No comments about The Classic Slave Narratives.

5 comments about Taj Mahal: Autobiography of a Bluesman.

1. I thought this book was so interesting and it wasn't filled with too many minute music details that you put it down and return to more details about a certain track that you get bored. If you want an interesting book about a real well traveled man in music and you like Taj Mahal then what's not to like? I was crazy about the book and I'm not an overly crazed Taj fan despite seeing him many times. Simple - very good 'page turner' book that says a lot about the man and a lot about his experiences in life to make his music unique.



2. This book is portraying this bluesman in his own words, but also by the words of many others. It is unfair to label this as a "bad" book just by the fact that it is not an autobiography. And people complain about reading about his life. . . a book about a musician would not be a book if it didn't focus on his life. You can hear the music, but you need to read his life. This is a well written book with many celebrity interviews about this influential artist. I've bought this book for several people with no regrets. . .they don't regret reading it either. They do nothing but rave about it, and that's all that I can do.



3. I truly loved this book about a legendary bluesman. He seemed to be up-front and honest about his personal life and trials as well as experiences in the cutthroat world of music as business. Interviews-with/comments-from "stars" in the music industry like Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt and Mick Jagger showed just what an indelible mark Taj has made on their lives. Stories from Taj's family were poignant.



4. The best way for me to describe this book is this. I will simply quote the announcer who introduces Taj on his live album "The Real Thing"..."If you didn't come here with a friend, you have one on the stage right now, Mr. Taj Mahal!".



5. I am a huge fan of this great artist. But I have a problem with the book. It's not an autobiography. The real author must've cut some sort of deal with taj, because the real writer patiently gathered info from all corners of the earth. The only thing Taj seems to have done is a few lenghty interviews. It was disappointing to read of someone who has been so musically inspiring and yet so flawed as a regular guy. He's fathered over a dozen children by several women, yet the book desperately tries to portray him as a man of integrity and high moral fibre.

   Taj has followed in the old bluesman tradition of loving and leaving. His legacy is littered with testimonials of people who desperately want to recognize his goodness, and yet the wounds his lifestyle has left them with are huge.

   The New Age, hippie rationales that his 'family' blabs on and on with is almost laughable, unfortunately tragic.

   Unless you are a real fan of this musical genius, don't bother with the book. Check out his albums instead.

5 comments about Good Morning Blues: The Autobiography of Count Basie.

1. I'll admit to being a bit dissappointed by this book about Basie.As mentioned in some of the other reviews, you get list after list of recording dates and tour dates, interesting, but not enlightening. Where are the road stories? I feel I've learned more about Basie from other peoples books about jazz and Kansas City than I did in this book. It's too bad, I'm sure he could have filled a few books with what he saw in 60 plus years of jazz.



2. This is a particularly useful book if you know basie, Basieism and what is happening already. Count Basie never was the kind of person you would expect to write a tell all, or note how much reefer was being smoked like Buck Clayton did in his memoir, or spill the inside dope on John Hammond as a number of Basieites have in their books and interviews.
   
   Basie has always been a cool professional, concerned with handling the business side, keeping everybody happy, and keeping the ship above the water. He goes by the old watchword from the 50s we used to have "Maintain your cool at all times."
   
   Thus we get a memoir that has a lot of places and names in it, a lot about working in the band, but very little that is going to surprise or wow anyone who isn't into the Basie story. He stays pretty close to the vest, and presents a very easy going story.
   
   One example of how this book smoothes over conflict and controversy and makes everything seem smoother than the truth is how it treats the departure of Claude Fiddler Williams from the Basie Band in 1937. While the ignorant think Freddie Green was Basie's only guitarist, Williams was the band's first guitarist--and he was Downbeat guitarist of the year that year--and also played hot jazz fiddle solos with the band. Only the Live at the Chatterbox recording lets you hear his brilliant fiddling.
   
   When the band arrived in New York, John Hammond who acted like manager, director, and overlord over the band for years, decided the Fiddler's violin was too "country" and replaced him with Freddie Green who was playing in a New York Club when Basie arrived in the Apple.
   
   Williams who lived until last year (2004) always said John Hammond fired him, although he says he felt grateful in the end because his career as an independent fiddle soloist would have never taken off had he stayed with Basie. In this book, Basie says that he and Williams came to a friendly parting of the ways that let Williams become independent. There is lots of smoothed over stuff like this.
   
   To be fair, this was more or less of an interview with an aging Basie with little attempt to research things. Many things get hazy or are remember conveniently as the years pass on, as I am coming to realize myself as I enter my late 50s.
   
