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This new book collects interviews with Sun Ra, his friends, associates, and contemporaries, regarding his prolific output, mystique, and philosophy. It includes essays by Wayne Kramer, Amiri Baraka, Sadiq Bey, and others. This book is in a series of titles that Sinclair has edited for Headpress publishers in London, England. Composer, bandleader, pianist and space philosopher, Sun Ra was a unique individual and one of the most colorful and enduring of musical legacies, transcending time, place and culture. From the mid 1950s until his death in 1993, Sun Ra led The Arkestra , a fluid collective that lived and played together under the despotic tutelage of their leader, who claimed to hail from Saturn. Their music was jazz, but avant garde compositions in which players were instructed to adhere to a space key improvising without regard for conventional tonal centers was symptomatic of an altogether different direction in sound: electronic music, space music and free improvisation. But Sun Ra s legendary status was earned as much for his eccentricities as for his unique artistic vision. He developed and propagated a mystifying sci-fi mythology which he weaved into both the music and Dadaist performances of The Arkestra (performances which inspired artists as diverse as George Clinton and MC5). This book collects together for the first time interviews with Sun Ra, the people that knew him, and his contemporaries, alongside illuminating essays and conversational pieces regarding his prolific musical output, mystique, philosophy, fans, and much more.
About the AuthorEDITOR BIO: In 1969, the poet-provocateur, MC5 manager and White Panther John Sinclair found himself the victim of that decade s draconian American drug laws, and facing a twenty-year jail sentence for the possession of two joints. The counterculture Sinclair helped create came to his rescue, however, when John Lennon, Stevie Wonder, Phil Ochs and others performed at a successful benefit gig to petition for his release. Since that epochal moment, Sinclair has travelled the globe and performed with some of the world’s finest musicians. He interviewed Sun Ra in 1966. Also available at this sigining will be a reprint facsimile of the “Poetry is Revolution” poster from 1967 by Leni Sinclair produced in a limited edition of 75 copies, and a reprint of Sinclair’s 1966 book Fire Music: A Record. Both editions have been printed by Book Beat. |
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| Posted in: Author signings, Beat & Experimental lit, Book Signings, Detroit & Michigan, Music, Psychedelia | No Comments » |
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Below is a list of upcoming events – if you’d like to have any of these books signed & mailed out please give us a call @ 248-968-1190 or email – info@thebookbeat.ccom thank you! ‘Detroit Punk Fest’ at Book Beat Opens; Friday, July 30th 7-10 PMA massive celebration of Punk Rock opens at Book Beat 7 -10 PM on Friday, July 30th. There will be author signings, readings, and a photo exhibition. Author and punk rocker Tesco Vee and Dave Stimson, founders of Touch & Go, will sign copies of their zine collected into one massive volume, Touch and Go; The Complete Hardcore Punk Zine ‘79-’83. Tony Rettman, author of Why Be Something You’re Not: The History of Detroit Hardcore 1979-1985, will be here, as well. Nicholas Rombes, author of A Cultural Dictionary of Punk, will sign and comment on vintage 7″ records he will be spinning. Local contributors Ryan Cooper and Nicole Lucas to the book How Punk Saved My Ass will also read and be present. SUCH A DEAL: And Tesco Vee has killer Touch and Go t-shirts for sale for $5 if you purchase the Touch and Go Fanzine book!!! Photographers S. Kay Young, Katie Hait, Nicole Lucas, Sue Rysnski and Leni Sinclair will also be represented in a Punk Rock photo gallery spanning four decades, yet concentrated in the early Detroit years 73-77. The Book Beat is located at 26010 Greenfield, Oak Park, MI – please call 248-968-1190 for more information. Local Detroit Punk rocker’s TYVEK will perform a short set at Book Beat, outdoors between 9-10 PM. Detroit Free Press journalist Rachel May breaks it all down in Metromix: ROCKIN’ IN THE D. ‘Damn THAT was Fun’, part 2: Photography of Detroit PunkAn exhibition in the Book Beat gallery will explore some happenings from the Detroit Punk scene from the 70s until now. The show features classic vintage images by S. Kay Young, Katy Hait, Joe Sposita, Leni Sinclair, Nicole Lucas and Sue Rynski. Opening July 30th, yo coincide with ‘Punk Fest’ the exhibition will continue through September 7th, 2010. Images in the show include iconic shots of Iggy Pop, The Ramrods, Johnny Thunders, The Dead Boys, New York Dolls, MC5, Lester Bangs, Destroy All Monsters, The 27, Tribe 8, Coldcock, Lance Loud, the Mumps, the Sillies and many more. The exhibition is an expansion of ‘Damn it Was Fun’ – shown in 2004 at the Majestic Cafe in Detroit. The exhibit displays the raw punk flavor of Midwest punk, undiluted by the UK. This exhibit is curated by Cary Loren. Tesco Vee and the TOUCH AND GO: The Complete Hardcore Punk Zine ‘79–’83 @ Book Beat July 30, 7:00 pm
Tesco has a special t-shirt offer: if you purchase the Touch and Go book, you can get a t-shirt with the image on the book for just $5.
