Book Description
This book explores issues of character facing Christian artists who want to use their gifts more effectively in church ministry.
Customer Reviews:
This book is a must have for your artistic team!.......2007-08-31
This book is great! This is required reading for anyone who wants to join our ministry team, be they actor, musician, vocalist, stage crew or technical staff. It is broken up into easy to use chapters, with group discussion questions at the end of each chapter, as well as "action points". These discussion questions have been proven to be an invaluable tool in evaluating attitudes, expectations and spiritual readiness for ministry. They also give the leader an opportunity to expand on their vision for ministry. This study primarily focuses on servanthood, having a right view and appreciation of your God given gifts and talents, and being a team player and not always having to be "in the spotlight". It sets the bar for serving in an artistic capacity in the church while being sensitive to and encouraging those who serve. I highly recommend it for your artistic ministry team.
Helping Artists to Understand Each Other.......2007-05-17
"The Heart of the Artist" brings to life real situations that happen in church ministry no matter what church or denomination. Leaders that are in charge of these different ministries are not always equiped on how to handle the struggles, situations, and circumstances that happen to them as they lead these ministries. "The Heart of the Artist" reveals Scripture and examples of how to deal with these situations, which when bathed in prayer and studied, will equip any struggling leader on how to handle these situations in the future. Rory Noland has done an excellent job in bringing his experiences and letting God use him to share with all artist on how to better themselves in understanding through Scripture and his advice, what they can do to lead better and how anyone can better themselves with their people skills. It's a book every artist should read to better equip themselves in leading and understanding how to work together as artist to build God's Kingdom.
Heart of the Artist.......2007-03-08
This is an excellent book for anyone wanting to gain knowlege of leading worship. It has been an eye opener and made me think alot. It is wonderful. I recommend it highly.
Okay.......2007-01-19
The arrival time was okay, but the condition of the book did not match the description. There appeared to be some kind of dried liquid stains throughout the book?? Coffee or tea perhaps??
Great tool for Worship Leadership!.......2006-11-10
This has been one of the most convicting and inspiring books. It is a must read for anyone in my leadership team. It keeps your heart as the main issue, and the strive to serve God with the gifts He has given. Rory Noland shows an authentic heart for wanting more of what God has for him. Best ministry book in my library!
Book Description
Brian Jones life was a David vs. Goliath. Young, petite, and naïve, his Goliath was the Rolling Stones money machine. Unlike the Bible, Brian lost his life. This book levels the battlefield by telling what happened to the band’s founder. Written from Brian’s POV, the Stones rise to stardom is chronicled, ending with British authorities lack to properly investigate the bi-sexual bandleader’s death at 27.
Brian recalls being an incest victim, homeless at age 16 and forced into prostitution. Regardless, with extreme talent, sexuality, and imagination he led the band he picked, taught and named to glory. His vision was to bring world music to the Stones catalog; the band declined—content to crank out mundane sounds as long as records sold.
After a fight over musical direction Brian left the band planning to start anew and take the Rolling Stones name with him. Three weeks later he drowned in his swimming pool. Brian’s tale of death threats and witness accounts recount what actually happened.
Customer Reviews:
BRIAN JONES...ANOTHER JFK?.......2007-09-20
I just read a grand review of this book that appears on Vintage Rock www.vintagerock.com.bjones_book.aspx in which the reviewer compares Brian's killing to the conspiracy behind JFK's assassination. What I find most interesting is the complete quiet we hear coming from the British Isles when so many are currently presenting clues and evidence surrounding Brian's death.
Even though Ms. Shepherd's book offers compelling facts relating to his death, she leaves out another suspicious death--that of Graham Bond who would've made a fantastic witness to talk about the threatening phone call Brian received at his "hideaway" only two days before his death. While the author does a dramatic job of re-enacting the events of Bond accepting the phone threat on Brian's behalf, she fails to mention that Bond "accidentally" fell under a train not long thereafter. Before he could personally testify about what he knew. Just as with witnesses who were willing to testify about JFK's assassination, many who were willing to testify about Brian's death also either suddenly disappeared or suddenly died! Coincidence? Think about it.
Lonesome Dove.......2007-09-16
Since I learned this book is supposed to be written from Brian's POV I don't understand why some complain that the author only focuses on Brian's good qualities and doesn't put him down for all the horrible deeds and nasty pranks he was known to have committed against others. I got it right off. Since Brian is talking about himself here, he like any of us wouldn't be sitting down (or standing up LOL) talking badly about himself.
He probably couldn't see all his faults especially since those nasty pranks were mostly committed during his up's and down's mood swings, when he didn't have much control over what he was doing. None of us sees ourselves as others do, and Brian was hurting over losing the friendship and camaraderie of his band mates but he couldn't understand where he had turned them off. Also none of them believed his many ailments that caused him to miss performances and rehearsals. The other Stones thought he was just being a cry baby or lazy but he gave it his best shot. It just wasn't good enough for the healthy ones who couldn't sympathize with his predicament.
In reading this story I got to thinking of Brian Jones as a beautiful Lonesome Dove, bleeding from the inside and not knowing how to get the help and unquestioning love he so badly needed.
