Customer Reviews

Van Halen: The Music and the Fans, 1978-1986

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

 

 

I would like to thank everyone who has visited this site for considering my book.

The book is expensive. I will admit that. And I would be thrilled for the book price to return to the lower $34 price it was listed at initially. I, as the author, have nothing to do with the price. Amazon, a fine merchant, is within their rights to sell the book for whatever price they choose.

The book was published for use as a textbook, and that is why the price is high. I requested it to be listed in Amazon so that anyone could buy the book, not just my students at Jacksonville University.

My well-meaning former student has noted that the book is a musicology publication. If you are interested in that type of book, you should consider purchasing it. I believe it is an important contribution to musicology literature. I hope you find that the book is worth it when you receive it.

Once again, I have nothing to do with the price that Amazon chooses to sell it for.

Thank you for your interest.

Thomas Harrison
Jacksonville University

First of all, this book is a contribution to musicology. There is a good amount of background information about the band, but this book is more about the study of their music and their influence on popular music. Thus, for the bad reviews whose basis is about the price of the book, do not take them seriously. Just because certain individuals are upset that the price went up, the book does not deserve a bad review because of this incident! Technical problems with the retailer have nothing to do with the validity and insightfulness found in this text!

With that said...

As a former student of Dr. Harrison, I can assure you that this text is informative. This book goes extremely in-depth in terms of analysis of song structure, melodic and harmonic context, and especially eddie van halen's contribution to the electric guitar!

I would recommend this book to any Van Halen fan, especially those who are musically literate and can appreciate/understand such an encyclopedic evaluation.


***Once again, pay no attention to the poor reviews that base themselves on the markup of the book, rather than the actual content.***

Well, Mr. Concerned fan: I have read the book when it was still in a pdf format before it was published (Dr. Harrison was my professor) and I can tell you that as right as you are about being concerned about the price, you are wrong about the content. I'm not sure where you get your 'according to reports', but this is not some lame fan book with interviews of band members describing practice habits, the equipment they use or the outrageous back stage acts for the 10 millionth time (and there are plenty of those tabloid-esque pieces of junk on sale around). I don't know how you received your reports, but I was one of the first to order this book and I haven't even received mine yet, becaue it was released less than a week ago.

This book was based on his Ph.D. in Musicology, and is a serious analytical work! It will become the standard for all serious study of any rock band! If you are a fan of Van Halen, you will be well satisfied with Dr. Harrison's book.

I had the opportunity to read this book while attending Jacksonville University. This book is a high quality, in-depth analysis of the music of Van Halen. This is for serious music fans or students of music, not bargain book hunters. Highly recommended.

If you are looking for a photo-filled, tabloid-style account of the life and times of Van Halen, do not purchase this book. If you are interested in reading a well-written, educational, well-thought-out history of not only Van Halen but also of heavy metal and rock and roll then this is the book for you.

I was fortunate enough to have Professor Harrision for a music appreciation class and through his writing and lecture I learned to appreciate a genre of music I had never explored before. I highly recommend Professor Harrison and this book!

To back up what the first fan said on July 27th, 2006 the good doctor turned up on two major vh fansites (I happen to be a proud member of both..... yes I know I have no life) and created threads about his book to stir up fan interest. At first this item was being sold for $35.00 plus shipping expenses. Then mysteriously they upped the price to $55.00 plus shipping expenses without telling a soul.

Perhaps Dr. Price Change would care to come back to the fansites and explain himself because its not cool to try and swindle the fans for more dinero. I'm outraged and while yet to read a single sentence of it I could and would bet the VH Encylopedia and Van Halen 101 both blow this out of the water. Each is a fine effort and a brand new copy of either one costs HALF what this yet to be released overpriced turkey is being pawned off for. Tell the doc we're anxiously awaiting an explanation. Thanx.

When pre--ordering we're told the price was $35 + shipping which comes to roughly $40. Far too much to begin with. Upon further review the price skyrocketed to $55 + shipping. That's $60. They can't be serious. Sixty dollars for a book which according to reports was written by a fan and covers nothing more than the original lineup. Information seems to be limited but word is this didn't involve anyone in Van Halen or musicians of any sort. Locating a page count is an impossible task. Apprehensive best describes my feelings and if charged $60 rather than $40 this one's getting sent back asap.