Tony Russell

More than twenty years in the making, Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921-1942 documents all country music recording sessions from 1921 through 1942. Until now, discographies of pre-World War II country music recordings were only to be found scattered in journals and fanzines, or in books devoted to single artists. With primary research based on files and session logs from record companies, interviews with surviving musicians, as well as the 200,000 recordings archived at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum's Frist Library and Archives, this notable work is the first compendium to accurately report the key details behind all the recording sessions of country music during the pre-World War II era. In doing so it tells the commercial story of the music's first two decades. From the first recordings of country music, this discography documents--in alphabetical order by artist--every commercial country music recording, including unreleased sides, and indicates, as completely as possible, the musicians playing at every session, as well as instrumentation. This massive undertaking encompasses 2,500 artists, 5,000 session musicians, and 10,000 songs. An introduction explains how to use the book, research methodology, and editorial policy; summary histories of each key record company are also provided, along with a bibliography. The discography includes indexes to all song titles and musicians listed.

More than twenty years in the making, Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921-1942 documents all country music recording sessions from 1921 through to 1942. With primary research based on the files and session logs from record companies as well as the recording archives of the Country Music Foundation, this notable work will be the first compendium to accurately document every commercial country music recording, including unreleased sides. The discography includes alphabetical indexes to all song titles and musicians listed.

Discover the roots of country music with Vintage Country—an illustrated journey through 100+ pioneering artists, styles, and essential recordings. Vintage Country is the first illustrated book to explore the rural and urban roots of country music, tracing its evolution from early recordings and radio days to its 1940s–1950s rise, before Nashville’s dominance. Written by renowned historian Tony Russell, it profiles over 100 key artists and bands, including Jimmie Rodgers, Doc Boggs, Taylor’s Kentucky Boys, Red Foley, DeZurik Sisters, Carl T. Sprague, Hackberry Ramblers, Hank Williams, Molly O’Day, Merle Travis, and the Louvin Brothers. The book is organized into six chapters by style and era: pre-Depression “Old Time” music, Radio Years stars (1930s–WWII), cowboy & western music, Western swing, honky-tonk, and bluegrass. Each entry highlights the artist’s history, influences, and career, with an “essential recordings” list for quick reference. Richly illustrated with posters, sheet music, and artifacts, Vintage Country brings the genre’s origins to life through evocative visuals and expert storytelling, making it a compelling resource for music lovers and historians alike.

Travel the world to see the most incredible trees close up. Take a journey through steamy rainforests, scorching deserts and vast plains to find 36 spectacular trees, from the swamp cypress to the giant redwood. See the rainbow eucalyptus with its multicoloured bark and the Japanese cherry tree dripping with blossom. Find out about the monkey puzzle tree and how it was around at the time of the dinosaurs. Discover the kapok tree with its thorn-covered trunk, and spot the wildlife that lives alongside these impressive species. Discover all these facts and more in this wonderful compendium that you will revisit again and again.

The Poetry of Mr Minevar, Book 2 is a collection of easy reading poems that would appeal to anyone interested in History, Literature or Science. The poems aim to be both enjoyable and informative and to appeal to a wide range of age groups. Ideal as a great present for any occasion.

Den ultimata trädguiden för nybörjare. Det enkla upplägget och tydliga bilderna hjälper dig att snabbt identifiera olika arter. Innehåller över 150 vanliga svenska och europeiska arter.

The Poetry of Mr Minevar is a collection of light reading poems laced with humour, all based on a wide range of subjects from Art, Literature to Science. An ideal birthday or Christmas gift!

