Average customer rating:
- Be aware!
- Fun but Flawed and Faulty
- Makes punk and gangsta look tame
- The Master of purple prose and truth stikes again!
- The most informative ever written on early Country Music
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Country: The Twisted Roots of Rock 'N' Roll
Nick Tosches
Manufacturer: Da Capo Press
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ASIN: 0306807130 |
Customer Reviews:
Be aware!.......2006-10-25
A great read with terrific pictures of many past greats, BUT, the same book has been re-issued under three diferent titles!
Fun but Flawed and Faulty.......2006-09-19
Tosches is an entertaining and skillful writer and the premise of this book is an important and timely one. Country music has been diluted, softened and stripped of what once made it great and is now in the hands of the pallid "new country" gang of cheeseballs. Tosches saw this coming way back in the mid-70s, resented it and wrote this book. Unfortunately Country is full of misconceptions, omissions and serious factual errors. Yes, country music did have a dark side but it's always had a family and religious side as well and even in its earliest stages could cross over into sentimental and mawkish pap. This didn't start in the 50's as Tosches insists but was present in the music of the Carter Family and Jimmy Rogers (Tosches barely mentions either) who between them invented the genre. Their music embraced both sides of the coin as did every great country artist who ever lived including Hank Williams and Johnny Cash. (Tosches unfairly savages Cash in this book for his lightweight songs which is odd because in an article written 15 years later, Tosches praises him to the skies although Cash had written no groundbreaking tunes in the intervening years)
Tosches makes much of how the British murder ballad tradition disappeared completely from early country music, ignoring (or perhaps being unaware of) songs like Banks of the Ohio or Knoxville Girl--both of which were major country hits in the 30s and 50s respectively and are both taken directly from the murder ballad tradition as are many, many other country songs.
His chapter on the development of the dobro and steel guitar is potentially interesting but is full of major errors. Tosches seems unaware of the major differences between dobro, slide guitar, steel guitar, pedal steel guitar and so on and at times it sounds like he thinks they're all the same instrument with only minor alterations. For example, he doesn't mention the difference in the number of strings between dobro and pedal steel nor the very different tunings used. This would be acceptable if the discussion were brief but considering the space he devotes to the topic, these omissions are glaring. It would be a bit like saying that the piano is just a big harpsichord.
At one point he strongly disagrees with musicologists who claim that many country guitarists were influenced by jazz guitarists. He claims that the guitarist from Milton Brown's band couldn't have been influenced by Django Reinhardt because--he says--Reinhardt's records didn't reach the states until the late 30's. Wrong, Nick. Try 1933. Eddie Lang, who had a huge influence on country guitarists is never mentioned nor is Charlie Christian whose work was the source of the style of every gutiarist who played with Bob Wills.
But the most unforgiveable mistake is his insistence that Maybelle Carter's guitar playing had as much influence on country music as "Rudy Vallee." Read the history of the Carter Family, "Bury Me Beneath the Willow" and the many testimonials from the greatest country guitarists ever recorded who all say that their primary influence was Mother Maybelle. This is so evident simply by listening to classic country music rhythm guitar playing that one wonders if Tosches has actually heard any.
Also, Tosches can't resist proving to us once again that he is a scholar of Greek and Roman literature and history and his references to this subject are sometimes laughably incongruous, clearly designed to convince us that his scholary credentials are unimpeachable. Usually these tedious asides have nothing to do with the subject at hand.
Still, Tosches is a good writer, full of irreverence and wit and great turns of phrase. This is a fun book to read and Tosches makes a few good points. But if you want to read truly well researched books on country music, forget this and pick up Bill Malone's Country Music USA and Rich Kienzle's excellent book Southwest Shuffle, a fantastically researched book which says more about the real roots of "New Country" in one chapter than Tosches says in this entire poorly realized mess of a book.
Makes punk and gangsta look tame.......2006-05-15
Anyone who thinks country music is boring needs to read this book. A great warts and all treatment of the dark underbelly of C & W. Fascinating trivia and insights for anyone familiar with the great country music of the 1930s to 1950s. The twisted roots of Country makes punk and gangsta look tame.
The Master of purple prose and truth stikes again!.......2005-12-23
OK, I'm a big Tosches fan BUT here Nick gets religion and digs deep into the seamy underbelly of country music. Roy Acuff singing dirty songs? The devil in Jerry Lee Lewis? The sacred and profane all wonderfully exposed and written by Nick (the devil himself) Tosches. Great stuff.