WHAT A RIDE!.......2007-09-06
I'm part of a R&B band myself and got to meet Mick and the rest back in the day. So I try making time to read memoirs and such when I get the time. I've not written any reviews before but this story really caught me up. The book took so many twists and turns different than the rest out there that sometimes all stumble on each other with the same info.
I only wish this book would've gone into the story and testimony of Brian's murder earlier. That was the part that fascinated me. Not to say I want to believe it. But it for sure has more proof than anything I've seen before. All the facts come together and I hate to say that even though I don't want to believe what this story says happened, I can't find anything to prove it didn't happen.
I got to talking with others about this who say they heard similar storys for years but never saw it all laid out so totally. We'd like to see this turned into a film. Not like Stoned that is whitewash, but if this book is made into a movie as its written then we'd have something to watch for sure.
I only wonder why the Brits don't want to open the case. There's to much out there to ignore but hey that's on their heads.
CONNECT THE DOTS............2007-09-05
I usually enjoy a good old fashioned murder mystery and decided upon this story for my next unsolved whodunit. I wasn't interested in the history of the Rolling Stones or their music per se but found the idea, that one of their own had been possibly murdered at the behest of some of their own, intriguing to say the least.
Any reader interested in true crime will find the lady author's last 3 chapters plus 3 part epilogue very enlightening; somewhat reminiscent of Agatha Christie. As I read her results, I began to do research myself into each aspect of the crime that was brought up. Amazingly I found there is much evidence out there if one takes the time to actually look for it in press releases, actual testimony plus word-of-mouth tales swapped as to what actually happened to Mr. Jones at the time of his death and shortly thereafter.
It is mind-boggling that British authorities did not and still have not seriously investigated what was flagrantly a murder for hire. I located old magazine articles (and some fairly new) that corroborate a majority of what Ms. Shepherd attests to in her book. I found interesting also the fact that fans of Brian Jones have so viciously attacked her regarding claims of his not-so-well hidden sexual preference and drug use. All that pales in comparison to the fact he was obviously murdered in a most heinous manner by those laughingly hired to protect him!
I cannot understand why more focus isn't placed on what the meat `n potatoes of this book actually is: proof positive that Brian was purposely done away with and afterwards his prized possessions either callously burned in a bonfire (which again British authorities apparently turned a blind eye into investigating) or hauled off by both his band mates and his killers. That's where the reader needs to focus and not on who kissed whom, male or female, or whether Brian was still heavily imbibing drugs and alcohol at the time of his drowning.
I highly recommend this book to all who enjoy connecting the dots and seeing for themselves that the murder of Brian Jones remains mainly a major unrecognized and overlooked cold case crime. For anyone who likes to see justice served we should ban together and demand a complete, honest investigation into this killing.
STEWED & KEEFED.......2007-08-31
The honeymoon between Sir Mick and Keith apparently is at its end. Fragile nerves and high tensions have reached their peak and Keef is lashing out indiscriminately. His latest target is once again Brian Jones-the 63 year old Stone finds the band's former leader easy prey since the dead are hardly ever known to fight back. He believes he'll have a better chance of winning the battle of words against a ghost rather than take Mick on full force.
Oddly the open wound growing between Mick and Keith comes at a time when the author of Straight from the Heart is ready to announce the release of Brian's audiotapes. Word is she's finally received permission from the "keeper of the flame" for all these many years-who's mainly led a reclusive lifestyle since Brian's murder.
As part of the British rock scene during the late Sixties to early Seventies, I'd heard rumors flying that Brian had a hidden stash of tapes he'd recorded. We all figured they were only of music he'd put together during his stay at Cotchford. Now it appears that not only music was being composed while he lived the life of a solitary man, but that he had recorded his memoirs. Quite a feat for someone whom the Stones insisted was too incapacitated due to drugs and drinking to play guitar.
In my humble opinion I believe the author did a gargantuan job in re-enacting Brian's life in such an authentic and often tongue-in-cheek manner.
Average customer rating:
- Backstage with Willie
- THE TAO OF WILLIE: A GUIDE TO THE HAPPINESS IN YOUR HEART
- Product review
- Fun to Read
- Delightful
|
The Tao of Willie: A Guide to the Happiness in Your Heart
Willie Nelson , and
Turk Pipkin
Manufacturer: Gotham
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ASIN: 159240197X |
Book Description
National icon Willie Nelson has evolved over the years from country music outlaw swimming against a Whiskey River to a Zen-like figure of wisdom and contentment. In this autobiographical collection of life advice, The Tao of Willie, one of America's truest hearts reveals the spiritual and practical lessons learned from decades of hard knocks and good bounces.
This inspiring and entertaining collection of "Willie wisdom" takes us from his days as a young boy in Texas where he learns to respect his elders, to his roadhouse days when he united redneck rockers, long-haired hippies and straight-laced country music fans, to the mega-sized benefit concerts and environmentalism that define his boundless heart. And there are plenty of his favorite jokes along the way.
With stories that will both make you laugh out loud and look deep inside yourself, he shows us how the Willie way — and the way of the Tao — can also be your way. Let Willie's common sense approach to life awaken you to the happiness that already exists in your own heart. With Willie as your guide, join the river of life and you'll be carried on an amazing journey.
