PDF Famous Fun Christmas; Book 5: For Intermediate Piano by Carol Matz in Arts-Photography

Review

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. Highly Recommended For Long Time Elvis Costello FansBy Michael P. McCulloughI think the information in this book was high quality and enriched my enjoyment of a record that has been one of my favorites for the past thirty years. As a bonus a couple of other related EC albums are discussed as well (Get Happy; This Years Model).Being American; Ive been listening to these songs for many years without full appreciation of the British social and historic allusions. I mean; I knew that Oswald was Oswald Mosley; not Lee Harvey Oswald; and so on - but there are a lot of subtleties I had missed.Also; it is interesting how many references there are to fascism in this record. I dont think I missed any of these over the years but I never added them up to see the cumulative effect.The author made much of the Columbus incident. I can recall when that happened. Back then Rolling Stone was THE rock magazine and they relentlessly flogged EC issue after issue after the bar brawl with Bonnie Bramlett. I was so sick of it that I didnt renew my subscription over it. I wish the author had gone through back issues of Rolling Stone that followed that incident. Every single one had some sort of jab at EC - and when they put him on the cover with the headline Elvis Costello Repents" they made sure they featured that particular cover on the blow in subscription card for a year or so afterward - as if his head was a trophy similar to the cover of *Spike.*Im not sure why the material in the book was presented in the way it was - it seems like the manuscript had been set on an outdoor table; a wind blew it all over the front lawn; and it was gathered up and published in a sort of random order - but it works. This book is highly recommended for fans of Elvis Costello.2 of 3 people found the following review helpful. An Irritating Little BookBy Pete ZolliSome good and interesting info about Armed Forces...Mixed with a seemingly obsessional focus on The "Columbus Incident" (in which EC drunkenly said unkind things about James Brown and Ray Charles to Bonnie Bramlett)...And increasingly irritating digressions on ALL MANNER of topics. All of them are (to the patient mind) eventually revealed to relate in some way to the matter at hand; but as these tangents presented themselves; my reaction was often; "Oh; COME ON! Talk about the freakin record already!"If you really dig the record; and can get the book cheap... And are a patient and charitable reader... Give it a shot.4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. Stick with itBy T. SnookAll the praise and all the criticisms in the polarizing reviews here are accurate. The format of the book is a challenge; no doubt. It doesnt have a linear structure; it goes on tangents and jumps around in no logical order (well; except for alphabetical). At first this was annoying to me; but as I read on the beauty of the approach became clearer .. by taking chronology out of the narrative; we see Armed Forces in its totality; and the focus is on the end result of the process of making the album rather than focusing on the process itself. If youre an EC fan; I recommend this; but be prepared for an unconventional read that takes some getting used to.