It was supposed to be a car dealership. Instead, it became one of the most famous American music venues of all time... Only one place in the whole world can claim to be both the Carnegie Hall of western swing and the penultimate stop on the Sex Pistols’ infamous American tour. Now, for the first time ever, all the secrets of the hottest honky-tonk of the 20th Century—Cain’s Ballroom—are revealed, in the words of the people who made it happen. Spanning the famed venue’s first 75 years, from 1924 through 1999, Twentieth-Century Honky-Tonk tells it all, from Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys—who became a national sensation with their clear-channel ballroom broadcasts—to U2, the Police, and Van Halen—as Cain's became an essential stop for breakout acts and cosmic cowboys. The book also covers cutting-edge alt-rock acts, metal bands, and off-the-wall attractions like ladies’ mud wrestling (which worked) and Pig Time Racing (which didn’t).

Only one place in the whole world can claim to be both the Carnegie Hall of western swing and the penultimate stop on the Sex Pistols' infamous American tour. Now, for the first time ever, all the secrets of the hottest honky-tonk of the 20th Century-Cain's Ballroom-are revealed, in the words of the people who made it happen.

Earthy, sexy, and vivacious, the life of beloved country singer, Patsy Cline, who soared from obscurity to international fame to tragic death in just thirty short years, is explored in colorful and poignant detail. An innovator?and even a hell-raiser?Cline broke all the boys' club barriers of Nashville's music business in the 1950s and brought a new Nashville sound to the nation with her pop hits and torch ballads like ?Walking After Midnight," ?I Fall to Pieces? and "Crazy." She is the subject of a major Hollywood movie and countless articles, and her albums are still selling 45 years after her death. Ellis Nassour was the very first to write about Cline and did so with the cooperation of the stars who knew and loved her?including Jimmy Dean, Jan Howard, Brenda Lee, Loretta Lynn, Roger Miller, Dottie West, and Faron Young. He was the only writer to interview Cline's mother and husbands. This updated edition features not only a complete discography and a host of never-before-published photographs, but includes an afterword that details controversial claims about her birth, the battle between Cline's siblings for her possessions, the amazing influence Cline had on a new generation of singers and, in Cline's own words from letters to a devoted friend, her excitement as her career soared to new heights and her marriage descended to new depths.

"Billy Parker will always be one of the greats…I’m proud that he has this autobiography to really show who he was and is." ~ Dolly Parton A lover of country music and broadcasting from his earliest days, Billy Parker took his first tentative steps into both those fields while still in his teens, leading to lasting renown as both a top-rated deejay and country recording artist. Following a stint as the front man for Ernest Tubb’s famed Texas Troubadours, Billy returned to his native Oklahoma, where he originated one of the first nationally known overnight radio shows of the ‘70s. For years, Billy’s voice rode nightly over the mighty airwaves of the original KVOO, a 50,000-watt flamethrower that spread Billy Parker’s Big Rigger show all across the country. Later, as program director for the station, he helped many country performers at all levels, becoming well-known for giving everyone a fair shake, regardless of their stature in the industry. Thanks – Thanks A Lot doesn’t just refer to the famous hit record he cut back in the 1960s; it’s also Billy Parker’s sincere nod to those who helped make him what he is today: a performer with several national hits; a trailblazing, multiple-award-winning deejay; and—as the call letters of the station that brought him stardom indicate —nothing less than the Voice of Oklahoma. "Billy was so important to the Oak Ridge Boys. He helped break all our songs and the Midwest followed. Billy was a trusted voice of radio. I am so blessed that our paths crossed and we became good friends for over five decades." ~ Duane Allen (of the Oak Ridge Boys)

This book focuses on 50 of the most important entertainers in the history of country music, from its beginnings in the folk music of early America through the 1970s. Divided into five distinct categories, it discusses the pioneers who brought mountain music to mass audiences; cowboys and radio stars who spread country music countrywide; honky-tonk and bluegrass musicians who differentiated country music during the 1940s; the major contributions that female artists made to the genre; and the modern country sound which dominated the genre from the late 1950s to the mid-1980s. Each entry includes a brief biography of the chosen artist with special emphasis on experiences which influenced their musical careers. Covered musicians include Fiddlin' John Carson, Riley Puckett, Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Bob Wills, Bill Monroe, Hank Williams, Sr., Dale Evans, June Carter Cash, Loretta Lynn, Buck Owens, Roy Clark, Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard.

A gorgeously illustrated and hugely entertaining story of America's most popular music and the singers and songwriters who captivated, entertained, and consoled listeners throughout the twentieth century—based on the eight-part film series. This fascinating history begins where country music itself emerged: the American South, where people sang to themselves and to their families at home and in church, and where they danced to fiddle tunes on Saturday nights. With the birth of radio in the 1920s, the songs moved from small towns, mountain hollers, and the wide-open West to become the music of an entire nation--a diverse range of sounds and styles from honky tonk to gospel to bluegrass to rockabilly, leading up through the decades to the music's massive commercial success today. But above all, Country Music is the story of the musicians. Here is Hank Williams's tragic honky tonk life, Dolly Parton rising to fame from a dirt-poor childhood, and Loretta Lynn turning her experiences into songs that spoke to women everywhere. Here too are interviews with the genre's biggest stars, including the likes of Merle Haggard to Garth Brooks to Rosanne Cash. Rife with rare photographs and endlessly fascinating anecdotes, the stories in this sweeping yet intimate history will captivate longtime country fans and introduce new listeners to an extraordinary body of music that lies at the very center of the American experience.

Traditional Country & Western Music presents historical photographs, memorabilia, and stories about an enduring music genre that took root in America from the late 1920s through the mid-1930s. Although many of our early folk songs originated from the British Isles, Jimmie Rodgers (the "Father of Country Music") and Gene Autry ("America's Favorite Singing Cowboy") became the foundation of modern country and western music. Many regional styles and variations of country and western music developed during the first half of the 20th century, including hillbilly, bluegrass, honky-tonk, rockabilly, southern gospel, Cajun, and Texas swing. Local artists, live radio shows, and regional barn dance programs provided entertainment throughout the Great Depression, World War II, and into America's postwar years. During the 1950s, country and western music became homogenized with the Nashville sound and the Bakersfield sound. By the end of the 1960s, country music completed its move to Nashville, and "western" was dropped from the equation. This book recalls the golden age of country and western music from the late 1920s through the 1960s. Each of the featured artists and programs in this book were once household names. We celebrate these early legends, live radio and television shows, unsung heroes, and local performers from Maine to California.