Lehmer's book is downright exhaustive in the coverage of the fateful Feb. 3 1959 plane crash that killed Holly, Valens, and Richardson.

I appreciated the detail and content of this book a lot. Being from Iowa, I have been interested in the Winter Dance party, and accounts of the crash for a very long time. (In fact, I just visited the Surf Ballroom and Mason City Airport while returning from a recent weekend vacation.)

Lehmer's book is very well-balanced, with chapters devoted to each of the three headliners. And it also has detailed plane crash info as well as analysis of the official CAB report.

In my opinion, easily the best book on "The Day The Music Died".

Author Larry Lehmer has provided readers with a very detailed story of the events that led up to the deaths of early rock and roll stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J. P. Richardson, and pilot Roger Peterson. Individual chapters are provided on each individual and a thorough description of the various cities the rock stars visited during the Winter Dance Party in the Upper Midwest beginning in January of 1959. Due to inadequate bus transportation with little or no heat, the three singers decided to charter an airplane from Clear Lake, Iowa, to Fargo, North Dakota, for their next performance in Moorhead, Minnesota, to arrive early and get some needed rest. The crash of the airplane was due to poor flying conditions and the inadequate skills of the pilot in flying by instruments. The author explores other theories such as a fight on the plane or, incredibly, Buddy Holly shooting the pilot. Author Lehmer also provides a great deal of information on the airplane that was used and what has become of the arenas the singers used for their performances in each of the visited cities. Numerous photos of the singers during this Winter Dance Tour and of the crash site are also provided. Some readers may feel they are being told more than they want to know about this subject, but the author has done an incredible job in covering this story of this incident and what rock and roll was like during the late 1950's.

This is a very excellent book about the Last Tour of the Three Stars and the plane crash that Don McLean dubbed "the day the music died" (and it did). I would give this book 8 to 10 stars if I could. I remember reading about the event in the evening paper on the day it happened (Feb. 3, 1959, near Mason City, Iowa). When one has read as much about the history of rock and roll as I have, one realizes that the most influential person in the history of the genre was Buddy Holly, and his death is the central event of the music's story. The losses of Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper (J. P. Richardson) were also very devastating to rock and roll.

One feels great sympathy and pity for pilot Roger Peterson, whose unwise decisions and lack of skill were major contributing factors (along with the weather) in causing the crash.

This book will take you back to Burning Man but it's the DVD that I want to rave about. Watch it over and over. Beautifully done. A wonderful effort. Thanks to Holly and thanks to Bam Bam!

Based on the images of Holly Kreuter, Drama In The Desert: The Sights And Sounds Of Burning Man is a book and DVD set collecting full-color visuals and personal memories drawn from the harsh desert of Black Rock City, Nevada. Capturing the sometimes quizzical, sometimes cruel, sometimes dramatic art and documentary efforts of seventy contributors, Drama In The Desert is strongly recommended as an eclectic, unique, and vibrant experience impressing its fiery artistic message upon the reader's spirit.

I bought your book for my son's 22nd birthday. He loved the book so much that I bought myself a copy. Last weekend I watched the DVD and was amazed at how beautiful the photography and music is. I went to Burning Man for the past two years and the experience has completely changed my life. I get inspired by the creativity of all the beautiful people that work so hard to make it the greatest art show in the world. I decided to share my experiences with my relatives this Christmas by sending them all Drama in the Desert as presents, so I ordered another six copies. Thank you for everything. You are an amazing group of artists.

Written by Elvis expert Gail Brewer Giorgio, The Elvis Files: Was His Death Faked? is a revealing expose that candidly questions every aspect of the death of Elvis Presley's and the subsequent official investigation, presenting all the reasons and media that have debated whether the rock star's death was faked. The Elvis Files is an intriguing, closely researched, highly recommended account written especially for Elvis fans who want to learn more about the "King" in general, as much as they can behind what really happened at the tragic close of Elvis' public career in particular.

The Elvis Files is a fascinating book, offering factual information regarding Elvis Presley's supposed death. Even if you are not an Elvis fan, I challenge you to read this book and not doubt the fact that Elvis may still be alive. Unlike many conspiracy theories, this one is built on solid evidence, from F.B.I. files to actual "post-death" pictures and tape/telephone recording transcripts of Elvis himself. The book is well written, very exciting and a wonderful ray of hope for all you Elvis fans out there. Excellent and truly unmissable. Buy this now and read the amazing facts surrounding Elvis' death that will astound you - guaranteed.

