Tom Spector's Books

History of Rock and Roll

By: Tom Larson,Thomas E. Larson

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History of rock and roll includes: biographical information on past and present musicians, composers, bands, producers, and record executives; analyses of evolutionary rock styles from before the 1950s to the present, including a list of the most seminal recordings from each style; an album-by-album review of ... the Beatles and Bob Dylan; an audio CD containing twenty notable recordings in rock, with a synopsis of each.

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Page Count

336

Publisher

Kendall Hunt

Published Date

ISBN 10

0787299693

ISBN 13

9780787299699

The Hemi in the Barn

More Great Stories of Automotive Archaeology

By: Tom Cotter

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The Hemi in the Barn

More Great Stories of Automotive Archaeology

By: Tom Cotter

It’s every car lover’s fantasy: the perfectly preserved classic automobile discovered under a blanket in some great-granny’s garage. And as author Tom Cotter has discovered time and again, it’s a fantasy that can come true. The Hemi in the Barn offers more than forty stories of amazing finds and automotive resurrections. Avid collectors big and small recall the thrills of the hunt, the tips and hunches followed, clues pursued, the heart-stopping payoff. There’s the forgotten Duesenberg—probably one of the last unrestored ones around—that Jay Leno found in a Burbank garage. Unbelievably, Leno found another Duesenberg in a parking garage in New York City—a car that was parked in 1933 and never moved. There’s a Plymouth Superbird found buried in a hedge in Alabama. There’s the rescue of the first 1955 Corvette ever built. As entertaining as these tales are, they’re also full of tantalizing hints and suggestions for readers setting off on their own adventures in automotive archaeology.

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Page Count

256

Publisher

Motorbooks

Published Date

ISBN 10

1616737573

ISBN 13

9781616737573

We Could Be

Bowie and his Heroes

By: Tom Hagler

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We Could Be

Bowie and his Heroes

By: Tom Hagler

*** With consultant editor Tony Visconti. David Bowie's story has never been told quite like this. Tracing the star's encounters with fellow icons throughout his life, We Could Be offers a new history of Bowie, collecting 300 short stories that together paint a portrait of humour, humility, compassion, tragedy and more besides. He embarrasses himself in front of Lennon and Warhol. He saves the life of Nina Simone. He is hated by Bob Dylan. He teaches Michael Jackson the moonwalk. Individually astonishing, together these stories - including details never before revealed - build a new picture of Bowie, one which shows his vulnerability, his sense of humour, his inner diva. Exhaustively researched from thousands of sources by BBC reporter and Bowie obsessive Tom Hagler - with the guidance and memories of Bowie's long-time producer Tony Visconti - We Could Be is fascinating, comic, compelling, and a history of Bowie unlike any that has come before.

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Page Count

363

Publisher

Cassell

Published Date

ISBN 10

178840274X

ISBN 13

9781788402743

The Number Ones

Twenty Chart-Topping Hits That Reveal the History of Pop Music

By: Tom Breihan

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The Number Ones

Twenty Chart-Topping Hits That Reveal the History of Pop Music

By: Tom Breihan

Beloved music critic Tom Breihan's fascinating narrative of the history of popular music through the lens of game-changing #1 singles from the Billboard Hot 100. When Tom Breihan launched his Stereogum column in early 2018, “The Number Ones”—a space in which he has been writing about every #1 hit in the history of the Billboard Hot 100, in chronological order—he figured he’d post capsule-size reviews for each song. But there was so much more to uncover. The column has taken on a life of its own, sparking online debate and occasional death threats. The Billboard Hot 100 began in 1958, and after four years of posting the column, Breihan is still in the early aughts. But readers no longer have to wait for his brilliant synthesis of what the history of #1s has meant to music and our culture. In The Number Ones, Breihan writes about twenty pivotal #1s throughout chart history, revealing a remarkably fluid and connected story of music that is as entertaining as it is enlightening. The Numbers Ones features the greatest pop artists of all time, from the Brill Building songwriters to the Beatles and the Beach Boys; from Motown to Michael Jackson, Prince, and Mariah Carey; and from the digital revolution to the K-pop system. Breihan also ponders great artists who have never hit the top spot, like Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and James Brown. Breihan illuminates what makes indelible ear candy across the decades—including dance crazes, recording innovations, television phenomena, disco, AOR, MTV, rap, compact discs, mp3s, social media, memes, and much more—leaving readers to wonder what could possibly happen next.

