Customer Reviews

Bluegrass Odyssey: A Documentary in Pictures and Words, 1966-86 (Music in American Life)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of bluegrass music. Carl Fleischhauer's photographs are worth the cost of the book alone. He has stunning black and white photos of early concerts featuring some of the greatest bluegrass musicians to grace the stage. He also has terrific backstage shots, photos of parking lot pickings, and nostalgic images, such as Uncle Pen's fiddle. These photos portray fascinating facets of bluegrass music's history. Neil Rosenberg's writing complements and enhances these images. His writing provides sufficient information to answer significant questions raised in looking at Fleischhauer's photographs. As a special treat, the book includes a fine photo memorial and essay to Bill Monroe. This book is an excellent record of the early history of bluegrass, and it vividly portrays images that ring true today.

This book blends a photo essay with a well written history of early years of bluegrass music. Neil Rosenberg has performed bluegrass music for years, and his compelling writing thoroughly documents the genre's history. Carl Fleischauer photographs folk culture with a terrific eye for ways in which music is situated with communities. There are vivid portraits of stellar bluegrass musicians and beautiful pictures of classic bluegrass venues during this formative time period. It is especially interesting to see bluegrass music's "look" from 1967-1986 still remains a presence within the contemporary bluegrass music scene.

This book arrived in a reasonable amount of time and was packaged well so that it arrived in great condition. I was very happy with the service.