The Song Remains the Same: 800 Years of Love Songs, Laments and Lullabies by Andrew Ford; Anni Heino

$32.99 AUD

Category: Music

Often today, the word 'song' is used to describe all music. A free-jazz improvisation, a Hindustani raga, a movement from a Beethoven symphony, a Springsteen anthem or a Leonard Cohen ballad- they're all songs. But, in fact, a song is a specific musical form. It's not so much that they all have verses and choruses - though most of them do - but that they are all relatively short and self-contained; they have beginnings, middles and ends; they often have a single point of view, message or story; and, crucially, they unite words and music. Thus, a Schubert song has more in common with a track by Joni Mitchell or Sia than with one of Schubert's own symphonies. The Song Remains the Same traces these connections through seventy-five songs from different cultures and times- love songs, anthems, protest songs, lullabies, folk songs, jazz standards, lieder and pop hits; 'When You Wish Upon a Star' to 'We Will Rock You', 'Jerusalem' to 'Jolene'. Unpicking their inner workings makes familiar songs strange again, explaining and restoring the wonder, joy (or possibly loathing) the reader experienced on first hearing. Featuring songs by The Beatles, Cole Porter, Kate Bush, Carole King, Bob Marley, Tracy Chapman, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan and Violeta Parra; musical numbers by Rodgers and Hammerstein, Sondheim and the Gershwins; and works from great composers, including Beethoven, Schubert and Brahms. ...Show more

Me: Elton John Official Autobiography (Hb) by Elton John

$44.99 AUD

Category: Music

In his first and only official autobiography, music icon Elton John reveals the truth about his extraordinary life,  The result is Me - the joyously funny, honest and moving story of the most enduringly successful singer/songwriter of all time. Christened Reginald Dwight, he was a shy boy with Budd y Holly glasses who grew up in the London suburb of Pinner and dreamed of becoming a pop star. By the age of twenty-three, he was performing his first gig in America, facing an astonished audience in his bright yellow dungarees, a star-spangled T-shirt and boots with wings. Elton John had arrived and the music world would never be the same again. His life has been full of drama, from the early rejection of his work with song-writing partner Bernie Taupin to spinning out of control as a chart-topping superstar; from half-heartedly trying to drown himself in his LA swimming pool to disco-dancing with the Queen; from friendships with John Lennon, Freddie Mercury and George Michael to setting up his AIDS Foundation. All the while, Elton was hiding a drug addiction that would grip him for over a decade. In Me Elton also writes powerfully about getting clean and changing his life, about finding love with David Furnish and becoming a father. In a voice that is warm, humble and open, this is Elton on his music and his relationships, his passions and his mistakes. This is a story that will stay with you, by a living legend. ...Show more

Stranger Than Kindness: The Nick Cave Exhibition by Nick Cave

$49.99 AUD

Category: Music

Stranger Than Kindness is a journey in images and words into the creative world of musician, storyteller and cultural icon Nick Cave. This highly collectible book contains images selected by Cave from 'Stranger Than Kindness: The Nick Cave Exhibition', presented by the Royal Danish Library in partnersh ip with Arts Centre Melbourne. Featuring full-colour reproductions of original artwork, handwritten lyrics, photographs and collected personal artefacts, it presents Cave's life, work and inspiration and explores his many real and imagined universes. Images are paired with commentary and meditations from Cave and celebrated writer Darcey Steinke on themes that are central to Cave's work. Stranger Than Kindness asks what shapes our lives and makes us who we are, and celebrates the curiosity and power of the creative spirit.*Final jacket design coming soon. ...Show more

Kim Salmon and the Formula for Grunge by Douglas Galbraith

$39.99 AUD

Category: Music

This book follows Australian musician Kim Salmon, from bands The Scientists, Surrealists and Beasts of Bourbon, from childhood in Perth through his many bands, albums, tours, family upheavals, triumphs, disappointments and examines the characters of the music business he collaborates with along the way. The book explores the forces that shaped his style to create an idiosyncratically Australian sound that went on to spark a worldwide music & cultural movement-Grunge. It's a tribute to the life-long pursuit of artistic mastery, and celebration of the growing international recognition, well overdue for this unique Australian artist. ...Show more

