Best Biographies of Country & Folk Musicians

Waylon Jennings relates the story of his life as a country music star. With the help of writer and rock guitarist Kaye, an older, calmer, drug-free Jennings now relates his life story, from his childhood in a dirt-floored house in West Texas, through his busted marriages and hard-partying days, to his current existence as happily married man (to country star Jessi Colter) and member of the Highwaymen, the country music supergroup made up of Jennings, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. A country music star tells of his poor childhood and rise to stardom.

Featuring vignettes from each chapter of his seventy-plus years (along with plenty of his favorite jokes), The Tao of Willie captures his views on money, love, war, religion, cowboys, and other essential Willie topics. Loosely basing his book on the philosophical text of the Tao Te Ching , Nelson advocates incorporating into one's life many of the teachings of that ancient work, such as meditation and the belief that all things are interconnected. Novelist, golf writer, and longtime Nelson compadre Pipkin mounts this collection of the grizzled singer's bromides, aphorisms, and observations in an upbeat, warm-and-fuzzy manner designed to comfort as much as to guide readers through life's prickly situations.

And in country music, there was Tammy Wynette. She sold millions of records and changed the game for female country singers. She sang for five presidents, and was known to smooch both Ronald Reagan and George Wallace on lips after belting one out for their benefit. Among her fans you’ll find diverse artists as Loretta Lynn, Elton John, Tanya Tucker, Sting, Faith Hill and James Taylor. Her mother Mildred fought her every step of the way—only to wind up running her daughter’s fan club once Wynette became a star. “She went from bein’ a beautician to the queen of country music,” notes Emmylou Harris. Even at the end of her life when she practically had to crawl onstage to sing, Tammy refused to give up. The first was her autobiography, Stand By Your Man , in which author Joan Dew captures Tammy’s voice brilliantly. The other book was written directly after Tammy’s death by her daughter Jackie (with Tom Carter), and is basically an indictment of Wynette’s final husband, George Richey. She had a wry, observant sense of humor and admitted to smoking the occasional joint. Tammy got to people—I’m talking as a person, not as a singer—on a very deep level, yet she wasn’t one to expose her feelings in any sort of direct way. So much so that when her autobiography came out, co-author Joan Dew, to pass the time, would quiz her on the contents while out on the road. But his adulation is not uncritical—he concedes that the first country musician to go platinum also released plenty of clunkers; more importantly, he gives voice to both Wynette's closest friends and the families of those like her first husband, Euple Byrd, who were cast aside in the formation of her legend. McDonough ( Shakey ) brings a passionate flair to his language, describing Wynette and her third husband (and frequent collaborator) George Jones as a pair of walking haunted houses, but occasionally slips into sentimental excess, particularly in imaginary letters to his subject. Long detours covering the lives of Jones and Nashville producer Billy Sherrill provide valuable context, but the emphasis is squarely on Wynette and her personal tragedies, including a long slide into drug addiction and a mysterious death some still suspect may have been foul play. Combining pop musicology and tabloid gossip, McDonough has crafted a fitting tribute to a country music icon.

Now, in Without Getting Killed or Caught: The Life and Music of Guy Clark , writer, producer, and music industry insider Tamara Saviano chronicles the story of this legendary artist from her unique vantage point as his former publicist and producer of the Grammy-nominated album This One’s for Him: A Tribute to Guy Clark . "Take the dean of the Texas school of songwriting; mix in his wife, Susanna, an ethereal painter and an accomplished songwriter herself; add in their tragic friendship with Townes van Zandt, a tortured genius; and tell it all through the eyes of their friend, Tamara Saviano, one of the most gifted of Nashville chroniclers. With that, you have this book, a haunting account of the fiercely independent Guy Clark, and the ‘70s songwriting scene that swirled around him, hoping to find its own way to the other side of the sky." ( The Wall Street Journal 2016-11-29). “Saviano has patiently compiled a must-have edition to the library of any actual or amateur musicologist, and a compelling story of love, friendship, tragedy and cultural magic for the rest of us.”—Lone Star Book Reviews. ( Lone Star Book Reviews 2017-01-25). “Saviano captures the full story of an extraordinary life and talent, told with both an unwavering honesty and loving admiration”—Austin Chronicle. ( Pacific Rim Review of Books ) Producer of Beautiful Dreamer: The Songs of Stephen Foster , which won the 2005 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album, TAMARA SAVIANO is a publicist and producer living in Nashville.