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Page Count

306

Publisher

Hachette Books

Published Date

ISBN 10

0306826550

ISBN 13

9780306826559

The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby

By: Tom Wolfe

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The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby

By: Tom Wolfe

An excellent book by a genius," said Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., of this now classic exploration of the 1960s from the founder of new journalism. "This is a book that will be a sharp pleasure to reread years from now, when it will bring back, like a falcon in the sky of memory, a whole world that is currently jetting and jazzing its way somewhere or other."--Newsweek In his first book, The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby (1965) Wolfe introduces us to the sixties, to extravagant new styles of life that had nothing to do with the "elite" culture of the past.

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Page Count

370

Publisher

Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Published Date

ISBN 10

1429961031

ISBN 13

9781429961035

Death Comes at Christmas

By: Marie O'Regan,Paul Kane,C.L. Taylor,J. T. Ellison,David Bell,Sarah Hilary,Claire McGowan,Fiona Cummins,Angela Clarke,Alexandra Benedict,Susi Holliday,Tina Baker,Sam Carrington,Liz Mistry,Tom Mead

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Death Comes at Christmas

By: Marie O'Regan,Paul Kane,C.L. Taylor,J. T. Ellison,David Bell,Sarah Hilary,Claire McGowan,Fiona Cummins,Angela Clarke,Alexandra Benedict,Susi Holliday,Tina Baker,Sam Carrington,Liz Mistry,Tom Mead

18 festive stories of murder and mystery in the grand tradition of Christmas crime fiction, from the masters of the genre. Including the New York Times bestselling JT Ellison, USA Today bestseller Sam Carrington, Sunday Times bestseller C.L. Taylor, and many more... The award-winning Marie O’Regan and Paul Kane invite you to a festive gathering of bestselling, critically acclaimed and award-winning writers in tribute to classic crime stories. From locked room mysteries on Christmas Eve to devilish whodunits and tales of simmering rivalries unfolding at the dinner table, these eighteen seasonal tales will delight and shock at every twist and turn. So, unwrap the presents, pour a mug of mulled wine and follow the bloodstained footprints through the freshly fallen snow as winter descends and darkness lurks in the shadows. Featuring stories by: Fiona Cummins Angela Clarke A. K. Benedict Susi Holliday J. T. Ellison David Bell Sarah Hilary Claire McGowan Tina Baker Sam Carrington Liz Mistry C. L. Taylor Helen Fields Russ Thomas Tom Mead Vaseem Khan Samantha Hayes Belinda Bauer

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Page Count

349

Publisher

Titan Books (US, CA)