Customer Reviews:
Backstage with Willie.......2007-09-11
I deployed to Afghanistan in May 2006. The morning of my departure, I received a phone call from both of the authors of this book. Willie and Turk wished me luck and a safe return on my journey. It was a memory that has been with me ever since. Just this past week, I had the fortune of getting to see Willie Nelson in concert (The Last of Breed Tour) for the first time in my 33 years. It was an amazing show and I also had the pleasure of meeting him backstage as he proceeded to the stage to perform with Merle Haggard and Ray Price. What an experience!
While on deployment I was able to read this book. There is little happiness in Afghanistan these days. But every night prior to lights out, I could always count on a smile and a reflection of my life through the words in this book. It was a pleasure to read.
To Willie and Turk...Thank you!
THE TAO OF WILLIE: A GUIDE TO THE HAPPINESS IN YOUR HEART.......2007-08-31
I THOROUGHLY ENJOYED THIS BOOK AND AM AMAZED AT THE WISDOM OF WILLIE. HE HAS CAPTURED GREAT DEPTH IN HIS INTERPRETATION OF THE TAO AND OFFERS IT IN SUCH A WILLIE-READABLE MANNER. THIS BOOK IS A TRUE JOY. DEFINITELY RECOMMENDED TO EVERYONE.
Product review.......2007-08-16
Book in pretty good condition but did have an inscription I was not aware of. Over all it was okay.
Fun to Read.......2007-02-13
This book is so much fun to read. Willie is such a wise man and has some great advice in this book. I would definitely recommend!
Delightful.......2007-01-06
I am a university professor and read many books, but I have not enjoyed a book this much for quite some time. It is a laugh out loud, down to earth book that brings one back to reality while having fun doing it. I put this book on my "read once a year" shelf, and sent copies to others. A quick read, and well worth it! Thanks for the good time, Willie.
Book Description
Winifred Wagner was a British-born orphan who became Richard Wagner’s daughter-in-law, head of the Bayreuth festival, and one of Adolf Hitler’s closest personal friends.
A no-nonsense Englishwoman who displaced Wagner’s formidable widow to become head of the family and the Festival, Winifred fell adolescently in love with Hitler and made Bayreuth the summer gathering place for the Nazi elite from 1933 to 1939. And yet this staunch German nationalist leaped to the aid of Jewish acquaintances and artists as they were increasingly threatened by exile, imprisonment, or death.
Drawing on previously unavailable sources, Brigitte Hamann has produced a meticulously researched and elegantly written biography—the story of the private Hitler and his monumental obsessions, and of the headstrong, dedicated, and misguided woman who remained loyal to his memory until her death in 1980.
Customer Reviews:
Wagner and the Third Reich.......2007-05-11
This biography is for those with a deep interest in classical music history, Hitler and the Third Reich. For those who have the particular interest, this book repays close reading. I must personally thank the author, Brigitte Hamann, for the enormous research project she undertook to bring Winifred Wagner to 21st century readers, and to history. Hamann has meticulously read correspondence, archives, newspapers and conducted personal interviews with those still living. And unlike so many researchers, she brought her story to life in readable language. This is a jam-packed history, brimming with event, and I read almost every word with intense interest. Winifred Wagner's purpose in life was the Richard Wagner festival in Bayreuth, and as head of the festival she maintained a close friendship with Hitler, who was her chief sponsor from 1933 to 1944. The source of this partnership was the so-called "spiritual" relationship between the German nationalist ethos of Wagnerism and the theoretical underpinnings of Nazi Germany. Winifred Wagner was a hyper-nationalist and ardent Hitler supporter since the Munich putsch of 1923, she was a strong anti-Semite as her many letters attest; and yet she extended herself for individuals, especially Jews, many of whom she personally helped and who survived Nazi Germany because of her intervention with Hitler on their behalf. This is fully documented in the book. After the war, unlike most Nazis who hastened to obliterate their past, Winifred Wagner was proud of her friendship with Hitler and made no apologies; never did she try to whitewash her history. She was a remarkable, deeply deluded woman, who ran the Bayreuth festival and headed the Wagner family for many years. Her logistical abilities could easily have been put to deadly use in World War II - luckily, she was buried in Bayreuth where she could do the Allies no military harm! There is no doubt that Bayreuth today is implicated and besmirched by its close Nazi ties. This biography is a brilliant accomplishment. Only toward the end does the story begin to flag as Winifred's life winds down in a series of futile family quarrels. But til then it is a fascinating history. Do read it!
Fascinating historically and musically.......2007-02-13
One of the most interesting books of the many that have been written about Nazi Germany. The book explains the motivation behind the seeming adoration of Hitler by the Wagner family. Having read Friedelind Wagner's book "Heritage of Fire" , it was very interesting to get a more objective account of those years in Bayreuth. The book can be read on several different perspectives and is carefully document. this is a "saver"
FASCINATING INSIGHTS INTO THE WAGNERS AND HITLER.......2005-10-04
The subtitle of this book is important - A Life at the Heart of Hitler's Bayreuth - for Winifred Wagner's institutionalised childhood, her youth with the ageing hippie Klindworth couple and the early years of her marriage to Siegfried are all raced through in around 50 pages (out of 500). Another mere 50 cover the 30 odd years after her de-nazification hearings and the takeover of the Bayreuth Festival by her two sons. The main bulk of this book concerns itself with the 25 years of her relationship with Hitler (and his with the Wagner family and the Festival) and its immediate aftermath.
