The Beat!was the first book to explore the musical, social, and cultural phenomenon of go-go music. In this new edition, updated by a substantial chapter on the current scene, authors Kip Lornell and Charles C. Stephenson, Jr., place go-go within black popular music made since the middle 1970s--a period during which hip-hop has predominated. This styling reflects the District's African American heritage. Its super-charged drumming and vocal combinations of hip-hop, funk, and soul evolved and still thrive on the streets of Washington, D.C., and in neighboring Prince George's County, making it the most geographically compact form of popular music.Go-go--the only musical form indigenous to Washington, D.C.--features a highly syncopated, nonstop beat and vocals that are spoken as well as sung. The book chronicles its development and ongoing popularity, focusing on many of its key figures and institutions, including established acts such as Chuck Brown (the Godfather of Go-Go), Experience Unlimited, Rare Essence, and Trouble Funk; well-known DJs, managers, and promoters; and filmmakers who have incorporated it into their work. Now updated and back in print,The Beat!provides longtime fans and those who study American musical forms a definitive look at the music and its makers.
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1957 was a tumultuous year for the tenor and soprano saxophone great John Coltrane. In just those twelve months, Trane was fired by Miles, hired by Monk, and placed in charge of his only Blue Note date as a leader. The resulting Blue Train, featuring the now-standard title cut, is a doozy; on board for the session was trumpeter Lee Morgan, trombonist Curtis Fuller, pianist Kenny Drew, and the bass and drums dream team of Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones. In a 1960 radio interview, Trane proclaimed Blue Train his favorite of his own recordings.