In 2015 University Press of Mississippi published Mississippi Fiddle Tunes and Songs from the 1930s by Harry Bolick and Stephen T. Austin to critical acclaim and commercial success. Roughly half of Mississippi’s rich, old-time fiddle tradition was documented in that volume and Harry Bolick has spent the intervening years working on this book, its sequel. Beginning with Tony Russell’s original mid-1970s fieldwork as a reference, and later working with Russell, Bolick located and transcribed all of the Mississippi 78 rpm string band recordings. Some of the recording artists like the Leake County Revelers, Hoyt Ming and His Pep Steppers, and Narmour & Smith had been well known in the state. Others, like the Collier Trio, were obscure. This collecting work was followed by many field trips to Mississippi searching for and locating the children and grandchildren of the musicians. Previously unheard recordings and stories, unseen photographs and discoveries of nearly unknown local fiddlers, such as Jabe Dillon, John Gatwood, Claude Kennedy, and Homer Grice, followed. The results are now available in this second, companion volume, Fiddle Tunes from Mississippi: Commercial and Informal Recordings, 1920–2018. Two hundred and seventy musical examples supplement the biographies and photographs of the thirty-five artists documented here. Music comes from commercial recordings and small pressings of 78 rpm, 45 rpm, and LP records; collectors’ field recordings; and the musicians’ own home tape and disc recordings. Taken together, these two volumes represent a delightfully comprehensive survey of Mississippi’s fiddle tunes.

In 2015 University Press of Mississippi published Mississippi Fiddle Tunes and Songs from the 1930s by Harry Bolick and Stephen T. Austin to critical acclaim and commercial success. Roughly half of Mississippi’s rich, old-time fiddle tradition was documented in that volume and Harry Bolick has spent the intervening years working on this book, its sequel. Beginning with Tony Russell’s original mid-1970s fieldwork as a reference, and later working with Russell, Bolick located and transcribed all of the Mississippi 78 rpm string band recordings. Some of the recording artists like the Leake County Revelers, Hoyt Ming and His Pep Steppers, and Narmour & Smith had been well known in the state. Others, like the Collier Trio, were obscure. This collecting work was followed by many field trips to Mississippi searching for and locating the children and grandchildren of the musicians. Previously unheard recordings and stories, unseen photographs and discoveries of nearly unknown local fiddlers, such as Jabe Dillon, John Gatwood, Claude Kennedy, and Homer Grice, followed. The results are now available in this second, companion volume, Fiddle Tunes from Mississippi: Commercial and Informal Recordings, 1920–2018. Two hundred and seventy musical examples supplement the biographies and photographs of the thirty-five artists documented here. Music comes from commercial recordings and small pressings of 78 rpm, 45 rpm, and LP records; collectors’ field recordings; and the musicians’ own home tape and disc recordings. Taken together, these two volumes represent a delightfully comprehensive survey of Mississippi’s fiddle tunes.

There are many biographies and histories of early country music and its creators, but surprisingly little attention has been given to the actual songs at the heart of these narratives. In this groundbreaking book, music historian Tony Russell turns the spotlight on seventy-eight original 78rpm discs of songs and tunes from the 1920s and 1930s, uncovering the hidden stories of how they came to be recorded, the musicians who sang and played them, the record companies that marketed them, and the listeners who absorbed them. In these essays, based upon new research, contemporary newspaper accounts, and previously unpublished interviews, and copiously illustrated with rare images, readers will find songs about home and family, love and courtship, crime and punishment, farms and floods, chain gangs and chain stores, journeys and memories, and many other aspects of life in the period. Rural Rhythm not only charts the tempos and styles of rural and small-town music-making and the origins of present-day country music, but also traces the larger rhythms of life in the American South, Southwest, and Midwest. What emerges is a narrative that ingeniously blends the musical and social history of the era.

This beautifully illustrated volume, substantially updated for this new large-format edition, is the ultimate reference guide to more than 1300 of the most spectacular, best-loved and unusual trees across the globe, from the huge redwoods of California to the banyan trees of south-east Asia. A comprehensive introduction looks at the origins of trees, how they have evolved over time, and the ways in which they have adapted to suit the variety of terrains in which they thrive. The three directories feature trees from Temperate and Tropical America; Britain and Europe; and Africa, Asia and Australasia. Each entry is accompanied by a hand-painted illustration, and includes identification details such as bark texture; leaf shape and size; flowering time; average height; and overall tree shape. It is an authoritative volume that will form a vital part of every family's natural history library.

