Kenneth Womack

Starting Over with John Lennon & Yoko Ono: The History of a Photograph and a Day traces the dramatic story of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's triumphant return to the recording studio after a self-imposed five-year absence. For photographer Roger Farrington, the opportunity to get "the shot" was the assignment of a lifetime. On August 7, 1980, the Boston photographer met the famous couple at the Dakota and documented their fateful trip to Manhattan's Hit Factory, where Lennon and Ono recorded their Grammy-winning LP Double Fantasy. For Farrington, the whirlwind opportunity would be life-changing in more ways than one. Farrington's photography would land him in a high-profile dispute with notorious publicist Charles J. Cohen. Things would become even more harrowing with Lennon's assassination only a few months later, an event that would plunge the world into mourning. Working with renowned Beatles scholar Kenneth Womack, Farrington captures the amazing story of working with John and Yoko on that fateful day.

Starting Over with John Lennon & Yoko Ono: The History of a Photograph and a Day traces the dramatic story of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's triumphant return to the recording studio after a self-imposed five-year absence. For photographer Roger Farrington, the opportunity to get "the shot" was the assignment of a lifetime. On August 7, 1980, the Boston photographer met the famous couple at the Dakota and documented their fateful trip to Manhattan's Hit Factory, where Lennon and Ono recorded their Grammy-winning LP Double Fantasy. For Farrington, the whirlwind opportunity would be life-changing in more ways than one. Farrington's photography would land him in a high-profile dispute with notorious publicist Charles J. Cohen. Things would become even more harrowing with Lennon's assassination only a few months later, an event that would plunge the world into mourning. Working with renowned Beatles scholar Kenneth Womack, Farrington captures the amazing story of working with John and Yoko on that fateful day.

Winner, 2025 RUSA Outstanding Reference AwardBruce Songs is an authoritative guide that offers an in-depth exploration of Bruce Springsteen's musical legacy. Covering Springsteen's entire discography, from Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. to Only the Strong Survive, this unique book combines historical context, literary analysis, and meticulous research. Unlike any other resource, it provides detailed analyses of each album, essays on their historical significance, and a chronological examination of every studio song. Discover the stories behind the recordings and gain insight into Springsteen's creative process. Rich with contemporary reviews, insider accounts, photographs, and special sections highlighting pivotal moments and key figures, Bruce Songs is an indispensable companion for fans and scholars. It offers an immersive journey through the music of the Boss, making it an essential read for anyone captivated by Springsteen's enduring musical legacy.

**MiCannes Award Music Book of the Year** The first full-length biography of Mal Evans, the Beatles’ beloved roadie, assistant, confidant and friend A towering figure in horn-rimmed glasses, Malcolm ‘Mal’ Evans was an invaluable member of the Beatles’ inner circle. Serving as their long-time roadie, personal assistant and protector, he was a sometime lyricist, occasional performer and regular fixer at the height of the group’s fame and beyond. But Mal’s dedication to his beloved ‘boys’ and his own desire for stardom took its toll, leading to the dissolution of his marriage and his untimely death in January 1976. Until now, Mal’s extraordinary life has remained shrouded in mystery. Drawing on hundreds of exclusive interviews and with full access to Mal’s unpublished archives – including his personal diaries, manuscripts and memorabilia – renowned Beatles scholar Kenneth Womack paints the first complete portrait of this complicated figure at the heart of the Beatles’ story. Living the Beatles Legend is a fascinating but ultimately tragic tale about life at the edges of superstardom.

In 1964, fifteen-year-old Mike Frankel found himself among professional photojournalists covering a Beatles concert during the band’s first tour in the United States. A few years later, he was a regular photographer at the Fillmore East, a storied venue in classic rock. And in 1969, he was onstage at Woodstock, documenting one of the most important events in American music history.Featuring Frankel’s stunning photographs of nearly every major rock figure from the 1960s and ’70s—including Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, the Rolling Stones, Janis Joplin, and the Grateful Dead—as well as many unpublished images of the Beatles, Hurricanes of Color chronicles an extraordinary moment. Frankel, who was for a time a personal photographer for Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna, developed an innovative style—one that layered images with multiple exposures to capture the spirit of the music of the era and the experience of listening to the bands live.A must-have for fans of classic rock, this is a spectacular and profound collection of photography that complements the music of the world’s biggest performers.