   The book also suffers from Albert Murray's interviewing. Murray never presents his credentials in his appearances as an "expert" on Jazz. In fact he is a retired Air Force General and has never been a musician, a musicologist, or anything professionally associated with music. He's imposed his own rather conservative viewpoint on Jazz as the all American capitalist product, rather than an expression of Black culture, oppression, and a struggle to Africanize music. Rather, Murray priviledges a progression to take Jazz closer to the forms of European classical music. So, it is no surprise that Murray isn't going to try to ferret out controversy, difficult truthes, or unconventional behavior, particularly with a man as cool and under control as Bill Basie.
   
   Nevertheless, there is a lot of information here that exists nowhere else. Sadly, no one has written a serious biography of Basie, or a serious study of his music save for the section on him in Gunter Schuller's great book on Swing. Until that takes place, this is the book.
   
   Like most books of this kind, the part about Basie's life before he became famous, growing up, learning his chops on piano in New York, travelling with TOBA shows, hooking up with Rushing, then with the Blue Devils, then with Moten, are the most interesting and readable parts of this book. Similarly, the book speeds up and summarizes too quickly the closer it gets to the time the interviews took place.
   
   One thing is nice is the list of who took what solo on some of the Old Testament sides.
   
   Still, Basie is important enough for every true Jazz lover, or at least every true swing lover, to own this book, particularly as a cheap used edition can be obtained for little!



3. How did Albert Murray and Dan Morgenstern manage to write an uninteresting and at times boring book about the great Count Basie? This is a sanitized and unemotional look at Basie's career. It is full of details that can only be of interest to a Basie historian- and that's about the only good thing you can say about it. I guess The Count wanted it that way. If you want to read everything about Basie that's ever been written, then buy this book. Otherwise, skip it.



4. This book contains a wealth of historical information, and is written in a calm, mellow style. Murray perfectly captured the laid-back elegance of Basie's voice and tells his story in a smooth, graceful manner. This book contains no sensational or scandalous materials about Basie's many associates, including Lester Young, Billy Holiday, Frank Sinatra, or Benny Moten, and that's the way Basie wanted it. Basie was a gentleman who believed in proper decorum, and he never revealed any secrets about his many friends. There are no bombshells in this book, but if you are looking for a comprehensive life story of one of the 20th century's most important and succesful musicians (both commercially and artistically), this is the book for you. This is an absolute neccesity for students of jazz and is essential to any collection of jazz biographies. The information on the music alone (where they were touring, what they were playing, when they recorded what, etc.) is vast.



5. If you expect some spectacular insight how Basie and his music came into being, you're in for a slight letdown. The book has a somewhat sedate pace, doesn't feature to many anecdotes or details about Basie and his musicians. There are certainly some interesting facts but on the whole it's rather dry. The book covers Basie's career from its beginnings. I found the chapters on his early life the most interesting ones. From about 1940 onwards Basie structures his memories along his recording sessions; and this gets a bit tedious. I can only recommend this for true Basie aficionados who want to pick up the odd piece of new information.

2 comments about Blue as the Lake: A Personal Geography.

1. Bob Stepto, a professor at Yale University, recalls his early youth growing up in Chicago and spending summers at a nearby lake community. He weaves his stories of the lake, school, his family and his African American community into a seamless tapestry filled with humor and warmth. Stepto is a great story teller. Don't miss it.



2. When I began the book, I knew the author was a sophisticated man, a professor at Yale. As I read, I discovered the depth of his observations of his life. I was awed by his understanding of what was going on around him and his wonderful way of expressing it.

   What could have been just another light little book became both easy reading and deep. It exposed something of the author's soul without being maudlin or trying to find meaning that was not there.

   I enjoyed the book so much, I read it again immediately to find the parts I missed the first time.

5 comments about The Chosen One: Tiger Woods and the Dilemma of Greatness.

1. The Chosen one was a very interesting book . But it only told about Tiger Wood's career and his life when he was older , getting into golf tornments and training . But otherwise it is a very good book if you were just wanting to know how he won tournments and becomeing famous . Also it told about how Tiger Woods was ridiculed by his race and how young he was , which was a problem towards his career due to reporters and newspapers.Tiger was also known as one of the multicultrual icons . Also what was interesting to people is Tiger was guided by his father rather than being pushed on.



2. This book was very true about the life of Tiger Woods. It keep me reading page after page. The author was a sports writer so he knew what he was writing aout and it was great.Tiger Woods is the best golfer.



3. A collection of few chapters with the authors own ideas and thoughts thrown in too liberally, it is more of the author's view of Tiger Woods. Does not qualify as an biography, just a bunch of articles. Does has a few gems which make it worthwhile.



4. Over the past century golf has produced some of the greatest players of all times. None, however, have reached the caliber of skill and magnitude of Eldrick "Tiger" Woods. In such a short time and at an early age Tiger has raised the sport of golf to a higher level. Who is this young man who has broken golf records, establishes new ones and inspires a new generation to seriously take up the sport of golf?

