Music books, advice for gift purchases. Second part

Like every year, as the great Christmas gift rush approaches, I suggest some books that you could usefully consider as a gift for a friend… or for yourself. We range between genres and themes (and cover prices) hoping to be able to provide the right idea for each of you. Here is the first part of the article, published yesterday.

John Lennon & Yoko Ono
Mind Games
Rizzoli Lizard, 304 pages, 50 euros

In conjunction with the (many) re-editions of the “Mind Games” album, this luxurious, mainly photographic, large format book was also released, which collects, presumably edited by Yoko, photographs, drawings, memorabilia, testimonies of those who contributed to the album recording, notes, handwritten texts connected to the period of the couple’s temporary separation (the so-called “Lost weekend”). Very nice, for amateurs, collectors, completionists and fans.

Andrea Pedrinelli
Vasco Rossi, Rewind
304 pages

Carla Spessato
Franco Battiato, like a spell
320 pages

The Lunatics
Pink Floyd, the infinite river
384 pages

Franco Zanetti
The Beatles’ (most) white book
512 pages

Giunti has begun to re-propose, in a “pocket” format, the volumes of his series “The stories behind the songs”, already reviewed in this column upon their first release. The content is the same as the original editions, “compacted” thanks to the reduction in the size of the print character. The price is also reduced, and is 16.90 euros for all the books listed above.

Paola Jappelli and Gianni Scognamiglio
The great story of Bruce Springsteen
Hoepli, 278 pages, €29.90

What is the difference between this book and any of the many others published (also in Italy) on Bruce Springsteen? That this was written by two “professional” enthusiasts: Paola Jappelli is vice president of the Pink Cadillac Bruce Springsteen Fan Club, and manages, together with the co-author, the PIT, a cultural center based in Naples dedicated entirely to the study of the Boss. The co-author is Gianni Scognamiglio: founder (in 1977) and president of the aforementioned fan club. Preceded by an introduction by David Sancious and one by Elliott Murphy (we published the second here), the book, extensively illustrated and full of boxes and insights, is naturally recommended to fans.

Ivan Canu
Brief history of K-Pop
Salani, 504 pages, €22.50

“Short” is for Dre: it’s more than 500 pages, and not written too small either. The author, who is an illustrator and art director, says in the preface that he began to be interested in K-Pop in the summer of 2022: he has evidently delved into the subject vertically, if he managed to put together this detailed overview of the most emerging music scene of recent years. I confess that I have not (yet) read the book, and moreover the undertaking is demanding; in the meantime, however, I can tell you that it seems exhaustive to me, and that the illustrations are very beautiful (I imagine that not including photographs is also a choice to save money, space and expense).

Giovanni Battista Menzani
In Liverpool with the Beatles
Giulio Perrone Editore, 224 pages, 16 euros

It is not a tourist guide, nor even the simple account of a pilgrimage to Beatles places; it is instead a sort of travel diary made on the basis of a passion, that for the Liverpool Four, which pushed the author to retrace the places where the epic of the Fab Four was born and grew. It is written with competence but also with participation; if you decide to follow in Menzani’s footsteps, bring the book with you, it will be very useful.

Red Canzian
One hundred words to tell a life
Sperling&Kupfer, 326 pages, €18.90

It is not a book with musical content, although, inevitably (given that the author is a musician), music is often present in the hundred chapters of these pages, each of which is inspired by a different word: from “hug” to “Zante” (it’s the name of a dog, not of the island). They are reflections, considerations, thoughts of a “differently young man” (Canzian is 74 years old today) who has done and seen many things done and here he tries to tell his vision of the world and of life. Don’t look for the word “Pooh”, it’s not among the hundred in the title (but Pooh is often talked about, obviously).

Various authors
“Mina. The voice of silence”
Il Saggiatore, 488 pages, 29 euros

The idea for the book dates back to the international conference “Mina. The voice of silence. Presence and absence of a pop icon”, organized at the Department of Humanistic Studies of the University of Turin, Dams degree course, in collaboration with the Crad – Research center on actors and stardom which was held in 2021. The conference proceedings were reworked and expanded by the curators Giulia Muggeo,
Gabriele Rigola and Jacopo Tomatis, who created a volume divided into three sections (“Listening to Mina”, Looking at Mina”, “Imagining Mina”). The work made use of the collaboration of Vito Vita for the iconography, and is embellished from a long, articulated and affectionate introduction by Ivano Fossati which opens with these words: «If we could ask all Italians the simple question about who our greatest singer is, the answer would be huge, bombastic scream in unison of only two syllables, Mina.»

Matteo Madafferi and Francesco Sciarrone
“Definitive Oasis”
EPC Editore, 352 pages, 40 euros

It is a volume (also available in a limited edition in a box set) that retraces the most significant moments in the Manchester quintet’s career, from their debut to the two Knebworth concerts. Created with the intention of not leaving out any detail of Oasis’ history, the volume is enriched by a large photographic archive, with rare images of the band, scans of vintage magazines, merchandising and memorabilia provided by the fans themselves. Furthermore, the work integrates the paper experience with digital content: thanks to QR codes, readers will be able to access official videos, live performances and television appearances on YouTube.

Here, courtesy of the publisher, a photo gallery taken from the book.

Lynn Goldsmith / Patti Smith
Before Easter after
Rizzoli Illustrati, 288 pages, 65 euros

“Before Easter after” is a large volume that brings together dozens of photographs taken of Patti Smith by photographer Lynn Goldsmith. The collaboration between the two artists began in the Seventies and this book documents its evolution. In addition to photos, the book also contains texts signed by both Smith and Goldsmith.

Courtesy of Rizzoli Illustrati, here is a photo gallery of some images contained in the volume.

Cosimo Fini, Luigi Florio, Francesco Vigorelli
Club Dogo
Rizzoli, 240 pages, 50 euros

A photographic journey between stage and backstage that celebrates the group and documents the ten sold out concerts at the Assago Forum and the historic date-event at San Siro (June 2024). From a narrative point of view, the volume follows as a common thread 10 Rules of the Club which refer to songs and values ​​of the Dogos told by photos, bars of their songs and lyrics, as well as interventions by the members of the group themselves. From a graphic point of view it is a very elegant book (art direction and design are by Luca Ricci, photographs by Enrico Rassu and Alessandro Simonetti).

Massimo Cotto and Henry Ruggeri
Pictures of you
Gallucci, 144 pages, 30 euros

The Cathedrals of Art, a space within Le Cattedrali Relais in Valleandona (Asti), are the place where Massimo Cotto had collected, before his untimely death, his collection of records, books and memorabilia. “Pictures of you” is open here, an interactive photographic exhibition born last spring from the collaboration between the photographer Henry Ruggeri and Cotto. The project, which debuted last June, continues by will of Massimo’s family, to whom it is dedicated, and is documented by this volume of photos, texts and multimedia content.

Courtesy of the publisher here is a photo gallery of images taken from the volume.

Roberto Panucci
Pino Daniele – Access all areas
Rizzoli Lizard, 368 pages, 40 euros

Ten years after the death of Pino Daniele, Roberto Panucci, his official photographer, who followed Pino from 2012 until his last concert, collects his shots and memories here for the first time. Above and below the stage, during concerts and behind the scenes, thanks to his All Areas pass Panucci was able to create exclusive and previously unpublished images. Large format. The preface is by Alessandro Daniele.