Reference

Record expert lists over 15,000 popular songs in this annual. This book is the perfect companion handbook for an iPod or other portable MP3 player. It lists over 15,000 significant songs and essential hits of the past half-century, from 1955 to the present. Joel Whitburn and Record Research have been highlighting the hits, archiving the artists and tracking the trends longer and more definitively than anyone else in the business, so there's no better source to bring you the book on the hottest new trend in recorded music! This is the only guide that gives the biggest hits in all genres all shown in an easy-to-use A-Z artist listing. There's also a convenient A-Z song title cross-reference section and playlists of each half-decade's biggest hits. The book also includes complete playlist compilation suggestions for many types of events, activities and moods, including road trips, stadium/sports, weddings, workouts, Christmas and various musical genres, including British Invasion, surf/hot rod, Motown sound, new wave/punk, dance party, classic rock, and much more. Here are my personal playlist picks for your portable MP3 players - the must-have tracks for every artist of the last 50 years. Dive in, download and enjoy! - Joel Whitburn New edition features: Over 1000 new songs; 20 more playlists; New artists that charted in 2005-06.

In the tradition of Nick Tosches, Tom Wolfe and Lester Bangs comes an epic and riveting history of rock and roll that reads like a novel. Sonic Cool presents the saga of rock and roll as the closest thing we have to genuine myth in the modern world, and it is the first book about rock to be written in the spirit of rock. Immense, fierce, opinionated and hilarious, Joe Harrington masterfully presents rock as a movement of near-religious proportions, against a backdrop of social factors and important events such as the invention of the guitar, the jukebox, LSD, the 12-inch phonograph record, the '70s recession, the Reagan Revolution, and the Internet. This is the history of rock as it's never been told, as the legend of a massive cultural movement, one that had meaning, but ultimately failed because it sold its soul. Radically egalitarian in its assessments - towering figures such as Lennon, Dylan and Cobain stand along side lesser-known but equally influential artists like the MC5, the Misfits and Joy Division - Sonic Cool is gripping reading for anyone who ever believed in the music. Includes a 16-page black-and-white photo insert. Joe S. Harrington began writing at the age of 10, an act that provoked a rejection slip from Mad magazine. He has written about music for the Boston Globe, Boston Phoenix, New York Press, Seattle Stranger, Lowell Sun, Wired, Reflex, Raygun, High Times, Seconds, Rollerderby and numerous fanzines. He is currently employed as an on-line jazz critic at Amazon, and lives in Portland, Maine. Softcover.

From the same dream team that created The Fender Stratocaster Chronicles (Vintage Guitar magazine's 2004 Book of the Year) comes this new publication covering the other side of Fender's legacy, the instrument amplifier. Revered as much as one's guitar, the Fender amplifier gets its due in this full-color, richly illustrated book. Features over 400 images, including legendary guitarists such as Eric Clapton, B.B. King, Neil Young, Pete Townshend, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Muddy Waters, and Dick Dale, and two CDs featuring over 120 tracks that make terms and topics come alive.

This book highlights the outstanding drum sets of rock, jazz, R&B, and country. Spanning seven decades, it features over 40 great kits played by Buddy Rich, Gene Krupa, Ringo Starr, John Bonham, Hal Blaine, Ginger Baker, Keith Moon, and more. A diagram details the brands, sizes, colors, and vintage & custom aspects of the famous sets. Features a cool 16-page color section.

The world's most famous guitar had a golden anniversary in 2004, and this official, authorized book/CD package offers the best photos, quotes, facts and sounds to properly celebrate this achievement. From Buddy Holly to Jimi Hendrix to today's hottest players, the Fender Stratocaster defines rock'n'roll for generations of fans and players. Special features include exclusive photos from the world's greatest guitar collection, as well as a CD with musical examples of famous Strat sounds and styles hilariously performed by Greg Koch - even spoken excerpts from the author's interviews with the Strat's beloved inventor, Leo Fender. This book also recognizes that the Stratocaster's deeper significance lies in the music that guitarists have created with it. You'll hear what Strat players have to say about their instrument, their music and each other. The Fender Stratocaster both reflects and influences popular culture worldwide. The Stratocaster Chronicles focuses on the people who brought it into the world, the designers and builders who refined it, and the players who have taken it from there.

What happens during a big-time professional recording session can be easily applied to make even the most casual recording session successful. In The Studio Musician's Handbook, best-selling author Bobby Owsinski and in-demand studio bassist Paul Ill reveal the inner workings of a major Hollywood recording session, including a look at the players themselves. You'll learn: How you become a studio musician Who hires you and how much you get paid What kind of skills you need and what gear you must have Proper session etiquette How to apply these skills in every type of recording session Plus the authors have created individual session musician guides for guitar, bass, drums, vocals, keys, horns, and strings. Interviews with famous and influential session players are also included. As a bonus, an accompanying DVD takes you inside an actual record date in a world-class studio with world-class players.

Take your playing from ordinary to extraordinary in this all-encompassing book/CD package for piano and keyboard players. You'll receive valuable tips on performing, recording, the music business, instruments and equipment, soloing techniques, music theory, and more. Styles such as rock, pop, jazz, blues, classical, and many more are represented through demonstrations of authentic piano and keyboard parts appropriate for each genre. The accompanying CD includes many of the examples in the book, performed on a variety of piano/electric piano instruments. Many examples are also recorded in a full band setting to hear how important concepts fit in with other instruments and ensembles.

Written for both musicians and musical entrepreneurs, this updated and revised, user-friendly guide spells out the fundamentals of business, finance, and marketing for the music world. Author John Stiernberg provides an in-depth look at what it takes to become a success in music in the 21st century, with insights culled from his years of experience working in the entertainment industry. You'll learn how to take a strategic approach to all aspects of the music business, from product development and pricing to surviving the industry's notoriously competitive environment. This practical guide is written in an accessible style that will give you a real head start in planning your success, while helping you avoid failures. Whether you're starting or strengthening your music career, you'll see why you need a business plan - and how to put yours into action. Includes a CD-ROM with checklists, resources, and templates for planning and managing your career and more!

An introductory book that gives instruction on how to modify and edit sounds so you can perform them, and not just play them. Learn to 'tailor the sound' so it sounds like a performance by the actual instrument. The book contains two unique forms of guides; voice guides, which at a glance, tell how to edit the sound, and performance guides which explain how to play once you have that correct sound. This book is applicable to every synthesizer on the market, and comes with a cassette that covers the performances and demonstrations.

This book features interviews and articles from issues 11 to 20 of Tape Op, an independently published magazine founded in 1996. With a fiercely loyal readership, Tape Op covers creative and practical music recording topics - from the famous studios to musicians creating masterpieces in their bedrooms. Creativity, technique, equipment, passion and learning collide in this entertaining, value-rich publication. Interviews and articles in this volume include Abbey Road Studio, Butch Vig, Jim Dickinson, Joe Chiccarelli, Ani DiFranco, Fugazi, The Flaming Lips, and Ween.