From Ann Margret to Bob Dylan and George Jones to Simon & Garfunkel, Nashville harmonica virtuoso and multi-instrumentalist Charlie McCoy has contributed to some of the most successful recordings of country, pop, and rock music of the last six decades. As the leader of the Hee Haw "Million-Dollar Band," McCoy spent more than two decades appearing on the television screens of country music fans around the United States. And, as a solo artist, he has entertained audiences across North America, Europe, and Japan and has earned numerous honors as a result. Fifty Cents and a Box Top: The Creative Life of Nashville Session Musician Charlie McCoy offers rare firsthand insights into life in the recording studio, on the road, and on the small screen as Nashville became a leading center of popular music production in the 1960s and as a young McCoy established himself as one of the most sought after session musicians in the country.

At last, the authorized biography of Townes Van Zandt (1944-1997), who wrote such unforgettable songs as "Pancho & Lefty" and "If I Needed You." Born to a wealthy oil family in Ft. Worth, Texas, hounded by alcoholism and depression, Van Zandt pursued a nomadic existence following his muse, whatever the cost to himself, friends, and relatives. Based on exclusive interviews with those close to Van Zandt, including his best friend Guy Clark and colleagues like Steve Earle and John Prine, "To Live's to Fly" captures all the humor, hijinks, poetry, and heartbreak of this revered, "genuinely" outlaw country artist.

There is a stream that courses through American roots music. Its source is in the Appalachian foothills in a place called Maces Springs, Virginia. It was there that A.P. Carter, his wife Sara, and his sister-in-law Maybelle began their careers as three of the earliest stars of country music. These three didn't just play the music emerging from their hill country upbringing. They helped invent it. The stream these three created turned into a rushing river and moved through several generations of musicians, most notably touching the life of one Johnny Cash who first heard the Carters - including a young June Carter - over the airwaves. It was a wonderful twist of fate when Cash, as a Sun Records artist, first met Mother Maybelle and her girls. the Carter Sisters. and vowed to June that "I'm gonna marry you someday." The Winding Stream is an oral history that tells the tale of this important music dynasty. In their own words, family and friends, musicians and historians offer first-hand recollections and insightful observations that illuminate the Carter and Cash contributions to American popular culture.

Beginning with the musical cultures of the American South in the 1920s and 1930s, this title traces the genre through its pivotal developments during the era of Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys in the forties. It also describes early bluegrass' role in postwar country music, and its trials following the appearance of rock and roll.

A collection of common Texas style fiddle tunes, arranged for the mandolin.

Bundled with a CD that contains examples and exercises, this country music tutorial book offers an introduction for beginners and much more demanding material for the professional needing to learn more about this style of guitar playing.

Rejected by Nashville is the Whiskey Rebel's opinionated guide to real country music albums. He has been writing music reviews, album liner notes, as well as columns in music and art magazines for over two decades. This is his fourth book. He is veteran amateur musician himself, and holds a History degree from Texas State University. Rejected by Nashville; is finally coming to light after being in the works for eight years. In 261 pages, 265 vinyl and CD albums are reviewed. Also included is an extensive bibliography. Irwin brings the albums he describes to life. The reader feels as though he has been invited over for a record listening party, with The Whiskey Rebel spinning the disc. He shares his vast knowledge of country music history, without sounding like an encyclopedia. He educates the reader in a fun and casual manner, about the music he feels Nashville has swept under the rug, in favor of country-synth-pop. Phil started out buying country LPs at thrift stores about 30 years ago. He owns every album reviewed in these pages and rarely paid more than $1 for them. This is very much a fan book written for folks on a budget. He points out to the reader that they too can still find tons of real country albums at flea markets and record shows and yard sales for that same $1 or under. Real country music is the old fashioned stuff; that often features steel and twangy guitars, real drums, and sung frequently by ugly or average looking performers. They were the standard for several decades--before Nashville began hiring stables of handsome hunks who look good in cowboy hats, and belly button waggling gals who look like models. Real country music is alive, and well appreciated around the world (especially in England and Germany) and is still performed in all pockets of the USA. The performers rely heavily on the standards set by the pioneers and icons of the genre, ranging from the godfather of country Jimmie Rogers, to artist still performing: George Jones and Merle Haggard. Included in this guide are many reviews by Jimmie Rodgers on down the line to the Carter Family, Ernest Tubb, Hank Williams Sr., Webb Pierce, Kitty Wells, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Loretta Lynn, Dave Dudley, Red Sovine, Porter Wagoner, Johnny Paycheck, Tammy Wynette, Moe Bandy, Buck Owens, Bill Monroe, Tanya Tucker and Merle Haggard. He also covers current artists keeping the tradition alive such as: Wayne Hancock, Dale Watson, and Hank III. He's also included lots of reviews of lesser-known artist's albums from over the years, some of which are extremely obscure, but deserving of attention in his view. The Whiskey Rebel admits to being a sucker for drinking and cheating songs. There are 16 categories: Bluegrass, Cash, Duets, The Gals, Hanks, Honky Tonk, Nashville-The Good Years, Obscure, Other Country's Country, All The Outlaws, Pioneers, Rockabillies and Hep Cats, Truckers, Tune Warblers, West Coast, and Keepers of the Flame. In the 1980's, Nashville systematically cleaned house. Terminating the contracts of veteran musicians and artist, who had been with them for as long as 40 years. The strategy was to eliminate the rural/hick aspect and go after the lucrative pop music market. The first wave of crossover artists was frequently '60's and '70's pop and rock stars, given a makeover. Their music was heavily produced to homogenize the sound (a.k.a. Country Lite) and accessible to a wider audience. Real country music has gained a resurgence by a broad based audience: Universities are teaching courses, young people who are bored with the offerings of radio, and of course, the folks that grew up listening to the old favorites, are seeking out music that they feel has heart and soul, and sung by real people with real stories. Thankfully there are labels reissuing hard to find songs that previously were only available on rare and expensive '78s, onto CDs, which he also covers.

In this day of digital delivery, more and more popular music arrives to its listeners in downloadable bits, giving away very little about where the songs come from or who is behind them. At the same time contemporary popular culture, with its ancestry-excavating Web sites and television shows, reveals that people are craving answers to those very same questions about themselves. Right by Her Roots is a book for this moment, a thorough and thoughtful exploration of the bodies of work of eight groundbreaking artists who acknowledge, in their songs and in their lives, their relationships to their roots--both musical and personal. Jewly Hight, a highly regarded and spiritually-savvy music writer, delves into the journeys and styles of eight of the most distinctive voices in Americana music: Lucinda Williams, Julie Miller, Victoria Williams, Michelle Shocked, Mary Gauthier, Ruthie Foster, Elizabeth Cook, and Abigail Washburn. Hight proves there is much to be gained from digging into the oeuvres of singers and songwriters who put something of themselves and their pursuits of meaning into their music. What she unearths, through vivid original interviews and perceptive analysis of their spirits, sounds, and styles--not just their lyrics--is rich insight into what animates their work and how they view and experience the world. Giving music-making women the serious attention they deserve but rarely receive, Right by Her Roots is an especially important and engaging account.