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Title: Can't You Hear Me Callin' : The Life of Bill Monroe, Father of Bluegrass by Richard D. Smith ISBN: 0-316-80381-2 Publisher: Little Brown & Company Pub. Date: 01 July, 2000 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $25.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.53 (19 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: A "powerful" biography
Comment: This is a powerful book, and Richard Smith has succeeded in presenting an especially well-rounded portrait of an especially complex individual.
There's been quite a bit of discussion of the book on several Bluegrass oriented internet lists, most of it positive, although there have been a few carping posts on the decision to expose some of unpublished, but oft-rumored, facts and incidents in Monroe's life.
Wisely bypassing the on-going "what is Bluegrass, anyway" debate, the book offers a very common-sensible approach to whether or not Monroe indeed invented the genre -- RDS posits an "auteur" theory of the foundation of Bluegrass, giving WSM the principle credit, but also elevating several others to near-founder status: Earl Scruggs, Jimmy Martin and, to a lesser, but important extent, Don Reno.
Richard talked to many (if not most) of the (surviving) women in WSM's life; they were seemingly very forthcoming about Bill and his good and bad traits, and their stories are integral to the overall picture. The one person who did not talk to him, who's input would have been invaluable, but who come across much better than I (and, I suspect, many others in the BG world) expected, was Bill's son, James. Input from surviving members of the BG Boys is also critical to the overall success and utility of the book.
One of the complaints that I have: the book is too short, and neglects to cover many of the stories that circulate in the Bluegrass world, either to confirm or debunk. My other major complaints: the index, which seems rather perfunctory, and the notes -- I would have preferred source notes at the back (as they appear), but with parenthetical remarks in the body of the text, as footnotes, rather than combining the two in one section after the entire text. These notes are integral to the story, and I'm going to have to reread the book just to coordinate these asides with the main text; I was flying through it on my first of, (probably) many readings.
But these are nits, and I almost had to search in order to pick 'em. Overall, it's an outstanding job. Also, I feel very proud both for Richard and for Mr. Monroe that the book appears under the imprint of a mainstream trade publisher, rather than being in the relative backwater of an academic press.
Thank you, Richard, for spending the time and effort to bring this book to us. It passes my own personal test for great art: It made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me think. What more can one ask!
Rating: 4
Summary: Overall Interesting
Comment: Who was Bill Monroe? Everyone who knows anything about country or bluegrass music knows the name but do you know the man? Most likely not. This book sheds light on who he was. What made the man tick from his childhood and throughout the hardships of his adult life.
A fiercly proud man and an extremely hard worker who demanded as much from his band as he did himself. This book points out the reasons behind many of the stories and the roots of the legends. It also shows Bill Monroe in all his glory as well as all his shame. It points out his faults as well as his strengths. Addressing many of the events of his life with candor.
Overall this was a really good book. If there was one thing keeping me from giving this book five stars it was the fact that the author was found of making statements like "i'm sure Bill must have felt......". Of course he had done extensive research but I felt at these points he inflected too much of his own opinion. Does he really think he knew what Bill Monroe was feeling? Most of his relatives didn't. Beyond that, I recommend this book for good reading on the subject of Bill Monroe. Read it with a few more books on the subject and get a well rounded opinion of this great man.
Rating: 4
Summary: Currently the "Definitive" Bill Monroe Biography
Comment: This work is meticulously and exhaustively researched and includes wonderful stories and insights into the personality of the "Father of Bluegrass". So many other reviewers have remarked here about how interesting (and sometimes previously unrevealed) many of the stories are, in particular with regard to his need to be with many women. But one of the great attributes of this book is giving some insight into Mr. Monroe's music - his genious of a gift for "pulling music out of the air" and his innovation in turning the previously muddling mountain rhythms of his youth into a driving force of nature that was propelled forward by the bark of his Lloyd Loar Gibson F-5. The stories behind the creation of "Little Georgia Rose" and "Can't You Hear Me Calling", among others, were unknown to me, and I found fascinating and frankly poignant.
I consider this the definitive biography of one of the absolute giants of American music.
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Title: True Adventures with the King of Bluegrass by Tom Piazza, Marty Stuart ISBN: 0826513603 Publisher: Vanderbilt Univ Pr (T) Pub. Date: 29 October, 1999 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: Bluegrass: A History (Music in American Life) by Neil V. Rosenberg ISBN: 025206304X Publisher: Univ of Illinois Pr (Trd) Pub. Date: September, 1993 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Traveling the High Way Home: Ralph Stanley and the World of Traditional Bluegrass Music (Music in American Life) by John Wright ISBN: 025206478X Publisher: Univ of Illinois Pr (Trd) Pub. Date: February, 1995 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone?: The Carter Family and Their Legacy in American Music by Charles Hirshberg, Mark Zwonitzer ISBN: 0684857634 Publisher: Simon & Schuster Pub. Date: 10 July, 2002 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title:The Legend Lives On - A Tribute to Bill Monroe ASIN: B0000B1OCH Publisher: Koch Vision Entertai Pub. Date: 09 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.98 Comparison N/A, buy it from Amazon for $17.98 |
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