The Charlotte & William Bloomberg Medford Public Library
April, 17 2025 07:48:01
Working for the Man, Playing in the Band
By Wood, Damon
A young, long-haired rock guitarist finds the funk on stage with the Godfather of SoulIn this unvarnished account of toiling under one of popular music's most notorious bosses, Damon Wood details his six years spent playing guitar for James Brown's Soul Generals.In a memoir certain to fascinate Mr. Dynamite's millions of fans, as well as musicians and industry insiders, Wood recalls how a chance encounter with James Brown led him to embrace soul and funk music under the tutelage of its greatest progenitor. Numerous interviews with bandmates provide multiple perspectives on James Brown's complex character, his leadership of his band, the nature of soul and funk, and insights and sometimes harsh lessons learned along the way.This is a sideman's story of the gritty reality of working close to the spotlight but rarely in it.
ECW Press
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9781770413856
|
Hardcover
Disney's Land
By Snow, Richard
A propulsive history chronicling the conception and creation of Disneyland, the masterpiece California theme park, as told like never before by popular historian Richard Snow.One day in the early 1950s, Walt Disney stood looking over 240 acres of farmland in Anaheim, California, and imagined building a park where people "could live among Mickey Mouse and Snow White in a world still powered by steam and fire for a day or a week or (if the visitor is slightly mad) forever." Despite his wealth and fame, exactly no one wanted Disney to build such a park. Not his brother Roy, who ran the company's finances; not the bankers; and not his wife, Lillian. Amusement parks at that time, such as Coney Island, were a generally despised business, sagging and sordid remnants of bygone days. Disney was told that he would only be heading toward financial ruin. But Walt persevered, initially financing the park against his own life insurance policy and later with sponsorship from ABC and the sale of thousands and thousands of Davy Crockett coonskin caps. Disney assembled a talented team of engineers, architects, artists, animators, landscapers, and even a retired admiral to transform his ideas into a soaring yet soothing wonderland of a park. The catch was that they had only a year and a day in which to build it. On July 17, 1955, Disneyland opened its gates ... and the first day was a disaster. Disney was nearly suicidal with grief that he had failed on a grand scale. But the curious masses kept coming, and the rest is entertainment history. Eight hundred million visitors have flocked to the park since then. In Disney's Land, Richard Snow brilliantly presents the entire spectacular story, a wild ride from vision to realization, and an epic of innovation and error that reflects the uniqueness of the man determined to build "the happiest place on earth" with a watchmaker's precision, an artist's conviction, and the desperate, high-hearted recklessness of a riverboat gambler.
Scribner
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9781501190803
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Hardcover
Bowie Style
By Paytress, Mark
The richly illustrated chronicle of pop's greatest exponent of style, newly updated This visual examination of a celebrated, multifaceted career documents the impact of David Bowie's 20th century fashion and culture, brilliantly capturing his spatial odyssey from dedicated follower to supreme arbiter of rock chic. With a staggering range of photographs representing everything from Bowie's humble Brixton beginnings to the classy pop icon he was to become, Bowie Style shows a changing glamour gallery of Bowies down the years. 421 color and b&w images throughout
Omnibus ; New York
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9781468313895
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Print book
Room to Dream
By Lynch, David
The extraordinary, highly anticipated memoir from visionary filmmakerDavid Lynch In this memoir, David Lynch, co-creator of Twin Peaks and writer and director of groundbreaking films like Eraserhead, The Elephant Man, Blue Velvet and Mulholland Drive, opens up about a lifetime of extraordinary creativity, the friendships he has made along the way and the struggles he has faced - sometimes successful, sometimes not - to bring his projects to fruition. Part-memoir, part-biography, Room to Dream interweaves Lynch's own reflections on his life with the story of those times, as told by Kristine McKenna, drawing from extensive and explosive interviews with ninety of Lynch's friends, family members, actors, agents, musicians, and collaborators. Lynch responds to each recollection and reveals the inner story of the life behind the art.