That said, Brigitte Hamann provides a fascinating and eminently readable account of that relationship. Her attitude towards her subject seems to change as the book progresses. Initially she presents Winifred as a fervently (German) Nationalist, anti-Semitic character, much influenced by the writing and the presence around Wahnfried of her brother-in-law, Houston Stewart Chamberlain, even before she met and fell under the spell of Onkel Wolfi, as the family referred to Hitler. (Incidentally, Chamberlain was also English by birth but, like Winifred, became more German than the Germans.) The older Winifred is a rather different person as portrayed here. Throughout the war, as evidenced by many of the testaments taken from her de-nazification hearings, Winifred became some kind of Schindleresque saint, saving everyone she could from the clutches of her top Nazi friends - friends, acquaintances, friends of friends, people she didn't know at all, jews, gentiles, the lot. One suspects that all this is coloured by Winifred's own practical need for self-justification at those hearings and should be taken with a slightly larger pinch of salt than Hamann seems prepared to. One can accept that there was a certain naivety to Winifred that wouldn't allow her to accept either what was happening to these people or that her beloved Fuhrer had any knowledge of what was being done in his name. But her continued and oft-expressed loyalty to both Hitler and the principles of National Socialism throughout her later life would suggest that her opinions had not changed gthat much since her youth.
What comes clearly out of Hamann's narrative is a Hitler who found in the Wagner family and its mistress a privacy, a domesticity and a family life he so obviously needed and lacked elsewhere. Hamann remains remarkably tacit on whether the Adolf/Winifred relationship was ever consummated. One suspects not. What does come as a surprise, though, is how early in the War the relationship between them broke down. After all those secret midnight trysts in the 30's, it comes as a shock to realise that they didn't meet at all during the last four years of the War and that correspondence between them became more and more infrequent and formal.
Most of the other members of the Wagner family and many around the periphery come out of this book pretty badly. It seems as though there's something in the genes that drives Wagners to the bloodiest and most internecine of family wars. What is currently going on around the succession to possession of the Green Hill and all that goes with it appears to be little more than a re-run of what occurred towards the end of the war with the previous generation. Wieland emerges particularly badly. A spoiled kid determined to get his way and inclined to smash things if he didn't, he played the most political of games in securing the Festival for himself, conducting vicious and potentially lethal campaigns against the likes of Tietjen, Preetorius and even his own mother. And he was certainly the most duplicitous of all of them about his relationship with AH and the party. It transpires that he was actually second-in-command of a local concentration camp in the latter days of the War - something he would never admit to in later life. Wolfgang remains a much shadowier figure - perhaps because he was necessary to the writer for allowing access to the family archives, albeit still severely restricted and censored. Even Furtwangler turns out not have been quite the Parsifalian simpleton, devoted only to his art, that he and his supporters made him out to be after the Fall of Berlin. In fact, both before and after the War he was a dedicated schemer, determined to get the better of Toscanini, Tietjen and later the one he called the `K man', von Karajan, by whatever means it took.
So this book provides a good sprinkling of gossip as well as a fair amount of new material and information about a crucial and shaming period in Bayreuth's history, all meticulously researched and referenced. It also does us the service, like the film Downfall, of showing Hitler as a human being with human foibles and human insecurities rather than just as a mythical ogre - and that is what is so much more frightening.
Book Description
This landmark book enlightens amateur and professional musicians about a way of practicing that transforms a sometimes frustrating, monotonous, and overly strenuous labor into an exhilarating and rewarding experience. Acclaimed pianist and teacher Madeline Bruser combines physiological and meditative principles to help musicians release physical and mental tension and unleash their innate musical talent. She offers practical techniques for cultivating free and natural movement, a keen enjoyment of sounds and sensations, a clear and relaxed mind, and an open heart and she explains how to
Prepare the body and mind to practice with ease
Understand the effect of posture on flexibility and expressiveness
Make efficient use of the hands and arms
Employ listening techniques to improve coordination
Increase the range of color and dynamics by using less effort
Cultivate rhythmic vitality
Perform with confidence, warmth, and freedom
Photographs show essential points of posture and movement for a variety of instruments.
Customer Reviews:
Good Musicianship is in the practice room.......2007-08-27
This book is written to help you improve your ideas and mental outlook toward daily practice.. Ms. Bruser goes into the importance of technical correctness, including posture and movement, but she really inspires us to approach practice with a different attitude. I play the tuba as an amateur. After reading her book, I began to practice more, but I actually may spend less time playing notes. Musicianship implies technical expertise, but this book is really written to help you improve your artistic musicality and learn to make music with passion, intelligence and sensitivity. To do this, you must approach each practice much like a performance, or a master class with you as your own clinician. Practice is not just face time with your instrument..
A wonderful insight into making music.......2007-01-20
There are some incredibly useful insights into making music. Madeline Bruser suggests getting into a routine and following it daily. Much emphasis is on avoiding practice-related physical and mental injuries. For serious musicians, it eliminates much of the angst surrounding each practice session and brings back the joy that ultimately is the fundamental reason to play.
Another book to check out: Effortless Mastery: Liberating the Master Musician Within by Kenny Werner (an absolutely killer jazz pianist)
on amazon and elsewhere: [...]
