A journey through the history of country music.

Highlights the life and career of the country music singer who made his way from a small town in Tennessee to a successful career in which he has been named Entertainer of the Year by the Academy of Country Music three times.

Describes the history of music, focusing on 20th and 21st century movements in popular music, groundbreaking musicians of the time period, and how music has influenced social, political, and cultural change.

Highlights the lives and careers of Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush, including how they got together as a group, winning an award for best new artist, performing with other country musicians, and the release of three albums.

A biography of the life and career of country music artist, Brad Paisley.

With opinions and personal testimonies from the artists themselves, this book takes a detailed look at the huge impact that Mexican music and culture has had--and continues to have--on Country music in its various forms. This very American form of cultural expression has changed over the last few years, but Mexico--with its bordertowns, beaches, colonial architecture and ancient ruins conjuring up a range of powerful images--has remained an influential presence in Nashville, Texas, and even places like Australia and South Africa. Featuring contributions from Merle Haggard, Jimmy Buffett, Randy Travis, Dwight Yoakam, Jessi Colter, Johnny Rodriguez and Flaco Jimenez, this book reveals the unique and largely undocumented relationship between "America's Music" and Mexico.

Lonnie Johnson (1894–1970) was a virtuoso guitarist who influenced generations of musicians from Django Reinhardt to Eric Clapton to Bill Wyman and especially B. B. King. Born in New Orleans, he began playing violin and guitar in his father’s band at an early age. When most of his family was wiped out by the 1918 flu epidemic, he and his surviving brother moved to St. Louis, where he won a blues contest that included a recording contract. His career was launched. Johnson can be heard on many Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong records, including the latter’s famous “Savoy Blues” with the Hot Five. He is perhaps best known for his 12-string guitar solos and his ground-breaking recordings with the white guitarist Eddie Lang in the late 1920s. After World War II he began playing rhythm and blues and continued to record and tour until his death. This is the first full-length work on Johnson. Dean Alger answers many biographical mysteries, including how many members of Johnson’s large family were left after the epidemic. It also places Johnson and his musical contemporaries in the context of American race relations and argues for the importance of music in the fight for civil rights. Finally, Alger analyzes Johnson’s major recordings in terms of technique and style. Distribution of an accompanying music CD will be coordinated with the release of this book.