Bazillion Points Books announces the June 2010 release of TOUCH AND GO: The Complete Hardcore Punk Zine ‘79–’83, a collection of wild-eyed artifacts from the very dawn of hardcore punk, penned in poison ink by legendary frontman Tesco Vee of the Meatmen and his partner-in-crime Dave Stimson, and edited by former The Fix singer Steve Miller.
The landmark collection of all twenty-two issues of TOUCH AND GO magazine also includes extra archival material and new introductions by authors Tesco Vee (the Meatmen) and Dave Stimson; punk icons Henry Rollins (S.O.A./Black Flag), Keith Morris (Black Flag/Circle Jerks), Corey Rusk (Necros/Touch and Go Records), John Brannon (Negative Approach), Ian MacKaye (Minor Threat), and Steve Miller (The Fix); plus literary appreciation by Peter Davis (Your Flesh), Henry Owings (Chunklet), and Byron Coley (Forced Exposure).
Created during the key years of the American hardcore punk music underground, these acidic essays, impassioned record reviews, eyewitness gig reports, unrehearsed interviews, and incendiary artworks preserve the original thoughts and attitudes of DIY culture. Today, punk music is mainstream youth music—this is how it all happened, and this is who did it.
The book’s pages are plastered with early gig flyers, inspirational artwork, eyewitness action photos, and candid vintage interviews with now-legendary squads like the Fix, Necros, Minor Threat, Youth Brigade, Iron Cross, Misfits, Negative Approach, JFA, Battalion of Saints, Crucifucks, SSD, 7 Seconds, Faith, the Effigies, Bad Religion, the Minutemen, Scream, Die Kreuzen, Crucifix, Void, Poison Idea, and others—plus hundreds of reviews of historic DIY punk, new wave, ska, industrial, no wave, and hardcore records and live shows, all captured fresh during the underground big bang by the merciless Midwestern masters of mayhem and mimeograph journalism.
The experts agree—Touch and Go is the only mag that matters, okay?
“I was inspired by how fearless and together Touch and Go were. They were really wild and extremely funny.”—Henry Rollins
“It was really one of the first times anyone outside of Washington really paid us any mind. The fact that Touch and Go took an interest in us really blew us away.”—Ian MacKaye, Minor Threat
“Creem may have taught me how to piss, but Touch and Go taught me how to shit. I owe my career to that magazine.”—John Brannon, Negative Approach
‘A Cultural Dictionary of Punk’ by Nicholas RombesHere in one volume is an eclectic raw collection of articles on some of the seminal groups, figures and cultural landmarks that have come to dominate the punk rock genre. The book is written by Nicholas Rombes who is a cultural critic and educator now living in Ann Arbor.Rombes comes up with some fascinating and often overlooked links to the punk phenomenon. His blog THE CULTURAL DICTIONARY OF PUNK explores punk in further multi-media detail. Nicholas Rombes will be available for signing books and will be bringing a selection of his rare vintage punk singles to play at the event. Fact 1. It is made up of discrete entries, scores of them, ranging from “Destroy All Monsters” to “Neat, Neat, Neat” to “Sixties, punk as a rejection of” to “Mo-Dettes” to “Brando, Marlon” to “The Dils.” Some entries are as short as 26 words, and others are as long as 18,533 words. Fact 2. Several entries take the form of short stories. Some (“Patti Smith”) are sort of creepy love stories. Some (“Frankie Teardrop”) are weird stories of terror and wonder. And at least one features the demented, wild-haired ex-professor Ephraim P. Noble. Fact 3. Many entries are directly about punk, and many are about the strange correspondences between punk and other forms and forces, such as movies, politicians, TV shows, philosophers, novelists, poets, inventors. “Rombes launches arguments and counterarguments . . . that make the selections of his ‘dictionary’ as provocative as Jon Savage in England’s Dreaming . . . A challenging lexicography.” — The Record Collector Why Be Something You’re Not: The History of Detroit Hardcore 1979-1985 by Tony Rettman…Tony Rettman will be there at 7 PM sharp to sign copies of his heavy Detroit hardcore history — already generating large acclaim: ...Tony talks first person to the people who you idolize: this from Steve Miller of The Fix on the D.C. scene and straight edge: “all those kids in those hardcore bands were throwing out their Aerosmith and AC/DC records. It all seemed fishy to me.” This, Barry Hensler, Ian Mackaye, Dave Stimpson, Tesco Vee, and John Brannon chatting like they’re at a sleepover. Tony’s gift as a writer is not what he knows, which borders on the obsessive, but his ear for the language and music he loves, and his gift for capturing rhetorical pratfalls. This is his head and his heart. Now will someone please pay him to write about Abba and/or Roger Nichols? –Elisa Ambrogio, Arthur Magazine A previously under documented small and insular scene’s story is now legend for good reason; the music. The Necros, The Meatmen, Negative Approach… “WBSTYN” unfurls in insightful and often hilarious dialog from it’s participants. Consider this the mid-west ‘Please Kill Me’. –Dave Markey, Director: ‘1991 – The Year Punk Broke’
Punk Rock Saved My Ass“Punk is the only music genre I know that consistently opens its mouth about taboo social and economic subjects in our society. Nothing is more honest or relevant to me than that.” – Mic Schenk “Everything that makes my life better is an offshoot or direct result of my having gotten into punk music.” - Chestnut “That was one of my lessons; you don’t have to fly your colors to be a punk or have a punk attitude.” – Dick Wizmore Here are the true stories from people whose lives were transformed and empowered by the frenetic, questioning, creative energy of punk rock; stories and poems written by punks from the USA and Europe, who share their unique vision on what it means to be punk. Written by musicians, teachers, artists, librarians, nurses, bakers, parents, and social workers, the stories are funny, sometimes tragic, and always surprising. Punk Rock Saved My Ass explores the strength of the punk movement to positively impact an individual’s life by providing a community to those who feel lost, by rousing a person to “do it herself,” and by inspiring all to push the boundaries of their own creativity. You may never listen to a punk rock album again. Local Detroit contributing author Ryan Cooper will read an excerpt of his from the book. Cooper also produces a PUNK ROCK BLOG for about.com. Photographer Nicole Lucas from Ann Arbor, MI, also contributed to the book and will have her images on display in the Book Beat gallery. August Reading Group SelectionThe Book Beat Reading Group will meet Wednesday, August 25th at 7pm at the Goldfish Teahouse in Royal Oak to discuss Angela Carter’s “Wise Children”. Meetings are free and open to the public, reading selections are discounted 15% at Book Beat. Wise Children (1991) was the last novel written by Angela Carter. The novel follows the fortunes of twin chorus girls, Dora and Nora Chance, and their bizarre theatrical family. It explores the subversive nature of fatherhood, the denying of which leads Nora and Dora to frivolous “illegitimate” lechery. The novel plays on Carter’s admiration of Shakespeare and her love of fairy tales and the surreal, incorporating a large amount of magical realism and elements of the carnivalesque that probes and twists our expectations of reality and society. Book Beat will be Closed for the Fourth of JulyBook Beat will be closed on Sunday, July 4 for Independence Day. We will re-open on Monday, July 5 at 10 am. Thank you and have a great holiday weekend! Hunger Games available in Paperback July 6!
