Bill Monroe
The Life and Music of the Blue Grass Man
by Tom Ewing
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Pub Date 7 Sep 2018 | Archive Date 12 Oct 2018
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Description
The Father of Bluegrass Music, Bill Monroe was a major star of the Grand Ole Opry for over fifty years; a member of the Country Music, Songwriters, and Rock and Roll Halls of Fame; and a legendary figure in American music. This authoritative biography sets out to examine his life in careful detail--to move beyond hearsay and sensationalism to explain how and why he accomplished so much.
Former Blue Grass Boy and longtime music journalist Tom Ewing draws on hundreds of interviews, his personal relationship with Monroe, and an immense personal archive of materials to separate the truth from longstanding myth. Ewing tells the story of the Monroe family's musical household and Bill's early career in the Monroe Brothers duo. He brings to life Monroe's 1940s heyday with the Classic Bluegrass Band, the renewed fervor for his music sparked by the folk revival of the 1960s, and his declining fortunes in the years that followed. Throughout, Ewing deftly captures Monroe's relationships and the personalities of an ever-shifting roster of band members while shedding light on his business dealings and his pioneering work with Bean Blossom and other music festivals.
Filled with a wealth of previously unknown details, Bill Monroe offers even the most devoted fan a deeper understanding of Monroe's towering achievements and timeless music.
Advance Praise
"This account bears witness to the gigantic achievement which was Bill Monroe's music. His energy and creativity knew no bounds. This book successfully captures that."--Jim Rooney, Grammy-winning record producer and author of In It for the Long Run: A Musical Odyssey
"An exciting and rewarding read. No one knows the literature about and by Bill Monroe better than this author. He stitches what other readers have seen as fragments into the first deep and coherent narrative of Monroe's early years. They are sewn into a fabric of intense research into the time, place, and people in Monroe's life."--Neil V. Rosenberg, author of Bluegrass Generation: A Memoir
"Brilliantly-written, exhaustively-researched, and meticulously-documented, Ewing’s fascinating opus is now the gold standard biography of Bill Monroe, the Father of Bluegrass Music."--Thomas A. Adler, author of Bean Blossom: The Brown County Jamboree and Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Festivals
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9780252041891 |
| PRICE | US$34.95 (USD) |
| PAGES | 656 |
Links
Featured Reviews
Educator 180154
If you want to know the history of Bill Monroe from beginning to end, read this book. This book delves into every aspect of Bill's life from childhood to the last days - the good and the bad. From the honest details of Bill's womanizing, to his creative licensing over songs he "wrote" to his honest love of music and creating an entirely new genre are all revealed in this book. If you want to know the history of Bluegrass and how Bill Monroe not only shaped the music, but how he shaped 100s of amazing musicians who crossed his path, this book provides that insight.
It's detailed, honest and thorough. One of the best books I've ever read about Bill, the history of Bluegrass and everyone involved.
Thank you for writing this book!
