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Books — All

XA special selection of disc guides and discographies, music history, record art books, graphic novels, and some nicely-priced remainders!

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Exact matches1
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Robert DardenNothing But Love In God's Water – Black Sacred Music From Sit-Ins to Resurrection City (hardcover) ... Book
Pennsylvania State University, 2016. New Copy ... Temporarily Out Of Stock
Things really heat up in this second volume of Robert Darden's look at the rise of gospel in America – as he traces the music's journey from the pulpit to the public, from praise to protest – and really illuminates the power that gospel and its inspiration brought to black identity from the 60s onward! This volume is even bigger than the first, and really overflows with research and information – a hugely documented project that features pages of notes at the end, and black and white images throughout the larger first section – as Darden does a fantastic job of mixing music, politics, and cultural progression. Hardcover edition is 334 pages. Book
 
Possible matches: 17
Possible matches2
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
Bruce AdamsYou're With Stupid – Kranky, Chicago, & The Reinvention Of Indie Music ... Book
University Of Texas Press, 2023. New Copy ... $20.99 26.95
A really well-done document of a pretty amazing time in the Chicago music scene – a huge early 90s burst of creative activity – one that gave the world a handful of famous groups, and a much bigger number of even better acts who really made the city great! Writer Bruce Adams issued some of the music on his label Kranky – but the book here goes way past that imprint, and instead presents a really vivid portrait of the scene at large – clubs, labels, bands, writers, and all the other forces that helped really make Chicago great back then – a city that was bubbling over with new energy right at the same time we started Dusty Groove on the south side. Adams definitely has plenty of his own opinions throughout, but those are also balanced with his insider perspective – which comes forth with a well-balanced explanation of so many intricacies, at a level that's so different than the usual sort of book of this nature, especially from the coasts. And if you're worried that the book is too rock-heavy, don't – because players in the scene here also include Dusty Groove stalwarts like Ken Vandermark, Fred Anderson, and Joshua Abrams. Hardcover edition is 288 pages. Book

Possible matches3
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Akuseru KomyunikeshonzuJapanese City Pop – Disc Collection Revised ... Book
Tankobon (Japan), 2020. New Copy ... $28.99 36.99
A great way to dive into the world of city pop music from Japan – that big flowering of new sounds and fresh ideas that really marked a key creative moment on the scene from the early 70s onward – a huge legacy that's only getting appreciation in recent years by English-speaking audiences! This beautiful book presents listings for almost 700 albums in all – with a listing of key classics, then important records by some of the best artists – starting from the early years, and running up through the CD generation as well – with full color reproductions of all the albums featured in the book! The listings offer key information on each record – sometimes English, sometimes Japanese – along with a short review of each record too, in Japanese. You can mostly read the text using an app on your phone, such as Google Translate – but even just for the pictures, the book is a wonderful guide to the music – one that will really help you start digging for obscure gems from Japan! Softcover, 238 pages, with full color images throughout. Book

Possible matches4
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
Robert ChristgauGoing Into The City – Portrait Of A Critic As A Young Man – A Memoir ... Book
Dey St, 2015. New Copy ... $4.99 15.99
Robert Christgau is one of the coolest music writers of all time – a hugely important force for decades, through his work in the Village Voice – where he helped shape acceptance and understanding of generations of new sounds – and a contributor to other publications and broadcast outlets, where his voice is always one of the smartest in the room! And while we've always dug what Christgau has to say about other folks, it's also pretty great to read his own story, too – a life spent living in New York, where his path crossed countless other cultural figures and moments, apart from the music and musicians you might expect. This volume focuses mostly on his youth, his growth on the New York scene of the 60s, and his role in the 70s – and the book is softcover, 366 pages. Book
(Spine has a remainder mark.)