The first full-length biography of Mal Evans, the Beatles' beloved friend, confidant, and roadie. Malcolm Evans, the Beatles' long-time roadie, personal assistant, and devoted friend, was an invaluable member of the band's inner circle. A towering figure in horn-rimmed glasses, Evans loomed large in the Beatles' story, contributing at times as a performer and sometime lyricist, while struggling mightily to protect his beloved "boys." He was there for the whole of the group's remarkable, unparalleled story: from the Shea Stadium triumph through the creation of the timeless cover art for Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and the famous Let It Be rooftop concert.Leaving a stable job as telecommunications engineer to serve as road manager for this fledgling band, Mal was the odd man out from the start--older, married with children, and without any music business experience. And yet he threw himself headlong into their world, traveling across the globe and making himself indispensable.In the years after the Beatles' disbandment, Big Mal continued in their employ as each embarked upon solo careers. By 1974, he was determined to make his name as a songwriter and record producer, setting off for a new life in Los Angeles, where he penned his memoirs. But in January 1976, on the verge of sharing his book with the world, Evans's story came to a tragic end during a domestic standoff with the LAPD.For Beatles devotes, Mal's life and untimely death have always been shrouded in mystery. For decades, his diaries, manuscripts, and vast collection of memorabilia was missing, seemingly lost forever...until now.Working with full access to Mal's unpublished archives and having conducted hundreds of new interviews, Beatles' scholar and author Kenneth Womack affords readers with a full telling of Mal's unknown story at the heart of the Beatles' legend. Lavishly illustrated with unseen photos and ephemera from Mal's archives, Living the Beatles' Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans is the missing puzzle piece in the Fab Four's incredible story.

In Long and Winding Roads: The Evolving Artistry of the Beatles, Revised Edition, Kenneth Womack brings the band’s story vividly to life—from their salad days as a Liverpool Skiffle group and their apprenticeship in the nightclubs and mean streets of Hamburg through their early triumphs at the legendary Cavern Club and the massive onslaught of Beatlemania itself. By mapping the group’s development as an artistic fusion, Womack traces the Beatles’ creative arc from their first, primitive recordings through Abbey Road and the twilight of their career. In this revised edition, Womack addresses new insights in Beatles-related scholarship since the original publication of Long and Winding Roads, along with hundreds of the group’s outtakes released in the intervening years. The updated edition also affords attention to the Beatles’ musical debt to Rhythm and Blues, as well as to key recent discoveries that vastly shift our understanding of formative events in the band’s timeless story.

In Long and Winding Roads: The Evolving Artistry of the Beatles, Revised Edition, Kenneth Womack brings the band’s story vividly to life—from their salad days as a Liverpool Skiffle group and their apprenticeship in the nightclubs and mean streets of Hamburg through their early triumphs at the legendary Cavern Club and the massive onslaught of Beatlemania itself. By mapping the group’s development as an artistic fusion, Womack traces the Beatles’ creative arc from their first, primitive recordings through Abbey Road and the twilight of their career. In this revised edition, Womack addresses new insights in Beatles-related scholarship since the original publication of Long and Winding Roads, along with hundreds of the group’s outtakes released in the intervening years. The updated edition also affords attention to the Beatles’ musical debt to Rhythm and Blues, as well as to key recent discoveries that vastly shift our understanding of formative events in the band’s timeless story.