The Australian Musical: From the Beginning by Peter Wyllie Johnston; Peter Pinne

$79.99 AUD

Category: Music

A definitive history of a century of musical theatre in Australia, including behind the scenes stories of achievement and disaster, fully illustrated in colour. Musical theatre has a special place in the hearts of Australians. Whether it is The Boy from Oz, Bran Nue Dae or Muriel's Wedding, we love to see Australian stories on the big stage with all the glamour, energy and vibrancy a musical can offer.However magical they are on stage, performances leave behind few traces. Australia has a rich, hidden history of achievement in musical theatre which is now largely forgotten. Drawing on their long careers in musical performance, and extensive research in public and private collections, Peter Wyllie Johnston and Peter Pinne have compiled a definitive account of the history of musical theatre in Australia.From small amateur performances in the early days, to international achievements, to the new wave of Australian musicals from the 1990s right through to the explosion of creativity in the 21st century, they recount the emotional roller-coaster of successes and disappointments of one of the most demanding art forms. Also included is an authoritative guide to over 300 Australian musicals.Richly illustrated with colour photos from the early days to the present, The Australian Musical is a book to treasure for years to come, and an invaluable resource for anyone involved with theatre and music. ...Show more

A Masters Apprentice living in the sixties by Peter Tilbrook

$39.95 AUD

Category: Music

Acid for the Children: A Memoir by Flea

$32.99 AUD

Category: Music

Michael Peter Balzary was born in Melbourne, Australia, on October 16, 1962. His more famous stage name, Flea, and his wild ride as the renowned bass player for the Red Hot Chili Peppers was in a far and distant future. Little Michael from Oz moved with his very conservative, very normal family to Westc hester, New York, where life as he knew it was soon turned upside down. His parents split up and he and his sister moved into the home of his mother's free-wheeling, jazz musician boyfriend - trading in rules, stability, and barbecues for bohemian values, wildness, and Sunday afternoon jazz parties where booze, weed, and music flowed in equal measure. There began Michael's life-long journey to channel all the frustration, loneliness, love, and joy he felt into incredible rhythm. When Michael's family moved to Los Angeles in 1972, his home situation was rockier than ever. He sought out a sense of belonging elsewhere, spending most of his days partying, playing basketball, and committing petty crimes. At Fairfax High School, he met another social outcast, Anthony Kiedis, who quickly became his soul brother, the yin to his yang, his partner in mischief. Michael joined some bands, fell in love with performing, and honed his skills. But it wasn't until the night when Anthony, excited after catching a Grandmaster Flash concert, suggested they start their own band that he is handed the magic key to the cosmic kingdom. Acid for the Children is as raw, entertaining and wildly unpredictable as its author. It's both a tenderly evocative coming of age story and a raucous love letter to the power of music and creativity. ...Show more

Bowie's Books: The Hundred Literary Heroes Who Changed His Life by John O'Connell

$34.99 AUD

Category: Music

David Bowie once said that his idea of perfect happiness was reading. Three years before he died, he made a list of the one hundred books that had transformed his life - a list that formed something akin to an autobiography. From Lolita to Madame Bovary, the Beano to The Iliad, these were the books that had fuelled his creativity and shaped who he was. In Bowie's Books, John O'Connell explores this list in the form of one hundred short essays, each offering a perspective on the man, performer and creator that is Bowie, his work as an artist and the era that he lived in. Bowie's Books is much more than a list of books you should read in your lifetime: it is a unique insight into one of the greatest minds of our times, and an indispensable part of the legacy that Bowie left behind. ...Show more

Roots: How Melbourne Became the Live Music Capital of the World by Craig Horne

$34.99 AUD

Category: Music

Roots is the history of live music in Melbourne, from jazz to blues, country, folk, rhythm and blues to rock, and the socio-political stories of those musicians who played what they wanted, when they wanted, without a damn.

Two Riders Were Approaching: The Life & Death of Jimi Hendrix by Mick Wall

$32.99 AUD

Category: Music

Jimmy was a down-at-heel guitarist in New York, relying on his latest lovers to support him while he tried to emulate his hero Bob Dylan. A black guy playing white rock music, he wanted to be all things to all people. But when Jimmy arrived in England and became Jimi, the cream of swinging London fell under his spell. It wasn't that Jimi could play with his teeth, play with his guitar behind his back. It was that he could really play. Journeying through the purple haze of idealism and paranoia of the sixties, Jimi Hendrix was the man who made Eric Clapton consider quitting, to whom Bob Dylan deferred on his own song 'All Along the Watchtower', who forced Miles Davis to reconsider his buttoned-down ways - and whose 'Star Spangled Banner' defined Woodstock. And when his star, which had burned so brightly, was extinguished far too young, his legend lived on in the music - and the intrigue surrounding his death. Eschewing the traditional rock-biography format, Two Riders Were Approaching is a fittingly psychedelic and kaleidoscopic exploration of the life and death of Jimi Hendrix - and a journey into the dark heart of the sixties. While the groupies lined up, the drugs got increasingly heavy and the dream of the sixties burned in the fire and blood of the Vietnam War, the assassination of Martin Luther King and the election of President Richard Nixon. Acclaimed writer Mick Wall, author of When Giants Walked the Earth, has drawn upon his own interviews and extensive research to produce an inimitable, novelistic telling of this tale - the definitive portrait of the Guitar God at whose altar other guitar gods worship. Jimi Hendrix's is a story that has been told many times before - but never quite like this. ...Show more