I have read and reread this book so many times,its amazing how much proof Gail has uncovered that Elvis is alive.I always believed that there was a cover up.I only hope that she will continue her investigation and keep all her loyal fans informed.It cant be over.

Ok. While on the road, I used this book to conduct trivia contests. The guys I am with, are Elvis fans and they always try to prove that they know Elvis more than I. So this book put an end to that!

But I will say this: I TOO WAS WRONG on many occasions! I never knew 50-60% of the information that was listed in this book -- and I thought I knew a LOT! So this is an educational book beyond any Elvis fans' expections or knowledge!

I think this will soon become an Elvis Bible to the fans and Elvis world - if it's not already!

Remarkable from the first page to the last!

What struck me about this book was the beautiful and clean art deco cover. What a gorgeous cover! And what fun it is to look at.

I bought it along with Christmas with Elvis by the same author. Never knew about anyone making a Christmas book with Elvis! So I was thrilled about that!

Anyway I took this book home, and to keep it short: I have so far read it 3 times from cover to cover! That is how enticing this book is. Never had I thought possible that anyone could trace Elvis' family history back that far as did Mr. Curtin. Because Graceland still has the OLD information that Elvis came from Scotland and Andrew Pressley! My goodness Mr. Curtin goes back much much farther. What an important addition Mr. Curtin is to the Elvis world. He is the key to the lock on the Elvis Presley that no one dares to write about: THE GOOD MAN!

Thank you Mr. Curtin for showing class in authoring a beautiful book on Elvis. And thank you for all your extremely hard work in finding out all this information on Elvis and for sharing it with us fans. God Bless you and much continued success.

I AM NOW TYPING IN CAPITALS!

JUST READ THIS BOOK AND I WILL SAY THIS : I AM AMAZED AT JIM CURTIN AND HIS WRITER FOR WHAT, AND HOW MUCH THEY RESEARCHED ON ELVIS.

SO WITH THIS REVIEW I AM GETTING ON MY KNEES AND THANKING GOD NOT ONLY FOR GIFTING THIS WORLD WITH ELVIS, BUT FOR GIFTING THE ELVIS WORLD WITH JIM CURTIN! (and lets not forget Renata)

THANK YOU .... THANK YOU .... THANK YOU .... THANKYOUVERYMUCH!

I'll admit it -- I'm biased toward Carl Perkins. I lived several years in his hometown of Jackson, TN and met him many times. Having those experiences, I was curious how this book would portray Mr. Perkins. After reading this book, I have more respect for Mr. Perkins. True, he wasn't perfect (who is?), but he had reason to be bitter about his career and his life, instead he never gave up. He pulled himself up after each setback and kept on striving. When you think about it, what would be the alternative? He was not only a great musician, but an active humanitarian. His work with children and their causes is nearly as impressive as his musical career, yet most people don't know of this. I went to Carl Perkins' funeral, and in the little city of Jackson, TN you would have thought time stood still. This book will give you the feeling of getting to know a true American success story . . .

What a story!! This should be a must read for all of us who get to feeling sorry for ourslves. Carl Perkins came from abject poverty,a racially discriminating South,was known as "white trash",wrote one of rock n rolls seminal tunes,was on the brink of superstardom,lost it all,became a sideman to another Sun records stablemate,delved into the pit of addiction,rose again,had alot of his early work recorded by a group known as the Beatles,played with the likes of Eric Clapton,loved performing with his own family,lived his life humbly,nursed somewhat of a grudge against Sam Phillips,Jerry Lee Lewis,and Elvis,made peace with himself,and left behind the legacy of a man who had seen the beast within and had conquered it.
This is a must read for anyone who has any interest in music,or for that matter,the sociology of the South during the late 1940's and 1950's. It is also ,quite simply,one of the most inspiring books that I've ever read,Thank You, Carl Perkins!

Much has been made of the tragic events in Carl Perkins' life, but in the end his values and personal strength stood him in much better stead than most of his Sun contemporaries (see Escott and Hawkin's book on Sun Records). Pretty good for a kid who, with his brothers, were skinny from undernourishment as children. This book follows Carl from childhood until near the end (he passed away shortly after publication). The section on the Tennessee tonk scene in the 40's and 50's and "tush hogs" is especially colorful.

