A Right to Sing the Blues

A Right to Sing the Blues
Author: Jeffrey Melnick
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 287
Release: 2001-03-16
Genre: Music
ISBN: 0674040902

All too often an incident or accident, such as the eruption in Crown Heights with its legacy of bitterness and recrimination, thrusts Black-Jewish relations into the news. A volley of discussion follows, but little in the way of progress or enlightenment results--and this is how things will remain until we radically revise the way we think about the complex interactions between African Americans and Jews. A Right to Sing the Blues offers just such a revision. Black-Jewish relations, Jeffrey Melnick argues, has mostly been a way for American Jews to talk about their ambivalent racial status, a narrative collectively constructed at critical moments, when particular conflicts demand an explanation. Remarkably flexible, this narrative can organize diffuse materials into a coherent story that has a powerful hold on our imagination. Melnick elaborates this idea through an in-depth look at Jewish songwriters, composers, and perfomers who made Black music in the first few decades of this century. He shows how Jews such as George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Al Jolson, and others were able to portray their natural affinity for producing Black music as a product of their Jewishness while simultaneously depicting Jewishness as a stable white identity. Melnick also contends that this cultural activity competed directly with Harlem Renaissance attempts to define Blackness. Moving beyond the narrow focus of advocacy group politics, this book complicates and enriches our understanding of the cultural terrain shared by African Americans and Jews.

Werewolf Sings the Blues

Werewolf Sings the Blues
Author: Jennifer Harlow
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide
Total Pages: 254
Release: 2014-03-08
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0738739340

If Vivian's life had a soundtrack, every song would be the Blues Pushin' Thirty (Hard Life Takes Its Toll) Singer Going Nowhere Fast Mysterious Stalker Got a Hold on Me Bullets, Blood, and Fur Long Lost Werewolf Daddy Done Me Wrong Ain't No Pack War Gonna Keep Me Down Love on the Run (feat. Sexy Jason) Melting in His Icy Eyes She's No Good (Born Under a Bad Moon) Don't Let Her Song Be Cut Short Livin' La Vida Werewolf (Bonus Track) Praise: "[Vivian's] journey ends with a twist that will have readers rapidly flipping the pages."—RT Book Reviews

Lady Sings the Blues

Lady Sings the Blues
Author: Billie Holiday
Publisher: Crown
Total Pages: 258
Release: 2006-07-25
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0767923863

Perfect for fans of The United States vs. Billie Holiday, this is the fiercely honest, no-holds-barred memoir of the legendary jazz, swing, and standards singing sensation—a fiftieth-anniversary edition updated with stunning new photos, a revised discography, and an insightful foreword by music writer David Ritz Taking the reader on a fast-moving journey from Billie Holiday’s rough-and-tumble Baltimore childhood (where she ran errands at a whorehouse in exchange for the chance to listen to Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith albums), to her emergence on Harlem’s club scene, to sold-out performances with the Count Basie Orchestra and with Artie Shaw and his band, this revelatory memoir is notable for its trenchant observations on the racism that darkened Billie’s life and the heroin addiction that ended it too soon. We are with her during the mesmerizing debut of “Strange Fruit”; with her as she rubs shoulders with the biggest movie stars and musicians of the day (Bob Hope, Lana Turner, Clark Gable, Benny Goodman, Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, and more); and with her through the scrapes with Jim Crow, spats with Sarah Vaughan, ignominious jailings, and tragic decline. All of this is told in Holiday’s tart, streetwise style and hip patois that makes it read as if it were written yesterday.

