Band People
Life and Work in Popular Music
Format:Hardback
Publisher:University of Texas Press
Published:10th Sep '24
Currently unavailable, our supplier has not provided us a restock date
A close look at the lives of working musicians who aren’t the center of their stage.
Secret (and not-so-secret) weapons, side-of-the-stagers, rhythm and horn sections, backup singers, accompanists—these and other “band people” are the anonymous but irreplaceable character actors of popular music. Through interviews and incisive cultural critique, writer and musician Franz Nicolay provides a portrait of the musical middle class. Artists talk frankly about their careers and attitudes toward their craft, work environment, and group dynamics, and shed light on how support musicians make sense of the weird combination of friend group, gang, small business consortium, long-term creative collaboration, and chosen family that constitutes a band. Is it more important to be a good hang or a virtuoso player? Do bands work best as democracies or autocracies? How do musicians with children balance their personal and professional lives? How much money is too little? And how does it feel to play on hundreds of records, with none released under your name? In exploring these and other questions, Band People gives voice to those who collaborate to create and dissects what it means to be a laborer in the culture industry.
[Nicolay's] original research...makes for fun reading...and goes deep on a neglected population of musicians...A lively...peek at the artistry at the edge of the stage. * Kirkus *
A perceptive portrait…Taken as a whole, these profiles succeed in complicating the ‘lone genius’ narrative of artistic creation and raising provocative questions about how society values the production of music. It’s a captivating look at what it means to occupy the complicated space ‘between a career and a calling.’ * Publishers Weekly *
Riveting…The book’s research and testimonials reinforce one another to great effect. * Foreword Reviews *
In [Nicolay's] book, the clichés of rock ‘n’ roll have refreshingly taken a back seat to the struggles of talented freelance professionals in a competitive business...The choice to keep the focus on a smaller segment of the musicians allows his story to delve deeper into a particular subculture of musicians as opposed to getting lost in the wide range of books Band People could be. * Rock and Roll Globe *
[Band People is] a candid look at the lives of musicians who don’t spend as much time in the spotlight—all conveyed with a virtuoso’s touch. * Inside Hook *
[Band People] reads like a thoughtful fusion of business textbooks, oral history, and heartfelt documentary, but without the glossy schmaltz or soft-focus lens...I thoroughly enjoyed the book...[which] serves as the craft-centric inverse of well-known mythologies like Our Band Could Be Your Life. * Bearded Gentlemen Music *
By illustrating other people's successes in creative relationships, [Band People] allowed me to better understand and articulate my own similar successes. * Boing Boing *
ISBN: 9781477323533
Dimensions: 229mm x 152mm x 36mm
Weight: 626g
296 pages