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Thread: Pandemic Reading

  1. #26
    Registered User Simon DS's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    (No mandolin content)
    I’ve just bought How I Escaped My Certain Fate by Stuart Lee (who claims to be Scottish)
    Then I see this vid on the world wide web and realise how rude he is! PC - not.


  2. #27
    Registered User Dave Hicks's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    Richard Thompson's "Beeswing: Losing My Way and Finding My Voice 1967-1975" - zero mando content so far as I see.

    D.H.

  3. #28
    ************** Caleb's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    Quote Originally Posted by Pappyrich View Post
    Not about a mandolin, but "Clapton's Guitar" is a great book about Wayne Henderson and building a guitar for Eric Clapton. Lot's of very interesting guitar history, especially Martins, and Appalachian folklore.
    This is the book I was going to recommend. I started seriously reading about 15 years ago, and several hundred books later this one still stands out as one of the best books I've ever read. I ended up reading it again a few years ago. It has a misleading title and many have probably not read it because they don't want to read a book about Clapton and his guitar. If that's you, do read this wonderful book because it is NOT about Clapton but about Wayne Henderson building guitars and the fascinating little world that surrounds him. Henderson had never even heard of Clapton, which I thought was funny. It would be interesting to know if Clapton ever actually used the guitars that were made for him by Henderson.

    As a side note, if you're interested in Henderson, check out the work his daughter, Jayne, is doing with her own line of guitars: https://www.ejhendersonguitars.com/

    Here is a great podcast episode from FB Journal featuring Jayne: https://www.fretboardjournal.com/pod...erson-guitars/ There are several bits here about building with Wayne for those interested.
    ...

  4. #29
    Professional Dreamer journeybear's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    Quote Originally Posted by Simon DS View Post
    (No mandolin content) ... PC - not.
    Quite so, on both counts. I suggest people enjoy this, if it's the sort of thing they do, quickly, before it disappears. Politics, vulgarity - both interdicted here.

    Quote Originally Posted by Dave Hicks View Post
    Richard Thompson's "Beeswing: Losing My Way and Finding My Voice 1967-1975" - zero mando content so far as I see.
    I'm a bit surprised at that. Although he doesn't play it AFAIK, others in Fairport Convention did. An interview with RT on the occasion of this book's release led me to spend a couple weeks listening to FC. Fascinating band. I've gone around with them before, but dug deeper this time. "Tam Lin" is an extraordinary work, and I found several versions, even from back then, in that glorious year of 1969. They put out three albums that year - the entire Sandy Denny era catalogue. How many bands have ever done that? And if any, how many represented their peak period? Just an amazing burst of creativity, there. I've downloaded them all, plus a couple others as well - including an official bootleg of a live broadcast from a Chicago radio station, on a tour just after Denny left but still with Thompson. I wish they had caught on in the US. I'm sure the book is riveting; he's an exemplary talent.

    Oh - almost left with no mandolin content ... Still haven't cracked open "Captain Corelli's Mandolin." Sorry!
    But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. - Dennis Miller

    Furthering Mandolin Consciousness

    Finders Keepers, my duo with the astoundingly talented and versatile Patti Rothberg. Our EP is finally done, and available! PM me, while they last!

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  6. #30
    Registered User Dave Hicks's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    Quote Originally Posted by journeybear View Post

    ...

    I'm a bit surprised at that. Although he doesn't play it AFAIK, others in Fairport Convention did. An interview with RT on the occasion of this book's release led me to spend a couple weeks listening to FC. Fascinating band. I've gone around with them before, but dug deeper this time. "Tam Lin" is an extraordinary work, and I found several versions, even from back then, in that glorious year of 1969. They put out three albums that year - the entire Sandy Denny era catalogue. How many bands have ever done that? And if any, how many represented their peak period? Just an amazing burst of creativity, there. I've downloaded them all, plus a couple others as well - including an official bootleg of a live broadcast from a Chicago radio station, on a tour just after Denny left but still with Thompson. I wish they had caught on in the US. I'm sure the book is riveting; he's an exemplary talent...
    In his more recent albums Richard gets a mando onto 1 or 2 songs per album. There were also some tracks with mando in the Richard and Linda recordings.

    I'm only about a third of the way through the book (the crash) - Swarb has just joined Fairport at this point, so there may well be some mando capers in later chapters.

    For more Sandy-era Fairport, check out the album Heyday, which is all BBC more-or-less live recordings. Ian Matthews is also on this album, and there are some glorious tracks featuring both him and Sandy. Too bad there's no video from this period, though there is a French TV show with the Judy Dyble version of the band.

    D.H.