Face It (Debbie Harry Memoirs) HB by Debbie Harry

$45.00 AUD

Category: Music

Debbie Harry has achieved a level of global success and iconic stature that is reserved for very few musicians, and even fewer women. Charismatic lead singer, critically acclaimed solo artist and style icon, her allure is endless and her legacy is enduring. In this, her first memoir, Debbie shares her r emarkable life story. Finding fame in the anarchic punk scene of mid-70s downtown New York, Blondie went on to enjoy worldwide success, freewheeling through genres, from pop to rap via disco and reggae, with a sense of assuredness and abandon that typified their lead singer. Debbie, a brilliant lyricist with a captivating stage presence, has made an indelible impression on pop culture; within the band, in her solo career and as an actor. Time and again, she has pushed boundaries and defied expectations. From gigging in CBGBs to headlining Glastonbury in 2014, Debbie's career has spanned nearly four decades and generated over 40 million record sales. Unafraid to speak her mind, she encapsulates a sense of independence, strength and sincerity that has inspired generations. Now Debbie recalls the experiences that have shaped her – the unprecedented triumphs and the darkest challenges – in her typically unapologetic, vibrant style. ...Show more

My Name Is Prince by Randee St. Nicholas

$99.00 AUD

Category: Music

The ultimate collection of stunning photographs documenting the career of one of the world's greatest superstars There has never been or will there ever be an artist like Prince. "A 5′ 3″ Mastermind . . . satiated with virtuosity, controversy, stubbornness, and poise . . . His influence on M usic transcended any and every category given titles by industry wizards and musicologists. Pop, Rock, Rhythm & Blues, Classical, Funk, Jazz, Soul, and Rap . . . He did it all and he did it well . . . and in his time . . . He did it first," writes Randee St. Nicholas. For twenty-five years, this legendary photographer, with a storied career of her own, worked closely with Prince, capturing some of his most intimate and revealing moments both on and off stage. Now, the fruits of their numerous collaborations are on full display in My Name Is Prince, the largest collection of the most iconic photographs that will ever exist of one of the world's greatest superstars. In this dazzling collector's edition, readers are treated to a front-row seat to their innovative and awe-inspiring projects, from his music videos Gett Off and My Name Is Prince; to their impromptu photo shoots...just because; their adventures around the world from London to Tokyo to Prague, and his breathtaking, showstopping live concert appearances from great stages at Coachella and the 02 Arena to intimate nightclubs. Many of the trips, we will discover, are either unplanned or hastily arranged. And yet you will marvel at the results--as Prince expected nothing less than the best. When they met, Prince was ready for a change. The quixotic performer was known for seizing a moment and then on to the next. After their initial 1991 photo shoot in her Los Angeles studio, Prince assured St. Nicholas, "Don't worry, I'll be back." Over the next twenty-five years he would return again and again, challenging himself and St. Nicholas to reach higher and to go further with every original pursuit. My Name Is Prince is the story of that unique working relationship and artistic evolution that produced many stunning images and lasted from their first meeting until the end: He had incredible timing, not just musically but spiritually, emotionally, and creatively . . . that Prince rhythm fueled a spontaneity that was contagious, enabling you to be more fearless and flexible than you thought you ever could be. When he would call . . . you had to be ready for anything . . . to jump on a plane with an hour or two notice, to put together a crew in a city you had never worked in before without any preparation time . . . or to simply just go outside your house at four in the morning where he was parked in his car, waiting for you to get in and listen to new music he had just recorded. One never knew what to expect . . . but it was always an inspired adventure. Told through 384 pages of striking visuals and poignant, intimate stories, the insights revealed in My Name Is Prince show a side of the enigmatic megastar that few have ever seen. We go beyond the genius and meet the man--playful, moody, disciplined, sensual, serious, and soulful. And in hundreds of photographs, we see that incandescent light behind his hypnotic eyes; that sly smile, strong hands, and transformative and transcendent presence that connected people from every part of the globe through his music. As his sound lives on, My Name Is Prince is a visual testimony to his greatness and a space that can never be filled.   ...Show more