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I'm never really sure how to put a price on a book, but from the outset let me say that anyone wanting to get hold of this volume are going to have to put their hands deep into their pockets. Mine cost me forty pounds, but when you look at the layout, the photographs, the sheer size of this enormous tome you can't begrudge paying it. This really is more than a book, it is a beautiful object, an affectionately constructed work of art. The pages are rich in personal recollections, memorabilia and the most fabulous pictures. Ahmet has clearly bestowed as much love and care on this project as he did on any of the records he produced. Anyone wanting to buy it should understand that this is the history of a record label, and not a book about soul music in its purest form. The book tells the stories not only of its R&B stable, but its Jazz, Rock and Country artists as well. It is told through a series of personal quotations by both artists and producers arranged in a chronological order. These are supplemented by a series of essays on key points in the evolution of Atlantic Records. If I am to be perfectly honest I did not really like this concept and would far have preferred a single author telling the tale from start to finish. For me the text became far too disjointed with quotes from artists of the different genres all being mixed together by a time defined criteria rather than a musical one. Maybe I made a mistake in reading it from start to finish and should have treated it more as a reference book, something to be dipped into for smaller more manageable chunks. If I had done this I suspect I might have appreciated it more. The book ends with a timeline which was much more to my taste, a logically constructed and sequential year by year account of the key events in the evolution of the company. Atlantic has always been identified as a 'soul' label, even by rock and jazz stars. For this reason I was disappointed by the volume of soul content it contained. Less than a quarter of the text concerned itself with soul and less than a third of the pictures. In my opinion the rock bands were bestowed a disproportionate amount of page space compared to their importance to the label. Don't be misled by this statement, there is much in this book which will be of great interest to the soul fan, the old photographs and memorabilia in particular. The problem is that it is mixed up with a lot of stuff that isn't. In summary, this is a really beautiful volume and well worth the expensive price tag it commands. It is tastefully constructed and can genuinely lay claim to being a 'work of art'. It's written content however is disappointing and I really dislike the concept of constructing such a massive text based upon chronologically organised quotations without any linking text. I also felt that soul music did not really its fair share of page space. If you are interested in this book then be aware of its limitations and buy it for reference rather than for devouring as a whole. Despite its weaknesses it is still a very impressive tome to have on your bookshelf.
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Why Not visit the Authors other Website, 'The Alternative Blackpool Website' at http://www.localdial.com/users/jsyedu133/bpool This Site Last Updated 18/05/05
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