[audiobook] 1;000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (1;000... Before You Die Books) by Tom Moon at Arts-Photography

Review

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Hours of entertainment- hey wait- see new noteBy PraderNew note: it appears that this entire book is on the 1000recordings.com website. The layout on the website actually makes it easier to read than the Kindle edition. Check out the website before buying the book.If you have diverse interests in music. this is the book for you. The book may not be as useful if you only listen to one type of music and are already very familiar with those recordings (for instance if you only listen to classic rock).Of course. if you do not have any way to listen to the listed recordings. then this book might be somewhat pointless. However. it is fun to read about a recording. (e.g.. an early 40s blues guitar recording; or a modern classical piece; or a 60s zydeco recording; or an early punk rock record etc.) and then listen to the recording at the same time using a service like Rhapsody.The Kindle edition of this book is a good buy at $2.99; however. I think a hard copy of the book might be better because youll do a lot of flipping back and forth between the chapters and appendices and a real book is better for this.I have noted that for the included classical and opera pieces. the author often chose really old recordings. Sure. these might be highly regarded classic recordings of these pieces. but they also sound like crap compared to modern recordings. I am quite sure that there are great recordings of these classical masterpieces that are not 60 or 70 years old.5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. One of the most expensive books I ever bought...By Marcus BurrowsWell OK. the book didnt cost that much. but its impact certainly did. On one level this book makes an informative read that should develop a curiosity about the music that surrounds us all. Some reviews criticize it for not being the definitive list of all that is best; well. OK. maybe that is the case. but I took from this book that it was just a list and that in digesting its contents there should grow inside you a curiosity to find your own 1001 that may or may not include elements of this list. That you should go out and listen to this list or indeed find your own is enough; you have found your music and felt what it does to you. Aha! But can/do/should you stop there? Maybe I took things a bit too far as I sought out not the CD from the local music store (well come to record store in a minute) but as much of the original recordings as I could find. Yes. I sought out the vinyl where it was on vinyl. CD where it was on CD and 78 where it was on 78 and actually bought them (not all 1001 I assure you! Just the ones I wanted to hear...) hence the book being expensive; most you can get for under ten dollars. but start looking for mono Rolling Stones or Hendrix first pressings from the UK with intact inner materials etc and it will start to cost...)Yes. it is all still out there; eBay being the obvious choice among rival bidders - but you get the choice of good enough. 1st pressing or cheap and playable depending on your budget. preference etc. Then you have the local thrift stores and record stores where people dump those piles of vinyl from the attic - recycling. perhaps? Wherever it comes from. you can find it and this is the core of my message. If you can find it to rent (local library) or buy (eBay. thrift etc) get the original and hear it as it was supposed to be heard. This book will literally jump out at you and you will thirst for more...That music was crafted long ago by those who sought to bring an experience to their listener and did so according to how its reproduction should sound (or at least as best they could manage within the boundaries of the technology at the time...Jelly Roll Morton. Memphis Minnie and Bix Beiderbecke for example). There have been many treatises on the reproduction of music - especially classical. written not for the LP but for the salon or concert hall - but to experience it in the medium that brings the intent of the composer/writer/performer alive should not be missed. From within that medium comes the textures and dimensions modern compression for our disposable noise in the background music media have destroyed or lost along the way....then you will have found your music. It wont be that of the reviewers. nor necessarily the same list. but you will have experienced what music can do as well as understand where it comes from and how it has developed. Buying this book will begin a journey you can enjoy and share with others too. learning of their tastes and perspectives and sharing yours - to say nothing of nostalgia etc.Tell you what...go down to the local record store. find a good copy of an album (and I mean an LP you own on CD) you think you know (according to taste...) and play it in the store. See what you think. Enjoy.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Recordings to Add to You Life ListBy Literary DivaIf you are a baby boomer trying to grab gusto before you check out. this is the book for you. Now you can make sure that eery recording worth listening to has crossed your ears. Personaly. I used it to make sure my iPod collection was complete. Has made cruising the recycled records stores much easier. I may not agree with all his opionions. but at the least it give me a chance to be sure I havent missed anything major. Im not sure I need to be told to listen to Pet Sounds or many of the other chosen recordings. but in case I lived in a cave for a few years there. nothing will be left to chance. Definitely a must buy.