With Summerfest kicking off this week in Milwaukee, it seemed only appropriate to delve into the rich musical legacy of the Midwest. Being bookish, I went to the written word.
There’s no shortage of writing about music or even writing by musicians, despite that old cliche that “writing about music is like dancing about architecture.” But words have their place, particularly in making sense of something as diverse and ultimately personal as music. The list below is not a definitive be-all-end-all list nor is it a list of the “best.” The wide range of musical styles, sounds, and formats (critical study, anthology, memoir, to name a few), not to mention ways to write about music would make that an impossible and possibly ridiculous task. This list is, instead, a starting place for appreciating the musical legacy of our region.
With thanks to WPR’s music guru David Hyland, here’s a round-up of books about remarkable individual talents, musical phenomena and scenes, and offbeat stories of Midwestern musicians to get you in the mood for Summerfest and a summer of live music.
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Read on!
Les Paul and Mary Ford. Public Domain
Wisconsin
“Summerfest: Cooler by the Lake: 40 Years of Music and Memories” by Dave Tianen
“Paramount’s Rise and Fall: A History of the Wisconsin Chair Company and Its Recording Activities” by Alex van der Tuuk
“Bon Iver” by Mark Beaumont
Les Paul
“The Early Years of the Les Paul Legacy: 1915-1963” by Robb Lawrence
“The Modern Era of the Les Paul Legacy: 1968-2009” by Robb Lawrence
“Les Paul: An American Original” by Mary Alice Shaughnessy
“Les Paul: In His Own Words” by Les Paul and Michael Cochran
Liberace
“Behind the Candelabra: My Life With Liberace” by Scott Thorson and Alex Thorleifson
“Liberace: An Autobiography” by Liberace
“The Wonderful Private World of Liberace” by Liberace and Michael Segell
“The Things I Love” by Liberace
Prince. Yves Lorson (CC-BY)
Minnesota
The Replacements
“The Replacements: All Over But the Shouting, An Oral History” by Jim Walsh
“Trouble Boys: The True Story of the Replacements” by Bob Mehr
Prince
“Let’s Go Crazy: Prince and the Making of Purple Rain” by Alan Light
“I Would Die 4 U: Why Prince Became an Icon” By Toure
“Prince” by Matt Thorne
“Prince: Inside the Music and the Masks” by Ronin Ro
Bob Dylan
“Chronicles” by Bob Dylan
“Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades Revisited” by Clinton Heylin
“Down the Highway: The Life of Bob Dylan” by Howard Sounes
“No Direction Home: The Life and Music of Bob Dylan” by Robert Shelton and Elizabeth Thomson
“Bob Dylan” by Anthony Scaduto
The Supremes.Public Domain
Michigan
“Detroit Rock City: The Uncensored History of Rock ‘n’ Roll in America’s Loudest City” by Steve Miller
“MC5: Sonically Speaking, A Revolution of Rock’n’Roll” by Brett Callwood
“Guitar Army: Rock and Revolution with the MC5 and the White Panther Party” by John Sinclair and Michael Simmons
“Divided Soul: The Life Of Marvin Gaye” by David Ritz
“Gimme Danger: The Story of Iggy Pop” by Joe Ambrose
“Snakes! Guillotines! Electric Chairs!: My Adventures in The Alice Cooper Group” by Dennis Dunaway and Chris Hodenfield
Motown
“Motown: Music, Money, Sex, and Power” by Gerald Posner
“Where Did Our Love Go?: The Rise and Fall of the Motown Sound” by Nelson George
“Dancing in the Street: Motown and the Cultural Politics of Detroit” by Suzanne E. Smith
“Recollections The Detroit Years: The Motown Sound By The People Who Made It” by Jack Ryan, Thomas J Saunders
“Standing in the Shadows of Motown: The Life and Music of Legendary Bassist James Jamerson” by Dr. Licks and James Jamerson
“To Be Loved: The Music, the Magic, the Memories of Motown : An Autobiography” by Berry Gordy
“One Nation Under A Groove: Motown and American Culture” by Gerald Lyn Early
“Before Motown: A History of Jazz in Detroit, 1920-60” by Lars Bjorn and Jim Gallert
Diana Ross/The Supremes
“Diana Ross Reflections” by Ian Phillips
“Diana Ross: A Biography” by J. Randy Taraborrelli
“Dreamgirl and Supreme Faith: My Life as a Supreme” by Mary Wilson
“The Lost Supreme: The Life of Dreamgirl Florence Ballard” by Peter Benjaminson
“Secrets of a Sparrow” by Diana Ross
Muddy Waters. Jean-Luc Ourlin (CC-BY-SA)
Illinois
“Touch and Go: The Complete Hardcore Punk Zine ’79-’83” by Tesco Vee, Dave Stimson
“Moanin’ at Midnight: The Life and Times of Howlin’ Wolf” by James Segrest and Mark Hoffman
“Chicago Blues: The City & the Music” by Mike Rowe
“Exploring Chicago Blues: Inside the Scene, Past and Present” by Rosalind Cummings-Yeates
“Chicago Blues” by Libby Fischer Hellmann
“Chicago Jazz: A Cultural History, 1904-1930” by William Howland Kenney
“Curtis Mayfield” by Peter Burns
“I’ll Take You There: Mavis Staples, the Staple Singers, and the Music That Shaped the Civil Rights Era” by Greg Kot
“Spinning Blues Into Gold: The Chess Brothers and the Legendary Chess Records” by Nadine Cohodas
“Wilco: Learning How to Die” by Greg Kot
Muddy Waters
“Can’t Be Satisfied: The Life and Times of Muddy Waters” by Robert Gordon
“Muddy Waters: The Mojo Man” by Sandra B. Tooze and Eric Clapton
Sam Cooke
“Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke” by Peter Guralnick
“You Send Me: The Life and Times of Sam Cooke” by Daniel J. Wolff and S. R. Crain
Styx
“The Grand Illusion: Love, Lies, and My Life with Styx” by Chuck Panozzo
“The Grand Delusion: The Unauthorized True Story of Styx” by Sterling Whitaker
The Jackson 5. Public Domain
Indiana
“Mellencamp: American Troubadour” by David Masciotra
Michael Jackson
“Michael Jackson: The Complete Story of the King of Pop” by Lisa King
“Moonwalk” by Michael Jackson
“Michael Jackson: The Magic, The Madness, The Whole Story” by J. Randy Taraborelli
“Michael Jackson: The Early Years” by Budd Draper and Michael Jackso
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