Wolfman Jack "was" the ultimate D.J of all time. No one will ever fill his shoes. This book defines how his career got started, but it's too bad it wasn't accompanied by an "audio". You can't learn about or know "Wolfman" unless you've heard one of his shows. I was stunned that the entertainment world never gave him a tribute! But he "did"it in the way he lived his life! HAVE MERCY WOLFMAN. (insert a HOWL here!)

HAVE MERCY! takes a wild ride through an important era of broadcast history. HAVE MERCY! captures the renegade spirit that led a few pirates and pioneers to take risks for entertainment sake. HAVE MERCY! does a superb job of describing the times and painting a picture of what those who ventured into early rock were up against. HAVE MERCY! helps us to better understand what made one white boy howl in the night - and others sing the blues. HAVE MERCY! makes clear the impact of radio in the early days of rock-n-roll. Its a classic expose' on pop culture. HAVE MERCY! shows the drive and determination and focus and endurance and high energy it took to succeed in a highly competetive industry. HAVE MERCY! catches the gimmicks and the glamour. HAVE MERCY! drops all the right names in all the right places. HAVE MERCY! doesn't shy away from revealing the hazards, the hardships, the dirty deals and the difficult decisions either. HAVE MERCY! is a roller coaster without seatbelts - a wooden one with plenty of bumps and sharp turns and deep drops along the way. HAVE MERCY! chronicles the life of a street tough kid with a dream - someone least likely to succeed - who beat the odds and made it. HAVE MERCY! relives the roots of rock as told through THE VOICE that spoke for a whole generation. HAVE MERCY! grabs onto the craziness of THE VOICE but doesn't see the flip side. Nothing is revealed about the inner stuff the Wolfman was made of. HAVE MERCY! tells the what, when and where of Wolfman's story but fails to communicate the why well enough for reader's know who the Wolfman really was. Its as if the author is writing from a distance - on the outside looking in when a more compelling biography would be told from the inside looking out. HAVE MERCY! recants the making of the personality . . . but fails to see beyond the legend the Wolfman had become. If I hadn't already known the huge impact Wolfman had on my generation, I'm not sure I would've comprehended it from the book. The author tries, but fails to show the true connection between THE VOICE and his listeners. HAVE MERCY! gets the facts but not the feelings. Its like when a record company measures the quality of a song by its sales instead of its message or craftmanship. HAVE MERCY! records details but never gets the big picture. The author never catches the vision. He rides with the Wolfman but never contemplates the reason. He notes the Wolf's charisma but never understands it. Its clearly too overwhelming to describe and so its treated almost like an after-thought. Not a lot of effort goes into getting to know Wolf's fans or measuring his impact on the world around him either. HAVE MERCY! never sees the Wolfman as a wholistic being - the author never gets into his soul the way I, the reader, wanted him to. And so, the Wolfman came across as a wild, but somewhat packaged, entertainer with a well inflated ego - rather than a dedicated spokesman whose main mission may have been just to spread some joy. What if the radio was nothing more than a vehicle to enable the Wolfman to accomplish that goal? HAVE MERCY! only suggests such honorable motives - instead the author dwells on stereotypical indicators that suggest the Wolf was mostly after fortune and fame. The Wolfman is depicted as a relentless industry climber willing to do just about anything to claw his way to the top. HAVE MERCY! had me asking whatever happened to Robert Smith? Did he completely disappear whenever the Wolf came out to play? If HAVE MERCY! were an instruction manual on how-to develop a strong stage personality the author would succeed in covering the steps and listing the most sensational ingredients needed - but he'd fail to give a clue as to what makes the recipe work. The author wasn't able to make me feel the fire and the author didn't manage to make the Wolfman bleed. His pen barely scraped the surface. Had it dug deeper it may have gotten to the heart of the story. A good book gets the info, keeps the pace and tells an interesting story - but a great book goes beyond the expected by sharing keen insights and by giving the reader something valuable to hang onto long after the last page is read. HAVE MERCY! is a good book, not a great one. I walked away exhausted from a really wild journey - but still not certain as to who I'd shared it with. That's a shame because I'm certain there was more to the Wolfman than the world ever got a chance to know, or this author ever managed to uncover.

I read the book after he died. What a book!! The book takes the reader for a ride with a character that the reader will never forget!

The book will make a great movie and I hope that there is a movie made from the book.

I can not wait till the publisher starts publishing the book again because I will buy another one for sure.

