Country & Western Dance

Country & Western Dance
Author: Ralph G. Giordano
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 196
Release: 2010-07-20
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 0313365555

A fun, fact-filled, and thoroughly researched journey of country and western dancing from the roots of Western Swing to Hank Williams, the Urban Cowboy two-step of John Travolta, and the nationwide sensation of country line dancing. Country & Western Dance turns the spotlight on a uniquely American form of dance, one that has been scuffing the floorboards for nearly a century but is often overlooked. Fun, lively, and thoroughly researched, this revealing volume tells the full story of country and western dance music from the days of Bob Wills and Tulsa to Oklahoma's Cain's Ballroom to John Travolta and Gilley's of Houston, Texas. Each chapter provides information on the historical roots of the most popular country and western dances as well as the pioneers of the music of a particular era, all in the context of changing cultural, social, political, and economic forces in America. The book also examines the seminal impact of radio, television, and the movies in helping spread the music, the moves, and the good times on the country dance floor.

Unconquered

Unconquered
Author: J.D. Davis
Publisher: BrownBooks.ORM
Total Pages: 494
Release: 2012-05-01
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1612540759

“Engaging . . . [a] biography of three men bound by blood, music, and a lifelong struggle to strike a balance between the sacred and secular.”—Publishers Weekly Three cousins, inseparably bonded through music. Each became a star; their story would become a legend. J. D. Davis’s enthralling new biography of famous cousins Jerry Lee Lewis, Jimmy Swaggart, and Mickey Gilley, born within a twelve-month span in small-town Louisiana during the Great Depression, draws from exhaustive research and personal connections with friends and family. Davis recreates the irresistible and life-changing power of music that surrounded the cousins as boys and shaped their engagingly distinct paths to fame. With three personal journeys set alongside important landmarks in pop-culture history, Davis presents a unique tale of American music centered on the trials, tribulations, and achievements of three men who remain truly Unconquered. A ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year Award Honorable Mention for Biography “This is a good read, and not just for the hard-core fan. It will appeal to anyone interested in the dynamics of rock ’n’ roll, country music, and evangelical Christianity and what happens when the aesthetics and lifestyles of those three worlds collide. Highly recommended.”—Library Journal “God, the devil, and everything in between. This book is a great representation of the duality plane on which we exist.'”—Leon Russell, legendary musician, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member “Unconquered clearly depicts the fascinating story of three great musical artists who were cousins in real life but icons in the world of music. Each man conquered life’s roadblocks to achieve his ultimate goals.”—Tom Schedler, former Louisiana Secretary of State

The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture

The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture
Author: Harvey H. Jackson III
Publisher: UNC Press Books
Total Pages: 406
Release: 2014-02-01
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 1469616769

What southerners do, where they go, and what they expect to accomplish in their spare time, their "leisure," reveals much about their cultural values, class and racial similarities and differences, and historical perspectives. This volume of The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture offers an authoritative and readable reference to the culture of sports and recreation in the American South, surveying the various activities in which southerners engage in their nonwork hours, as well as attitudes surrounding those activities. Seventy-four thematic essays explore activities from the familiar (porch sitting and fairs) to the essential (football and stock car racing) to the unusual (pool checkers and a sport called "fireballing"). In seventy-seven topical entries, contributors profile major sites associated with recreational activities (such as Dollywood, drive-ins, and the Appalachian Trail) and prominent sports figures (including Althea Gibson, Michael Jordan, Mia Hamm, and Hank Aaron). Taken together, the entries provide an engaging look at the ways southerners relax, pass time, celebrate, let loose, and have fun.

The Country Music Reader

The Country Music Reader
Author: Travis D. Stimeling
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 409
Release: 2015-01-02
Genre: Music
ISBN: 0190233737

In The Country Music Reader Travis D. Stimeling provides an anthology of primary source readings from newspapers, magazines, and fan ephemera encompassing the history of country music from circa 1900 to the present. Presenting conversations that have shaped historical understandings of country music, it brings the voices of country artists and songwriters, music industry insiders, critics, and fans together in a vibrant conversation about a widely loved yet seldom studied genre of American popular music. Situating each source chronologically within its specific musical or cultural context, Stimeling traces the history of country music from the fiddle contests and ballad collections of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries through the most recent developments in contemporary country music. Drawing from a vast array of sources including popular magazines, fan newsletters, trade publications, and artist biographies, The Country Music Reader offers firsthand insight into the changing role of country music within both the music industry and American musical culture, and presents a rich resource for university students, popular music scholars, and country music fans alike.