They Don't Sing the Blues Or Do They? Volume I

They Don't Sing the Blues Or Do They? Volume I
Author: Fannie Black
Publisher:
Total Pages: 82
Release: 2021-02-22
Genre:
ISBN:

"Captivating and absolutely brilliant. This book will get you hooked and leave you wanting more!" Clive Porter, Jr. is a gifted artist and musician who dreams of making it big someday. Ever since he was a child, he grabbed the attention of everyone wherever he went. His artistic talents and musical abilities helped him steal the spotlight. One day, he encounters Nicholas DeNicci, with whom he becomes the best of friends. Nickki's father, Carlos DeNicci, a powerful and influential man, takes Clive under his wing and helps him establish his career. But things aren't as easy as they seem for Clive. His life isn't as peaceful and trouble-free as everyone around him believes. Back in Paris, he has a secret that only his sister, Peddie, is aware of. This is a secret that can change everything for Clive. It's a secret nobody else can find out. But his life takes a turn for the worse when Carlos DeNicci hires him for a top-secret project that compromises his morals and beliefs. When the police get involved and Clive ends up in prison, he realizes there's more to Carlos DeNicci than it seems. Will Clive be able to hide his secrets from his family successfully? What's in store for Clive? How will Clive's life turn out to be? Fannie Black's intense and powerful novel will draw you in and captivate you. With so many plot twists and different sides to each character, it's impossible not to turn the page and get addicted!

Everybody Gets the Blues

Everybody Gets the Blues
Author: Leslie Staub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Total Pages: 37
Release: 2012
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 0152063005

Simple, rhyming text reveals that "Blues Guy" visits everyone now and then, from rodeo clowns to scary bullies. Full color.

My Hands Sing the Blues

My Hands Sing the Blues
Author: Jeanne Walker Harvey
Publisher: Two Lions
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2011
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 9780761458104

A train journey in Romare Beardens childhood, inspired by one of his collage paintings

I Sing the Blues and Cry

I Sing the Blues and Cry
Author: Iris Killens Cheeks
Publisher: iUniverse
Total Pages: 143
Release: 2014-04
Genre: Poetry
ISBN: 149172062X

Many of us go through life feeling isolated and alone in a world full of family, friends, and gods. In I Sing the Blues and Cry, a survivor of childhood sexual abuse expresses through both poetry and prose the shared fear, confusion, anger, hope, and faith needed to accomplish joy in a world infused with pain. One out of every four little girls is sexually abused, and the majority of the abusers are family members or close friends of the family in America today. They are trapped in a cage of shame, guilt, and secrecy. Bodies grow, minds mature, yet there still remains a broken little girl within each victim. Author Iris Killens Cheeks shares conversations, verse, and vital resources to open a door into the thoughts, perceptions, and soul of a survivor of sexual, mental, and emotional abuse. This little girl found a way to survive, mature, and conquer many of the battles she faced due to traumatic experiences that no child should have to endure. Hers is a story that is poignant, revealing, and uplifting--a story of light, acceptance, forgiveness, and growth. I Sing the Blues and Cry is an inspiring look beyond the surface into the eyes of a child, a woman, and a survivor.

For Everything a Season

For Everything a Season
Author: Joan Chittister
Publisher: Orbis Books
Total Pages: 175
Release: 2013
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1626980195

Through the famous verses of Ecclesiastes - 'For everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven' - Joan Chittister reflects on timeless themes: the purpose and value of human life, the balance of joy and sorrow, work and rest, love and loss.

The Easy Fake Book (Songbook)

The Easy Fake Book (Songbook)
Author: Hal Leonard Corp.
Publisher: Hal Leonard Corporation
Total Pages: 244
Release: 2000-01-01
Genre: Music
ISBN: 1458437523

(Fake Book). This follow-up to the popular Your First Fake Book includes over 100 more great songs that even beginning-level musicians can enjoy playing! It features the same larger notation with simplified harmonies and melodies, all songs in the key of C, and introductions for each song, to add a more finished sound to the arrangements. The songs are in many musical styles and include: Alfie * All I Ask of You * All My Loving * Always on My Mind * Autumn in New York * Blue Skies * Cabaret * Crazy * Fields of Gold * Go the Distance * God Bless' the Child * Great Balls of Fire * Hey, Good Lookin' * How Deep Is Your Love * I'll Be There * If * Imagine * Jailhouse Rock * Kansas City * Memory * Michelle * Misty * My Girl * My Heart Will Go On * People * Stand by Me * Star Dust * Tangerine * Tears in Heaven * Tennessee Waltz * Unchained Melody * What a Wonderful World * What'll I Do? * You've Got a Friend * and more.