Possible matches5
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
Tony FletcherAll Hopped Up & Ready To Go – Music From The Streets Of New York 1927 to 1977 (paperback) ... Book
Norton, 2009. New Copy ... $7.99 18.95
A huge testament to the power of New York City in American music – especially during those 20th Century years when the city was able to foster scene after scene, style after style – serving as a launchpad for sounds that would forever transform the world! The book looks at Latin, bebop, folk, doo wop, punk, disco, and other styles from the pre-hip hop years – and traces the way that local styles became national ones, via the recording opportunities and entertainment showcases that were unique to NYC! The author has a keen knowledge of cultures in all five boroughs, and the music as well – and this softcover edition is almost 500 pages, with some sections of black and white images. Book
(Spine has a small remainder mark.)

Possible matches6
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
Ralph J GleasonMusic In The Air (hardcover) ... Book
Yale University Press, 2016. New Copy ... $6.99 30.00
Ralph J Gleason might just be one of the coolest cats to ever write about music – a key part of the San Francisco scene during the postwar years – where his talents helped illuminate both the worlds of art and music during the beat generation – then really helped shine a spotlight on all the cultural changes in the city during the 60s – which even led to Gleason's role in the founding of Rolling Stone magazine! Gleason always had a great eye (and ear) for things that were new and special, but never in a way that was slavish to the moment – or to its creator – and the book features an initial section on his writings on jazz and blues – with essays on John Coltrane, Charles Mingus, Carmen McRae, BB King, John Handy, Vince Guaraldi & Bola Sete, Cal Tjader, Ben Webster, the San Francisco Jazz scene, and other diverse topics. The second section features Gleason on folk and rock – with bits on Jefferson Airplane, Hank Williams, Lenny Bruce, Odetta, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and others – and the final section features articles on politics and culture – covering topics that include Richard Nixon, radio payola, Law & Order, flower children, and other slices of society, seen from the Gleason viewpoint. Book is hardcover, and 309 pages. Book

Possible matches7
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
LightmellowObscure City Pop CD Disc Guide – 1986 to 2006 ... Book
Du Books (Japan), 2023. New Copy ... $24.99 34.99
A great guide for digging into the world of Japanese music from the mid 80s onward – and a book that's different than some of the more vinyl-centric disc guide, in that it focuses strongly on city pop titles that were only issued on CD! The Japanese city pop movement really got going at the start of the 80s, when vinyl and cassette were still king and queen – but it kept on going even after formats shifted – at a level that makes this book such a key document of the scene and style, which is often just tied to the vinyl market. As with other Japanese disc guides, the bulk of the text is in Japanese – which can now easily be read using Google Translate on your phone – but the book has entries for hundreds of titles, each with a full color image of the cover – which will offer up plenty of information for your digging. The book has a few other features alongside the disc listings – and is a total of 242 pages, softcover, with hundreds of full color images throughout. Book

Possible matches8
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
Akira ObuchiCity Soul Disc Guide 2 – 1970s to 2020s ... Book
Du Books (Japan), 2023. New Copy ... $22.99 29.99
A Japanese book, but one with a very deep dive into urban soul from the 70s onward – mostly American and European records that together represent a whole new wave of cool, sophisticated R&B! This isn't the deep soul of the 60s – although many of the singers still have a wonderful vocal range – and the disc guide looks at rare LP releases and titles in other formats from different spots in the western hemisphere – tracing an evolution of soul music style across hundreds of individual entries for records – each of which are listed with a full color cover image, English language details on the dates, labels, and titles – and a small review in Japanese! You can read the review using a translate feature on your phone – but even without that, the book is a great guide for digging – and is especially helpful for tracking soul records of the past few decades that you might have missed. Almost 200 pages, softcover, with hundreds of entries and images in color! Book

Possible matches9
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Record Collector's Special IssueCity Pop Best 100 – 1973 to 1989 ... Book
Record Collector (Japan), 2020. New Copy ... $22.99 24.99
A well-done guide to the legendary years of city pop music in Japan – and one that's got way more than the hundred albums hinted at by the title! The book follows the format of other Japanese disc guides – with images of key records in the genre, mostly presented in full color – alongside other text in Japanese, which you can easily read using Google Translate or a similar app on your phone, via the camera. Even without that text, though, there's plenty here to steer you towards important records in this under-discovered genre that's only know beginning to get appreciation by English-speaking listeners. The book presents an initial top 100 of the most important records – but then continues into sections with listings for hundreds more records, divided by key artists – almost all with color reproductions of the covers, next to a few black and white. Book is 265 pages in all, with listings for hundreds of city pop records! Book