The Films of James Bridges

The Films of James Bridges
Author: Peter Tonguette
Publisher: McFarland
Total Pages: 213
Release: 2014-01-10
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 078648599X

Originally arriving in Hollywood to pursue an acting career, James Bridges went on to write and direct such popular films as The Paper Chase, The China Syndrome and Urban Cowboy. This book tells the story of his life and career, helped by new interviews with friends and collaborators; it also offers a detailed analysis of each of Bridges' eight feature films, including his lesser-known cult classics September 30, 1955 and Mike's Murder.

Magpie Leaves the Nest

Magpie Leaves the Nest
Author: John Gillender
Publisher: Trafford Publishing
Total Pages: 463
Release: 2013-06-18
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1466944811

Its 1970. Gilley has just emigrated from England with his Canadian bride. He has to adapt to the Canadian lifestyle as well as get along with his in-laws and find a job that fits his English credentials. The reader shares in Gilley's exploits as he has his first Aboriginal encounter in Whistler, BC to his first drink of Coors Beer in San Francisco, California. He loves his new life style as there so many opportunities to be had. At the same time, his wife longs to return to England where she loved the English way of life. Where will they end up? All the while the Magpie spirit in his soul is calling him to greater things. After all, not all that glitters is gold.

Demons Are a Ghoul's Best Friend

Demons Are a Ghoul's Best Friend
Author: Victoria Laurie
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 308
Release: 2008-03-04
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1101211717

Victoria Laurie's ghoulishly great follow-up to What's a Ghoul to Do? in her new Ghost Hunter Mystery series Northelm Boarding School on Lake Placid has the worst bully of all-a demon by the name of Hatchet Jack. M.J. Holliday, along with her partners Gilley and the handsome Dr. Steven Sable, are ready to send him back to the portal from whence he came. The school's summer construction, an uncooperative dean, and the very tempting Dr. Delicious are all trying to distract M.J. from her ghost hunting. But with a demonic disturbance as great as Hatchet Jack, she must focus and show no mercyto send him to detention for an eternity-in hell.

My Truth Lies in the Ruins

My Truth Lies in the Ruins
Author: Deborah Richmond Foulkes
Publisher: AuthorHouse
Total Pages: 546
Release: 2004-06-21
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1418412899

My Truth Lies in the Ruins is a true story filled with adventure, romance and intrigue set among colorful landscapes of breath taking scenery: medieval castles, treacherous moats and wild lands of mist covered moors. These were the dangerous and unsettled times that followed the death of King Alexander in Scotland. Lord Douglas and his lady were in love, at peace raising their family in the Lowlands of their Douglasdale when King Edward invaded Scotland in 1296. William le Hardi Douglas was a Crusader Knight, soldier of renown; a man of core values. Equally bold in love as well as war, he kidnapped his bride from Faside Castle and Edwards grasp. Le Hardi adhered to his truth, meeting death in the Tower of London for rebellion with William Wallace. His stalwart wife Eleanora of Lovaine was a modern woman living in the 13thcentury. Lady Douglas bore the brunt of her husbands patriotism. Reduced to poverty by Edward for Williams martyred stand, she fought back; keeping her family together as they continued their fight for Scotlands National Independence. She raised three surviving sons: Hugh, Canonic Glasgow Cathedral, Archibald the Regent and Scotlands beloved knight the Good Sir James, the Black Douglas.

To Coach a Killer

To Coach a Killer
Author: Victoria Laurie
Publisher: Kensington Cozies
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2020-08-25
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1496720385

Cat Cooper plans on emerging as the premier life coach in East Hampton by summertime. All she has to do is survive an offseason replete with desolate beaches, slow business, and murder . . . As the Hamptons drags through early spring, Cat’s shot at becoming the toast of the town in time for Memorial Day is dwindling—and fast. The only client she can find has been housebound for decades and claims to be the victim of a devasting curse. Then there’s the matter of Detective Shepherd’s intense jealousy over Maks Grinkov, the handsome bad boy who approaches Cat with an unusual offer she can’t stop thinking about. Havoc finally breaks loose when a string of murders rocks the coastal community, landing Maks on the hook as the culprit. With a storm approaching shore and no one to trust, Cat and her sharp-tongued best friend, Gilley, must solve a client’s curse and a series of violent deaths before a killer sends them all sailing to their doom . . .