Pearl Primus (1919-1994) blazed onto the dance scene in 1943 with stunning works that incorporated social and racial protest into their dance aesthetic. In The Dance Claimed Me; Peggy and Murray Schwartz; friends and colleagues of Primus; offer an intimate perspective on her life and explore her influences on American culture; dance; and education. They trace Primuss path from her childhood in Port of Spain; Trinidad; through her rise as an influential international dancer; an early member of the New Dance Group (whose motto was "Dance is a weapon"); and a pioneer in dance anthropology.Primus traveled extensively in the United States; Europe; Israel; the Caribbean; and Africa; and she played an important role in presenting authentic African dance to American audiences. She engendered controversy in both her private and professional lives; marrying a white Jewish man during a time of segregation and challenging black intellectuals who opposed the "primitive" in her choreography. Her political protests and mixed-race tours in the South triggered an FBI investigation; even as she was celebrated by dance critics and by contemporaries like Langston Hughes.For The Dance Claimed Me; the Schwartzes interviewed more than a hundred of Primuss family members; friends; andfellow artists; as well as other individuals to create a vivid portrayal of a life filled with passion; drama; determination; fearlessness; and brilliance.
#895921 in eBooks 2011-05-27 2011-05-27File Name: B0052Z80QO
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Best Music Guide EverBy David LindsayThis review refers to The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th Concise Edition). It has over 3000 entries. 1600 pages. and was published in 2007.This is the best guide to popular music that I have ever owned. Although it claims to cover all forms of popular music including jazz. folk. and latin. it is really a rock and pop guide. Only the most famous jazz artists are included. Most entries tend to find something positive to say about each artist. which is a nice touch since a lot of music criticism tends towards bitchiness. There is biographical information on each of the artists and bands. Their albums are rated with a star system that reflects the editors view of the place of each album within the artists body of work. However. 5 star albums are described as magnificent and timeless. The authors claim they belong in every comprehensive record collection. Ignoring compilations: the Beatles have 7 have 5 star albums. Bob Dylan 8. Neil Young 4.and Sting 0.I seem to share similar tastes to the authors. because I agree with their ratings about 90% of the time. I cant say that about the ratings issued by the All Music Guide. There are inevitably some omissions. but it is impossible to include everybody. The major artists like Neil Young. Bob Dylan. and The Beatles are well represented. A lot of underrated British artists like John Martyn and Michael Chapman are included even though they have never enjoyed much popular success.It is a well-written tome so it is easy to spend hours just wading through the entries. I would recommend this book to any pop/rock fan.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Browsing with a good single malt next to you...By FastFolkertI ordered my copy at some years ago but still use it every now and then.Todays up-to-date information on most bands can be found on the internet. but this book (paper) serves a different goal for me.I use it while relaxing on the couch. some espresso or a single malt Scotch at handand good musc on the stero.And then I radomly browse through this book for an hour or so and in most cases I come across some names of bands that I did not know and want to explore...5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. Excellent reference. very reasonable priceBy Arthur MaiselThis is the best type of reference book: fun to browse in and reliable. (Warning: Youll want to buy a lot of CDs after looking at this book.)The coverage of this selection from the complete 10-volume set is impeccable; I found very few omissions that I could quibble with. There are some typos and mistakes (how could there not be?). but almost none in the information relevant to the purpose of the book. All of the articles I have read succeed in Larkins aim of steering a course between an "encyclopediese" recitation of dry facts and the overopinionated critical writing that pop music often suffers from.The selection does favor English and American artists. but most users of the book will probably not find this a major limitation. The authors are at least aware of this byproduct of U.S. pop cultural hegemony.The five-star rating system for albums is relatively new and still has some rough edges: when the author of an article doesnt avail him- or herself of it. the result is that all the albums are rated equally. Since the system is most useful in relative terms (Blonde on Blonde versus. say. Nashville Skyline) and unavoidably subjective. it would be better to omit the stars altogether if the author of an article doesnt want to make distinctions. But its a small point.It is hard to imagine how this could be better in any substantial way.