The most informative ever written on early Country Music.......2005-10-17
I have bought 6 copies of this books since 1988, for friends and for the two copies I wore out. Before reading this I was already a fan of early Country Music, but this book opened my eyes and ears to a multitude of artists that I wasn't aware of but who had helped shape the direction of Country Music. The only negative thing I can say about this book is that after reading it, I ended up spending a small fortune purchasing LPs, and later CDs, of the obscure artists he makes reference to.
Book Description
The Grateful Dead, one of the most meticulously documented rock bands, significantly influenced American music and popular culture. Its popularity has endured for three decades despite mixed critical reception. Jerry Garcia, thought of among many as a musical icon and spokesperson for more than one generation of fans, was often equally scorned by various critics. This collection of scholarly essays attests to the varied fields of interest the band and its followers, known as "Deadheads," have affected, including psychology, law, and ethnomusicology. The contributions explore the diversity of the culture of fans, empirically analyze the music, apply literary criticism to the lyrics, and explore Dead-related philosophical and theological concepts -- in other words, they are as eclectic as the myriad Grateful Dead fans themselves. Appealing to Grateful Dead scholars, fans, and collectors alike, these twenty-two essays are grouped by subject, and each essay includes a bibliography of resources for further research.
Customer Reviews:
Why so much???.......2007-07-03
My love of the Gratefeul Dead has not diminshed with time and I would love to read this book, but at $108.95-No way. Is the price so high because it is an academic book?? Lower the price.
100$$$ why????.......2006-10-17
I'm not buying until it's cheaper, and I'm certainly interested. sorry this price is against dead policy.
A fresh perspective.......2004-12-28
I read this book while writing an American Literature paper on the songs of the Grateful Dead. I think it is fantastic..because it presents a fresh and interesting (though very academic) perspective on a topic that most deadheads know so well. It also really made me think about the Deadhead community and how I participated in it. This book is something that most heads probably haven't read, but should. I think it puts the experience of the average Deadhead in a new light.
Book Description
These 60 complete games, annotated throughout, emphasize the Cuban master's elegant, classic, accurate, lethal endgame play against Alekhine, Lasker, Marshall, Nimzowitsch, Réti, the best. Here are real games from match and tournament play, with endings that seem like long-contemplated works of art.
Customer Reviews:
outstanding engame book.......2007-06-17
Chernev chooses excellent games from the wonderful endgame wizard, Capablanca. Chernev is very good at explaining the strategy and tactics in each endgame.
The Best Textbook on Non-Textbook Endings I have yet seen.......2006-05-09
In another review, I said that Essential Chess Endings by GM James Howell is the best endgame book on what could be termed "textbook" endgames: King and Pawn, Rook endings from Rook vs. Pawn through Rook and Pawn (with several pawns on both sides), minor piece endings, queen endings, etc. Howell explains the basics of these better than any book I am aware of. However, as we all know, endgames most of the time have many complex elements to them that these "pure" examples do not. Our knowledge of, say, how to achieve/win the Lucena Position does not help us directly because the position at hand is a long way from getting to that point!
Chernev's genius in his work on Capablanca's endings is that through the selected examples (which invariably contain 3 or 4 pieces per side with several pawns each) and his explanations of them, the average player can see how to orient himself in complex endgames. Yes, Chernev is WAY too effusive with his praise for Capablanca, but the book is outstanding. The work gives, in exhaustive detail, the planning that enables Capablanca to turn miniscule advantages into wins. It is true that the opponents he played were often not the best of Capa's peers, but they were certainly strong enough to consistently play plausible moves, which makes it better for us to learn from.
This book provides ample evidence of the fact that, as the old quote goes, "Capablanca played with a view to the endgame." I am now convinced that this was undoubtedly true. No wonder Capablanca was considered invincible until his match with Alekhine: his ability to again and again badly outplay his peers in the endgame is frightening. CAPABLANCA'S BEST CHESS ENDINGS has made me a believer in Capablanca (never a favorite of mine): if he were alive today, he would certainly be Elo 2700+, because he would pound all the 2500s-2600s in the endgame so terribly.