This superbly illustrated book is a comprehensive identification reference to over 550 of the most important and best-known trees of Britain and Europe, from Iceland in the north to the Mediterranean in the south. A detailed introduction looks at the origins of trees, their evolution over time and the ways in which they have adapted to suit the variety of terrains in which they thrive. The book then presents an extensive illustrated directory of the most common, popular, prolific or unusual trees, including maps illustrating the region in which each tree can be found. With over 1600 beautiful photographs, artworks and illustrations, this volume is perfect for home or study.

British blues fan Mike Leadbitter launched the magazine Blues Unlimited in 1963. The groundbreaking publication fueled the then-nascent, now-legendary blues revival that reclaimed seminal figures like Son House and Skip James from obscurity. Throughout its history, Blues Unlimited heightened the literacy of blues fans, documented the latest news and career histories of countless musicians, and set the standard for revealing long-form interviews. Conducted by Bill Greensmith, Mike Leadbitter, Mike Rowe, John Broven, and others, and covering a who's who of blues masters, these essential interviews from Blues Unlimited shed light on their subjects while gleaning colorful detail from the rough and tumble of blues history. Here is Freddie King playing a string of one-nighters so grueling it destroys his car; five-year-old Fontella Bass gigging at St. Louis funeral homes; and Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup rising from life in a packing crate to music stardom. Here, above all, is an eyewitness history of the blues written in neon lights and tears, an American epic of struggle and transcendence, of Saturday night triumphs and Sunday morning anonymity, of clean picking and dirty deals. Featuring interviews with: Fontella Bass, Ralph Bass, Fred Below, Juke Boy Bonner, Roy Brown, Albert Collins, James Cotton, Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup, Joe Dean, Henry Glover, L. C. Green, Dr. Hepcat, Red Holloway, Louise Johnson, Floyd Jones, Moody Jones, Freddie King, Big Maceo Merriweather, Walter Mitchell, Louis Myers, Johnny Otis, Snooky Pryor, Sparks Brothers, Jimmy Thomas, Jimmy Walker, and Baby Boy Warren.

British blues fan Mike Leadbitter launched the magazine Blues Unlimited in 1963. The groundbreaking publication fueled the then-nascent, now-legendary blues revival that reclaimed seminal figures like Son House and Skip James from obscurity. Throughout its history, Blues Unlimited heightened the literacy of blues fans, documented the latest news and career histories of countless musicians, and set the standard for revealing long-form interviews. Conducted by Bill Greensmith, Mike Leadbitter, Mike Rowe, John Broven, and others, and covering a who's who of blues masters, these essential interviews from Blues Unlimited shed light on their subjects while gleaning colorful detail from the rough and tumble of blues history. Here is Freddie King playing a string of one-nighters so grueling it destroys his car; five-year-old Fontella Bass gigging at St. Louis funeral homes; and Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup rising from life in a packing crate to music stardom. Here, above all, is an eyewitness history of the blues written in neon lights and tears, an American epic of struggle and transcendence, of Saturday night triumphs and Sunday morning anonymity, of clean picking and dirty deals. Featuring interviews with: Fontella Bass, Ralph Bass, Fred Below, Juke Boy Bonner, Roy Brown, Albert Collins, James Cotton, Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup, Joe Dean, Henry Glover, L. C. Green, Dr. Hepcat, Red Holloway, Louise Johnson, Floyd Jones, Moody Jones, Freddie King, Big Maceo Merriweather, Walter Mitchell, Louis Myers, Johnny Otis, Snooky Pryor, Sparks Brothers, Jimmy Thomas, Jimmy Walker, and Baby Boy Warren.