It was the summer Coltrane died, the summer of love and riots, and the summer when a chance encounter in Brooklyn led two young people on a path of art, devotion, and initiation. Bound in innocence and enthusiasm, they traversed the city from Coney Island to Forty-second Street, and eventually to the celebrated round table of Max's Kansas City, where the Andy Warhol contingent held court. Smith's memoir of their friendship, Just Kids , is tender and artful, open-eyed but surprisingly decorous, with the oracular style familiar from her anthems like "Because the Night," "Gloria," and "Dancing Barefoot" balanced by her powers of observation and memory for everyday details like the price of automat sandwiches and the shabby, welcoming fellow bohemians of the Chelsea Hotel, among whose ranks these baby Rimbauds found their way. Smith transports readers to what seemed like halcyon days for art and artists in New York as she shares tales of the denizens of Max's Kansas City, the Hotel Chelsea, Scribner's, Brentano's, and Strand bookstores. In the lobby of the Chelsea, where she and Mapplethorpe lived for many years, she got to know William Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Johnny Winter.

While he was exalted by his devoted fans as the "black Bob Dylan" (a term he hated) and widely sampled by the likes of Kanye West, Prince, Common, and Elvis Costello, he never really achieved mainstream success. “Controversial and enigmatic, the tragic trajectory of Scott-Heron's life and career is expertly examined in this testament to one of the last great radical artists.” ― Kirkus.

” — Complex “A cautionary tale that ends in triumph.” — GQ “A revelation and a welcome addition to hip-hop’s literary legacy.” — All Hip Hop. Born in rural Bessemer, Alabama, Radric Delantic Davis became Gucci Mane in East Atlanta, where the rap scene is as vibrant as the dope game. He inspired and mentored a new generation of artists and producers: Migos, Young Thug, Nicki Minaj, Zaytoven, Mike Will Made-It, Metro Boomin. In his extraordinary autobiography, the legend takes us to his roots in Alabama, the streets of East Atlanta, the trap house, and the studio where he found his voice as a peerless rapper. There are scenes from Gucci Mane’s new autobiography that seem better fit for a gripping Oscar drama than for the story of a guy who recently won his first MTV Video Music Award.” —GQ “A captivating dive into the mind of Radric Davis. The book provides incredible insight into one of the most influential rappers of the last decade, detailing a volatile and fascinating life . By the end, every reader will have a greater understanding of Gucci Mane, the man and the musician.” —PITCHFORK “A story of black manhood in the American South as never described before. Even while incarcerated, Gucci remained a cult hero to a generation that reached far beyond the Southern city where his influence first blossomed. —HIGHSNOBIETY “Gucci Mane’s story is one of reinvention.” —PEOPLE.COM “Highly-anticipated . a serious look inside his major life struggles and triumphs.” —BILLBOARD “Inspirational.” —THE SOURCE “The Autobiography of Gucci Mane, written with music journalist Neil Martinez-Belkin, quietly defies the conventions of the celebrity memoir genre; in parts, it reads like what I can only describe as pop culture poetry. riveting, filled with music-world intrigue and inner-city shootouts and buoyed by a self-awareness not marred by ego.” —PUBLISHERS WEEKLY “Gucci Mane managed to turn his entire life around and penned that ascent in his newest memoir . a well-rounded portrait.” —REVOLT TV “Gucci’s family life, drug dealing and arrests — as well as the perfection of a musical style that would help elevate the careers of a slew of young Southern artists such as Migos, Young Thug and Zaytoven — are on full display in the new The Autobiography of Gucci Mane . the trap king’s roots, and his past, remain close to his head and his heart.” —THE UNDEFEATED “ Autobiography buzzes with the grandeur and grittiness that Gucci is known for, and some of that can be attributed to the music journalist Neil Martinez-Belkin, who co-wrote it.” —THE OUTLINE “As entertaining as anything Gucci has ever made . The entire book feels less like an autobiography but rather a conversation . something moving and meaningful, much more so than the usual 'hustler to rapper' story.” —SWGRUS “ The Autobiography of Gucci Mane is about growth, resilience and how no matter the setback, Gucci Mane is always prepared to come back harder than ever before. the many lessons Gucci Mane endured and shared in this autobiography can be valued by us all.” —ESSENCE “Better than any urban novella, the book is an exemplary account of the life and times of Radric Davis from Bessemer, Alabama—otherwise known as Gucci Mane.” —NEWSWEEK “His book brings a fuller worldview to the rhymed version of the biography he’s previously shared.” —PACIFIC STANDARD “The Autobiography of Gucci Mane is Gucci’s greatest redemption song . His autobiography shines because we get to see an emotionally intelligent Gucci. Given Gucci’s influence on this generation and its rappers, as well as neighborhood pushers from inner-city dwellings around the country, his newly debuted book is poised to inspire rappers and men like myself to give more thought to mental health, drug use and the kind of lives we want to lead.”. — VIBE “ The Autobiography of Gucci Mane is written with an appealing matter-of-factness, and it helps to replace myth with something closer to the real story.”. — THE NEW YORKER Gucci Mane, born Radric Delantic Davis, is a critically acclaimed, platinum-selling recording artist. The Autobiography of Gucci Mane is his first book.