Random House
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9780399589195
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Hardcover
Maeve in America
By Higgins, Maeve
A timely essay collection about life, love, and becoming an American from breakout comedy star and podcaster Maeve Higgins "Maeve Higgins is hilarious, poignant, conversational, and my favorite Irish import since U2. You're in for a treat." - Phoebe Robinson, New York Times bestselling author of You Can't Touch My Hair Maeve Higgins was a bestselling memoirist and comedian in her native Ireland when, at the grand old age of thirty-one, she left the only home she'd ever known in search of something more. Like many women in their early thirties, she both was and was not the adult she wanted to be. At once smart, curious, and humane, Maeve in America is the story of how Maeve found herself, literally and figuratively, in New York City. Here are stories of not being able to afford a dress for the ball, of learning to live with yourself while you're still figuring out how to love yourself, of the true significance of realizing what sort of shelter dog you would be. Self-aware and laugh-out-loud funny, this collection is also a fearless exploration of the awkward questions in life, such as: Is clapping too loudly at a gig a good enough reason to break up with somebody? Is it ever really possible to leave home? Together, the essays in Maeve in America create a startlingly funny and revealing portrait of a woman who aims for the stars but hits the ceiling, and the inimitable city that has helped shape who she is, even as she finds the words to make sense of it all.
Penguin Books
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9780143130161
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Paperback
Mobituaries
By Rocca, Mo
From beloved CBS Sunday Morning correspondent and humorist Mo Rocca, an entertaining and rigorously researched audiobook that celebrates the dead people who have long fascinated him.Mo Rocca has always loved obituaries - reading about the remarkable lives of global leaders, Hollywood heavyweights, and innovators who changed the world. But not every notable life has gotten the send-off it deserves. His quest to right that wrong inspired Mobituaries, his number one hit podcast. Now with Mobituaries, the audiobook, he has gone much further, with all new essays on artists, entertainers, sports stars, political pioneers, founding fathers, and more. Even if you know the names, youve never understood why they matter...until now.Take Herbert Hoover: Before he was president, he was the "Great Humanitarian", the man who saved tens of millions from starvation. But after less than a year in the White House, the stock market crashed, and all the good he had done seemed to be forgotten. Then, theres Marlene Dietrich, well remembered as a screen goddess, less remembered as a great patriot. Alongside American servicemen on the front lines during World War II, she risked her life to help defeat the Nazis of her native Germany. And what about Billy Carter and historys unruly presidential brothers? Were they neer-do-well liabilities...or secret weapons? Plus, Mobits for dead sports teams, dead countries, the dearly departed station wagon, and dragons. Yes, dragons.Rocca is an expert researcher and storyteller. He draws on these skills here. With his dogged reporting and trademark wit, Rocca brings these men and women back to life like no one else can. Mobituaries is an insightful and unconventional account of the people who made life worth living for the rest of us, one that asks us to think about who gets remembered, and why.
Publisher: n/a
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9781501197628
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Audiobook
Jason Priestley
By Priestley, Jason
Jason Priestley, star of the iconic hit television series Beverly Hills, 90210 and one of the biggest teen idols of the 1990s, chronicles the highs and lows of his life and career in this charming and honest memoir.The hit Fox show Beverly Hills, 90210 became a cultural touchstone of the 1990s and propelled its young cast to mega-stardom, including Jason Priestley, who played honorable Midwestern transplant Brandon Walsh. Yet despite more than twenty years in and out of the limelight, Priestley has carefully maintained his privacy. In this compelling memoir, the actor, director, and race-car aficionado invites us into his private world for the first time.With humor, sincerity, and charm, Priestley offers little-known details about his life and stories of his nine years in America's most famous zip code.
A collection of humorous autobiographical essays by the beloved comedic actress known for her roles on Freaks and Geeks, Dawsons Creek, and Cougartown who has become "[T]he breakout star on Instagram stories.... [I]magine I Love Lucy mixed with a modern lifestyle guru" (The New Yorker) . Busy Philipps autobiographical audiobook offers the same unfiltered and candid storytelling that her Instagram followers have come to know and love, from growing up in Scottsdale, Arizona, and her painful and painfully funny teen years to her life as a working actress, mother, and famous best friend. Busy is the rare entertainer whose impressive arsenal of talents as an actress is equally matched by her storytelling ability, sense of humor, and sharp observations about life, love, and motherhood. Her conversational writing reminds us what we love about her on screens large and small. From film to television to Instagram, Busy delightfully showcases her wry humor and her willingness to bare it all. "Ive been waiting my whole life to write this book. Im just so grateful someone asked. Otherwise, what was the point of any of it?"
