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Air Castle of the South: WSM and the Making of Music City (Music in American Life) Paperback – April 1, 2013

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Craig Havighurst (Author)
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Craig Havighurst (Author)
4.9 out of 5 stars 16 customer reviews
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Product Details

  • Series: Music in American Life
  • Paperback: 320 pages
  • Publisher: University of Illinois Press; 1st Edition edition (April 1, 2013)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0252079329
  • ISBN-13: 978-0252079320
  • Product Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,660,392 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsWell Done!!
By M. GORMAN on February 8, 2008
Format: Hardcover
Havighurst has compiled a tremendous amount of information on this subject into a story which comes to life. I can't imagine any one writing a more definitive work on WSM and that era. He has succeeded, for this reader, into making WSM a living, breathing character unto itself within this story. I'm not even a huge country music fan but no matter, Havighurst's storytelling style and obvious passion for telling this story won me over early on. Once I picked it up I couldn't put it down. He made me feel as if I was right there in the early days of radio, watching and listening as all the early pioneers of the industry shaped the airwaves. Great read for anyone interested in how radio began and evolved and it's impact on not only country music but the world as well.
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5.0 out of 5 starsBravo "Air Castle!"
By William B. Knowlton on October 23, 2007
Format: Hardcover
Just finished Craig Havighurst's magnificent history of WSM. It's a read that you hate to see come to an end.

What a GREAT station WSM was in its golden age which extended into the TV era while other stations of its size threw in the towel and got rid of its live musicians and the stuff that made bigtime radio great.

The book comes to a sad ending--the rash sacking of TNN and Opryland--and I kinda felt like I was finishing the final pages of "Gone With the Wind."

Anybody with an interest in Bluegrass, Country, Nashville, big time radio, the Ryman and/or the roots of country music and broadcasting has to read this book.
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5.0 out of 5 starsLegendary Radio
By Ray Aubrey on April 3, 2009
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
The Legend, WSM AM 650 is without doubt the greatest radio station that ever existed anywhere. Heard in some 38 states in the evening, WSM has brought millions of hours of listening pleasure to millions of people since 1925. No other radio station even comes close to the programming and content of this great radio station. This book chronicles The Legend from it's infancy to it's prowness in today's radio world. Great reading and information for a true American icon and institution.
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5.0 out of 5 starsA great history of the building of Music City
By Paul Jensen on January 4, 2009
Format: Hardcover
Havighurst traces the history of Nashville's signature broadcaster from the very first utterance, "This is Ward-Belmont, Nashville", to the destruction of Opryland and its replacement by Opry Mills.

You'll read about how one of the most popular broadcasts for a decade was the daily passing of the Pan American passenger train. How all of the local programming was performed live in the studios at Seventh and Union, and how a couple of those shows live on today. Yes, the Grand Ole Opry and Friday Night Opry. You'll read about the Opry from the very beginning, including details about all of its former homes. You'll read how Nashvillians turned their nose at this hillbilly music and how the show survived and thrived despite local indifference. Some wanted to cancel it, but it was just too popular.

Read how a local insurance company turned a small promotional gadget into a media empire, how a man from Oklahoma saved that empire when the insurance company morphed into American General and discarded the entertainment business, and how that empire was nearly destroyed by corporate greed and ineptness.

You'll read how the Ryman escaped the wrecking ball. How the recording industry was born in Nashville by a group of moonlighting radio engineers. The term "Music City" was coined on WSM.

Two radio stations. Nashville's first TV station. Two cable networks. The Ryman Auditorium. The Wildhorse Saloon. The General Jackson. Opry Mills. And of course the beloved Opryland.

It all came from one radio station. The story is amazing. I enjoyed this book, and if you have any interest in learning about the building of Music City, you will too.
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5.0 out of 5 starsClear Channel Illuminations
By Lionel Cartwright on January 28, 2008
Format: Hardcover
I believe Air Castle of the South is an important book, in that it goes far beyond the history of a musical genre. It sheds light on the mindset of those who first dabbled in a revolutionary new medium. The innocence, curiosity, and zeal of some of radio's brilliantly naive pioneers is painstakingly recorded, as is their evolution from enthusiastic hobbyists to full time broadcasters. But this accessible read is not just a nostalgic indulgence. It's full of insights for the era-changing times we are in now, where the Internet is opening new doors of opportunity for those willing to rethink the why, the what, and the how. As a performing artist who came up through the ranks playing on country music radio shows, including the Opry, Air Castle rekindled my affection for the charm and simplicity of those shows. As someone who grew up listening to a transistor radio in bed late at night with an earphone, it renewed my love of the medium of sound; where the absence of force-fed visual images allows one's imagination to create them in the theater of the mind. Thank you, Craig Havighurst, for this invaluable work. It is clearly a labor of love.
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5.0 out of 5 starsJust like I remember it
By Jim Cox on November 15, 2012
Format: Hardcover
I lived in Nashville from the 1950s through the middle of the 1970s which may have been the heyday of WSM's operation, overlapping the inauguration of Opryland. Havinghurst's text tells it just the way I remember it and I have to constantly remind myself that he didn't move there until the latter 1990s. It seems as if he was always there for there is so little he's missed. I'm not finished reading the book yet but give it a ringing endorsement. If a better book has been written on a single radio station (and I've read quite a few), I've yet to read it. This is really gripping for anybody who wants to know what went on behind the scenes of country music. WSM is one of the premier stations of the South and in the 20th century, none could touch it in so many dimensions. What a terrific collection of memories!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsGreat read! This is everything you ever wanted to ...

Great read! This is everything you ever wanted to know about WSM and more! I ought to know... I work there!

Published 12 months ago by Hank
5.0 out of 5 starsTells WSM's story beautifully and accurately from my viewpoint.

I worked at WSM in 1056-58. I worked on the Country Music DJ Festival, and it was the best time of my life. The book tells the story very much as I remember it. Read more

Published 19 months ago by Frida300
4.0 out of 5 starsHistory of Nashville and Country Music

Author Craig Havighurst did extensive research on the history of WSM radio and the city of Nashville. Read more

Published 22 months ago by HuntleyMC
5.0 out of 5 starsWorth a read!

If you have any interest in country music or history of the radio industry,
this is a must read. Cheers

Published on January 21, 2014 by Peter
5.0 out of 5 starsAir Castle

What a wonderful depiction of WSM and its place in the pioneering history of radio. I have told all my friends and family that this is a must read.

Published on July 18, 2013 by Terry Estes
5.0 out of 5 starsThe years of growing WSM remembered

A chance purchase...a big fan of WSM for many years. The book highlighted many of the memorable moments I actually remember. Read more

Published on May 11, 2013 by Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsgood documentary on early radio

A very readable, entertaining, and informative book. For my purposes, it explains the how-to of early radio transmission in easily understandable terms, but also is an enjoyable... Read more

Published on February 25, 2013 by J. Crafton
5.0 out of 5 starsAir Castle

Extremely well written and informative. Seems well researched. I lived in Nashville for part of the time covered and was already familiar with many of the people and occurrences... Read more

Published on May 1, 2011 by Kentuckyblacky
5.0 out of 5 starsair castle of the south

a good read. very interesting.Air Castle of the South: WSM and the Making of Music City (Music in American Life)

Published on November 2, 2009 by Bruce W. Fischer
5.0 out of 5 starsA pleasure to read

This book is a fascinating, engaging read. It feels more like a great story than a history book, but is a really interesting insight into the beginnings of WSM, the early history... Read more

Published on May 12, 2008 by SL in TN

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