One of our favorite young adult titles of recent memory is now available in paperback. “Hunger Games” takes place in a not-too-distant future, the United States of America has collapsed, weakened by drought, fire, famine, and war, to be replaced by Panem, a country divided into the Capitol and 12 districts. Each year, two young representatives from each district are selected by lottery to participate in The Hunger Games. Part entertainment, part brutal intimidation of the subjugated districts, the televised games are broadcasted throughout Panem as the 24 participants are forced to eliminate their competitors, literally, with all citizens required to watch. A thrilling series that has delighted adults and kids alike, book two “Catching Fire” is available in hardcover, while the final book in the series “Mockingjay” is set for a August 24th release. Sign up to pre-order your copy of what is sure to be an explosive finale to this fantastic series. Wimpy Kid Ice Cream Truck Visits Book Beat!!! Join us as the Diary of Wimpy Kid Summer Reading Ice Cream Truck visits us here at Book Beat on Wednesday August 25, 2010. Starting at 4:00 pm come get a free purple popsicle to celebrate the upcoming publication of Diary of a Wimpy Book 5, which is on sale Tuesday November 9, 2010. Other free goodies will be handed out. PLEASE NOTE: JEFF KINNEY WILL NOT BE MAKING AN APPEARANCE OR SIGNING BOOKS AT THIS EVENT.  John Sinclair Presents Sun Ra Book; Thursday, August 5thPoet and blues scholar John Sinclair will be at The Book Beat on Thursday, August 5 from 7-8:30 pm to sign and discuss his newest book Sun Ra- Interviews and Essays.
This new book collects interviews with Sun Ra, his friends, associates, and contemporaries, regarding his prolific output, mystique, and philosophy. It includes essays by Wayne Kramer, Amiri Baraka, Sadiq Bey, and others. This book is in a series of titles that Sinclair has edited for Headpress publishers in London, England. Composer, bandleader, pianist and space philosopher, Sun Ra was a unique individual and one of the most colorful and enduring of musical legacies, transcending time, place and culture. From the mid 1950s until his death in 1993, Sun Ra led The Arkestra , a fluid collective that lived and played together under the despotic tutelage of their leader, who claimed to hail from Saturn. Their music was jazz, but avant garde compositions in which players were instructed to adhere to a space key improvising without regard for conventional tonal centers was symptomatic of an altogether different direction in sound: electronic music, space music and free improvisation. But Sun Ra s legendary status was earned as much for his eccentricities as for his unique artistic vision. He developed and propagated a mystifying sci-fi mythology which he weaved into both the music and Dadaist performances of The Arkestra (performances which inspired artists as diverse as George Clinton and MC5). This book collects together for the first time interviews with Sun Ra, the people that knew him, and his contemporaries, alongside illuminating essays and conversational pieces regarding his prolific musical output, mystique, philosophy, fans, and much more.
About the AuthorEDITOR BIO: In 1969, the poet-provocateur, MC5 manager and White Panther John Sinclair found himself the victim of that decade s draconian American drug laws, and facing a twenty-year jail sentence for the possession of two joints. The counterculture Sinclair helped create came to his rescue, however, when John Lennon, Stevie Wonder, Phil Ochs and others performed at a successful benefit gig to petition for his release. Since that epochal moment, Sinclair has travelled the globe and performed with some of the world’s finest musicians. He interviewed Sun Ra in 1966. Also available at this sigining will be a reprint facsimile of the “Poetry is Revolution” poster from 1967 by Leni Sinclair produced in a limited edition of 75 copies, and a reprint of Sinclair’s 1966 book Fire Music: A Record. Both editions have been printed by Book Beat. |
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| Posted in: Detroit & Michigan, General, Music, News & Events, Reading Group | No Comments » |
Bazillion Points Press is releasing Touch and Go: the Complete Hardcore Punk Zine ‘79-’83, and original zine creators and label founder Tesco Vee and Dave Stimson will be here to talk, introduce the book and sign copies. On Saturday Tesco Vee will be playing a show with a line-up of other bands including Negative Approach, original members of Necros, and more at St. Andrews Hall.
