Double Bass DB forum "what books are you reading" thread

[Jazzdogg]

Currently reading "Lost To Time," which is a collection of "unforgettable stories that time forgot," by Martin W. Sandler, Sterling Publishing, ISBN 978-1-4027-2958-4.

The author has apparently spent a lot of time digging through historical and periodical archives dredging up stories that were BIG NEWS when they were originally published, but have fallen out of collective memory by the 21st century.

Tales include:
Ziryab, The Slave Who Changed Society (9th century);
Cahokia, The Forgotten Rome of the Americas (12th century);
Gil Eanes sailing the West coast of Africa for the first time (1434);
Joseph Warren, Architect of a Revolution (1741-75);
Outdoing Revere, History's Forgotten Riders (1777);
Elisha Kent Kane, America's Greatest Hero (1847-57);
The Sultana [paddle wheel steamer], Death on the Great River (1865);
America's First Subway, Secrets Under Broadway (1870);
Peshtigo, Great Fire in the Forest (1871);
Gustave Whitehead, The First to Fly? (1901);
Exercise Tiger, A Rehearsal for D-Day (1944).

If you like your history interesting and arcane, you'll enjoy this.

 

[Chris Fitzgerald]

DURRL, like all books, these ain't everybody's cup o'tea, but I enjoyed them.

Deep in a dream. The long night of Chet Baker.
By my friend, James Gavin.

Straight life. The story of Art Pepper.
By Art and Laurie Pepper.

Added to the queue. Thanks, PW.

 

[KUNGfuSHERIFF]

"Husker Du: the story of the noise-pop pioneers who launched modern rock," by Andrew Earles. Lent by a bandmate. Good story, poorly edited.

 

[fdeck]

Just finished "Thelonious Monk" by Robin Kelley. It's quite detailed, and captures Monk's life as well as his social and historical surroundings.

 

[Dimmik]

Cat's Cradle - Vonnegut
Moby Dick - Melville
The Crying of Lot 49 - Pynchon
The Hellfire Club - Mannix
Bill Evans - Shadwick
Exterminator - Burroughs
Mumbo-Jumbo - Reed
Shadow Over Innsmouth - Lovecraft
Ghost Story - Straub
There Are No Children Here - Kotlowitz
Satanic Panic - Victor
Hiroshima - Hersey
Antonietta - Hersey
Sirens of Titan - Vonnegut
Hitchhiker's series - Adams

 

[El Thumpo]

I'm reading JUST KIDS, by Patti Smith. I enjoy it very much. It won the National Book Award, so be assured it's not the standard ghostwritten musician's indulgent autobiography.

 

[gr8bassplayer]

The Music Lesson by Victor Wooten is a great book.

 

[Mike Goodbar]

Just finished George Saunders' short-story collection "Tenth of December." IMHO, deserves all the high praise its been receiving as of late.

Nearly all these stories cut me to the bone in one way or another. Economic desperation, lifetime of personal regret, disgust at the compromising choices we are forced to make; all here -- but with a ray of cold sunshine in the last story.

Saunders uses incredibly inventive storylines and heartbreakingly elegant prose to drill into the psyches of his mostly unfortunate characters, but, like at good musician, his technique is always subservient to his message.

 

[r.t.swing]

Praying Mantis - Andre Brink

 

[Chris Fitzgerald]

"The Alienist", by Caleb Carr.

 

[eerbrev]

The History of Orchestration - Adam Carse

 

[Mike Goodbar]

There was a novel written several years ago that had Schubert's "Trout" quintet and the musicians preparing for a perfomance as its subject matter, and even took its form from Schubert's work. Anyone here recall the title or author?

Thanks.

 

[PCprincipalbass]

Currently reading "The Hobbit." It's a good tale. I've see parts of the movie but decided to finish the book before I watched anymore.

 

[Gottaplaybass]

I found a great site several years ago:

http://archive.org/index.php

It has all kinds of public domain texts, audio and video. I did a quick search to see if anyone else had mentioned it, but didn't find any.

Have fun searching through it all.

 

[Mike Goodbar]

There was a novel written several years ago that had Schubert's "Trout" quintet and the musicians preparing for a perfomance as its subject matter, and even took its form from Schubert's work. Anyone here recall the title or author?

Found it. "An Equal Music" by Vikram Seth (not sure if I got the plot points right). Heard good reviews...will give it a shot when I'm done reading "A Sport and a Pastime" by James Salter (and then taking a cold shower). Why did I not know about Salter before now? Incredibly beautiful, evocative prose. Will explore further (though I may first re-read "A Sport..." (well, at least the parts I dog-eared).

 

[fmoore200]

Anybody read anything by Neal Stephenson? Somebody recommended him to me at work.. Your thoughts?

 

[Jazzdogg]

Just finished "Outliers," by Malcolm Gladwell; "The Legend of Burroughs' Rangers," by J.A. Bland; and "The Six Orders of Art," by Thomas Parker Emery.

 

[gregmon79]

At the moment, unleashed: the story of tool. Pretty good.

 

[Chris Fitzgerald]

"Outliers" is a good one. Currently reading Vonnegut's "Cat's Cradle", and the Bill Evans bio "How My Heart Sings" has become a fixture in the...er... "morning reading room".

 

[BassBluesNRoots]

The Inner Game Of Music - Barry Green and Timothy Gallwey