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Showing 1 - 20 of 121 items
Blue grass boy: the story of Bill Monroe, father of bluegrass music
By Barb Rosenstock, Edwin Fotheringham. 2018
Presents the story of musician Bill Monroe, the youngest of eight children, who loved playing and singing harmonies with his…
family on the front porch and continued to work on his craft as he grew up. His deep Kentucky roots helped him to create the unique American music called bluegrass. For grades K-3. 2018Searching for Robert Johnson: The Life and Legend of the "King of the Delta Blues Singers"
By Peter Guralnick. 1998
Author of music biographies including Last Train to Memphis (DB 40087) examines the short life and long legacy of bluesman…
Johnson, who died at age twenty-seven in 1938. From scarce information, the author stitches together what is known of his life, and looks at the many blues musicians he influenced. 1989A spotlight for Harry (A Stepping Stone Book(TM))
By Eric A. Kimmel, Jim Madsen. 2009
Story based on childhood events of Harry Houdini (1874-1926), who became a famous magician and escape artist. Describes Harry and…
his brother Dash learning to walk a tightrope after going to the circus with their family for the first time. For grades 2-4. 2009Go, cat, go!: the life and times of Carl Perkins, the king of rockabilly
By Carl Perkins, David McGee. 1996
Autobiography of Carl Perkins following his life and career from 1932 through the 1990's. Carl Perkins, one of the original…
pioneers of rock, is famous for writing "Blue Suede Shoes" and performing with Elvis and Johnny Cash as they toured on behalf of Sun Records during the heyday of rockabilly. 1996Jazz Age Josephine: Dancer, singer--who's that, who? Why, that's MISS Josephine Baker, to you!
By Marjorie Priceman, Jonah Winter. 2012
A tribute to the life of the iconic jazz entertainer depicts her disadvantaged youth in a segregated America, her unique…
performance talents, and the irrepressible sense of style that helped her overcome racial barriers. For grades K-3When Paul met Artie: the story of Simon & Garfunkel
By G. Neri, David Litchfield, Greg Neri. 2018
When Paul Met Artie is a picture book aimed at young readers from grades 4 to 7. From childhood friendship…
to brief teenage stardom, from early failures to musical greatness -- the incredible story of how Simon & Garfunkel became a cherished voice of their generation. For grades 4-7The fabulous feud of Gilbert & Sullivan
By Jonah Winter, Richard Egielski. 2009
In the late nineteenth century, Mr. Gilbert and Mr. Sullivan, who write operas together for a theater called Topsy-Turvydom, have…
a falling-out when Mr. Sullivan refuses to write music for another ridiculous story that is like all the others. Caldecott Medalist Richard Egielski teams up with Jonah Winter for a story about how fights sometime make a stronger friendship (and beautiful music to boot!). For grades K-3. 2009Piano starts here: the young Art Tatum
By Robert Andrew Parker, Robert A. Parker. 2008
Drum dream girl: how one girl's courage changed music
By Margarita Engle, Rafael López. 2015
In Cuba in the 1930s, music filled the air. Millo had a dream playing drums of all kinds, but the…
country and her father only permitted boys to play drums. Millo finds a way to drum and practices in secret. Eventually her father relents and hires a music teacher for her. Millo's persistance means that she and her sisters become the first all-girl dance band in Cuba and play with and for famous people. (Story inspired by the childhood of Millo Castro Zaldarriaga.) For grades K-3Woolgathering
By Patti Smith. 2011
Becoming Billie Holiday
By Carole Boston Weatherford, Floyd Cooper. 2008
Jazz vocalist Billie Holiday (1915-1959) reflects on her early years in this fictional memoir written in verse. In "I Can't…
Face the Music" Billie overcomes stage fright. In "Trav'lin' Light," her songs are her home. Some violence and some strong language. For senior high readers. Coretta Scott King Honor. 2008Dancing in the street: confessions of a Motown diva
By Mark Bego, Martha Reeves. 1994
Autobiography of African American lead singer of Martha and the Vandellas, who recorded hit songs for Motown in the 1960s.…
Reeves recalls the inner workings of the Detroit record studio, reminisces about her fellow musicians, and discusses her rivalry with Diana Ross of the Supremes. Some strong language. 1994The book of rock stars: 24 musical icons that shine through history
By Kathleen Krull, Stephen Alcorn. 2003
Handel, who knew what he liked
By Kevin Hawkes, Matthew Anderson, M. T Anderson, M. T. Anderson. 2001
A stubborn little boy with a mind of his own is determined to be a musician, even though his father…
is against the idea. He grows up to be the famous eighteenth-century composer, George Frideric Handel. For grades 3-6. 2001Jewel: pieces of a dream
By Kristen Kemp, Kemp. 1998
Biography of songwriter-singer Jewel, who grew up in Alaska with no running water, electricity, or heat. Describes her early singing…
career, her struggles with dyslexia, and her parents' divorce. Jewel's determination to succeed led her to a famous boarding school for the arts and then to California. For junior and senior high readersBetween each line of pain and glory: my life story
By Gladys Knight. 1997
Knight recalls the ups and downs of her life. She describes her struggle to become well known, first along with…
the Pips and later as a solo performer, and discusses her family, her various addictions, her failed marriages, and her feelings of isolation within the world of show businessGrace
By Robert Lacey. 1994
The author examines the image of a beautiful fairy-tale princess who did not live happily ever after. Lacey chronicles the…
story of Grace Kelly's abbreviated life through her American phase, depicting the actress with a cool, classy facade and a tawdry private life. When the Hollywood star married her European prince, the location of her fantasy life changed, but reality began to destroy the portrait. BestsellerAnn-Margret: my story
By Todd Gold, T. Gold, Ann-Margret. 1994
Nominated twice for an Academy Award, Ann-Margret has sung, danced, and acted in movies, on television, and on stage including…
(at the age of fifty) a performance with the Rockettes. After a brief romance with Elvis Presley, Ann-Margret married actor Roger Smith. She discusses how they remained together despite her battle with alcohol, a serious accident, and negative press about their relationship. BestsellerBill Wyman: stone alone : the story of a rock 'n' roll band
By Ray Coleman, Bill Wyman. 1990
The Rolling Stones's bass player has kept a scrapbook of press clippings and a diary for almost thirty years. Now…
he has trunkloads of these bits and pieces to jog his memory about the band's rise to stardom. Known as "the silent Stone," Wyman focuses on the 1960s, when the band served its tumultuous apprenticeship, but he goes on to document the less than sanguine years that followedDear Dad: letters from an adult child
By Louie Anderson. 1989
Stand-up comic Louie Anderson's letters to his deceased father are an effort to exorcize the demons of a childhood spent…
with an alcoholic father. For Anderson, a member of Adult Children of Alcoholics, his letters were a journey of self-discovery in which he came to understand that his own addiction to food stemmed from his father's addiction to alcohol. Some strong language