All Categories — Books  

A range of essays on the music, influence, and cultural significance of the late John Coltrane – easily one of the key forces to have shaped our taste here at Dusty Groove! The book offers a number of differing perspectives, some with an academic tone, some a bit more political – and overall, the writings definitely live up to the spirit promised in the title! Articles include "A Look At Late John Coltrane" by Salim Washington, "When Bar Walkers Preach" by Tommy Lott, "Freedom Is A Constant Struggle" by Tammy Kernodle, "John Coltrane As The Personification Of Spirituality In Black Music" by Anthony Brown, "In His Own Words – Coltrane's Responses To Critics" by Leonard L Brown, "John Coltrane & The Practice Of Freedom" by Herman Gray, and a few interviews with Billy Taylor, Yusef Lateef, and Olly Wilson – and a special coda, "George Russell on John Coltrane". 235 pages, paperback.

A much-needed second volume of Vinyl Lives – especially since they left Dusty Groove out of the first book! This time, they correct their mistake with a nice long look at our store – plus other chapters in equally important record retailers – including Jerry's in Pittsburgh, Criminal in Atlanta, Electric Fetus in Minneapolis, and Leopold's in Berkeley! We're mighty happy to be in such illustrious company – and the book also features a few other stores, plus interviews with key collectors – really nice words from folks who really take their vinyl seriously. Book is 252 pages, softcover.

A beautiful book on the development of highlife music in Ghana – and one that's way more compelling than the usual historical tome on African music – given the highly visual style of the volume! The book's put together almost like an album cover art collection – as it's overflowing with vintage images of older record covers, 78 rpm labels, and rare photos too! Yet it also contains a huge amount of top-shelf writing, too – information on the growth of the genre from the 50s through the 80s – with detailed sections on longtime Dusty Groove favorites like Ebo Taylor, Osibisa, African Brothers, Joe Mensah, K Frimpong, and many others. Equally cool is the fact that the book features both French and English text – the full amount of each – making it a wicked bi-lingual package. Full color throughout, and a nice oversized package!