'Ghost notes' is a musical term for sounds barely audible, a wisp lingering around the beat, yet somehow driving the groove. The Texas musicians profiled here, ranging from 1920s gospel performers to the first psychedelic band, are generally not well known, but the impact of their early contributions on popular music is unmistakable. This beautiful Tim Kerr-illustrated collection provides more background on the Texas from which these artists sprang, fully formed. Readers will learn about the black gay couple from Houston who inspired the creation of rock 'n' roll, as well as the true story of the origin of Western Swing. They will learn about - the first family of Texas music - and the birth of boogie-woogie, the dirt-poor singers and the ballad collectors who saved folk songs during the Depression, and the accordeonista whose musical legacy was never contained on recordings but was passed on by his protEgE. The pioneers of modern times include the Dallas rapper who became the wordsmith of gangsta rap, the sheriff's son from Dumas who produced the signature tunes of Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, and the blind lounge singer Kenny Rogers called the greatest musician he's ever known.

Sports law has been growing with increasing rapidity over the years since the first edition of this book was published in 1999, regularly making headlines as well as leading to a developing body of law practised by specialist lawyers. This revised work, by leading practitioners in the field, with a foreword by Lord Coe, provides a coherent framework for understanding the principles of sports law in this area, as well as a deep analysis of its key features. The subject is split into various areas of practice: first, regulatory rules, which embrace the constitutional aspect of organised sport, including the disciplinary procedures of the various governing organisations; second, broadcasting and marketing resulting from the commercial exploitation, including sponsorship, of sports clubs, sporting events and players; and third, player's rights and obligations, which embraces a wide range of legal issues including club transfers and player contracts, and issues arising from employment (including discrimination law), personal injury and criminal law. Special attention is paid to the impact of EU and Human Rights law as well as to the influential jurisprudence of the Court of Arbitration for Sport. London 2012 provides an appropriate point at which to assess the current state of the law, as well as a look to the future. The target readership extends from solicitors, barristers and legal advisers, to sports organisations and clubs, corporations involved in marketing and sponsorship, media companies, academics teaching sports law, and sports administrators. "I commend it to everyone who has to administer sport as well as to those who have to advise the administrators or argue cases in the field on whatever side. It is a gold medal book." From the Foreword by Lord Coe KBE