hugely detailed - but nonetheless a joy to read - this new edition will expand its readership further and capitalise on a newfound popular interest (as evidenced by the success of Alex Ross' "The Rest is Noise") in classical music. This work helps you explore the story of Bach, the respectable burgher much of whose vast output was composed amidst petty turf disputes in Lutheran Leipzig; or the ugly, argumentative Beethoven in French-occupied Vienna, obsessed by his laundry; or Mozart, the over-exploited infant prodigy whose untimely death was shrouded in rumour. In this work, read about Verdi, who composed against the background of the Italian Risorgimento; or about the family life of the Wagners; and, Brahms, who rose from the slums of Hamburg to become a devotee of beer and coffee in fin-de-siecle Vienna, a cultural capital bent on destroying Mahler...and much, much more. ...Show more

Rip It Up And Start Again: Post-Punk 1978-84 by Simon Reynolds

$16.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: good

Full of anecdote and insight, Rip it Up and Start Again stands as one of the most inspired and inspiring books on popular music ever written 'Constant change' was the watchword of the postpunk era, with endless brilliant innovations not just in music but in lyrics, performance, style, and design. This s pirit continued and mutated with the New Pop of the early eighties - Human League, Adam Ant, ABC, Madness, Dexy's Midnight Runners, Frankie Goes to Hollywood - all of whom originally came out of punk, but who playfully embraced glamour and video in order to propel their bright ideas into the heart of the mainstream. As a distinct epoch, 1978-84 rivals the sixties for the sheer amount of fabulous music created, the spirit of adventure and possibility that infused it, and the way the sounds felt inextricably connected to the political and social turbulence of the day. In this, the first book to take a big picture view of the entire postpunk period, Simon Reynolds, acclaimed author of Energy Flash, recreates a time of tremendous urgency and idealism in pop music. Rip It Up and Start Again also offers a shadow history of the Thatcher-Reagan era, that massive backlash against the countercultural sixties and the permissive seventies, in the process capturing the poignancy of a generation radicalised by punk only to find themselves struggling against the grain of an increasingly conservative culture. First published 2005. ...Show more

Chronicles Volume One by Bob Dylan

$12.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: very good

The first volume in a series of memoirs by a musical and political icon. Circa 1965, arguably the high point in his creative genius, Bob Dylan writes about the beginning of his music career, his early loves, and offers a very personal, anecdotal view of this time of creativity, innovation and music hist ory. ...Show more

Generation Ecstasy - Into the World of Techno and Rave Culture by Simon Reynolds

$12.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: good

In Generation Ecstasy, Simon Reynolds takes the reader on a guided tour of this end-of-the-millenium phenomenon, telling the story of rave culture and techno music as an insider who has dosed up and blissed out. A celebration of rave's quest for the perfect beat definitive chronicle of rave culture and electronic dance music. ...Show more

Weavers of Song: Polynesian Music & Dance by Mervyn McLean

$120.00 NZD

Category: Maud’s Picks | Reading Level: very good

This book explores, in detail, 20 specific areas of the entire sweep of Polynesian music and dance. It descrives the musical instruments, the uses, performance, composition, teaching and structure of music across the entire region. Accompanied by a music CD sampler.

Piano Notes : The hidden world of the pianist by Charles Rosen

$10.00 NZD

Category: Music | Reading Level: near fine

In this eloquent, intimate exploration of the delights and demands of the piano, world-renowned concert pianist and music writer Charles Rosen draws on a lifetime's wisdom to consider every aspect of the instrument: from what makes a beautiful sound to suffering from stage fright, from the physical chal lenges of playing to tales of great musicians, including Vladimir Horowitz's recording tricks, Rachmaninov s hands and why Artur Rubenstein applied hairspray to the keys. Gracefully blending anecdote, history, expertise and memoir, Piano Notes will enchant anyone with a passion for music. ...Show more