How music provided hope in one of the world's darkest times—the inspirational life story of Alice Herz-Sommer, the oldest living Holocaust survivor. Written with the cooperation of Alice Herz-Sommer, Melissa Müller and Reinhard Piechocki's Alice's Piano is the first time her story has been told. REINHARD PIECHOCKI is the author of a number of works of cultural history and a close friend of Alice Herz-Sommer's for many years.ALICE HERZ-SOMMER, at 107 years old, is the oldest living Holocaust survivor.

In his early teens his solace was the guitar, and his incredible talent would make him a cult hero in the clubs of Britain and inspire devoted fans to scrawl “Clapton is God” on the walls of London’s Underground. It was while working with the latter that he fell for George’s wife, Pattie Boyd, a seemingly unrequited love that led him to the depths of despair, self-imposed seclusion, and drug addiction. By the early seventies he had overcome his addiction and released the bestselling album 461 Ocean Boulevard , with its massive hit “I Shot the Sheriff.” He followed that with the platinum album Slowhand , which included “Wonderful Tonight,” the touching love song to Pattie, whom he finally married at the end of 1979. As he retraces every step of his career, from the early stints with the Yardbirds and Cream to his solo successes, Clapton also devotes copious detail to his drug and alcohol addictions, particularly how they intersected with his romantic obsession with Pattie Boyd. At times, he sounds more like landed gentry than a rock star: bragging about his collection of contemporary art, vigorously defending his hunting and fishing as leisure activities, and extolling the virtues of his quiet country living. “Like the bluesmen who inspired him, Clapton has his share of scars... his compelling memoir is... a soulful performance.” — People “An absorbing tale of artistry, decadence, and redemption.” — Los Angeles Times.

Carly Simon's New York Times bestselling memoir, Boys in the Trees , reveals her remarkable life, beginning with her storied childhood as the third daughter of Richard L. Simon, the co-founder of publishing giant Simon & Schuster, her musical debut as half of The Simon Sisters performing folk songs with her sister Lucy in Greenwich Village, to a meteoric solo career that would result in 13 top 40 hits, including the #1 song "You're So Vain." An Amazon Best Book of December 2015: In the trees is just about the only place in Carly Simon’s world that there aren’t boys, suggests this unputdownable memoir by the beloved singer and the first artist in history to win a Grammy Award, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for the same song ("Let the River Run" from the movie Working Girl ).

Love bravely, live bravely, be courageous--there's really nothing to lose. --Jewel. McFarland is the pseudonym for a well-regarded journalist who, over the last decade, has written for a host of leading publications, including Rolling Stone, SPIN, Vanity Fair, Details, and The Los Angeles Times .