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Antonino D'Ambrosio
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A Heartbeat and a Guitar: Johnny Cash and the Making of Bitter Tears Hardcover – October 13, 2009

by Antonino D'Ambrosio (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 27 ratings
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A Heartbeat and a Guitar tells of the collaboration of two distinct yet connected musicians—iconoclast Johnny Cash and pioneering folk artist Peter La Farge—and the album they created, Bitter Tears: Ballads of the American Indian. It also tells of the unique personal, political, and cultural struggles that informed this album, one that has influenced the likes of Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan.

D'Ambrosio has interviewed dozens of Cash's and La Farge's friends, family, and collaborators, including surviving members of his band, his producers, and Pete Seeger and Kris Kristofferson, creating a dramatic picture of both an era of radical protest and the making of one of the most controversial and enduring works of political pop art of the 1960s.

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  1. Print length
    296 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Nation Books
  4. Publication date
    October 13, 2009
  5. Grade level
    11 and up
  6. Reading age
    13 years and up
  7. Dimensions
    6 x 1.25 x 9 inches
  8. ISBN-10
    1568584075
  9. ISBN-13
    978-1568584072
  10. See all details
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The Amazon Book Review
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Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Johnny Western, musician and longtime emcee of The Johnny Cash Show
“Antonino D'Ambrosio has really done his homework like no one ever before. I performed with Cash for 40 years and have read every book written about him yet D'Ambrosio astonishingly reveals another side of Cash framed around perhaps his most important work, Bitter Tears. A Heartbeat and a Guitar is a rare and extraordinary work thanks to D'Ambrosio's exceptional and masterful storytelling. This book must be read, not just by Cash fans, but everyone who loves music and believes in its power and spirit. D’Ambrosio’s work, like Cash himself, is highly original and a force to be reckoned with.

Jim Jarmusch, filmmaker
“This book is a truly fascinating journey, charting the historical and social context of a courageous musical statement by one of our greatest rebel voices. It has since been locked away in the ‘denial drawer’ (aren't First Nations people just an extinct species, systematically exterminated by European ‘progress’?), but D'Ambrosio admirably shines his investigative lantern into every darkened corner, finally offering some greatly appreciated illumination.”

About the Author

Antonino D'Ambrosio is the author of Let Fury Have the Hour: The Punk Politics of Joe Strummer; the film version directed by D'Ambrosio will be released in 2010. His most recent film is No Free Lunch, starring comedian Lewis Black. His writing appears in The Progressive, The Believer, The Nation, among many others. D’Ambrosio is the founder/executive director of La Lutta NMC. D’Ambrosio is currently the artist-in-residence at the Center for Contemporary Arts in Santa Fe, NM where he launched the multimedia film project La Terra Promessa.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Nation Books; 1st edition (October 13, 2009)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 296 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1568584075
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1568584072
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 13 years and up
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 11 and up
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.25 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 27 ratings

About the author

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Antonino D'Ambrosio

Antonino D'Ambrosio

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Antonino D'Ambrosio is the author Let Fury Have the Hour: The Punk Politics of Joe Strummer; the film version directed by D'Ambrosio will be released in 2010. His most recent film is No Free Lunch, starring comedian Lewis Black. His writing appears in The Progressive, The Believer, The Nation, among many others. D'Ambrosio is the founder/executive director of La Lutta NMC. His website is http://www.lalutta.org/. D'Ambrosio is currently the artist-in-residence at the Center for Contemporary Arts in Santa Fe, NM where he launched the multimedia film project La Terra Promessa.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
27 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

J. Schafer
5.0 out of 5 stars Album that has accompanied me on my life's journey
Reviewed in the United States on August 16, 2024
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I went to a Native peoples Bear Dance in Janesville in 1965. Maidu artist Frank Day rode up with me.
Dancing, good food, grass game, nice folk--a great weekend. Almost non-stop it seemed, Bitter Tears played out through the speaker system. Got me hooked on the album. Bought myself a copy and have never been without one from vinyl, cassette, to CD. Don't think I had an eight track of it. It was a joy finding this book. Have not got far into it yet, I am savoring it, but find it a real treasure.
Bob
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Eric F.
4.0 out of 5 stars Great book
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2023
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Everything arrived on time and as advertised
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Lightworker
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
Reviewed in the United States on August 30, 2024
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Speedy drlivery
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w j abramson
5.0 out of 5 stars the REAL johnny cash: a tale of dedication and courage
Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2012
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this is the most interesting and inspiring book i have read in 5 years. Johnny Cash's road is followed in -sometimes alarming- detail. This book is not just a vivid history of Johnny Cash, but also explores the histories of the ameridan indian movement, government expoloitation, political manipulatons,and the rise of the folk-music revolution. It includes fascinating biographies of significant players such as Peter LaFarge, and the impact of Johnny Western and Pete Seeger.
The entire story is told as the background of Cash's determination to make a record celebrating the music and plight of the American Indian, despite the strong resistance of the record label.
An indication of my appreciation of this book is the fact that i have already purchased 6 or 7 copies to give to fellow 'folkies', historians, and fans of Johnny Cash. The incredibly low price on amazon is almost painful, as this book deserves to be bought and read by all fans of music and american history. Buy it and share it!!!
7 people found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Moving account
Reviewed in the United States on October 8, 2013
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fascinating and intertwined history of making of a classic album. Recommend to history and folk and classic country music fans.
2 people found this helpful
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Jorunn
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting book
Reviewed in the United States on April 28, 2011
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This is a very interesting book on an album made by a great artist.It has interesting info about Ira Hayes,the Native American who was one of soldiers raising the flag on Iwo Jima.I enjoyed reading about a special time in American history (it gives a good insight into it)and about an important album that I actually have.
2 people found this helpful
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Ronald Cohen
5.0 out of 5 stars Johnny Cash's most complex album and its story
Reviewed in the United States on October 9, 2009
Antonino D'Ambrosio's A HEARTBEAT AND A GUITAR is a fascinating, complex story, ostensibly about Johnny Cash's BITTER TEARS album, but in fact it covers so much more. Indeed, it is a dual biographyof the famous, Cash, and the basically unknown, Peter LaFarge, an advocate for Native American rights while composing a number of riveting songs. D'Ambrosio weaves together many fascinating strands, including the stories of various performers, the politics of the 1950s and after, Native American protest history, American foreign policy, and so much more. The author demonstrates that analyzing the songs of one album can lead to so much understanding of cultural, musical, and political history. The discussions of Native American music and protest movements are particuarly refreshing, with the intriguing and complex LaFarge remaining as the story's centerpiece. Must reading for all music lovers, as well as political activists.
15 people found this helpful
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John Hytten
4.0 out of 5 stars More about other artists.
Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2010
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Although this book is titled with Johnny Cash's name there is really very little about him. It does tell a lot about the 1960's folk scene with background on a number of different artists . All in all an interesting read if you are a fan of folk music.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

jennifer Barry
5.0 out of 5 stars Great gift
Reviewed in Australia on October 4, 2020
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My dad loved it
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Alex J. Barnett
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully Insightful
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 17, 2012
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I cannot recommend this highly enough. The Story of this superlative Cash album intertwines with the civil rights movement of the 60's and the involvement of celebrities from Dylan, Pete Seeger, Buffy St. Marie & the like and is in such great detail and so well written it is hard to put down. It could also be called a biography of Peter La Farge so well is his life and writing incorporated in the historical narrative. A thoroughly informative read. highly recommended.
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Mr. R. E. Crow
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 4, 2016
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Interesting book. Shame we can't see the associated documentary in the UK
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T. J. Hawes
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 7, 2017
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