Published Date

ISBN 10

1803369434

ISBN 13

9781803369433

Man on the Run

Paul McCartney in the 1970s

By: Tom Doyle

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Man on the Run

Paul McCartney in the 1970s

By: Tom Doyle

An illuminating look at the most tumultuous decade in the life of a rock icon—the only McCartney biography in decades based on firsthand interviews with the ex-Beatle himself. As the 1970s began, the Beatles ended, leaving Paul McCartney to face the new decade with only his wife Linda by his side. Holed up at his farmhouse in Scotland, he sank into a deep depression. To outsiders, McCartney seemed like a man adrift—intimidated by his own fame, paralyzed by the choices that lay before him, cut loose from his musical moorings. But what appeared to be the sad finale of a glorious career was just the start of a remarkable second act. The product of a long series of one-on-one interviews between McCartney and Scottish rock journalist Tom Doyle, Man on the Run chronicles Paul McCartney’s decadelong effort to escape the shadow of his past, outrace his critics, and defy the expectations of his fans. From the bitter and painful breakup of the Beatles to the sobering wake-up call of John Lennon’s murder, this is a deeply revealing look at a sometimes frightening, often exhilarating period in the life of the world’s most famous rock star. Sensing that he had nowhere to go but up, Paul McCartney started over from scratch. With emotional—and musical—backing from Linda, he released eccentric solo albums and embarked on a nomadic hippie lifestyle. He formed a new band, Wings, which first took flight on a ramshackle tour of British university towns and eventually returned Paul to the summit of arena rock superstardom. In Man on the Run, Doyle follows McCartney inside the recording sessions for Wings’ classic album Band on the Run—and provides context for some of the baffling misfires in his discography. Doyle tracks the dizzying highs and exasperating lows of a life lived in the public spotlight: the richly excessive world tours, the Japanese drug bust that nearly ended McCartney’s career, his bitter public feuds with his erstwhile Beatle bandmates, and the aftermath of an infamous drug-and-alcohol-fueled jam session where McCartney helped reconcile the estranged John Lennon and Yoko Ono. For Paul McCartney, the 1970s were a wild ride with some dark turns. Set against the backdrop of a turbulent decade, Man on the Run casts the “sunny Beatle” in an entirely new light. Praise for Man on the Run ““Tom Doyle’s detailed chronicle, which includes rare interviews with McCartney and former Wings members, portrays a band that was far more contentious than eager-to-please hits like 1976’s ‘Let ’Em In’ had us believe, fronted by a legend who wanted to be both boss and buddy. The book is larded with tales of Seventies rock-star excess, Paul and Linda’s love of weed, docked paychecks, and grousing musicians.”—Rolling Stone “Well-researched but still breezy and engaging, the book offers a comprehensive tour of the shaggy, bleary-eyed decade when the hardest-working ex-Beatle reached the zenith of his creative and commercial success. . . . Man on the Run makes an excellent contribution to the burgeoning literature devoted to McCartney’s post-Beatles career.”—The Boston Globe “In the 1970s, a depressed, heavy-drinking Paul McCartney walked away from The Beatles and reinvented himself as the leader of another hitmaking rock ’n’ roll band. A new book by longtime Q magazine contributing editor Tom Doyle about that turbulent period in the legendary rock star’s life, Man on the Run, catches him in mid-flight.”—Billboard

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Page Count

305

Publisher

Ballantine Books

Published Date

ISBN 10

0804179158

ISBN 13

9780804179157

1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die

A Listener's Life List

By: Tom Moon

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1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die

A Listener's Life List

By: Tom Moon

A guide to music provides recommendations on one thousand recordings that represent the best in such genres as classical, jazz, rock, pop, blues, country, folk, musicals, hip-hop, and opera, with listening notes, commentary, and anecdotes about performers.

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Page Count

1026

Publisher

Workman Publishing

Published Date

ISBN 10

076113963X

ISBN 13

9780761139638

Touch Me, I'm Sick

The 52 Creepiest Love Songs You've Ever Heard

By: Tom Reynolds

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Touch Me, I'm Sick

The 52 Creepiest Love Songs You've Ever Heard

By: Tom Reynolds

Love once inspired sonnets, plays, novels, and countless romantic songs. But romance can become obsession, and nowadays, love songs are creepier than ever. Even the Police's stalker anthem "Every Breath You Take" is a popular choice at weddings and funerals. In Touch Me, I'm Sick, Tom Reynolds offers hilarious riffs on 52 love songs that have gone off the rails into the realm of the tawdry, the overwhelming, the obsessive, the self-absorbed, and the completely weird. Including songs by artists as diverse as Melissa Etheridge, Michael Jackson, Paul Anka, Sinéad O'Connor, and Slipknot, he also pillories a handful of the 1,700 different songs called "Butterfly." Praise for Tom Reynolds' I Hate Myself and Want to Die: "A tremendous idea . . . Reynolds ameliorates the pain of having put his ear up close to some of the most inconsiderate despair anthems of our time by having enormous fun deconstructing them." --The Sunday Times "Full of premium trivia and pinpoint pomposity-pricking, Reynolds has made comedy gold from the full base metal of misery." --NME "An entertaining and well-researched set of cautionary tales music fans will enjoy. Consider the list a batch of enthralling liner notes for a box set that comes with razor blades." --Playboy "Bridget Jones would love it." --The Scotsman