   David Owen deals with that question in this well written and concise book about Tiger Woods and his impact upon golf. He examines Woods' training, his place in history, his impact on the sport and the public's fascination with him. As a contributing editor of Golf Digest, our author doesn't inundate you with Woods' golf statistics. Nor does he give you an in depth expose of Tiger's life. Owen gives a positive even handed treatment of Woods life and career. He is just as fascinated with this young phenomenon of golf as we are but doesn't worship Woods. He respects and admires this young sportsman.

   I enjoyed this book because it enlighten me about the development of Woods' career. Tiger comes across as a disciplined young man who is highly competitive, focused and has high expectations of himself and for those around him. His aura and the way he has carried himself forces his opponents to improve their game. Tiger's impact upon golf is immense as Owen has shown throughout the story.

   This is an excellent book for fans of Woods, golf enthusiasts and those who love sports in general. I am not a sports fan but I picked up this book in passing. I was impressed by Woods' character, discipline and commitment. I highly recommend this book which has given us a snap shot of a true sportsman that adults and young people can admire and emulate. Woods has made himself one of the greatest golf players of all time but he has transcended the game. He serves as an example of excellence for life whose lessons we can certainly take to heart.




5. that is the only way to describe Tiger Woods.it seems He continues to Pave New Ground on the Golf Course.with Him Winning&holding many trophys ...Tiger Woods is the Jackie Robinson of the Golf World.He May Be the Most Important Athlete of this Century time will only tell.but He has made a Helluva Impact.He made the Golf Game Hip.Before Him only Rodney Dangerfield in CaddyShack was Appealing to Me.He has truly Opened up some Closed Gates.

2 comments about The Hottest Water in Chicago: Notes of a Native Daughter.

1. Gayle Pemberton is, simply, BRILLIANT. This collection of essays from an important intellectual spoke to the core of my triumphant being. I love the angst and the jubilation that peppered her road to self-actualization; I love the matter-of-fact way in which she deals with everyday racism and ignorance; her essay on "triple consciousness" is breathtaking. It is a must read; more than that: it is a must read again, and again, and AGAIN AND AGAIN. . .



2. This book is terrific! A moving, funny, insightful, challenging memoir of growing up black, female,and brainy in the 50's, 60's, 70's and beyond. The title essay, in which Pemberton's father integrates a fleabag hotel, is unforgettable. I also loved "Antidisestablishmentarianism," about watching the Mousketeers on TV as a young girl, under the eye of a truly amazing grandmother. Pemberton was included in Philip Lopate's anthology, "The Art of the Personal Essay"-- with good reason. She's outstanding.

No comments about The Education of Booker T. Washington: American Democracy and the Idea of Race Relations.

3 comments about Curtis Mayfield: People Never Give Up.

1. Borrring. I felt as if I were reading a college term paper written at an 11th grade level. I don't mean to be so harsh but getting through this book was like sitting through a root canal. There just is not enough here to hold one's interest. There is nothing about his personal life and by the time I got through three excrusiating chapters, I was definately done. After reading other biographies and autobiographies of musicians, I feel that this book did not help me to understand Curtis Mayfield or his music. After reading it, I felt very empty. Don't waste your time.



2. With such a beautiful cover and such a career to discuss, I was very exicted about reading this book. But OH MY GOD it was painful. I'm sorry Mr Burns, but I don't care what your personal feelings are about Curtis.. I wanted to read about Curtis' life.. what he went through, how he came to write such beautiful music - but instead you give track by track detail of every album - and thats it. Here's hoping someone can write an interesting book about such an inspirational man.



3. Pete Burns is obviously a fan but wouldnt it be great if we got a real biography of Curtis? This book is a very comprehensive list of his many record releases and collaborations but true feelings about the man are almost absent. Brief interview details are included but the need really is for more-anyone please?

No comments about Born Three Times.

5 comments about Eyes to My Soul: The Rise or Decline of a Black FBI Agent.

1. A riveting book. Brutally honest, tragic but always uplifting. This author, activist, scholar and educator is one of the great leaders of our time! "Eyes to My Soul" should be subtitled "eye opener" and is a must read for all who enter the FBI. Unlike so many undergoing the same treatment Powers did not give up and is widely regarded as an expert on Terrorism/Counter-terrorism, Organized Crime, Ethics within Law Enforcement and is a pioneer within law enforcement training.
   