The Art of Practicing.......2006-11-06
Inspiring, readable book with wonderful advice for improving musical performance through physical, intellectual, and emotional exercises. Visualizations are simple and effective. I'm recommending it to all my serious piano students.
A valuable resource for all musicians.......2006-07-20
Madeline Bruser's compendium on her Art of Practicing seminars will prove valuable to all musicians who feel that the physical/mental stresses of life affect their playing. For a long time I suffered from a sore left wrist after a several hour practice session at the piano which was a result of built up tension and using inefficient motions. After correcting the height of my bench (to be higher) and studying Bruser's text (specifically the chapters on stretching/basic mechanics) I have begun to learn to play in a much more relaxed and efficient manner. Her book is inspiring and full of radiant ideas. I would recommend it to anyone who feels that their practicing has become stagnant or whose expression and speed is being held back by forceful and tense playing.
A must have for serious teen music students.......2006-02-28
I bought this book for my 16 year old flautist. She read and re-read this book until the words seem to come off the page. It totally inspired her practice sessions for upcoming concerts. The difference was phenominal !!
Customer Reviews:
Wonderful Story.......2005-05-28
I have the audio cassette of A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes, and it is beautiful. I've listened to it several times in my car. I don't tire of it because it is a human story. Annette Funicello suceeded on her own -- her father was an auto mechanic and her mother stayed at home. This is an inspiration to children and even adults.
Fresh, lively writing and colorful anecdotes .......2005-05-06
Surprisingly absorbing and lively recollections from Annette Funicello, one-time Mouseketeer and Disney darling who was the only teen-mouse to graduate to the big screen via "Babes In Toyland" and the "Beach Party" and "Merlin Jones" comedies. Annette comes clean about being the only Mouseketeer kept on contract by Walt Disney after MMC ran its course, and she contemplates why that was and how her co-stars struggled without Disney's guidance. She is very upfront, but also a little indifferent to her own good fortune, embarrassed and innately shy about a career that just fell into her lap. She says she never aspired to fame, but got it regardless. The book continues its interesting narrative even after Annette marries and retires, cleaning the house the day she heard Walt Disney passed, and eventually realizing her marriage was out of gas. Fate dealt Annette (and all her fans) a bitter hand when she was diagnosed with MS, which she still continues to fight, but her inspiring conclusion to the book gives all of us hope.
Relatively engaging, but missing a lot.......2002-10-12
As a fan of the "pop" movies and music of the 1960's, I've had a long term interest in the author. So I opened up this book not just curious, but perhaps somewhat already knowlegable about Annette, particularly her "post-Mickey Mouse club" career and life.
And perhaps that's why I give this book at best 3 stars.
Annette and Patricia Romanowski (perhaps the names should be the other way around, one gets the sense reading this -- given much of the vocabularily used and the quality of the writing -- that Romanowski, not Funicello wrote most of it; nothing against Annette, but I have a hard time believing a woman with just a high school education writes this well) really cherry-pick way you learn about.
Fine, I understand that's the nature of celebrity "autobiography," but this one goes too far. It over-focuses heavily on certain stories (her adolescent relationship with Paul Anka, making it out to be a lot more than it probably was) and completely ignores others.
As example, some of the messy "politics" that went on in the cast of the original Mickey Mouse club -- everything is warm and fuzzy in Annette's version -- remain unmentioned.
The book also glosses over Annettes entry into the American International Beach Party movies. In the book, Annette implies Walt Disney simply offered her a script one day for a film named "Beach Party." Well, the story isn't quite that simple:
Annette's entry in the series came partly because she and Walt Disney knew she desperately needed a change in career direction. By early 1963, Annette was 20 and had clearly grown out of her "kiddy" positioning as a Mouseketeer. Walt did his best, but could only find so many internal opportunities for a "grown up"" Annette. She'd appeared in a handful of live action movies for Disney, and still made occasional appearances on his Sunday TV show, but this wasn't leading to any starring role opportunities outside of his company. Also, a pop singing career that started in 1959 and produced a handful of hits had slowed down (by early 1963, Annette hadn't charted in almost 3 years). As a result, when AIP approached Walt, looking for an affordable, beautiful brand-name leading lady who could sing for their new, trendy "surfing" movie, he immediately saw an opportunity to fix his "what-do-I-do-with-Annette" problem. With his blessing (Annette was still under contract to Disney,) a deal with AIP was quickly finalized.
But you'll never hear about any of that in this book.
Also, Annette repeats an infamous "urban legend" about the Beach Party series.
Since she was still under contract with Disney while appearing in these movies, Annnete claims Walt Disney insisted in negotiations with AIP that she never be involved in any "suggestive" sequences. Specifically, she says Walt insisted she could not be filmed wearing anything that "showed her navel." Annette goes on to state that through the course of 6 Beach Party movies, she never wore anything that showed her navel "out of respect" for Mr. Disney.