Touchstone
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9781501184710
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Audiobook
Paul Simon
By Hilburn, Robert
A publishing event from music legend Paul Simon: an intimate, candid, and definitive biography written with Simon's participation - but without editorial control - by acclaimed biographer and music writer Robert Hilburn.Through such hits as "The Sound of Silence," "Bridge Over Troubled Water," "Still Crazy After All These Years," and "Graceland," Paul Simon has spoken to us in songs for a half-century about alienation, doubt, resilience, and empathy in ways that have established him as one of the most honored and beloved songwriters in American pop music history. His music has gone beyond the sales charts into our cultural consciousness. He was the first songwriter awarded the Gershwin Prize by the Library of Congress and is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (twice) and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Deeply private, Simon has said he will not write an autobiography and has refused to talk to previous biographers. But he not only opened up to acclaimed biographer Robert Hilburn for what has amounted to more than 100 hours, he also urged those around him to speak. Independently, Hilburn also interviewed others who have been important in Simon's life, including his first two wives, Peggy Harper and Carrie Fisher, as well as, for the first time, people close to Kathy Chitty, his long-reclusive first muse. The result is a deeply human account of the challenges and sacrifices of a life in music at the highest level, including the courage to leave Simon and Garfunkel at the peak of the duo's popularity to pursue more fully his expanding artistic goals. Hilburn documents Simon's search for artistry and his constant struggle to protect that artistry against distractions - fame, marriage, divorce, drugs, record company interference, rejection, and insecurity - that have derailed so many great pop figures. Paul Simon: The Life is an intimate and inspiring narrative that helps us finally understand Paul Simon the person and the artist, including new and absorbing insights into his most enduring songs. Exploring his successes and failures onstage and off, the book combines the scholarship, passion, and storytelling grace of biography at its best.
Working for the Man, Playing in the Band
By Wood, Damon
A young, long-haired rock guitarist finds the funk on stage with the Godfather of SoulIn this unvarnished account of toiling under one of popular music's most notorious bosses, Damon Wood details his six years spent playing guitar for James Brown's Soul Generals.In a memoir certain to fascinate Mr. Dynamite's millions of fans, as well as musicians and industry insiders, Wood recalls how a chance encounter with James Brown led him to embrace soul and funk music under the tutelage of its greatest progenitor. Numerous interviews with bandmates provide multiple perspectives on James Brown's complex character, his leadership of his band, the nature of soul and funk, and insights and sometimes harsh lessons learned along the way.This is a sideman's story of the gritty reality of working close to the spotlight but rarely in it.
Disney's Land
By Snow, Richard
A propulsive history chronicling the conception and creation of Disneyland, the masterpiece California theme park, as told like never before by popular historian Richard Snow.One day in the early 1950s, Walt Disney stood looking over 240 acres of farmland in Anaheim, California, and imagined building a park where people "could live among Mickey Mouse and Snow White in a world still powered by steam and fire for a day or a week or (if the visitor is slightly mad) forever." Despite his wealth and fame, exactly no one wanted Disney to build such a park. Not his brother Roy, who ran the company's finances; not the bankers; and not his wife, Lillian. Amusement parks at that time, such as Coney Island, were a generally despised business, sagging and sordid remnants of bygone days. Disney was told that he would only be heading toward financial ruin. But Walt persevered, initially financing the park against his own life insurance policy and later with sponsorship from ABC and the sale of thousands and thousands of Davy Crockett coonskin caps. Disney assembled a talented team of engineers, architects, artists, animators, landscapers, and even a retired admiral to transform his ideas into a soaring yet soothing wonderland of a park. The catch was that they had only a year and a day in which to build it. On July 17, 1955, Disneyland opened its gates ... and the first day was a disaster. Disney was nearly suicidal with grief that he had failed on a grand scale. But the curious masses kept coming, and the rest is entertainment history. Eight hundred million visitors have flocked to the park since then. In Disney's Land, Richard Snow brilliantly presents the entire spectacular story, a wild ride from vision to realization, and an epic of innovation and error that reflects the uniqueness of the man determined to build "the happiest place on earth" with a watchmaker's precision, an artist's conviction, and the desperate, high-hearted recklessness of a riverboat gambler.
