The Mistakes of Yesterday, the Hopes of Tomorrow: The Story of the Prisonaires (American Popular Music)
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.94 (769 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 1558499695 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 136 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2015-08-03 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
E. Sicard said This text brought to life a piece of history I knew little about.. John Dougan's story of the Prisonaires was wonderfully written and thought provoking. The story of these men who became the Prisonaires has a larger story within it. One that Professor Dougan described with ease, allowing the story and all that it is behind to speak volume. Compelling Reading for Music and History Buffs April E. Tuck John Dougan brings to light an important part of American music and race history in an accessible, engaging manner. Dougan does not paint a superficial portrait of a music group. Rather, he provides a broad and compelling rendering of the turbulent times that helped force
You can hear them, if you know how to listen. And Dougan knows how to teach us to listen."Rachel Rubin, coeditor of American Popular Music: New Approaches to the Twentieth Century"An in-depth analysis of the brief career of Sun Records' pre-Elvis one-hit wonders and Tennessee State Penitentiary residents, Mistakes stands at the intersection of musicology and penology, a document of the collision of the music and penal industries in postwar, pre-civil rights-era Music City. "With sophistication and nuance, Dougan demonstrates that the Prisonaires' story is also the story of the American racial obsession, of the judicial system, of the architec
. John Dougan is professor of music business and popular music studies in the Department of Recording Industry at Middle Tennessee State University and author of The Who Sell Out
The book also provides a portrait of Nashville just as it was gaining traction as a nationally recognized music center.. In this book, John Dougan tells the story of the Prisonaires, their hit single, and the afterlife of this one remarkable song. Their brief career and the unusual circumstances under which it flourished sheds light on the harsh realities of race relations in the pre–Civil Rights South. Over the years, other singers and groups would move the song further away from its origins, recasting the deep emotions that came from creating music in a hostile, controlled environment. It would, however, be the group's only hit. The story of the Prisonaires, for all of its triumphs, reflects the disappointment of men caught in a paradoxical search for personal independence while fully cognizant of a future consigned to prison. They were the Prisonaires, a vocal quintet who had honed their skills while inmates at the Tennessee State Penitentiary in Nashville. Early in the morning on June 1, 1953, five African American men boarded a van to make the 200-mile trip from Nashville to Memphis for a