Bill Withers's classic anthem to friendship lives on in this moving children's picture book adaptation. "Lean on me When you’re not strong And I’ll be your friend I’ll help you carry on . . ." Lean on Me is an endearing children's picture book that beautifully demonstrates the power of friendship, based on Bill Withers's classic song of the same name. “Lean on Me” appeared on Withers's 1972 album Still Bill. The song reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and ranked #208 on Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list. With Withers's lyrics and illustrations by Rachel Moss, this picture book follows four close friends through the stages of their childhood, from elementary school until their high school graduation. Withers’s classic and loving refrain serenades them as they lean arm-in-arm into adulthood.

Gary Wright's hit song is reimagined as a fantastical picture book to delight dreamers of all ages. "Oo-hoo dream weaver I believe you can get me through the night Oo-hoo dream weaver I believe we can reach the morning light..." Dream Weaver is a vibrantly illustrated picture book based on Gary Wright's 1975 breakout single from his platinum-selling album The Dream Weaver, which has sold over two million copies. "Dream Weaver" peaked at #2 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart and reached #1 in Canada. The song's popularity continued long after its release, and in 1991, Wright recorded a new version for the Wayne's World soundtrack; the soundtrack reached #1 on Billboard's soundtrack album chart and also sold over two million copies. "Dream Weaver" continues to appear in films and TV shows to this day. With lyrics by Gary Wright and illustrations by Rob Sayegh Jr., this magical picture book follows a little boy's dream of a train that takes him all the way to the moon. Poised to become a bedtime classic, Dream Weaver is the perfect opportunity for parents to share this timeless song and will surely spark the imaginations of young and old alike.

EBONY is the flagship magazine of Johnson Publishing. Founded in 1945 by John H. Johnson, it still maintains the highest global circulation of any African American-focused magazine.

Popular music studies is a rapidly expanding field with changing emphases and agendas. The music industry has changed in recent years, as has governmental involvement in popular music schemes as part of the culture industry. The distinction between the major record labels and the outsider independents has become blurred over time. Popular music, as part of this umbrella of the culture industry, has been progressively globalized and globalizing. The tensions within popular music are now no longer between national cultural identity and popular music, but between the local and the global. This four volume collection examines the changing status of popular music against this background. Simon Frith examines the heritage of popular music, and how technology has changed not only the production but the reception of this brand of sound. The collection examines how the traditional genres of rock, pop and soul have broken down and what has replaced them, as well as showing how this proliferation of musical styles has also splintered the audience of popular music.

This book creates a platform for music educators to share their experience and expertise in creative music teaching and learning with the international community. It presents research studies and practices that are original and representative of music education in the Japanese, Asian and international communities. It also collects substantial literature on music education research in Japan and other Asian societies, enabling English-speaking readers to access excellent research and practical experiences in non-English societies.

Popular music studies is a rapidly expanding field with changing emphases and agenda. This is a multi-volume resource for this area of study

Decoded is a book like no other: a collection of lyrics and their meanings that together tell the story of a culture, an art form, a moment in history, and one of the most provocative and successful artists of our time. Praise for Decoded “Compelling . . . provocative, evocative . . . Part autobiography, part lavishly illustrated commentary on the author’s own work, Decoded gives the reader a harrowing portrait of the rough worlds Jay-Z navigated in his youth, while at the same time deconstructing his lyrics.”—Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times “One of a handful of books that just about any hip hop fan should own.”—The New Yorker “Elegantly designed, incisively written . . . an impressive leap by a man who has never been known for small steps.”—Los Angeles Times “A riveting exploration of Jay-Z’s journey . . . So thoroughly engrossing, it reads like a good piece of cultural journalism.”—The Boston Globe “Shawn Carter’s most honest airing of the experiences he drew on to create the mythic figure of Jay-Z . . . The scenes he recounts along the way are fascinating.”—Entertainment Weekly “Hip-hop’s renaissance man drops a classic. . . . Heartfelt, passionate and slick.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)