Well, irrespective of what Walt supposedly requested/desired, Annette apparently forgot about the bathing suits she wore during early scenes in both Muscle Beach Party and Bikini Beach: in the former, a white supposedly "tummy-covering" two piece, and the latter an honest to goodness blue and white bikini. Both of these at times clearly left her navel 100% uncovered and readily viewable to anyone who isn't asleep (the "navel appearance" is brief and somewhat subtle in Muscle but obvious and extensive in Bikini, particularly in the scenes where Annette first gets involved with Avalon's "Potato Bug" character). As far as navels go, Annette's is nice, but hardly anything to get all hot and bothered over (particularly in the context of the distraction produced by all the other undulating, bikinied females floating around in those scenes). Frankly, one is really left wondering what all the fuss was about.
The book also completely ignores Annette's post Beach Party career at American International Pictures, an intriguing period that had a lot to do with her "retiring" from acting when she did.
Botttom line: one ends up respecting the author - she is indeed is the class act and lady you always presumed - but frustrated, knowing there's a lot more to her story.
I ACTUALLY WANT THE MOVIE ON TAPE OR DVD.......2002-01-30
This is the very touching autobiography of Annette Funicello. It is acurate because she is in it and so is Frankie Avalon and some other people played themselves, too. Linda Lavin does a good job playing her mom. It is very well acted and detailed.
One Of The Best Books I Have Ever Read.......1998-12-31
Since I've been a fan of Annette ever since day one on the Mickey Mouse Club, how can I not rate it as number one. She's the best.
Customer Reviews:
Inside the heart of Tupac Amaru Shakur.......2007-04-13
Tupac Shakur was shot again on September 7th, 1996, but instead of recovering from his injuries this time, a week latter he died. In this book, "inside A Thug's Heart with original poems and letters by Tupac Shakur" you will explore the emotions, thoughts, feelings, and out looks Tupac has for Angela Ardis or `Ms. Lovely' as he calls her. When at work one late night, Angela and he co-workers are playing around. One of the co-workers asked, " If you could have a `ruffneck' who would it be?" Angela says she would pick Tupac. Everyone laughs at her choice; for at the time he was in jail and everyone also thought he was no good. So a bet was made that she couldn't get in touch with him. Well it just so happens she did. She sent him a letter that stood out from the rest, one that smelled and looked nice. Inside the letter she gave him her number so he would be able to call and a picture so he would know what she looked like. With in one day he replied to with a phone call and soon followed by a letter. Now they're writing to each other. In Tupac's letters he expresses himself in so many ways you never hear the media talk about before. He is forward and honest, plus he wrote wonderful poems. What you read in this book you would never expected from Tupac. You think by the way he raps and acts on T.V. and/or magazines is the way he acts 24-7, but its not. There's another side to him. In fact there are seven as he explains in one of his letters.
My favorite part of the book is each and every time you get to read his letters and poems. It's my favorite part because I get to see the other side of idol. I get to know more about Tupac then what the media portrays. Also get its my favorite part because when I was reading his poems and letters I could feel what was getting at. You get to take a look into a real thug's heart. To show you what mean, below is one of my favorite poems written by him called " 4 those nights when u r alone".
U ever share your love with a stranger
Only To realize he was a long lost friend?
Ever Talk 2 A Man like u talk with a woman
And share what you can't with other men?
Can u picture your love being given
2 A criminal stuck in this hell
Can u promise 2 hold off from Judging him
Until the day when you know him well
Can u close your eyes and imagine
If everything went Right
The power of passion finally possessed
After all those sleepless nights
I bet you think I'm gaming you
Just like all the men in your past
Cuz' all of them promised u heaven on Earth
But none of them seem 2 last
After All, What can I offer u?
Besides lonely nights & sweet words
Promises of pleasures 2 come
And lines you've already heard
All I, can say is have faith in me
And in Time maybe you'll come 2 c
The definition and true meaning
Of friendship can be discovered in me
In my opinion this book is one of my all-time favorites and I would most recommend it. I recommend it mostly to Tupac fans because you get to see that there is more to him then what you hear from the media. Also because when you read it, you feel as though you where there when it was written. So if your looking for a good book to read I would recommend you read this one.
A crucial historical document........2006-01-06
I feel blessed that we are able to have access to these letters between Ardis and the late Tupac A. Shakur, and I thank Afeni Shakur (the executor of her son's estate) for allowing Ms. Ardis to publish this correspondence.
Some folks will question the motivation behind releasing these letters, an understandable criticism in this age of vapid kiss-and-tell celebrity culture. What does Ardis stand to gain from this? Is she exploiting her relationship with Shakur solely for personal gain? Fair questions yes, but in light of the fact that Shakur is no longer with us, the only connections that we have to him are through the artifacts that he left behind: his music, films, and personal documents. Collecting and preserving these artifacts is important for understanding the context of Shakur's life, his profession, and the society that he lived in.
The historical significance of this correspondence between Ardis and Shakur cannot be overstated. Here, we are exposed to Tupac Shakur as a human being, away from the exploitive glare of the media spotlight, during what was perhaps the most difficult time of his life, when he was imprisoned in upstate New York for sexual abuse. Confined in a place where he had only himself and his thoughts, he is compelled to reach out to a fan who decided to send a letter to him on a dare. For those of us who think we know all there is to Mr. Shakur, the intimacy and vulnerability displayed in his letters to Ardis is a real eye-opener.
