Reading Copy

Innovative cookbook ideas are hard to come by, most of it has been done before. This music journalist got tired of asking bands about what their lyrics mean and started asking what they liked to eat. You can now see the fruits of her labor in I like food, food tastes good. It includes recipes from Death Cab for Cutie, The Violent Femms, NOFX and more.

Now that I’ve gone and said it was innovative I just know someone is going to post a book where this has been done already. Either way it sounds like a fun read with some good grub.

Popularity: 15% [?]

Prospect looks at the year in culture (books, theatre, art, movies etc) and gathers those that were overrated and underrated.

Popularity: 32% [?]

Today’s recommendation for Christmas is a gift for Daddy….(assuming he was a rocker in the 1970s and a lot of them were - they just don’t talk about that part of their lives anymore) is Hammer of the Gods: The Led Zeppelin Saga by Stephen Davis. Check out the signed copy signed by Robert Plant. This is an old book, written in the 1980s, but no-one cares what they did after the band broke up following the death of John Bonham. Last night’s reunion concert in London has got huge press - everyone has carried some sort of retrospective. Back home in the UK, I probably didn’t hear a Led Zeppelin record played on a major radio station from about 1983 onwards. Here in North America, they are played every day.

Popularity: 15% [?]

There are certain people who are always more difficult when it comes to finding a good thoughtful gift that they will enjoy. Generally teenagers, especially boys, are a tough lot, and if you’re trying to think outside of the electronics box doubly so.

When I was in high school I was pretty much married to my CD player so here are a couple ideas, and if these aren’t exactly right just spy on his or her mp3 collection and see what’s out there:

From Pieces to Weight - 50 Cent’s memoir recounting the story of one of today’s hottest rap artists and his rise from the streets to fame.

Keep Your Eyes Open - A photographic history of Fugazi, one of the most influential bands in indie rock / post punk.

Get In The Van - Tour Diaries from 1980-1984 written by Black Flag front man Henry Rollins.

The Vibe History of Hip Hop - From the Sugar Hill Gang and Grandmaster Flash all the way to the turn of the century.

Popularity: 18% [?]

Today’s recommendation for Christmas gifts is…. The Sound of Music Companion by Laurence Maslon. Hold on a minute - don’t move on yet. This is something my mum would love. For Brits, watching movies like The Sound of Music and The Great Escape are an essential part of Christmas. They are rerun again and again and again. I’m no fan of The Sound of Music but I must have seen it from start to finish at least 10-12 times. I can remember most of the words to most of the songs - “Doe, a deer, a female deer. Ray, a drop of golden sun, Me, a name I call myself, Far, a long, long way to run.”

My mother went to the cinema to see The Sound of Music on the week it came out. Imagine that? I’ve only ever known the movie to be shown on TV on Christmas Day, Boxing Day or New Year’s Day.

Any way, this book - I’m sure it’s great if you love Julie, Christopher Plummer and those singing children. There’s 150 photos from the film, lyrics to all the songs (you know them all any way), a guide to the movie locations, and lots, lots more.

Popularity: 18% [?]

A quarter of a million books have gone missing from libraries in Waltham Forest (a small town just outside of London) - book-burners are suspected.

Popularity: 16% [?]

USA Today looks at the new biography of Madonna, who maintains an extraordinary level of fame without actually doing much at all. I wonder why no-one has bought up the rights to Madonna’s Sex which remains out of print?

Popularity: 9% [?]

Classical music is not just for the ears. Four recently released books examine four very different composers - Englishman Edward Elgar, Norwegian Edvard Grieg, German-born Londoner George Frideric Handel, and Austrian Gustav Mahler and you can learn more about them in our Classical Music feature on AbeBooks.co.uk

Popularity: 10% [?]

Here on the West Coast of Canada we have a bit of extra pride in BC-born singer, Michael Buble.  We’ve got even more reason to be proud with Buble’s announcement yesterday that partial proceeds from ticket sales for his 2008 concert tour will be donated to the Canwest Raise-a-Reader literacy initiative.

Although his latest album is titled “Call Me Irresponsible”, Buble has demonstrated he’s anything but.

Popularity: 15% [?]

Charlotte Church, the Welsh geezer bird with voice of an angel and the drinking ability of Dylan Thomas, has published her second autobiography at the age of 21.

“I remember once, when I was throwing up outside RSVP, Abi came out, looked at it and suddenly projectile vomited. Astonished, we looked at each other and burst out laughing before going back in and carrying on dancing. We were nuts and I loved every second of it.” Turns out she isthe binge-drinking fallen angel they said she was: it’s just that in an autobiography this isn’t remotely interesting. Because you’re not really nuts if you throw up outside a nightclub, are you? You’re just a teenager.

Popularity: 11% [?]

Fans of the 1960s might be interested in Patti Boyd’s just published autobiography, Wonderful Today. The Times carries a major feature about the woman who swapped George Harrison for Eric Clapton.

Popularity: 11% [?]

While getting my news this morning I saw an article about a Kiwi singer/songwriter, Flip Grater, who has decided to publish a cookbook featuring recipes that she collected while touring New Zealand for a recent album. She isn’t the first person to try and draw a connection to music and food though…

I Like Food, Food Tastes Good: In the Kitchen with Your Favourite Bands - Contributions from more than 100 artists, including indie icons like the Violent Femmes, Belle & Sebastian, and They Might Be Giants and Franz Ferdinand.

Rock n Roll Cuisine - Recipes of many music stars of the 1980s, mostly in their own handwriting, with photos and signatures. George Michael, Bangles, Phil Collins, Talking Heads, Mick Jagger, Heart, Sting, many more

Road Stories and Recipes - Don Nix’s story of his musical roots in 50s Memphis to near stardom in the rockin’ 60s and near mayhem in the 70s. Includes a section of favorite recipes from rockers old and new that Nix befriended on the way.

Popularity: 19% [?]

The New York Times writes about a new musical…. featuring rare book dealers!

Popularity: 10% [?]

The BBC reports that Don Arden, the music mogul father of Sharon Osbourne, has died. Arden managed the Small Faces, Black Sabbath, ELO and many other acts. I knew nothing about him until I read Sharon Osbourne’s autobiography Extreme, which detailed at length Arden’s dubious business practices. Arden also co-wrote a book modestly called Mr Big.

Popularity: 11% [?]

Some of the literary world’s big hitters acclaim Salman Rushdie in today’s The Guardian. The author of The Satanic Verses will be receiving an OBE.

Popularity: 10% [?]