HAVE MERCY!!

a great visual journey into john lennon's life with plenty of intimate photographs

i bought this book after seeing the rave reviews it got, thinking it was a real reading book. turned out to be a HUGE, glossy pictorial account..... but it's just as good probably better. awesome rare photos and quotes by the man and friends, and packed full of priceless memories. get it.

All I can say is that this book is the best I've ever owned on any member of the Beatles. Jammed full of pictures and a detailed bio, this book is everything that you need to know about John Lennon's life, work, and social standings. I give it an A++++. Forwarded by Yoko Ono.

This is a gorgeous "coffee table" type book, perfect for Doors fans. No info, just full of rare, lovely photos. Mostly of Jim, some of the band, several ultra-rare sweet pix of Jim and Pam Morrison. A real treat for die-hard Doors fans only.

You won't be disappointed...a wonderful visual testament to the best band, THE DOORS!

This book is absolutely marvelous. They say a picture is worth a thousand words and that makes this book priceless. This book is a must have for any Doors/Jim Morrison fan. There is an old belief that photography 'stole' someone's soul. This book does just the opposite. It does nothing but 'give.' It shows the artist, the poet. It is virtually all photos. Not opinions or someone elses slant on things that Jim can't respond to or defend himself from. This is exactly the type of book I feel that Jim would want out. It encourages you to think, learn, grow, live and transcend life on your own terms. Exactly what Jim would want for people to do. This book and it author are pure genius.

Mike Lankford creates such a vivid picture of life on the road that I actually feel myself being tossed about in the back of that van he writes about. My only confusion: Why haven't we gotten another book from this guy?!

This is a musician's biography that soars above its genre. The writing is so good that truth loses importance. Life meets art. If another book is not forthcoming from Mike Lankford soon, he should be incarcerated for squandering a national treasure.

Mike's book is a triumph, a deliciously honest look at life behind the traps. Because he spares himself nothing, Mike puts us smack dab in the middle of the energy and time he spent in garages and on the road. The writing is marvelously alive (some compare it to Kerouac, Exley, Mailer), but there isn't a wasted word here. The cumulative effect is to put in your hands one of those unfortunately rare books that speed you through an experience that's painfully and gorgeously real. You'll never be quite the same after your time spent with Mike Lankford.

This book was a lot of fun. I didn't know too much about "country rock" so I'm not an expert but I can tell ya one thing.Don't go out and buy every Poco record just cuz they "invented" country rock cuz they ain't that good. I do like the Dillards though.

Another "Must Read", from my favourite Canadien author, how well I recall the time period 1969-1976,as I followed those whose stories shine once again,in this well written account,of a sometimes tumultous time,but never dull!! At long last, Gram Parsons is given his truthful due,as a sometimes brilliant,though mostly erratic musician,who was somewhat mis-cast as an innovator of his times. John Einarson has given us another well researched account-I look forward to his next book.

For a while there in the '70s and '80s, it was chic to sneer at country-rock -- just another reason to hate L.A. In part, this was due to the style's runaway success, what with the Eagles and Linda Ronstadt's domination of the soft pop market during the height of the disco years. Country rock has often been hard to pin down, though -- are we talking about the sleek Top 40 stuff, or the scrappy hippie bands that would just as soon pick up a sitar as a pedal steel? This book is a well-written, highly readable look at the history of this rather amorphous subgenre, spanning from Buck Owens' Fender-bending twanginess to the present-day musings of bands like the Jayhawks, Steve Earle and Lucinda Williams. The bulk of the attention is on the 'Seventies, when country-rock was a marketable niche, and Einarson does a great job fleshing out the personalities and development of the scene, including interviews with numerous artists who may seen peripheral or obscure to us now. There's also the inevitable eulogizing of the great Gram Parsons, amid a detailed portrait of SoCal's longhair hipster hordes, with a rich play-by-play of the artistic development of the Byrds, Michael Nesmith and Ricky Nelson, giving credence to a wealth of hippie-era experimentation which if often written off as indulgent or ill-formed, and helping frame its importance to the growth of the present-day "young country" Nashville crossover sound. Einarson's exploration of the deep interconnections between hard country and early rock is a little facile -- he points to Elvis and Hank Williams, where pre-rock artists such as Hank Penny and Moon Mullins might have been a little more instructive. But really, that's just nitpicking -- this is a fine book, and certainly a must for folks drawn in by the whole "No Depression" scene. Recommended!