Reinventing the folktale, the family romance, and the detective narrative all at once, the 10 stories in this collection explore the emotional and spiritual development of characters searching for meaning in life. From an insurance adjustor who has worn the same suit for 20 years to a woman mourning her thrice-dead husband, they all struggle to find themselves in these darkly comical, absurd, yet touchingly poignant short stories.

Featuring lyrics from Paul Simon's ten solo albums, four collaborations with Art Garfunkel, and his Songs from the Capeman, Lyricsis a landmark collection of folk history.

This comprehensive collection from the legendary folk icon features lyrics from each of Simon's 10 original studio albums, as well as lyrics from the renowned Simon & Garfunkel records. 50 b&w photographs throughout.

The definitive biography of legendary singer-songwriter Paul Simon. Paul Simon, one of the country's most popular musicians, has been a dynamic creative force for more than half a century. Now New York Times bestselling biographer Marc Eliot draws on extensive research and original interviews to trace the incredible life and career of this iconic musician. Along the way Eliot examines Simon's early struggles to succeed as a singer-songwriter, the ups and downs of his decades-long collaboration with Art Garfunkel, his at-times obsessive admiration and competitive drive with Bob Dylan, his musical triumphs such as Still Crazy After All These Years and Graceland, the spectacular failure of his Broadway musical The Capeman, and much more. The first comprehensive biography of Paul Simon and his music Explores the complex relationship between Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel through years of their musical breakups and reunions Reveals personal details, with interviews, of Simon's life away from music Includes dozens of exclusive photographs, several published for the first time Whether you grew up listening to classic Simon and Garfunkel songs or came to love Paul Simon's music through his solo albums, this highly entertaining biography will give you a new understanding of this talented artist and the many surprising twists and turns of his life and work as a songwriter, a performer, and an icon of Boomer Generation.

From John Philip Sousa to Green Day, from Scott Joplin to Kanye West, from Stephen Foster to Coldplay, The Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings, Volumes 1 and 2 covers the vast scope of its subject with virtually unprecedented breadth and depth. Approximately 1,000 key song recordings from 1889 to the present are explored in full, unveiling the stories behind the songs, the recordings, the performers, and the songwriters. Beginning the journey in the era of Victorian parlor balladry, brass bands, and ragtime with the advent of the record industry, readers witness the birth of the blues and the dawn of jazz in the 1910s and the emergence of country music on record and the shift from acoustic to electrical recording in the 1920s. The odyssey continues through the Swing Era of the 1930s; rhythm & blues, bluegrass, and bebop in the 1940s; the rock & roll revolution of the 1950s; modern soul, the British invasion, and the folk-rock movement of the 1960s; and finally into the modern era through the musical streams of disco, punk, grunge, hip-hop, and contemporary dance-pop. Sullivan, however, also takes critical detours by extending the coverage to genres neglected in pop music histories, from ethnic and world music, the gospel recording of both black and white artists, and lesser-known traditional folk tunes that reach back hundreds of years. This book is ideal for anyone who truly loves popular music in all of its glorious variety, and anyone wishing to learn more about the roots of virtually all the music we hear today. Popular music fans, as well as scholars of recording history and technology and students of the intersections between music and cultural history will all find this book to be informative and interesting.