Possible matches10
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ David MaranissOnce In A Great City – A Detroit Story (hardcover) ... Book
Simon & Schuster, 2015. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
Not just a book on Motown – despite the image of The Supremes on the cover – but a story of Detroit itself – told as a series of intersecting paths that include the famous soul music label, as well as all the manufacturers, cultures, communities, and political forces that were shaping the city in the early 60s. The decline of Detroit has been a story for decades now – but David Maraniss looks at the city in the years before the fall – focusing on 1963, where he shows that tensions were already strong in some sectors, and the ground upon which so much was being built could easily shift and allow the whole thing to topple. The book is one of the most fascinating city portraits we've ever read – with lessons that are still completely essential to the 21st Century urban environment – and the whole thing is 441 pages, hardcover, with some black and white images. Book

Possible matches11
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ William SitesSun Ra's Chicago – Afrofuturism & The City ... Book
University Of Chicago, 2020. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
One of the most unique books to ever look at the music of Sun Ra – and one that's very near and dear to our hearts, given that the role of Chicago is seen as vital to the development of the music! The book digs very deep into Ra's early years – time that isn't covered in as much details as in other projects – and the book paints a picture of the city that's as vivid as the jazz legend himself – showing how postwar Chicago did a lot to shape the early sounds and ideas of Ra – which were then shaped the man himself. William Sites comes at the project from a different perspective than most music writers – which makes for a very fresh volume that may well open up whole new territory in the exploration of jazz and community. 313 pages, softcover, with black and white images. Book

Possible matches12
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Aaron CohenMove On Up – Chicago Soul Music & Black Cultural Power ... Book
University Of Chicago, 2019. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
A tremendous achievement from music writer Aaron Cohen – a book that finally gets at the deeper, richer story of Chicago soul – the spirit of empowerment and pride that have always made us so honored to be part of the Windy City legacy! Cohen picks up where other soul writers have left off on Chicago – really looking at the shifts into the 70s, which included greater ties to the means of production, and an increased role in the social agenda as well – all part of an evolution in songwriting styles, production techniques, and the growing power of the full length album over the 7" single! Cohen looks at many key figures of the time – Earth Wind & Fire, Chaka Khan & Rufus, Curtis Mayfield, Phil Cohran & The Artistic Heritage Ensemble – and the very well-researched book is a delight to read throughout – easily the deepest work that Cohen's ever given us. 234 pages, softcover, with some black and white images – and a selected discography too. Book

Possible matches13
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Robert CataliottiDrumsville – The Evolution Of The New Orleans Beat ... Book
Louisiana State University, 2022. New Copy ... $27.99 39.99
A book that's as lively as the image on the cover – one that traces the role of drums and percussion in the music of New Orleans – following a legacy that runs from the 19th century all the way up to contemporary sounds as well! If you know the sounds of Nola, you know that the drum is the key – and that because of the city's placement as a crossroads of culture, New Orleans helped create all sorts of new grooves, from the early years of jazz up through more contemporary soul and hip hop as well. The book is square, almost like a record cover – and is filled with images of both instruments and players – as it traces a long legacy that begins in Congo Square, then runs through improvised percussion experiments, early jazz, then blues, funk, soul, and later styles as well. Book is hardcover, 227 pages, with images throughout. Book