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Page Count

258

Publisher

Chicago Review Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1556527535

ISBN 13

9781556527531

Tragedy in Aurora

The Culture of Mass Shootings in America

By: Tom Diaz

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Tragedy in Aurora

The Culture of Mass Shootings in America

By: Tom Diaz

Tragedy in Aurora is about the 2012 murder of budding sports journalist Jessica (Jessi) Redfield Ghawi in a public mass shooting, and the widening circle of pain it inflicted on her family, friends, police, medical first responders, and others. The book is at the same time a deep examination of the causes and potential cures of the quintessential 21st century American sickness—public mass shootings. At the heart of that examination is an unpacking of America’s deep polarization and political gridlock. It addresses head on the question of why? Why is American gun violence so different from other countries? Why does nothing seem to change? The “Parkland kids” inspired hope of change. But the ultimate questions stubbornly remain—what should, what can, and what will Americans do to reduce gun violence? Tragedy in Aurora argues that the answer lies in a conscious cultural redefinition of American civic order. Over recent decades, America has defined a cultural “new normal” about guns and gun violence. Americans express formalistic dismay after every public mass shooting. But many accept gun violence as an inevitable, even necessary, and to some laudable part of what it means to be “American.” Although Americans claim to be shocked with each new outrage, so far they have failed to coalesce around an effective way to reduce gun death and injury. The debate is bogged down in polarized and profoundly ideological political and cultural argument. Meanwhile, America continues to lead the globe in its pandemic levels of gun deaths and injuries. Combined with the cynical “learned helplessness” of its politicians, the result is gridlock and a growing roll of victims of carnage. Is there a path out of this cultural and political gridlock? Tragedy in Aurora argues that if America is to reduce gun violence it must expand the debate and confront the fundamental question of “who are we?” Tom Diaz gives a new understanding of American culture and the potential for change offered by the growing number and ongoing organization of victims and survivors of gun violence. Without conscious cultural change, the book argues, there is little prospect of effective laws or public policy to reduce gun violence in general and public mass shootings in particular.

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305

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield

Published Date

ISBN 10

1538123444

ISBN 13

9781538123447

Why the Beach Boys Matter

By: Tom Smucker

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Why the Beach Boys Matter

By: Tom Smucker

Of all the white American pop music groups that hit the charts before the Beatles, only the Beach Boys continued to thrive throughout the British Invasion to survive into the 1970s and beyond. The Beach Boys helped define both sides of the era we broadly call the sixties, split between their early surf, car, and summer pop and their later hippie, counterculture, and ambitious rock. No other group can claim the Ronettes and the Four Seasons as early 1960s rivals; the Mamas and the Papas and Crosby, Stills and Nash as later 1960s rivals; and the Beatles and the Temptations as decade-spanning counterparts. This is the first book to take an honest look at the themes running through the Beach Boys’ art and career as a whole and to examine where they sit inside our culture and politics—and why they still grab our attention.

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Page Count

189

Publisher

University of Texas Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1477318720

ISBN 13

9781477318720

The Sinking of HMAS Sydney

How Sailors lived, fought and died in Australia's greatest naval disaster

By: Doctor Tom Lewis

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The Sinking of HMAS Sydney

How Sailors lived, fought and died in Australia's greatest naval disaster

By: Doctor Tom Lewis

HMAS Sydney was the pride of the fleet during the Second World War. A light cruiser and one of Australia’s main combat vessels. On the 19th November 1941, off the coast of Western Australia, The Sydney engaged in a fierce and bloody battle with the German raider Kormoran. Following this action, The Sydney failed to return to port. An extensive search and rescue carried out, but the warship had disappeared with all 645 men on board. Whilst the battle lasted little more than an hour, this single ship engagement remains Australia’s greatest naval disaster. More Australian servicemen died in the battle between the German raider Kormoran and the light cruiser HMAS Sydney than perished in the Vietnam War. It was not until 2008 that the wreck was discovered. The passage of time between the sinking and the discovery led to numerous mystery and conspiracy theories, all of which started replacing the truth. Now, with an explanation of how those on board lived, fought, and died, this book tells the full story.

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Page Count

429

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

1923004336

ISBN 13

9781923004337

Book's by Tom Spector

History of Rock and Roll

History of Rock and Roll

The Hemi in the Barn

The Hemi in the Barn

We Could Be

We Could Be

The Number Ones

The Number Ones

The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby

The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby

Death Comes at Christmas

Death Comes at Christmas

Man on the Run

Man on the Run

1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die

1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die

Touch Me, I'm Sick

Touch Me, I'm Sick

Tragedy in Aurora

Tragedy in Aurora

Why the Beach Boys Matter

Why the Beach Boys Matter

The Sinking of HMAS Sydney

The Sinking of HMAS Sydney

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