Readers see multiple sides of Pac: friendly, inquisitive, erotic, humorous, frustrated, angry, depressed, reflective, obstinate, and self-critical. He reveals himself to be what astute observers knew all along: a deeply intelligent, spiritual, and complex human being. His uninhibited communication style allows the dialogue between him and Ardis to develop fully, and these two strangers share passions and secrets that most people would conceal from close loved ones. From reading this book, I gained tremendous insight into this person who is no longer with us.
My one criticism of the book is the title. Obviously the publishers saw the marketing potential of the "thug's heart" reference, being that Shakur's public image is defined by this term. However, I do not nor have I ever believed that Tupac Amaru Shakur was a thug. This word was thrown around by Shakur, his record company, his fans, his detractors, and the media as both a term of praise and an epithet. It's loaded with so many contradictions, namely racism and hypermasculinity, and it's a label that too many young Black men are saddled with, for whatever reason. The fact that Shakur was a Black man killed in his youth makes calling him a "thug" even more egregious.
More than just a kiss-and-tell memoir, "Inside a Thug's Heart" is a strongly recommended resource for any serious student of hip-hop and American cultural history.
We LOVE you TUPAC!.......2005-12-20
I would like to thank Angela for allowing us (the readers) inside the intimate relationship that she shared with Tupac. With each letter I felt the sincerity of Tupac's words. Even though many reviewers felt she got played, I didn't feel that AT ALL! He was honest and upfront with her. Initially, she didn't set out to fall for him. BUT, who can blame her?? I was mushy after reading every letter. So many WISH they could have shared a little piece of Pac. Angela had more than a little piece of him... she had his mind. Who cares if it was temporary?
Angela, thank you sooo much for sharing.
Greatest Book In The World.......2005-10-27
This is one of the best books I've ever read in my life. Tupac is just one of the best artist. His life is so amazing. I am like In love with him!!!!! I love reading all his books and all the review's because they all speak the truth, they always have the best review's , well duh it's the best book to read!!!!!! I'm 1 in a million 14 year old girls that love him.
Inside a Thugs Heart.......2005-09-24
I agree with most of the other people that commented on this book, Angela was definitely played. I think the book would have been much better without all of her comments (fantasies.) It was nice to see another side of Tu Pac through his letters to her.
Customer Reviews:
Not as good as I'm with the Band........2006-09-12
still a good read, but not the same magic as the 1st book.
She's cute honest and insightful - this is an eye opener.......2006-04-11
C'mon- she's not a PHD candidate at some university- this is not critical literature- it's just her rock and roll story. I found it very telling that she lived for so many years as a codependant housewife in a dysfunctional high profile relationship. A very intriging follow up to her first book. I like her and I liked the book, (as well as I'm with the Band.)The two books are an eye opener to just how macho and swaggering the rockers of old really are. Why begrudge Pamela?
pass on this one.......2003-07-15
Don't waste your time or money. This poor woman. Failed marriage when her husband Michael DesBarres finally sobered up he is humiliated when she writes about her slutty past in book one. She's like a birthday cake where everyone got a piece, and Michael Des Barres got one that everyone had their hands all over. It all began with her drunkard father who was never home then she began trying to get attention of high powered rock stars who used her up like toilet paper. You'll cry for her son who was plagued with emotional problems. Then you will cry from boredom and her awful writing.
I liked the book!.......2002-04-12
Sure, it wasn't as wild as her first book, "I'm With The Band: Confessions of a Groupie", but she's starting to grow up! I guess it has to happen! I still enjoyed the book. There's a lot of growth here as a person. She's determined not to be a doormat and starts confronting issues head-on. Like her not so perfect marriage, her father's death, and past relationships. I love her description of Jimmy Page, how she started to see him in an entirely different way. IMO, he was a hypocrite to call her a "bimbo" and trash her book. Pamela is an excellent writer, even if the subject matter isn't quite as tittilating as her first book.
Don't Bother with This One!.......2002-04-12
I'm sure lots of people have bought this book, hoping for more name-dropping, drug-taking fun, and like me have been very disappointed. Des Barres is no writer, and this story of her more settled-down wifely days is duller than dirt. If you enjoy reading an ex-druggie's regrets and lamentations about her husband's continued use (until he too goosesteps the AA way),her abject failure as an actress, and her son's (surprise, surprise!) messed up adolescence, go ahead and waste your money. The only amusing episode in the whole book (or at least the parts I didn't skip over through boredom) concerned Des Barres' infatuation with Sandra Bernhard, but that occupied but a few pages as Bernhard had the sense to avoid entanglement with the self-styled "queen of the groupies." Des Barres doesn't seem to understand that what made _I'm With the Band_ entertaining was that the things she was doing were fun and outrageous. Must be hard knowing all the good parts of your life are over. I hear there's a third book -- think I'll pass.
Book Description
The Unquenchable Worshipper issues a passionate call for a return to an unadulterated, first-love lifestyle of worship. In his first book release, respected worship leader and songwriter Matt Redman writes: "The revelation of God is the fuel for the fire of our worship. And there is always more fuel for the fire. When we open the eyes of our heart, God's revelation comes flying at us from so many different angles." Open the eyes of your heart and let the gut-level message of The Unquenchable Worshipper cause you, like martyred missionary Jim Elliot, to say, "Saturate me with the oil of Thy Spirit, that I may be aflame. Make me Thy fuel O flame of God."
