Think I’m gonna start things off here by (slowly) catching up with a few interesting books that have come out recently–none of which I’ve read yet, of course, but all of which look, um, “interesting.”
First up: Michael Awkward’s Soul Covers: Rhythm and Blues Remakes and the Struggle for Artistic Identity, described as “an engaging look at how three very different rhythm and blues performers—Aretha Franklin, Al Green, and Phoebe Snow—used cover songs to negotiate questions of artistic, racial, and personal authenticity. ” Haven’t seen any actual reviews of this yet, though I did skim the introduction, and it looks more promising–a little less dry–than that description implies (it struck me as being a very personal book, but I could be wrong).
