Blues for Dummies by Lonnie Brooks, Cub Koda, Wayne Baker Brooks Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Blues for Dummies
Book Review: For Blues Lovers And Newbies Alike
Summary: 5 Stars
For those seeking to learn more about the blues it's hard to imagine a better primer. This book covers a wide range of artists from Mamie Smith's release of "Crazy Blues" in 1920 through the country blues and Chicago blues up until the blues of today, including substantial coverage of blues influenced rock musicians like Eric Clapton and Bonnie Raitt.
The first 2/3's of the book offers information on the artists in roughly chronological order. While the final 1/3 covers the best CDs, clubs, internet sites and other useful info. Written with passion and style by blues guitarist Lonnie Brooks, this book is an outstanding purchase for anyone who loves the blues or wants to know more about this great form of American music.
Book Review: Good INTRO book
Summary: 4 Stars
If you already know the difference between Delta, Chicago, and Piedmont blues and know more than just Robert-Johnson-Muddy-BB-Sonny Boy-Buddy-John Lee-whoever, you don't need this book. If you really don't know just how diverse the blues really is, how long a history it has, or how influential it has been, this book is a reasonable starting point. You'll get oriented to the major sub-genres, artists, instrumentation, music forms, and milestones. The CD provides a very brief audio guide by giving you samples of various types of blues, using well-known examples.
There's much left out and much that's simplified, but the major points are made, and that's the intent of the book. It succeeds very well.
Once you've digested this, I can recommend "Nothing But the Blues" as a next book: Nothing But the Blues : The Music and the Musicians, which will give you a deeper dive across the history of the blues.
Book Review: Good book ,could be better!
Summary: 2 Stars
I enjoyed reading this book .I especially enjoyed the accompaning CD.I think it was a compehensive book about the Blues.My concern is that it failed to convey the love of music,the distinguised authors obviously have.It has a who is who chapter which I belive is comphensive but still It reads like,for lack of a better description,a phone book.
I have listened to performers performing on a stage tell their own stories or events in Blues music that are fascinating and that just stick in ones mind.And soul and flavor of the music just comes through.Ofcourse performing is not the exactly writing.
Book Review: Great Teaching Tool
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a wonderful book for people that want to learn about the Blues. You just can't go wrong with Lonnie Brooks. The history part is very good and informative. The listed musicians are wonderful. Good research went into this book.
The accompanying CD is pretty good. You can only put so much music on a CD. It must have been a difficult task deciding what songs to include on the CD.
Understand that this work is not complete. There are many musicians and songs that are not listed that should be, however, the attempt to introduce the Blues to the reader is pretty good. Enjoy it.
Book Review: It's got it all
Summary: 5 Stars
I always wanted to learn about the blues but never knew where to start, what records to buy. Some blues records that I heard I really liked, but others I didn't, and I was never sure whether it was the artist, or the song, or the blues themselves that I liked. This book explains all the different kinds of blues music, and it introduces all the artists. I found out a lot about the ones I already liked, got tips on who else I'd probably like (the CD was a big help), and also a complete overview of the history and development of the blues. My roommate has been trying to explain the blues to me for the last year, and now I UNDERSTAND! Even he likes it a lot, by the way, and he knows 9000 times more about the blues than I do.