With the possible exceptions of Botvinnik and Smyslov, it seems to me that every World Champion after Capablanca was stronger in the middlegame than in the endgame (this is of course not to say that they are weak endgame players!), whether boa constrictors like Petrosian or Karpov, or terrifying attackers like Tal or Kasparov. Spassky and Fischer were universal players, but were at their most dangerous in the middlegame. Chess at the top has become so complicated that maybe there will never be a Champion who wins as Capablanca did. But I, as a mere 1800 player, have noticed that since going through some of this book, I have been able to avoid complications, keep better control of my games, and squeeze MY peers into submission. None of us are World Champions, but by having this book and your opponents maybe not having it, you have a great chance to straight outplay them in the end. There is great scope to play a "Capablanca-type" game against your peers and win without slashing attacks!
When I went to Foxwoods in April, this is the only book I took with me. I went through I think 5 or 6 games before Round 1 and suddenly...I started playing with a view to the endgame. I have managed to keep this up (I went +3=2-1 there and am 3-0 with two games left in my current one-game-a-week tournament). This book has FINALLY given me the confidence to expect victory when up a pawn in the endgame! You won't become Capablanca after reading this book, but you CAN start to play with an eye towards the endgame even in the opening! I'm sorry if this sounds obvious to the stronger players reading this review...I am only 1800...
Good luck!
Good Examples but bad analysis.......2006-02-06
Capablanca is one of my favorite players and I love his endings. However, Chernev analysis does not do them justice. Sometimes Chernev uses endgame examples in which the endgame is already over and in others Chernevs analysis of why Capablanca won and what moves won it for him are way off. In the books defense it is an entertaining read.
Ok- apparently people want examples of what I am saying...
On page 170 of my copy of the book (Ending 40) after move 17, Chernev says "... White has succeeded in maintaining the initiative, and the position is somewhat in his favor. His King Rook attacks a pawn near the enemy King, and this attack can be intensified by doubling Rooks on the Knight file. ...".
The position Chernev is talking about is a dynamically equal position. play the position against a friend or have fritz analyze it... the postion is roughly equal. Then for move 18. Be4 Bc6,
Chernev says "The only defence as 18 ... b7-b6 is met by 19 a2-a4 and 20 a4-a5, bringing all whites forces into play."
This analysis is completely wrong! 18 ... b6 was the best move and 18 ... Bc6 was a mistake that created more pawn islands for black for white to exploit. In most cases black can respond to a5 with b5 with good play.
If this was the only example in the book it would not be a big deal but the book is littered with such stuff. But like I said before... Chernev's writing style is very entertaining and he does pick some good Capablnca games.
Obviously Capa is Chernev's chess hero... ;-).......2005-02-24
Capa had many chess masterpieces. When Chernev chose 60 games to summarize Capa's endgame skills, they must be very clear and instructive. Many GMs agreed that Capa is a master of positional chess and an endgame artist. He made the games so "simple" (after we see how the games unfolded) that they look "magical". There were many endgames that he saw so deep (and intuitively) that during the transitional phase his opponents thought they got the upperhand. Then a few more actual moves into the endings, they realized that they had been outplayed (see the games of Marshall and Tartakover). His positional understanding was ahead of his opponents' time. He placed his pieces at the most optimal squares that when the game was transferred into the ending, either he had won some material, or his strong position could force a trade to his favor, or his attack was so strong that his opponent had to give up something. This gave us his masterful endgame technique. This book actually has Capa's full games. Chernev gave explanations for the whole games, however displayed a break or transition where the games entered the ending phases.
After many Chernev's books, it is obvious that Capa is his chess hero (from Golden Dozen, Most Instructive and Logical Chess...) Compared this book to his others, I noticed three improvements (actually 2 1/2, ;-)). First the book is organized in chronological order (Surprise!); so I could learn how progressively Capa's technique changed (of course, it also depended on how strong his opponents were.) Second, there is an index to show what types of endings his games were. It's good for reference. And last, finally Chernev used the algebraic notation! However, he still used the long algebraic way (Ng1-f3) instead of the short one (Nf3). (I guessed, evolution takes many steps to perfect, ;-). Excuse me, master Chernev, you're still one of my favorite authors.)
This book gave actual games, so it's very practical. It prepares and directs intermediate level (like myself) what to look for and how to drive the game into similar positions. This book is published by Dover, therefore the price is very reasonable.
My Favorite Book on Endgame Play!.......2005-02-02
Capablanca had the cleanest, clearest style of play. He is one of the finest endgame players in history. His clean style makes it easy to learn from his games.
I think if you're going to read only one book to improve your endgame play, this is the book! I found that I enjoyed the games, not only because it helped me improve, but also because Capablanca's games were so beautiful-- they are truly artistic.
