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During the 19th century, the engineering of ports and harbours
became a large and specialised branch of the profession. This
development began in ports in physically difficult locations and
may be particularly identified with the growth of the Port of
Liverpool. Stimulated by the arrival of ever-larger steamships and
the heavy investment in port facilities that they demanded, it
spread around much of the world. The opening papers give examples
of what could be achieved in antiquity; the following ones set out
the advances in design and technology from 1700 to the start of
this century - and note some of the failures and recurrent
problems. They also illustrate the critical importance of political
and economic factors in determining what the engineers achieved.
George Stephenson is among the most famous engineers of all time.
His rise from 'rags to riches' is a stirring story of its kind, but
many of the works attributed to him should in fact be credited to
young subordinates, not least his son, Robert. But much of the work
of innovative engineers for his period lay not in the work itself
but in persuading people that such work was desirable and
necessary. It was in this field that George Stephenson excelled,
providing openings in which his young proteges could change the
world. They did not let him down, and we should give him full
credit for being 'The Father of the Railways'. Adrian Jarvis
specialises in the engineering and finance of dock and harbour
construction, on which he has published extensively, but he also
has a strong interest in early railways and in the general history
of technology. Another book for Shire by this author is: The
Victorian Engineer
Deep Purple In Rock is, as its iconic cover suggests, a landmark in
rock music. From its opening moments of mayhem to its final crash
into incoherent noise, it is a fuzzbox fuelled masterpiece with not
a single wasted moment. Its release was also a watershed moment for
the band, a defiant and irrevocable statement that they were going
in a different direction from that followed on their first three
albums. It would be wrong, however, to suggest that the album came
from nowhere. Not only was it one side in a musical debate that had
been raging within the band, but its antecedents can be traced
through both Deep Purple's earlier releases and those of some of
the source bands from which the principal players were drawn.
Sculpting In Rock takes up that challenge, exploring the roots of
the album, placing it into its proper context to consider how it
was produced as well as why it was produced. Part history, part
essay, part memoir, the book is essential reading for any fan of
Deep Purple, In Rock or the exciting, uncompromising, genre of
which it is arguably the masterpiece.
NEC Arena Birmingham, November 9th 1993. Deep Purple were in
crisis. No longer able to tolerate the presence of singer Ian
Gillan, Ritchie Blackmore, the ace guitarist, made his displeasure
known in a way that would have consequences none present could
possibly have predicted. Blackmore's departure soon followed, and a
merciful end seemed to have come for a band that had been riven
with tensions for years. But then, after a brief dalliance with Joe
Satriani, acknowledged six string maestro Steve Morse stepped in
and a whole new age began. This book takes a critical look at the
so-called 'Morse Era', charting the highs, the lows, the triumphs
and the tragedies. It is a compelling story of albums, tours,
musicians coming and musicians going, a story of a band that moved
forward like few bands ever have, but who, nevertheless, could
never completely escape from the shadow of that disastrous night at
the NEC...
Chasing Shadows is the story of an obsessed fan's one-man quest to
find the original Deep Purple singer Rod Evans. Evans dropped off
the radar in 1980 following a legal case that buried him with a
debt in excess of half a million dollars. Just like the mysteries
that surrounded Pink Floyd's Syd Barrett and the Manic Street
Preachers' Richie Edwards, nobody - literally nobody - has any idea
where he is or what he has been doing. So Jarvis set himself a
challenge: Find Rod Evans. Part memoir, part piece of musical
history, part piece of musical mystery. In this personal quest the
author relays his encounters with fellow original Deep Purple
member Nick Simper and as an obsessive fan, all that that entails.
Rod Evans remains the pivot throughout the book and when Deep
Purple finally get accepted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame it
sets the author off to the Induction Ceremony in New York where he
may or may not find the Holy Grail he has sought for several years.
It is also about friendship and how the people we meet influence us
and share the journeys on which we embark. It is a picaresque tale,
sometimes comic, sometimes moving, sometimes laced with fantasy,
but it is one in which everyone - or, at any rate, everyone above a
certain age - will find somewhat familiar.
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