It's time to dive into the heart of worship-will you take the plunge?
Customer Reviews:
The very practical book on worship........2007-01-12
I'm a worship leader in NJ and I've require all our musicians and vocalists to read this book. My philosophy is that everyone doing worship during a service is leading the congregation in worship. Not just the one who may talk or sing the most. This book by Matt Redman is a valuable help to everyone involved with a worship team or seeking to understand what worship is all about in a deeper way. Do yourself a favor and read this wonderful devotional type book by a very experienced composer and worship leader. It will enhance your own time with the Lord and make you a better worship leader for your church.
The Irresistable Read.......2007-01-09
This book was recommended to me by a fellow marathoner. It reads quickly, and you will want to read in a single sitting. It speaks well of the heart and relentless desire of the worshipper of Jesus, to give Him endless and countless praise and worship for His work on the cross. It's also penned by a dude with amazing musical gifts. I will probably re-read many times,as it validates one's desire to worship even in the midst of the storms of life..........
The Unquenchable Worshipper: Coming Back to the Heart of Worship (Worship Series) .......2006-02-25
We were taken back to the Heart of Worship!!!!
you're not alone.......2006-01-01
Ever feel like no one else gets it? Like you sometimes can't connect with other people who although share your faith, seem to have a different taste for God than you do?
In my opinion this is the book for you. I found myself finishing this book in a short time because not only did I feel challenged, but I realized that I'm not a complete failure simply because I struggle in my focus on my God.
Matt lays out a very profound and understandable set of lessons that will help you understand what life long/ eternity long worship really is.
This isn't the gospel according to Matt or any book of vague ideas. It's a great devotional on intamacy and thirst for our God.
As a worship pastor/ youth pastor of a church I can't tell you what a blessing this reading really is.
Great Inspiration to Clear Your Heart to Worship.......2005-08-07
I highly recommend this little book for its insight and its heart to Seek GOD and to find Him when you seek Him with all your heart. Though he is my favorite male Christian singer/song writer and this book is about worship the heart of the book is Jesus and knowing Him and laying aside the sin that so easily besets us. I was inspired, touched and enlightened by this book and I pray it sets the same fire in you as it did in me to cleanse our own temples with His presense and importance.
Whatever was written to worship leaders applies to all. Do you find yourself self conscious in worship well guess who your looking at. Do you find others and their worship distracting who are you looking at? Who is the center of your worship can you get lost in Loving the LORD and forget all around you. This and more is discussed with a heart to the answer Jesus.
In chapter 9 a dichotomy is discussed that very much spoke to my heart. Having found Christ or been found by Him we are filled with Him yet still hunger? In fact the Hunger and desire only increases. Well, if we are to never thirst then how is this possible, I let Matt answer that. Also the fire of justice and perfection is implanted in us as we know This isnt the way it ought to be. Very important and enlightning.
A good companion to this book would be Lou Giglio's The Air I Breathe. GOD bless and enjoy and grow in the Grace and Knowledge of our LORD and Saviour Jesus Christ. JB
Book Description
A tale of forbidden love and inevitable death, the medieval legend of Tristan and Isolde recounts the story of two lovers unknowingly drinking a magic potion and ultimately dying in one another's arms. While critics have lauded Wagner's Tristan and Isolde for the originality and subtlety of the music, they have denounced the drama as a "mere trifle"--a rendering of Wagner's forbidden love for Matilde Wesendonck, the wife of a banker who supported him during his exile in Switzerland. Death-Devoted Heart explodes this established interpretation, proving the drama to be more than just a sublimation of the composer's love for Wesendonck or a wistful romantic dream. Scruton boldly attests that Tristan and Isolde has profound religious meaning and remains as relevant today as it was to Wagner's contemporaries. He also offers keen insight into the nature of erotic love, the sacred qualities of human passion, and the peculiar place of the erotic in our culture. His argument touches on the nature of tragedy, the significance of ritual sacrifice, and the meaning of redemption, providing a fresh interpretation of Wagner's masterpiece. Roger Scruton has written an original and provocative account of Wagner's music drama, which blends philosophy, criticism, and musicology in order to show the work's importance in the twenty-first century.
Books:
- The Invisible Wall: A Love Story That Broke Barriers
- The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography (Oprah's Book Club)
- The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography (Oprah's Book Club)
- The Musical Mind: The Cognitive Psychology of Music (Oxford Psychology Series, No. 5)
- The Musician's Guide to Theory and Analysis
- The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (20 Volume Set
- The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (20 Volume Set
- The NPR Curious Listener's Guide to Classical Music (NPR Curious Listener's Guide To...)
- The Pema Chodron Collection: Pure Meditation:Good Medicine:From Fear to Fearlessness
- The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock and Roll: The Definitive History of the Most Important Artists and Their Music
Books Index
Books Home
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Thriving as an Artist in the Church: Hope and Help for You and Your Ministry Team (Willow Creek Resources)
New Worship, The, exp. ed.: Straight Talk on Music and the Church
An Hour on Sunday: Creating Moments of Transformation and Wonder
The Worshiping Artist: Equipping You and Your Ministry Team to Lead Others in Worship
The Unquenchable Worshipper: Coming Back to the Heart of Worship (Worship Series)