If you want a regimen to improve your endgame play, I would recommend:
"Essential Chess Endings", by Jeremy Silman-- an excellent primer
"Practical Chess Endings", by Irving Chernev (a series of puzzles-- a very practical way to improve your play. Working through this book would be an excellent way to internalize the lessons learned in "Capablanca's Best Chess Endings"
"Endgame Strategy", by Shereshevsky.
Good luck!
Customer Reviews:
Synopsis.......2007-07-09
First published in 1947. Jose Capablanca was a phenomenon who burst onto the chess world and took top prize in the first ever elite tournament in which he participated. This was at San Sebastian - otherwise known as Donostia - in the Basque country of Spain in 1911. Capablanca's style was serene - no position seemed to trouble him, and he crushed most of the established European grandmasters with seemingly little effort. Only against the mighty Lasker did he experience serious problems. Then in 1921 Capa - as he was known - obliterated Lasker in their world title match and took the championship without losing a single game. Other triumphs followed, such as London 1922, and Capablanca acquired the legend of an invincible superman when he went for 8 years without losing a game! His supreme moment was in New York 1927 - a quadruple round trial of strength between Capa himself Alekhine, Nimzowitsch and three other contenders for the crown. Capa whitewashed the field, creating a fresh masterpiece practically every day. Possibly this easy victory left him over-confident for later the same year he lost his world title to Alekhine.
Grandmaster Emeritus Harry Golombek was from his early days a worshipper at the shrine of Capablanca's genius. In this book he lucidly expounds the thinking behind the Cuban champion's greatest achievements and faithfully records every subtle nuance of his extraordinary ability to cut to the essence of what was truly transpiring amongst the myriad complexities of the chess board. If any player truly exemplified the classical style, it was Capablanca.
Harry Golombek was perhaps the king of chess writers. Chess correspondent for The London Times and The Observer, he possessed an unrivalled gift for transforming a chess game into an heroic saga with himself as the bard, singing the exploits of his chosen heroes of the mind. Several times British Champion, Golombek also played top board for England in the Olympiad and represented the British Chess Federation in the FIDE World Championship cycle. He was fluent in Russian and personally attended the World Chess Championships of 1954, 1957 and 1958 as a judge
Games to learn from and enjoy.......1999-12-09
José Raúl Capablanca (1888-1942) is widely regarded as one of the all-time great chess players, and possibly the greatest natural chess genius in history. World champion from 1921-1927, he is the only player to have won the world title by defeating the incumbent in a match without losing a game. His games were the greatest influence on the modern great world champions Bobby Fischer and Anatoly Karpov. Mikhail Botvinnik (three times world champ) also related how much he learned from Capablanca, and pointed out that even Alekhine received much schooling from him in positional play, before the struggle for the world title made them bitter foes.
Once players have read all the introductory books about endgames, openings, tactics and basic strategy, to improve, they must study master games. Capablanca's crystal clarity of style makes his an ideal object of study.
Although not clear from the Amazon title, the games are annotated by Harry Golombek. His notes are very lucid, and he was one of Britain's best players in the pre-GM boom. He had the added advantage of knowing Capa personally. Capa's crush of Golombek features in the book, and made a deep impression on Golombek for seemingly effortless simplicity. There are places where Golombek's notes are outdated or just plain wrong, but this is rare. Definitely order the Algebraic version with John Nunn's editing. The book also has a detailed and sympathetic biographical sketch by J. Du Mont.
Hope this book is in stock soon, because it is almost a must for the improving player anywhere from club to expert level - chess coaches take note!
Average customer rating:
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Hundred best games of chess,
JoseÌ RauÌl Capablanca
Manufacturer: Harcourt, Brace
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Binding: Unknown Binding
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ASIN: B0007E39V6 |
Book Description
What is this book about?
VBA is the programming language for the Microsoft Office suite and many other applications. VBA gives you complete control of Excel, allowing you to do anything from automating Excel tasks to developing full applications, using Excel as the development environment.
Excel 2002 is an important upgrade to the Office suite spreadsheet program. It shows Microsoft's commitment to moving Office to be a web-enabled productivity tool, a rich client for working with web-based data, with new features such as SmartTags and XML support.
Based on the successful content and format of Excel 2000 VBA Programmer's Reference, this new edition has been fully updated for Excel 2002. The authors are all Excel MVPs, involved daily in supporting the Excel VBA programmer community.
What does this book cover?
The first part of the book introduces Excel and VBA, including a VBA primer. The second part offers thematic, succinct, and practical discussions of the features available to Excel VBA programmers, with real-world examples answering frequently asked questions. The third and final part is a complete reference to the Excel, VBE, and Common Office Object Models.
