National Network for Equitable Library Service

A weave of biography, criticism, and memoir, Shine Bright is Danyel Smith’s intimate history of Black women’s music as the foundational story of American pop. Smith has been writing this history for more than five years. But as a music fan, and then as an essayist, editor (Vibe, Billboard), and podcast host (Black Girl Songbook), she has been living this history since she was a latchkey kid listening to “Midnight Train to Georgia” on the family stereo.

A gorgeous and empowering picture book biography about Evelyn Glennie, a deaf woman, who became the first full-time solo percussionist in the world. "No. You can't," people said. But Evelyn knew she could. She had found her own way to listen. From the moment Evelyn Glennie heard her first note, music held her heart. She played the piano by ear at age eight, and the clarinet by age ten. But soon, the nerves in her ears began to deteriorate, and Evelyn was told that, as a deaf girl, she could never be a musician.

In the summer when Coltrane died, poet Patti Smith fell in love with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. Eventually the two joined up with the Andy Warhol superstars and called later Hotel Chelsea home. Here Smith recounts her passionate romance and the incredible artistic atmosphere of the 1960s in this National Book Award-winning biography.

For the first time, Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson opens up about his amazing comeback--from tragic personal loss to thriving businessman and cable's highest-paid executive--in this unique self-help guide, his first since his blockbuster New York Times bestseller The 50th Law. In his early twenties Curtis Jackson, known as 50 Cent rose to the heights of fame and power in the cutthroat music business. A decade ago the multi-platinum selling rap artist decided to pivot.

Grunge Is Dead weaves together the definitive story of the Seattle music scene through a series of interviews with the people who were there. Taking the form of an 'oral' history, this books contains over 130 interviews, along with essential background information from acclaimed music writer Greg Prato.The early '90s grunge movement may have last only a few years, but it spawned some of the greatest rock music of all time: Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Alice in Chains, and Soundgarden.

A complete history of Toronto's legendary Horseshoe Tavern, 'the Birthplace of Canadian Rock,' to coincide with its seventieth anniversary. Like the Queen Street strip that has been its home for seven decades, the Horseshoe Tavern continues to evolve. It remains as relevant today as it did when Jack Starr founded the country music club on the site of a former blacksmith shop. From country and rockabilly to rock 'n' roll, punk, alt/country, and back to roots music, the venerable live music venue has evolved with the times and trends — always keeping pace with the music.

Pipe organs were once a central (and sometimes hotly debated) part of Manitoba’s cultural life. The Organ in Manitoba portrays that history — the instruments, builders, players and critics — from the date of the earliest known installations to the 1990s, and includes information on musical organizations such as the Royal Canadian College of Organists. It documents over a century of evolution and changes, from concepts of tonal design to styles of musical commentary and tastes, and includes an inventory of installations and specifications for over 100 organs.

The 20th century was a hotbed of musical exploration, innovation, and transformation unlike any other epoch in history. Ranging across the century in its entirety, these 24 lectures present a musical cornucopia of astounding dimensions-a major presentation and exploration of the incredible brilliance and diversity of musical art across a turbulent century.

Many classical music memoirs focus on famous musicians and professional accomplishments, but this book focuses on the everyday: neighborhood teacher, high school orchestra, local conductor. There are few writers capable of so deeply illuminating the trials of artistic practice - hours of daily repetition, mystifying advice, pressure from parents and teachers. But under all this struggle is a love letter to the act of teaching.

Tells the story of hip-hop's three most dynamic stars and their rise to fame: Diddy, Dr. Dre, and Jay-Z and examines the entrepreneurial genius of the first musician tycoons that largely helped to create a global multibillion-dollar industry.