In Memphis, Tennessee, in the 1950s, there was hard-edged blues playing on Beale Street, and hillbilly boogie on the outskirts of town. But at Sam Phillips’ Sun Records studio on Union Avenue, there was something different going on – a whole lotta shakin’, rockin’, and rollin’. This is where rock ’n’ roll was born. Sun Records: the company that launched Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, and Carl Perkins. The label that brought the world, “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Whole L...

The history of the record studio that birthed rock 'n' roll and launched the careers of some of America's legendary music stars.Memphis, Tennessee. The early 1950s. The Mississippi rolls by, and there's a train in the night. Down on Beale Street there's hard-edged blues, on the outskirts of town they're pickin' hillbilly boogie.At Sam Phillips' Sun Records studio on Union Avenue, there's something different going on. "Shake it, baby, shake it!" "Go, cat, go...

In his brief life, Hank Williams created one of the defining bodies of American music. Songs like Your Cheatin' Heart, Hey Good Lookin' and Jambalaya sold millions of records and became the model for virtually all country music that followed.But by the time of his death at age twenty-nine, Williams had drunk and drugged and philandered his way through two messy marriages and out of his headline spot on the Grand Ole Opry. Even though he was countr...

This official guide chronicles the story of the birthplace of country music as told by the people who were there. Escott presents the official inside history of the home of country music, offering fans an exclusive look into the heart and soul of country music. Full color, and packed with photos from the Opry Archives covering 80 years of history.

The Grand Ole Opry has been home to the greatest legends of country music for over eighty years, and in that time it has seen some of conutry music's most dramatic stories unfold.We'll hear of the great love stories ranging from Johnny Cash and June Carter in the 1960s to Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood, who married in 2005. We'll get the truth of the tragedies that led to the loss of three stars all in the same month, starting the rumor of the "Opry Curse." We'll learn how after b...

" Nelson's unmistakable voice shines through . . . funny, inspirational and bawdy, with a well-honed sense of humor." — Kirkus ReviewsIn Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die, Willie Nelson muses about his greatest influences and the things that are most important to him, and celebrates the family, friends, and colleagues who have blessed his remarkable journey. Willie riffs on everything, from music to poker, Texas to Nashville, and more. He shares t...

If you wanted a picture of the life of Elvis Presley, who better to paint it for you than someone who worked as his trusted cook and maid at Graceland? Someone whose daily tasks centered around keeping the King of Rock & Roll happy, whose every move was designed to please the greatest music legend the entertainment world has ever known. Here is that picture, as painted by Nancy Rooks. Nancy worked for Elvis from 1967 until his untimely death in 1977. Read her stories of what those years we...

Boozing. Womanizing. Brawling. Singing. For the last forty years George Jones has reigned as the country's king--the singer many have called the Frank Sinatra of country. And for most of that time, his career has been marked by hard-living, hard-loving, and hard luck. From his early east Texas recordings through his marriage with Tammy Wynette to his latest acclaim as a solid citizen and "high-tech red-neck," Americans have been fascinated with Jones, never even knowing whether he's going ...

GEORGE & TAMMY IS NOW A LIMITED SERIES—STARRING JESSICA CHASTAIN AND MICHAEL SHANNONGeorgette Jones—the only child of country music’s “First Couple,” George Jones and Tammy Wynette—pens a memoir about life with her parents and the journey back to a relationship with her estranged father.The marriage of George Jones and Tammy Wynette was hailed as a union made in honky-tonk heaven. And when little Tamala Georgette Jones was born in ...

I Love You a Thousand Ways is the story of one of the most loved, respected, and imitated singer/songwriters in the history of country music, a man whose songs touched the lives of millions of people. Lefty Frizzell’s relaxed style of singing proved to be a huge influence on a wide variety of country and pop music stars such as Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison, George Jones, John Fogerty, George Strait, and Tim McGraw.In addition to his incredible vocal talents, L...

Award-winning songwriter Linda Thompson breaks her silence, sharing the extraordinary story of her life, career, and epic romances with two of the most celebrated, yet enigmatic, modern American superstars-Elvis Presley and Bruce JennerFor the last forty years, award-winning songwriter Linda Thompson has quietly led one of the most remarkable lives in show business. The longtime live-in love of Elvis Presley, Linda first emerged into the limelight during the 1970s ...

Velvet-voiced Jim Reeves was not only one of the world's most popular — and enduring — recording stars, he was one of the most fascinating. Now, in this truly intimate and scrupulously well-researched biography, author Larry Jordan sets the record straight, dispelling rumors and misinformation that have swirled around Reeves for decades. More than 11 years in the writing, this riveting bio is based on hundreds of interviews with the people who knew Jim best, as well as his personal diaries...