Here are just a few of the things you'll learn in this edition:
- The entire Excel Object Model and the Common Office Object Model
- Working with PivotTables
- Accessing and manipulating data sources from Excel with ADO
- Programming the Visual Basic Editor (VBE)
- New features in Excel 2002, SmartTags, XML, and the Web
- Expanded references for Excel versions 97, 2000, and 2002
Who is this book for?
This book not only caters for beginner- and intermediate-level programmers with its introductory coverage of VBA and Excel, but also provides advanced information for experienced Excel developers in later chapters and the reference.
Download Description
What is this book about? VBA is the programming language for the Microsoft Office suite and many other applications. VBA gives you complete control of Excel, allowing you to do anything from automating Excel tasks to developing full applications, using Excel as the development environment. Excel 2002 is an important upgrade to the Office suite spreadsheet program. It shows Microsoft's commitment to moving Office to be a web-enabled productivity tool, a rich client for working with web-based data, with new features such as SmartTags and XML support. Based on the successful content and format of Excel 2000 VBA Programmer's Reference, this new edition has been fully updated for Excel 2002. The authors are all Excel MVPs, involved daily in supporting the Excel VBA programmer community. What does this book cover? The first part of the book introduces Excel and VBA, including a VBA primer. The second part offers thematic, succinct, and practical discussions of the features available to Excel VBA programmers, with real-world examples answering frequently asked questions. The third and final part is a complete reference to the Excel, VBE, and Common Office Object Models. Here are just a few of the things you'll learn in this edition: The entire Excel Object Model and the Common Office Object Model Working with PivotTables Accessing and manipulating data sources from Excel with ADO Programming the Visual Basic Editor (VBE) New features in Excel 2002, SmartTags, XML, and the Web Expanded references for Excel versions 97, 2000, and 2002 Who is this book for? This book not only caters for beginner- and intermediate-level programmers with its introductory coverage of VBA and Excel, but also provides advanced information for experienced Excel developers in later chapters and the reference.
Customer Reviews:
Slightly better than average.......2005-03-24
The best aspect of this book is it's section on ADO, but there is little depth into the topic. How frustrating to find something so powerful and so undocumented, only to see the end of the chapter so quickly.
I suppose I do not see why 400 pages was devoted to the Excel object model. I do not use the section, but instead search within the VBE for information and arguments I need.
The book is cheap. The binding broke in 2 places.
If you are reading this review, buy this book now........2003-12-03
If you are interested enough to read this review, then buy this book. Now. I have done quite a bit of programming ... The only problem was, I had never programmed VBA/Excel and was having a very rough time getting started.
I bought "Excel 2002 VBA Programmer's Reference". I sat down and started reading Chapter 2. Before long, I was so excited that I was firing up my laptop. Four hours after I started reading the book, I had a prototype up and running. This book is amazing. Chapter 2 gave me more useful information than I sometimes get from an entire book. ...
The authors are simply bursting with knowledge and give it freely. Ideas are expressed clearly and succinctly. Knowledge is well-organized and easy to find. Whether you want to approach the topic methodically or flip through looking for gems, you will find what you want here.
Getting the object model is a great bonus. I'm going to enjoy spending a few days going through this one.
A Must have.......2003-10-06
The book is adressed both to beginners and intermediate users, not advanced ones though. It covers everything, however there were many occasions where I wanted more information. This is not to say the book is not a great value for money. After all, a complete vba book would probably need to have a couple of thousand pages, whereas with this book you can start programming even having read only chapter 2. If money is not an issue, you also need to buy Walkenbach's vba book too.
I found it easy to navigate through it, so I didn't think indexing was such a great problem as commented before me. The authors don't say too little or too much and they write very clear. The reason I didn't put 5 stars (if I had the option I would put 4.5 starts) was because I didn't like the second part of it, which is half the book and which mostly presents basic information.
Great book!.......2003-07-23
It's a great book! It actually consists of two parts: a brief but very useful VBA overview with all popular tricks and hints in the beginning and a deep and coplete reference at the end. Normally you need to buy two separate books to get this coverage. This book can get you started in a few hours and answer virtually all your questions going forward. Really, really good!
Wrox, please hire an indexing expert!!!.......2003-05-16
The book would get 5 stars from me if only Wrox would spend the money on hiring an indexer for this book. It's very difficult to quickly find which pages have the information you need on most subjects and keywords.
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