Do Not Sell at Any Price: The Wild, Obsessive Hunt for the World’s Rarest 78 rpm Records, by music critic Amanda Petrusich, explores the world of 78 rpm records and the obsessive community that celebrates them. She recounts the format’s history, from its heyday to its near extinction, and collectors and archivists who are working frantically to preserve these fragile, 10-inch shellac discs before they are lost forever.

Do Not Sell at Any Price: The Wild, Obsessive Hunt for the World’s Rarest 78 rpm Records, by Amanda Petrusich, Scribner, a division of Simon & Schuster (www.simonandschuster.com).

This book gives fans an intimate and unparalleled look at one of the most successful pop groups of all time, ABBA. Overflowing with original photographs, some never before published, this band-approved book offers readers a backstage look at the band through interviews, anecdotes, and insights from ABBA expert Carl Magnus Palm. Co-author Ingmarie Halling was responsible for the dressing room, costumes, and makeup on all of ABBA’s major tours, and she is curator of the Stockholm-based ABBA museum. ABBA: The Treasures also features removable memorabilia—tour itineraries, a backstage pass, a set list, and a poster.

ABBA: The Treasures, by Ingmarie Halling and Carl Magnus Palm,

Sterling Publishing (www.sterlingpublishing.com).

Photographer Gered Mankowitz is responsible for some of rock music’s most memorable photographs. 50 Years of Rock and Roll Photography includes some of the most striking photos from the 1960s through the 2000s, featuring everyone from The Rolling Stones, Elton John, and Jimi Hendrix to Led Zeppelin, Eurythmics, and Oasis. Mankowitz also provides insight into his many experiences in the music industry. The book contains hundreds of photos and forwards by Annie Lennox, Keith Richards, Bill Wyman, and an introduction from Peter York.

Gered Mankowitz: 50 Years of Rock and Roll Photography, by Gered Mankowitz and Brian Southall,

Sterling Publishing (www.sterlingpublishing.com).

Nashville Songwriter shares true stories of the inspirations behind hits, as recounted by some of the biggest multi-platinum country songwriters. This book from music biographer Jake Brown includes exclusive commentary from country superstars and interviews with today’s biggest hit writers on Music Row. Included are the stories behind Local 433 (Austin, TX) member Willie Nelson’s “Always on My Mind”; George Jone’s “Tennessee Whiskey”; Local 257 (Nashville, TN) member Brad Paisley’s “Mud on the Tires”; Local 433 member George Strait’s “Fool Hearted Memory”; Local 257 member Kenny Chesney’s “When the Sun Goes Down”; Local 257 member Trace Adkins “Your Gonna Miss This”; and many more.
Nashville Songwriter: The Inside Stories Behind Country Music’s Greatest Hits,

by Jake Brown, BenBella Books, (www.benbellabooks.com).

Music of the Soul guides the reader through principles, techniques, and exercises for incorporating music into grief counseling, with the end goal of empowering the grieving person. For a wide scope of mental health professionals, musicians, and persons experiencing loss, its interdisciplinary text draws in equal parts from contemporary grief/loss theory, music therapy research, historical examples of powerful music, case studies, and both self-reflecting and teaching exercises. Both universal and deeply personal in its resonance, Music of the Soul seeks to reach where words cannot, and join more deeply with those who seek to compose life out of loss.

Music of the Soul: Composing Life Out of Loss, by Joy S. Berger, Routledge, (www.routledge.com).

Musicians have long been fascinated with perfect or absolute pitch—the ability to recognize musical tones with no reference. Largely a misunderstood phenomenon, it is often revered as a gift only a few select musicians are born with and a skill that cannot be learned. This book, comprised of 49-ear training sessions, three CDs, and online audio access, will help you develop your sense of pitch. As you slowly progress through the lessons you’ll begin to listen to music more deeply and benefit your overall musicianship.

Perfect Pitch Method: A Musician’s Guide to Recognizing Pitches by Ear, by Adam Perlmutter, Hal Leonard Corporation (www.halleonard.com).

Author Ron Evans says his book was inspired by “a simple act of kindness, a rare artifact, and an insatiable thirst for discovering the truth behind America’s untenable loss of domestic tranquility.” He contends that most of the performers who played the Woodstock Festival in August 1969 never knew the back story—the lost playlist and program. Chasing Woodstock takes readers backstage, on stage, and behind the scenes for a journey of innocence lost and renewed hope.

Chasing Woodstock: Find the Cost of Freedom, by Ron Evans,
EupraxBooks, (www.lindakevans.com/cwONLINE.htm).