Books
A special selection of disc guides and discographies, music history, record art books, graphic novels, and some nicely-priced remainders!
Duke University Press (label)
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(Items 1 – 17 of 17)
E Taylor Atkins —
Blue Nippon – Authenticating Jazz In Japan ... Book 
Duke University Press, 2002. New Copy ... 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 ... read more Book
John Brackett —
Live Dead – Grateful Dead, Live Recordings, & The Ideology Of Liveness ... Book Duke University Press, 2023. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
A fascinating look at the long legacy of live recordings of the Grateful Dead – initially a small community within the group's fan culture, now an industry unto itself – and one that's kept the groups revenues flowing for many years after their demise! The book really digs deep, and is ... read more Book
Duke University Press, 2021. New Copy ... $21.99 30.95
A huge book on the equally-huge creative legacy of bassist William Parker – a musician who first arose in the loft jazz scene in New York during the 70s, but who's gone on to be one of its greatest surviving players, and one who's transformed the inspirations of that world into so many ... read more Book
Cisco Bradley —
Williamsburg Avant Garde – Experimental Music & Sound On The Brooklyn Waterfront ... Book Duke University Press, 2023. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
The music scene in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, is one that's had an undeniable impact on cultural activity in recent decades – yet it's also one of those scenes that initially happened without most folks taking place – that is, it was a real artist and musician's scene, and not the kind ... read more Book
Jayna Brown —
Black Utopias – Speculative Life & The Music Of Other Worlds ... Book Duke University Press, 2021. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
A beautiful look at imagined communities in many forms – tracing a legacy through black intellectual life of the 19th century to creative production of the 20th and beyond – with a special focus on the creations of Sojourner Truth, Sun Ra, Octavia Butler, Alice Coltrane, Rebecca Cox ... read more Book
Gavin Butt —
No Machos Or Pop Stars – When The Leeds Art Experiment Went Punk ... Book Duke University Press, 2022. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
The rise of punk is usually tied to the scene of the Sex Pistols and others up in London – but right from the start, there was plenty happening up in Leeds – a scene that gave the world Gang Of Four, The Mekons, Soft Cell, Scritti Politti, and other key acts from the end of the 70s! ... read more Book
John Corbett —
Vinyl Freak – Love Letters To A Dying Medium ... Book Duke University Press, 2017. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
An incredible look at the format of vinyl – put together by a guy who's got one of the hippest record collections we've ever seen! John Corbett's been writing about music, art, and other formats for decades – but his real labor of love is vinyl records – a format he continued to ... read more Book
Duke University Press, 2024. New Copy ... $18.99 26.95
A great look at a format that was very near and dear to our hearts back in the day – especially in the pre-digital world, when the cassette tape was the easiest way to circulate music! As you can guess from the title, the author takes this topic and really runs with it – showing how ... read more 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 ... read more Book
Duke University Press, 2023. New Copy ... $20.99 28.99
As any fan of the live Grateful Dead experience will tell you, improvisation is the key to the way the group puts their music over on stage – long jams that are filled with musicianship that just got better and better over the years, and which can lead to a very heavenly experience for ... read more Book
Duke University Press, 2023. New Copy ... $18.99 25.95
A very different sort of book on bebop – one that looks at the music during its key years of midcentury, but through a very different prism than the sorts of all-star players who usually get most coverage by jazz writers! Author Jonathan Leal digs very deep to uncover three obscure players ... read more Book
Duke University Press, 2020. New Copy ... $18.99 25.95
A beautiful treatise on the lasting power of classic soul music – yet a book that also goes way beyond the simple readings and overdone cliches that are often attached to accounts of the music! Instead, author Emily J Lordi looks at not just the source recordings, but also the evolving ... read more Book
Darren Mueller —
At The Vanguard Of Vinyl – A Cultural History Of The Long-Playing Record In Jazz ... Book Duke University Press, 2024. New Copy ... Temporarily Out Of Stock
Jazz music didn't start on vinyl – but the advent of the long-playing album really helped the music take off and grow – expanding out to much longer performances than were allowed by the 78rpm single, which in turn allowed artists to reach out to new and exciting styles from the 50s ... read more Book
Duke University Press, 2024. New Copy ... $18.99 26.99
A really no-holds-barred look at contemporary hip hop – one that focuses on the way the music continually deals with topics of death, and in a way that's very different than more mainstream concepts that would be found in white America. The author uses Afropessimism and black moralism to ... read more Book
John Szwed —
Space Is The Place – The Lives Of Sun Ra ... Book Duke University Press, 1997. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
A wonderful biography of one of the most colorful and significant figures in modern music. There's no need for us to go into the impact Sun Ra's music has made in the realm of the sort of records our pages are filled with – in spite of the mainstream musical audience's ignorance of his vast ... read more Book
Horace Tapscott —
Songs Of The Unsung – The Musical & Social Journey Of Horace Tapscott ... Book Duke University Press, 2001. New Copy ... Out Of Stock
A long-overdue moment of exposure for pianist Horace Tapscott – one of the greatest creative forces in west coast jazz in the 60s, 70s, and 80s – but an artist whose genius was often kept away from the limelight! That hardly seemed to matter to Tapscott, though – as his legacy is ... read more Book
Duke University Press, 2023. New Copy ... $20.99 28.99
A well done book about the continuing importance of soul and R&B in black culture over the decades – one that begins its journey in the 70s, and moves right up to the present with a key chapter on the music in the post-George Floyd landscape in America! Author Alexander Ghedi Weheliye ... read more Book
(Items 1 – 17 of 17)