Possible matches14
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
Steven IsoardiDark Tree – Jazz & The Community Arts In Los Angeles (revised edition) ... Book
Duke University Press, 2023. New Copy ... $22.99 29.95
A much-needed look at the amazing underground jazz scene in LA – the richly creative spiritual and avant underground that flourished strongly in the 60s, 70s, and 80s! Although the city's best known for its cool jazz of the 50s, there's an even greater amount of left-field jazz that's come from LA – work that rivals eastern scenes like the AACM in Chicago or loft jazz world in 70s New York – but even more righteous and spiritual overall! The book does a great job of laying the groundwork for this scene to emerge – and offers an incredible amount of detail on its evolution – with an especially focused look at Horace Tapscott and his Pan-Afrikan Peoples Arkestra, as well as some of the artists who recorded for Nimbus Records. Plus, this updated edition does a wonderful job of showing the continuing legacy of the music well into the 21st century – and also includes an appendix by Roberto Miranda, for a larger volume running well over 420 pages! Book

Possible matches15
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Katsumasa KusunoseJazz Kissa 2014 Vol 1 ... Book
Jazz City (Japan), 2014. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
A fantastic window into the record bar scene in Japan – served up here in a beautiful publication that's filled with photos of all these cool little clubs that are stuffed full of records – dedicated to presenting quality jazz music on vinyl, over a top-notch sound system – all while also serving up great drinks and light food in an intimate setting! These aren't the kinds of clubs where DJs go nuts for dancers – and instead, the experience is very intimate, very relaxing, and very Japanese – a way of digging jazz in a public space that's beyond compare, and which is very unique to their scene. The rooms are often little temples to vinyl and jazz – filled with thousands of records in a beautiful space, as you'll see as you flip through the many full color images in the book. This first volume documents bars in and around Tokyo – special spots with names that include Mingus, Half Note, Candy, Jazz Time Disk, Brooklyn, and dozens of others – served up in a beautiful softcover edition, 140 pages, full color throughout – and stuffed with fantastic photos! Book

Possible matches16
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Katsumasa KusunoseJazz Kissa 2014 Vol 2 ... Book
Jazz City (Japan), 2014. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
A fantastic window into the record bar scene in Japan – served up here in a beautiful publication that's filled with photos of all these cool little clubs that are stuffed full of records – dedicated to presenting quality jazz music on vinyl, over a top-notch sound system – all while also serving up great drinks and light food in an intimate setting! These aren't the kinds of clubs where DJs go nuts for dancers – and instead, the experience is very intimate, very relaxing, and very Japanese – a way of digging jazz in a public space that's beyond compare, and which is very unique to their scene. The rooms are often little temples to vinyl and jazz – filled with thousands of records in a beautiful space, as you'll see as you flip through the many full color images in the book. This second volume includes a great array of unique spots in Japan – clubs with names that include Blue Note Kanagawa, Billie's Bar, Clart, Jazz Bar Herbie, Jazz Time Kelly, Joe Pass, Lady Jane, Elvin, and dozens of others – all with these fantastic full color photographs, spread out over a total of 157 pages, with some text in Japanese and English. Book

Possible matches17
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Liz PhairHorror Stories (hardcover) ... Book
Random House, 2019. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
A well-titled book from Liz Phair – as it's not a direct narrative of her life and music, as most memoirs tend to be – but instead a set of shorter vignettes, most of which are at crucial moments in her life – told from a backstage, behind-the-scenes perspective – and with all of the wit and honesty that Phair has brought to her music right from the start! As Chicagoans who were there when Liz was rising to fame, we were initially expecting more of a book about our city and scene – but instead, Phair does a great job of juxtaposing places and moments, going back and forth in time, and in the process showing us just how vibrant she's remained over the years. The book is hardcover, 260 pages, and includes some black and white images. Book

Possible matches18
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Patricia Smith & Michael AbramsonGotta Go Gotta Flow – Life Love & Lust From Chicago's South Side (hardcover) ... Book
City Files, 2015. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
A beautiful combination of words and image – as the poetry of Patricia Smith is combined with vintage 70s photographs by Michael Abramson – the same sort of material that was featured in the Light On The Southside book/album from the Numero Group! This presentation is quite different than that one, though – as Abramson's images from Chicago nightclubs are presented on stark full pages, often with Smith's words as a sidebar – as if she's writing lyrics to his music, in a collaboration that comes off beautifully. As with Light On The Southside, the photographs here were taken at Chicago clubs that include Pepper's Hideout, Perv's House, and The High Chapparal – but they seem nicely different here, and include a number of images that were not in that book. 190 pages, hardcover, and filled with striking images and black and white. Book
 
