Other books that might interest you

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  Nightfly - The Life of Steely...

  Peter Jones

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  Donald Fagen will forever be associated with Steely Dan, the band he formed with Walter Becker and four other musicians in 1972. 
   
   
   
  The smooth, radio-friendly veneer of the duo's songs made Steely Dan internationally popular and famous in the 1970s, but the polish glossed over the underlying layers of anger, disappointment, sleaze, and often downright weirdness lurking just beneath the surface. The elliptical lyrics were—and continue to be—an endless source of fascination. What kind of person was capable of writing such songs? 
   
   
   
  Fagen has always kept his true self hidden behind walls of irony, confounding most journalistic enquiries with a mixture of obscurity and sarcasm. Nightfly cracks open the door to reveal the life behind the lyrics and traces Fagen's story from early family life in suburban New Jersey, to his first encounter with Walter Becker at Bard College, their long struggle for recognition as songwriters, and the formation of Steely Dan. The band's break-up in 1981, reformation in 1993, and Fagen's parallel solo career are covered in detail.

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  Technology and Cities - The Role...

  Lyric Vale

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  In recent decades, technology has become a defining force in the development and transformation of cities. From the industrial revolution to the rise of the internet, technological advancements have continually reshaped urban life, making cities hubs of innovation, connectivity, and economic growth. Today, as cities face growing populations, climate change, and resource constraints, technology plays a central role in addressing these challenges while also opening new possibilities for urban living. The integration of digital technologies, automation, and data analytics is driving what we now recognize as the emergence of "smart cities," where every aspect of urban life is enhanced by technology. These advancements not only improve efficiency but also offer the potential to foster more sustainable, livable, and equitable urban environments. 
  The influence of technology in cities extends across various domains, including infrastructure, transportation, healthcare, and governance. In terms of urban infrastructure, cities are adopting digital systems for managing everything from electricity grids to water distribution, allowing for more responsive and efficient service delivery. Transportation has also undergone a transformation with the introduction of autonomous vehicles, electric cars, and new mobility services like ride-sharing, reshaping how people move within cities and reducing the environmental impact of urban travel. Similarly, the integration of sensors and Internet of Things (IoT) devices enables real-time data collection that informs city management, improving everything from traffic flow to waste management.

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  Tories The: A Tragedy

  Henry Morris

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  'Fantastic' – James O'Brien 
  The brilliant mind behind the Secret Tory presents 14 years of Tory rule – as told by William Shakespeare 
  'O, for a muse of fire that would ascend 
  The brightest heaven of pretention! 
  A kingdom for a stage, Tories to act, 
  Oligarchs to behold the swelling scene!’ 
  So begins The Tories: A Tragedy. In this brilliant new work of political satire, Henry Morris presents fourteen years of Conservative (mis)rule in the only form in which such misfortunes could be portrayed: as a Shakespearean play. 
  In five acts that take in five prime ministers, The Tories: A Tragedy is a captivatingly realised Jacobean tragedy, replete with Machiavellian manoeuvrings, hilarious mechanicals and poignant verse. Publishing in the shadow of the most significant election since the Tories came to power in 2010, this exhilarating, original book is an alternative history of a disastrous reign – a drama that will appeal to those who love Shakespeare, comedy, Shakespeare’s comedies, and those who simply love to laugh at the Tory party. 
  With a keen eye for parodies and humor, Morris masterfully weaves ideologies of conservatism and liberalism into a theater of politics. His playwriting process, a performing art in itself, brings to life the parties and their top players in a non-fiction narrative that is as entertaining as it is enlightening. 
  For fans of Robert Jobson (Diana), Rory Stewart (The Marches), Richard Osman (The World Cup Of Everything), The Secret Barrister (Nothing But The Truth), and Tina Brown (The Palace Papers). 
  HarperCollins 2024

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  Miles Davis' Bitches Brew

  George Grella Jr.

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  It was 1969, and Miles Davis, prince of cool, was on the edge of being left behind by a dynamic generation of young musicians, an important handful of whom had been in his band. Rock music was flying off in every direction, just as America itself seemed about to split at its seams. Following the circumscribed grooves and ambiance of In A Silent Way; coming off a tour with a burning new quintet—called ‘The Lost Band’—with Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea, Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette; he went into the studio with musicians like frighteningly talented guitarist John McLaughlin, and soulful Austrian keyboardist Joe Zawinul. Working with his essential producer, Teo Macero, Miles set a cauldron of ideas loose while the tapes rolled. At the end, there was the newly minted Prince of Darkness, a completely new way forward for jazz and rock, and the endless brilliance and depth of Bitches Brew.Bitches Brew is still one of the most astonishing albums ever made in either jazz or rock. Seeming to fuse the two, it actually does something entirely more revolutionary and open-ended: blending the most avant-garde aspects of Western music with deep grooves, the album rejects both jazz and rock for an entirely different idea of how music can be made.

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  Why the Ramones Matter

  Donna Gaines

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  The central experience of the Ramones and their music is of being an outsider, an outcast, a person who’s somehow defective, and the revolt against shame and self-loathing. The fans, argues Donna Gaines, got it right away, from their own experience of alienation at home, at school, on the streets, and from themselves. This sense of estrangement and marginality permeates everything the Ramones still offer us as artists, and as people. Why the Ramones Matter compellingly makes the case that the Ramones gave us everything; they saved rock and roll, modeled DIY ethics, and addressed our deepest collective traumas, from the personal to the historical.

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  AC DC's Highway To Hell

  Joe Bonomo

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  Released in 1979, AC/DC's Highway To Hell was the infamous last album recorded with singer Bon Scott, who died of alcohol poisoning in London in February of 1980.  Officially chalked up to ""Death by Misadventure,"" Scott's demise has forever secured the album's reputation as a partying primer and a bible for lethal behavior, branding the album with the fun chaos of alcoholic excess and its flip side, early death.  The best songs on Highway To Hell achieve Sonic Platonism, translating rock & roll's transcendent ideals in stomping, dual-guitar and eighth-note bass riffing, a Paleolithic drum bed, and insanely, recklessly odd but fun vocals.Joe Bonomo strikes a three-chord essay on the power of adolescence, the durability of rock & roll fandom, and the transformative properties of memory. Why does Highway To Hell matter to anyone beyond non-ironic teenagers?  Blending interviews, analysis, and memoir with a fan's perspective, Highway To Hell dramatizes and celebrates a timeless album that one critic said makes "disaster sound like the best fun in the world."

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