The Handbook of Texas Music [Paperback]

Roy Barkley (Editor), Douglas E. Barnett (Editor), Cathy Brigham (Editor), Gary Hartman (Editor), Casey Monahan (Editor), Dave Oliphant (Editor), George B. Ward (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 18, 2003

Texas Music was born at the crossroads of America. And it has reached out from there to touch the world. Texas has been a remarkably fertile seedbed for music coming from every point of the compass, and few places on any continent have produced musical styles and musicians whose artistic and cultural impact have been so profound on a national and international scale. Name virtually any style of music and there is a Texas musician whose popularity and influence have been enormous and pivotal in that genre-from the ragtime of Scott Joplin to the Tejano music of Selena, the electrifying blues guitar of T-Bone Walker to the distinctive country vocal styling of Willie Nelson, the bluesy wail of rocker Janis Joplin to the frantic rockabilly drive of Buddy Holly and the subtle piano jazz of Teddy Wilson.

The Handbook of Texas Music documents all of these and many more. It is a comprehensive, authoritative source on Texas music-an encyclopedia and biographical dictionary that covers all aspects of Texas music, including over 125 striking illustrations of performers and musical artifacts.

For centuries Texas has been a musical and cultural crossroads, and The Handbook of Texas Music carefully documents the complex convergence of numerous musical and cultural traditions in this state where east meets west, southern plantations meet high plains ranches, and where an ethnically diverse American culture shares an international border with Mexico. The music of American Indians, Anglo-Americans, African Americans, Mexican Americans, and numerous immigrant groups-Germans, Czechs, and Cajuns, among many others-was brought to Texas from every direction. These groups crossed paths, and for centuries have been swapping songs and styles ranging from ancient fiddle tunes to lively polkas and boogie-woogie piano stomps. The stories of Texas music are as powerful as the music itself, and The Handbook of Texas Music tells those stories well.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 393 pages
• Publisher: Texas State Historical Assn (August 18, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0876111940
• ISBN-13: 978-0876111949
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,884,117 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A NOTEWORTHY COLLECTION, April 2, 2004

By 

Gail Cooke (TX, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Handbook of Texas Music (Paperback)

Believe it or not, Texas music is not all twangin' or "I'm A Lone Cowhand" - music of the Lone Star State reflects the diverse cultural backgrounds from which it sprang - American Indians, Anglo- Americans, African Americans, German Americans, and various other immigrant groups. Representatives of this musical heritage are as different as Janis Joplin and Van Cliburn, yet all share one thing in common - the great state of Texas.

Here, in The Handbook of Texas Music one finds alphabetical listings of all that has contributed to this rich musical background. Beginning with Elmer Akins, a radio announcer and gospel music promoter who formed the Royal Gospel Quartet in the early 1940s, and concluding with Zydeco, "a type of music that evolved from an acoustic folk idiom known as la-la, dating back to the 1920s and unique to black Creoles..."

In between there is a plethora of information. We learn that the "Yellow Rose of Texas" is a song about a slave who was supposed to have assisted in winning the battle of San Jacinto, and that musician and composer Roger Miller had no formal training on any of the instruments he played nor did he ever learn to read music.

The roster of notables included is lengthy, including Buck Owens, Stevie Ray Vaughan, ZZ Top, Willie Nelson, Selena, the Light Crust Doughboys, and the list goes on.

A bonanza for scholars and music lovers alike The Handbook of Texas Music is 390 pages of facts and noteworthy (pun intended) information.

- Gail Cooke

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Packed with history, trivia, and critical insights, May 3, 2004

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Handbook of Texas Music (Paperback)

125 illustrations add spice to The Handbook Of Texas Music, an encyclopedia-style reference of famous Texas composers, performers, musical artifacts, and much more. Packed with history, trivia, and critical insights on the evolution of Texas music, from tradition to popular culture and much more, The Handbook Of Texas Music is a resource guaranteed to foster new fascination and appreciation for this Texas musical and cultural expression.

4.0 out of 5 stars A Very Good, "Encyclopedia" of Texas Music (But Has More Emphasis on Deceased Texas Musicians, Than Living Ones), August 12, 2010

By 

Gary Covington "Southern Rocker" (Louisiana, U.S.A.) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Handbook of Texas Music (Paperback)

This is a very good book covering Texas Music History. However, I was disappointed at first, that it did not have an individual entry for "The Texas Tornados", ZZ Top, or even Billy Gibbons. So, I looked at the criteria used by the authors. They only gave individual entries to deceased musicians, at or around time of publishing the book in 2003. I do respect that, these deceased Texas musicians, deserve recognition, but I was hoping for more on all of Texas musicians, both living & deceased. So, if you're looking for Willie Nelson, there will be no entry for him, you'll have to look at the entry of "Country & Western Music", and there you'll find him, lumped in with other living C & W artists. As for ZZ Top, and The Texas Tornados, you have to go to the consolidated entry of "Rock & Roll in Texas". There you'll find ZZ Top, Johnny Winter, and the Texas Tornados, lumped in with other living rock & roll artists from Texas, at the time of publication. There is an individual entry for Doug Sahm (a founding member of the Texas Tornados), because he died in 1999. Plus, it does cover very briefly the "Texas Tornados" under Doug Sahm's entry.

So, in essense more information is provided on deceased Texas musicians, than on living ones. The entries that it does have, are very well presented, and full of information. It has great entries for Janis Joplin, Bob Wills, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Austin City Limits TV Show, Gilley's, Billy Bob's 7 acre night club in Fort Worth, Buddy Holly, Selena, and many, many others. These entries are well deserved. It is presented in alpabetical order, in encyclopedia style. Also, it has an index at the back of the book, which makes it easy to look up specific items. If equal exposure were given to living Texas musicians, I would have gladly given it a 5 star, because what it does cover, as individual entries, it covers very well.

The book does contain many great illustrations, and photos of Texas musicians from the past.

In conclusion, with all due respect to the dead, I am diappointed that equal exposure was not given to living Texas musicians, as opposed to deceased Texas musicians. However, overall, it is still a very, good reference book on Texas Music and well worth the purchase price. So, this is my assessment of the book, and I hope it will be helpful to potential buyers. Thanks!!!

Note: This book was published/copyrighted in 2003, by the Texas State Historical Society.