Using informative, evocative text and stunning imagery, garden writer and broadcaster Tony Russell captures the very essence of the finest gardens within Wales, covering their history, design, plants and personalities along the way. From Anglesey in the north-west to the Wye Valley in the south-east, this book discovers just why Wales is regarded as having one of the best and most diverse collections of gardens in the world. Within these pages you will find grand landscapes such as at Dyffryn and Powis Castle, historical gems like Erddig and Plas Tan y Bwlch, national icons at Bodnant and the National Botanic Garden of Wales, superb garden restorations at Plas Cadnant and Aberglasney, flamboyant designs such as Portmeirion and Dewstow and world-class plant collections at Plas Newydd and Plantasia. All the gardens featured within this book allow public access at some time during the year. The Finest Gardens in Wales is essential reading for anyone with even the slightest interest in gardens and will undoubtedly become a classic in its genre, a book that will appeal to gardeners and non-gardeners alike and will raise the profile of Welsh gardens even further.

This is the third in a series of books celebrating the finest gardens in Britain and follows on from the best-selling 'The Cotswold's Finest Gardens' and 'The Finest Gardens in Wales'. The Finest Gardens of the South West is an inspirational celebration of the very best gardens in the West Country of England, covering an area from Cornwall to the Wiltshire and Hampshire borders. Using informative, evocative text and stunning imagery, garden writer and broadcaster Tony Russell captures the very essence of the fifty finest gardens within this region and explores their history, design, plants and personalities. The diversity of gardens to be found in the South West and within this book is truly astonishing. Within these pages you will find gardens full of subtropical plants, such as Tresco on the Isles of Scilly and Overbeck’s in Devon, modern-day creations at The Eden Project and University of Bristol Botanic Garden, historical restorations at The Lost Gardens of Heligan and Hestercombe in Somerset and botanically important gardens such as the Royal Horticultural Society’s garden at Rosemoor and Trewithen in Cornwall. All the gardens featured within this book allow public access at some time during each year. The Finest Gardens of the South West is quite simply one of the finest books on the subject and essential reading for anyone interested in visiting and understanding gardens. Just like its predecessors, it will undoubtedly become a best-selling classic, a book that works equally as well on the coffee table or as a faithful companion in the car.

[See isbn 9780754834755 for the new updated edition.] This is the ultimate reference and identification guide to more than 1300 of the most spectacular, best-loved and unusual trees around the globe, with 3000 specially commissioned illustrations, maps and photographs. It provides a valuable insight into the life cycle of the tree; the role the constituent parts such as bark, trunk, leaves and flowers play in its development; and the many different environments in which trees thrive. It reveals each tree's growth habits, average height, leaf size and shape, flower and pollination details, texture of bark, needle length, bud development, fruit and dimensions. This beautifully illustrated book is an identification guide to the world's best-known trees, from huge redwoods to small garden trees. It can be used as a field guide or an educational tool to identify species and individual trees, and to learn about how trees grow, their natural environments, and the species and varieties that proliferate around the world. Each entry is accompanied by a hand-painted illustration, and includes identification details such as bark texture, leaf shape and size, flowering time, average height and overall tree shape. This authoritative volume will form a vital part of every family's natural history library.

This title features clear, accessible, informative text from the subject's leading experts, with 800 artworks and photographs. It features stunning visual profiles of each tree that illustrate details of bark, branches, shoots, leaves, needles, buds, flowers, cones, nuts and fruits, as well as changes through the seasons. It includes over 600 examples, from beech, oak, larch, lime and hornbeam to exotic fruit trees such as mango and breadfruit. This wonderful encyclopedia explains what a tree is, how it lives, grows and dies, and how its constituent parts - the buds, branches, flowers, leaves, roots, cones, fruit and bark - all play their role in its life-cycle. An identifier section covers trees of the tropics and trees of the temperate world, and includes over 600 examples, from lofty conifers and stately deciduous broadleaf trees to elegant palms and exotic flowering trees. Detailed descriptions are accompanied by artworks of the whole tree profile in winter and summer, along with images of their defining characteristics. The book is an authoritative visual aid for identifying the tree species of the world.