Bowie Style
By Paytress, Mark
The richly illustrated chronicle of pop's greatest exponent of style, newly updated This visual examination of a celebrated, multifaceted career documents the impact of David Bowie's 20th century fashion and culture, brilliantly capturing his spatial odyssey from dedicated follower to supreme arbiter of rock chic. With a staggering range of photographs representing everything from Bowie's humble Brixton beginnings to the classy pop icon he was to become, Bowie Style shows a changing glamour gallery of Bowies down the years. 421 color and b&w images throughout
Room to Dream
By Lynch, David
The extraordinary, highly anticipated memoir from visionary filmmaker David Lynch In this memoir, David Lynch, co-creator of Twin Peaks and writer and director of groundbreaking films like Eraserhead, The Elephant Man, Blue Velvet and Mulholland Drive, opens up about a lifetime of extraordinary creativity, the friendships he has made along the way and the struggles he has faced - sometimes successful, sometimes not - to bring his projects to fruition. Part-memoir, part-biography, Room to Dream interweaves Lynch's own reflections on his life with the story of those times, as told by Kristine McKenna, drawing from extensive and explosive interviews with ninety of Lynch's friends, family members, actors, agents, musicians, and collaborators. Lynch responds to each recollection and reveals the inner story of the life behind the art.
Maeve in America
By Higgins, Maeve
A timely essay collection about life, love, and becoming an American from breakout comedy star and podcaster Maeve Higgins "Maeve Higgins is hilarious, poignant, conversational, and my favorite Irish import since U2. You're in for a treat." - Phoebe Robinson, New York Times bestselling author of You Can't Touch My Hair Maeve Higgins was a bestselling memoirist and comedian in her native Ireland when, at the grand old age of thirty-one, she left the only home she'd ever known in search of something more. Like many women in their early thirties, she both was and was not the adult she wanted to be. At once smart, curious, and humane, Maeve in America is the story of how Maeve found herself, literally and figuratively, in New York City. Here are stories of not being able to afford a dress for the ball, of learning to live with yourself while you're still figuring out how to love yourself, of the true significance of realizing what sort of shelter dog you would be. Self-aware and laugh-out-loud funny, this collection is also a fearless exploration of the awkward questions in life, such as: Is clapping too loudly at a gig a good enough reason to break up with somebody? Is it ever really possible to leave home? Together, the essays in Maeve in America create a startlingly funny and revealing portrait of a woman who aims for the stars but hits the ceiling, and the inimitable city that has helped shape who she is, even as she finds the words to make sense of it all.
Mobituaries
By Rocca, Mo
From beloved CBS Sunday Morning correspondent and humorist Mo Rocca, an entertaining and rigorously researched audiobook that celebrates the dead people who have long fascinated him.Mo Rocca has always loved obituaries - reading about the remarkable lives of global leaders, Hollywood heavyweights, and innovators who changed the world. But not every notable life has gotten the send-off it deserves. His quest to right that wrong inspired Mobituaries, his number one hit podcast. Now with Mobituaries, the audiobook, he has gone much further, with all new essays on artists, entertainers, sports stars, political pioneers, founding fathers, and more. Even if you know the names, youve never understood why they matter...until now.Take Herbert Hoover: Before he was president, he was the "Great Humanitarian", the man who saved tens of millions from starvation. But after less than a year in the White House, the stock market crashed, and all the good he had done seemed to be forgotten. Then, theres Marlene Dietrich, well remembered as a screen goddess, less remembered as a great patriot. Alongside American servicemen on the front lines during World War II, she risked her life to help defeat the Nazis of her native Germany. And what about Billy Carter and historys unruly presidential brothers? Were they neer-do-well liabilities...or secret weapons? Plus, Mobits for dead sports teams, dead countries, the dearly departed station wagon, and dragons. Yes, dragons.Rocca is an expert researcher and storyteller. He draws on these skills here. With his dogged reporting and trademark wit, Rocca brings these men and women back to life like no one else can. Mobituaries is an insightful and unconventional account of the people who made life worth living for the rest of us, one that asks us to think about who gets remembered, and why.
Jason Priestley
By Priestley, Jason
Jason Priestley, star of the iconic hit television series Beverly Hills, 90210 and one of the biggest teen idols of the 1990s, chronicles the highs and lows of his life and career in this charming and honest memoir.The hit Fox show Beverly Hills, 90210 became a cultural touchstone of the 1990s and propelled its young cast to mega-stardom, including Jason Priestley, who played honorable Midwestern transplant Brandon Walsh. Yet despite more than twenty years in and out of the limelight, Priestley has carefully maintained his privacy. In this compelling memoir, the actor, director, and race-car aficionado invites us into his private world for the first time.With humor, sincerity, and charm, Priestley offers little-known details about his life and stories of his nine years in America's most famous zip code.