Partial matches: 4
Partial matches19
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Burgin MathewsMagic City – How The Birmingham Jazz Tradition Shaped The Sound Of America ... Book
University Of North Carolina Press, 2024. New Copy ... $22.99 29.95
The mighty Sun Ra is on the cover, and also famously named a record Magic City – which was also the nickname of his hometown of Birmingham, Alabama – a city that gets plenty of coverage here for its long musical legacy! Birmingham was given the "magic city" nickname late in the 19th Century, when it was experiencing a great economic boom – one that helped attract folks from all over the south, and made the city a cultural crossroads for many years to come – especially when it came to jazz, where Birmingham was one of the most important scenes in the south for part of the 20th Century. In addition to the relationship between the city and Sun Ra, the book also features a long lineup that includes Joe Guy, Teddy Hill, Erskine Hawkins, Fess Whatley, Avery Parrish, and others – in histories that criss-cross, overlap, and extend with influences far past the city. This softcover edition is 340 pages, with some very nice black and white images. Book

Partial matches20
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ E Taylor AtkinsBlue Nippon – Authenticating Jazz In Japan ... Book
Duke University Press, 2002. New Copy ... Temporarily Out Of Stock
An amazing history of Japanese jazz, and another great testament to the impact jazz had on global cluture! The book covers the entire history of Japanese jazz, from the first wave in the dancehalls of the 1920s, to the amazing renaissance of the 60s and 70s. It's a well-paced, incredibly researched, thoughtfully laid out story that we are glad to have had the opportunity to enjoy – with a lot history of that is deeply neglected in the Dusty Groove half of the world, if not everywhere. There are life stories of passionate, unrecognized musicians that mirror those in other parts of the world, as well as those unique to the Japanese experience. Atkins understands the artistic impulses of the musicians and followers, which is essential to the book's appeal to music freaks like us, but he's also an accomplished historian with a great capacity for conveying the nationalist cultural big picture. More than 350 pages, including the bibliography (which is worth the price alone) with a lot of amazing photos that help push the narrative along at a fast clip, not unlike a great piece of music! Book

Partial matches21
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ Dale Allen GyureChicago Schoolhouse – High School Architecture & Educational Reform 1856 to 2006 (hardcover) ... Book
Columbia College Chicago, 2011. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
Our fair city of Chicago has been home to countless famous high school stars over the decades – important musicians, athletes, and even gang members and politicians – all of whom sprung from the large institutions that make up the city's educational system! This book looks at the years of thought that went into the design of the modern high school in Chicago – architectural details that have a key psychological, emotional, and (obviously) educational impact – in ways that are different than, but similar to the thoughts that went into designing the modern house of incarceration. The book's written from an academic perspective, and provides a fascinating amount of detail – and is hardcover, 294 pages, with many black and white photos and illustrations throughout. Book

Partial matches22
CD, LP, Vinyl record album cover art
✨✧ David WillsCinematic Legacy Of Frank Sinatra ... Book
Amberley, 2016. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
A beautiful picture book on the cinematic legacy of Frank Sinatra – one that's full of color images, movie stills, and lots lots more – with just a bit of supporting text from the author, as well as family members Nancy Sinatra and Frank Sinatra Jr! The main appeal of the book is its look – as it's done as a horizontal rectangle, kind of a large postcard-shape style – with heavy glossy pages that offer up images of movie posters, publicity shots, and other great photos – all interspersed with a bit of text throughout. We love Sinatra on film every bit as much as we love him on record – and the book is a great visual addition to any record collection of his music. 147 pages, softcover, full color. Book
 
 
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