  7. #31
    Professional Dreamer journeybear's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    Right, no video - as expected. BUT some youtube "videos" - live recordings - which surprised me immensely. Even a few from the Royal Festival Hall 9/24/1969, their first time playing music from "Liege & Lief," also Swarbrick's debut. Terrible sound quality (audience recording) but historic. Better recordings exist from live appearances on BBC. I spent a couple days going through these. Marvelous. I guess they didn't catch on in the US because their version of folk-rock was more folk than rock, and British folk at that - despite some excellent Dylan covers. But they didn't do the psychedelic reinvented blues thang, then so prevalent here. Oh well! I've come to appreciate them, however belatedly.

    I should put "Beeswing" on my to-read list. But books languish there ... I'm looking at a stack of eight or nine books on the counter, and the only two that get a glance are the cookbooks. Someday ...
    But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. - Dennis Miller

    Furthering Mandolin Consciousness

    Finders Keepers, my duo with the astoundingly talented and versatile Patti Rothberg. Our EP is finally done, and available! PM me, while they last!

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  9. #32
    Innocent Bystander JeffD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    Quote Originally Posted by Beanzy View Post
    You could try "The Mandolin Lesson" by Frances Taylor http://themandolinlesson.com/the_book.htm
    an autobiographical story of self discovery centred around a passion for the mandolin.
    I thought that was a beautiful book. A beautiful story. We have all done some crazy things when first driven by the passion the mandolin puts in us. Totally understandable.
    A talent for trivializin' the momentous and complicatin' the obvious.

    The entire staff
    funny....

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  11. #33
    Innocent Bystander JeffD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    I recommend The Inner Game of Music by Barry Green and W. Timothy Gallwey. A really helpful way of looking at the music.
    A talent for trivializin' the momentous and complicatin' the obvious.

    The entire staff
    funny....

  12. #34
    Innocent Bystander JeffD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    I would also strongly recommend Instrumental, A Memoir of Madness, Medication, and Music by James Rhodes. It is a story of a destructive tragedy in childhood and putting together a reasonable life in spite of it, through playing piano on a professional level.

    I found the story ultimately very inspiring, and I now follow and listen to the author's music. But the path is not straight as would be portrayed in the movies, and there were moments reading this book that I very much disliked the author as a person.

    Very powerful and very inspiring - and showing how holding desperately tight to the music, at any level, can save you; but it ain't magic, as music has no intrinsic magical healing power - if there is any magic, it is in the holding tight to something bigger than yourself.

    Well worth a read.
    A talent for trivializin' the momentous and complicatin' the obvious.

    The entire staff
    funny....

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  14. #35
    Registered User lowtone2's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    Musicophilia by Oliver Sacks. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000W939JI...ng=UTF8&btkr=1

    I read everything, including lots of biographies. This one stands out: Leader of the Band: the Life of Woody Herman.

    Of course anything and everything by Peter Guralnick. Mandolin content is hard to come by.

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  16. #36
    Registered User j4music's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    Lots of great suggestions. Here's another one. Valentine's Fall by Cary Fagan.

    Entertaining read cast in a realistic Bluegrass setting, involving a mandolin player's return to the old home town. I have no skin in the game, but for anyone who's interested, it's listed in the MC Classifieds, which is where I got it.

    I think there may also be one or more threads about it, but my search skills weren't up to finding them.

  17. #37
    Professional Dreamer journeybear's Avatar
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    Default Re: Pandemic Reading

    Quote Originally Posted by j4music View Post
    Lots of great suggestions. Here's another one. Valentine's Fall by Cary Fagan.

    Entertaining read cast in a realistic Bluegrass setting, involving a mandolin player's return to the old home town. I have no skin in the game, but for anyone who's interested, it's listed in the MC Classifieds, which is where I got it.

    I think there may also be one or more threads about it, but my search skills weren't up to finding them.
    Well, sir, I have news for you. My search skills aren't that great either, though they serve me fairly well, much of the time. They did this time.

    It turns out there is indeed a thread about it. And it comes from Fearless Leader himself, who published a notice on the occasion of the book's publication in 2009. It didn't get a lot of response - in fact, none whatsoever. That may be about to change, thanks to this bit of chatter on the subject.

    It also turns out that the author is a member in good standing here, has been for several years, and is on the verge of posting his 1000th message.

    So we live and learn!

    As did I - I never knew there were books in the classified. Why not? Of course there are! Mandolinists can be so erudite, after all. But I've only ever gone there looking for mandolins. So now I know. Thank you for inspiring my curiosity.
    But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. - Dennis Miller

    Furthering Mandolin Consciousness

    Finders Keepers, my duo with the astoundingly talented and versatile Patti Rothberg. Our EP is finally done, and available! PM me, while they last!

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