Oscar Wildes Last Stand
By Hoare, Philip
A New York Times Notable Book of the Year that Sir Ian McKellen called "a shocking tale of heroes and villains - illuminating and upsetting in equal measure.". The first production of Oscar Wildes Salomé in 1918, with American exotic dancer Maud Allan dancing lead, ignited a firestorm in London spearheaded by Noel Pemberton Billing, a member of Parliament and self-appointed guardian of family values. Billing attacked Allan in the right-wing newspaper Vigilante as a member of the "Cult of the Clitoris," a feminine version of the "Cult of the Wilde," a catchall for the degeneracy and perversion he was convinced had infected the land. He claimed that a black book was in the hands of their enemies the Germans, a book that contained the names of thousands of the British establishment who without doubt were members of the cult. Threat of exposure was costing England the war.. Allan sued Billing for libel, and the ensuing trial, brought to life in this authoritative, spellbinding book, held the world in thrall. Was there or was there not a black book? What names did it contain? The trial was both hugely entertaining and deadly serious and raised specters of hysteria, homophobia, and paranoia that, like Oscar Wilde himself, continue to haunt us. As in Wildes own trial in 1895, libel was hardly the issue; the fight was for control over the countrys moral compass. In Oscar Wildes Last Stand, biographer and historian Philip Hoare gives us the full drama of the Billing trial, gavel to gavel, and brings to life this unique, bizarre, and fascinating event.. Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
This Will Only Hurt a Little
By Philipps, Busy
A collection of humorous autobiographical essays by the beloved comedic actress known for her roles on Freaks and Geeks, Dawsons Creek, and Cougartown who has become "[T]he breakout star on Instagram stories.... [I]magine I Love Lucy mixed with a modern lifestyle guru" (The New Yorker) . Busy Philipps autobiographical audiobook offers the same unfiltered and candid storytelling that her Instagram followers have come to know and love, from growing up in Scottsdale, Arizona, and her painful and painfully funny teen years to her life as a working actress, mother, and famous best friend. Busy is the rare entertainer whose impressive arsenal of talents as an actress is equally matched by her storytelling ability, sense of humor, and sharp observations about life, love, and motherhood. Her conversational writing reminds us what we love about her on screens large and small. From film to television to Instagram, Busy delightfully showcases her wry humor and her willingness to bare it all. "Ive been waiting my whole life to write this book. Im just so grateful someone asked. Otherwise, what was the point of any of it?"
Paul Simon
By Hilburn, Robert
A publishing event from music legend Paul Simon: an intimate, candid, and definitive biography written with Simon's participation - but without editorial control - by acclaimed biographer and music writer Robert Hilburn.Through such hits as "The Sound of Silence," "Bridge Over Troubled Water," "Still Crazy After All These Years," and "Graceland," Paul Simon has spoken to us in songs for a half-century about alienation, doubt, resilience, and empathy in ways that have established him as one of the most honored and beloved songwriters in American pop music history. His music has gone beyond the sales charts into our cultural consciousness. He was the first songwriter awarded the Gershwin Prize by the Library of Congress and is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (twice) and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Deeply private, Simon has said he will not write an autobiography and has refused to talk to previous biographers. But he not only opened up to acclaimed biographer Robert Hilburn for what has amounted to more than 100 hours, he also urged those around him to speak. Independently, Hilburn also interviewed others who have been important in Simon's life, including his first two wives, Peggy Harper and Carrie Fisher, as well as, for the first time, people close to Kathy Chitty, his long-reclusive first muse. The result is a deeply human account of the challenges and sacrifices of a life in music at the highest level, including the courage to leave Simon and Garfunkel at the peak of the duo's popularity to pursue more fully his expanding artistic goals. Hilburn documents Simon's search for artistry and his constant struggle to protect that artistry against distractions - fame, marriage, divorce, drugs, record company interference, rejection, and insecurity - that have derailed so many great pop figures. Paul Simon: The Life is an intimate and inspiring narrative that helps us finally understand Paul Simon the person and the artist, including new and absorbing insights into his most enduring songs. Exploring his successes and failures onstage and off, the book combines the scholarship, passion, and storytelling grace of biography at its best.