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| Posted in: African-American History, Author signings, Detroit & Michigan, Press Release | No Comments » |
Author and Educator Bill Harris Sunday, June 27th
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George Vutetakis, author of Vegetarian Traditions and founder of the legendary Royal Oak, Michigan natural food cafe will be talking about his cooking experience, and signing copies of his new book at Book Beat on Sunday, June 13th from 2-3 PM. Mr. Vutetakis will be in the area to promote his new cookbook , a lavish and full color hardbound edition, that will be inspiration to beginning and advanced cooks interested in healthy eating and sustainable foods. In Vegetarian Traditions: Favorite Recipes From My Years At The Legendary Inn Season Cafe Chef George Vutetakis unveils some of the wildly popular recipes from his trail-blazing years at the award winning Inn Season Cafe in Royal Oak, Michigan. These innovative vegan dishes, focusing on quality ingredients, freshness and seasonality, brought rave reviews and appealed to all palates. Each recipe has a story, with tidbits of food lore from around the world. Entrees, soups, desserts and salads with exciting flavors, textures and presentation are in an easy to follow format with beautifully photographed color pictures. As the vegetarian and vegan life-styles become more and more popular, this cookbook could not be more relevant or current. More than a cookbook, Vegetarian Traditions, is a journey of discovery. Meet the hard-working farmers who provided Chef George with the exquisite produce that went into his delectable and healthy dishes. Discover the benefits of using local, organic and sustainable ingredients while mastering the art of cooking like a chef. |
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| Posted in: Author signings, Book Signings, Detroit & Michigan, Food, Organic Food | No Comments » |
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A timely book discussion with Laura LeeAuthor Laura Lee will be reading and signing her latest book, BROKE IS BEAUTIFUL: Living and Loving the Cash-Strapped Life at Book Beat on Wednesday, April 21st from 7:00-8:00 PM. This will be an entertaining and fun event for all ages, and especially anyone facing the realities of a financial downturn. The Book Beat is located at 26010 Greenfield, in Oak Park. Broke is Beautiful is a fun lighthearted read with wise and witty observations on the “joys of being broke” — its not a how-to guide – but more of a social and cultural book on financial awareness and the lighter side of “debt-free” living in these tight and often high-pressure times. Laura Lee is a local Detroit area author who knows the lay of the land, and lives the broke life proudly. “ “…the key to a feast is not the price or exotic nature of the ingredients, it is the degree to which you savor the experience.” — Laura LeeThe economic downturn has forced nearly everyone into a life of limited means, but author Laura Lee was broke before it was cool. She won’t tell anyone to clip coupons or forego their morning latte—in fact, she won’t give any guidance on how to be saved from a dark financial destiny. Instead she provides readers with a psychological how-to full of fun tidbits. Broke is Beautiful is an insightful compendium of history, inspiration, facts, and humor that all celebrate the lack of money as a gateway to more serenity, self-awareness, and yes, even security. In the tradition of Alain de Botton’s How Proust Can Change Your Life and Eric Wilson’s Against Happiness: In Praise of Melancholy, here is an unconventional take on a subject that is relevant to us all. It is quirky comfort for the (literally) poor soul: offering historical and geographic perspective, ponderings on consumerism and credit scores, and even recipes for ramen noodles. Laura Lee is the author of ten books and is still financially strapped. Check out her blog; Broke is Beautiful -worth checking out for its oddball celebration on the endtimes of consumerism and its fun-loving take on all that is broke, busted and more spiritually evolved. |
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| Posted in: Author signings, Author/artist interviews and lectures, Book Reviews, Book Signings, Detroit & Michigan | No Comments » |
We’re all ignorant, only on different subjects” — Will Rogers
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Autographed copies are now available of HENRY FORD AND THE JEWS – a fascinating book and frightening chapter of American history left out of the history books.
A visitor to Nazi Party headquarters in Munich in the winter of 1922 would have immediately observed a large table covered with copies of the German edition of The International Jew by Henry Ford, and a framed photograph of the industrialist-author hanging on Adolf Hitler’s office wall. In Henry Ford and the Jews, biographer Neil Baldwin reveals the complex tale of how “Heinrich” Ford promoted a virulent brand of antisemitism, disseminating his point of view through a privately-published newspaper, The Dearborn Independent — and how the Jewish American community responded with alarm and courage. Ford eventually apologized with the help of Jewish organizations (whether or not that apology was sincere remains an open question). As he does elsewhere in the book, Baldwin probes the story behind this apology. His concise look at an organized American Jewry beginning to flex its muscles makes this excellent biography a tale of changing American ethnic relations. – Publishers Weekly Neil Baldwin was born in New York City and attended the Horace Mann School. He was a Visiting Student at the University of Manchester, England, and received his B.A. in English from the University of Rochester and his Ph.D. in Modern American Poetry from the State University of New York at Buffalo. |
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| Posted in: Author signings, Detroit & Michigan, Religion | No Comments » |
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