For more than 100 years, the Pacific Northwest has been making music history. In this new retrospective, rare photographs evoke the musical memories of days gone by, from the earliest 19th-century brass bands to Roaring Twenties jazz combos, 1940s hillbilly twangers, 1950s rhythm-and-blues singers, and generations of rock 'n' rollers, including the original 1950s rockabillies, 1960s Louie Louie-era garage bands and psychedelic acid-rock acts, 1970s punks, and 1980s new-wave artistes and heavy metal headbangers. Readers will discover how a scrappy backwoods region struggled to build the necessary infrastructure to eventually create a viable music industry and an underground scene that would ultimately earn global recognition as the home base of the 1990s grunge movement.
Author and observer of the Northwest Music Scene, shows his expertise and insight into the rich history of the internationally recognized Northwest Music Scene. The book is a "must read" for anyone who wants a chronological account of the growth, successes and failures of literally hundreds of musicians, albeit brief, likely due to publisher's constraints. Many of the photos and other graphics are, and will be, new to many readers. Wisely, Blecha pays homage to the various cultural differences that were evident, particularly in the Seattle area, which despite its "liberal" claims, indeed, had (and some say has) a DARK SIDE. Hopefully, in subsequent books, Blecha will explore the imbedded racism that was all too apparent to those of us who were there, and will shed light on the phony politcal correctness that many self-styled liberals avoid discussing with respect to the music scene, and arts in general. Obviously, this book is not that forum, but many artists whom history has forgotten, are finally recognized for their contribution to this unique historical period in Northwest Culture. This is highly recommended for anyone who wants to explore the roots of the Northwest Sound.
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