   M. D. Johnson, Author
   "Circle Around The Sun = Part One of The ISIS Project"



2. The book is excellent and I recomment it to anyone who is open minded



3. Such a shame. What a force for progress this man and his book could have been.
   There is so much good in him and in this work. His deep love and respect for his mother and for motherhood. His urgings that education is the bedrock of progress. His hatred of drugs. His disgust for the senseless, conspicuous consumption of material goods as a false display of success. His gut-wrenching guided tour through the streets and minds of the ghetto and its subculture of drugs, violence, death, and mourning. His accounts of racism within the FBI. His disgust with the failure of inner city schools. His passion for his family. These are the bedrock values that can lead any person or people to true success.

   Yet there is so much here that is harmful to our society and African Americans in particular. His incessant message that whites are responsible at a causal level for virtually every malady suffered by Black America, including his father's rape of his own daughter and his brother's decision to use and sell drugs, and to kill people. His claim that an ultra secret, anti-African American conspiracy exists, which he does not define but which is apparently both international yet American at its heart. But most of all by his condemnation of African Americans who choose a lifestyle or who hold opinions that differ from his view of what a Black should do or be. These are the messages of a failure mentality, and they lead to further wasted lives.

   The many polarizing lectures he delivers in this book are comprised 95% by passionate statements of his beliefs, and 5% by assertions for which he provides some factual support. This mixture is similar to the writings and speeches of other zealots from white racists to Marxist revolutionaries. The technique is very effective. You start with a fact, ideally one that fires the emotions of the audience, and then follow with a string of loosely connected points that steadily and imperceptively diverges and departs from reality. The original and occasional fact lends an air of legitimacy to the unsupported major part of the work which nonetheless appeals emotionally to the target audience.

   His overview of the drug problem is one example. He asks why we don't strike it where it's grown, in the same way that we have attacked nuclear weapons facilities and ammunition depots. He concludes that the reason is someone very powerful wants the drug business to remain, because they are profiting from it. He further claims that this power also wants drugs to flow, because stopping it would free the inner city from its drug-induced stupor. The inhabitants, "no longer anesthetized and miseducated", would then realize that they are being "targeted for drugs and alcohol, cigarettes and pork, and heart attacks, strokes, and AIDS." This book is filled with his fixation on conspiracy and devoid of other explanations. He does not mention that there may be an awful lot of people who would have reasonable objections to our bombing coca fields in Bolivia and Peru. He has no room for the many, many other views on this complex, international issue.

   In fact, Mr. Powers's intolerance for other views may be his most destructive trait. He insists that all Blacks who differ fundamentally with him are "sellouts". He cites the "unity" of the Jews as the reason for their success in defending themselves against prejudice, and says that African Americans must adopt the same strategy. He fails to acknowledge that the success of any group has been, more than anything else the result of its work ethic, especially in pursuit of education. And that this is manifested by the choices that individual people have made throughout their lives to defer pleasure and amusement for study and work, until they have earned a secure place. But closely following work ethic has been a respect for each person's right to pursue his/her own values and beliefs. To follow his example of the Jews one has only to observe the heated debates occurring in Israel, and the difficulty they have in even maintaining a majority government, because of the variety of passionately-held positions. The Jews do not practice Mr. Powers's version of unity, and neither does any other successful group. Freedom of thought and expression are central to advancement The author's caustic criticisms and name-calling of African Americans who disagree with him hurts the people whom he seems to honestly want to help.

   Still, I recommend that this book be read, but followed with works of other Black authors, including one which Mr. Powers repeatedly vilifies, Tom Sowell. Do this, think for yourself, and then compare.




4. When I bought this book I was just looking for background information on the FBI from an former African-American FBI agents perspective. The book is very insightful, and gives great details on how there is still a hostile attitude toward African-Americans in Law Enoforcement among their non-minority colleagues. It is a must read for any minority (especially African-Americans) interested in a career in Law Enforcement!



5. I have been an avid reader for about two years. I always enjoyed reading but not as much as I have since I started reading mostly books from Oprah's list or the literature of African and African American authors. I bought this book shortly after my son-in-law expressed a long held desire to become an FBI agent. Since he is from Haiti and is not very knowledgeable about the opression faced by American blacks. I thought that this would be a big mistake. Eyes To MY Soul not only confirmed by belief, but gave me quite an enlightening experience. It gives a powerful reminder of what our ghetto brothers and sisters face each and every day. Even more importantly, it is an autobiography so it does not give you alot of trumped up horror stories just for shock value. Mr. Powers LIVED THIS LIFE, and was able to rise up from his childhood circumstances and uplift others of his race with him. I admire and respect this man highly and consider it a privilege to have read his book. I have been telling everyone about how great this book is and especially my son-in-law. At present he is pursuing a masters degree in Informational Technology so he hardly has time to read anything else. However, I intend to keep after him until he has read this excellent story of a Black man's struggle to rise above racial confines.