“Womack and Kruppa present a thorough history of Harrison and Clapton’s songmaking and recording sessions.” —BooklistNewly revised and expanded, this paperback edition features exclusive material from the Malcolm Frederick Evans archives and draws on rare material released by the Harrison Estate. A new appendix includes a detailed sessionography and personnel listings for All Things Must Pass, assembled from recently discovered documentation. George Harrison and Eric Clapton embarked upon a singular personal and creative friendship that impacted rock’s unfolding future in resounding and far-reaching ways. All Things Must Pass Away: Harrison, Clapton, and Other Assorted Love Songs traces the emergence of their relationship from 1968 though the early 1970s and the making of their career-defining albums, both released in November 1970. Authors Womack and Kruppa devote close attention to the climax of Harrison and Clapton’s shared musicianship—the creation of All Things Must Pass, Harrison’s powerful emancipatory statement in the wake of the Beatles, and Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, Clapton’s impassioned reimagining of his art via Derek and the Dominos—two records that advanced rock ’n’ roll from a windswept 1960s idealism into the wild and expansive new reality of the 1970s. All Things Must Pass Away reveals the foundations of Harrison and Clapton’s friendship, focusing on the ways their encouragement and support of each other drove them to produce works that would cast long shadows over the evolving world of rock music.

The Time Diaries narrates a pair of love stories separated by a century and an ocean, yet bound together by the power of fine art as a means for elevating the human condition.The Time Diaries tells the parallel stories of Mary Cassatt, the renowned American Impressionist artist, and Judy Coker, a contemporary graduate student in Art History at the University of Chicago. In the novel, Judy wins a summer "Genius Award" that launches her on a global journey in search of a lost painting by Cassatt. She is accompanied on her quest by Noah Dearing, a fellow graduate student for whom she nurses a not-so-secret crush. For Judy, the adventure is fraught with trials and tribulations, particularly because of her devastating bout with Stendhal Syndrome, the psychological disorder that plunges her into a state of catatonia whenever she encounters the aesthetic power and beauty of art.Meanwhile, Cassatt finds herself in a nearly lifelong struggle between her romantic feelings for Edgar Degas, Impressionism's grand master, and her abiding belief in the importance of maintaining personal freedom in order to fulfill her destiny both as an artist and as a woman living in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Based on the true story of a Cassatt painting that has been lost to the ages, The Time Diaries celebrates love and art's enduring capacity for both enriching and transforming our lives. RELEASE DATE: May 22, 2021 (Mary Cassatt Day )Kenneth Womack is the author of four previous novels, John Doe No. 2 and the Dreamland Motel, The Restaurant at the End of the World, Playing the Angel, and I Am Lemonade Lucy He has also written numerous books about the Beatles, including Long and Winding Roads: The Evolving Artistry of the Beatles, The Beatles Encyclopedia: Everything Fab Four, Solid State: The Story of Abbey Road and the End of the Beatles, and an acclaimed two-volume biography about the life of Beatles producer George Martin. He is Professor of English and Popular Music at Monmouth University. He lives in West Long Branch, New Jersey, with his wife Jeanine.

John Lennon, 1980: The Final Days in the Life of Beatle John tells the story of the legendary musician’s incredible last year. For Lennon, 1980 had begun as a ceaseless shopping spree in which he and wife Yoko Ono fell into the doldrums of purchasing blue-chip real estate and indulging their every whim. But for John, that pivotal year would climax in several moments of creative triumph as he rediscovered his artistic self in dramatic fashion, only to be cut down by an assassin’s bullets on Monday, December 8th, 1980, in the prime of a new life that was only just beginning to blossom.

Music writer Womack delivers a fascinating, in-depth look at the creation of Abbey Road, the Beatles' penultimate album released 50 years ago.... Womack displays a detailed and insightful analysis that fans will hope he applies to the band's other albums.â• Publishers Weekly Acclaimed Beatles historian Kenneth Womack offers the most definitive account yet of the writing, recording, mixing, and reception of Abbey Road. In February 1969, the Beatles began working on what became their final album together. Abbey Road introduced a number of new techniques and technologies to the Beatles' sound, and included "Come Together," "Something," and "Here Comes the Sun," which all emerged as classics. Womack's colorful retelling of how this landmark album was written and recorded is a treat for fans of the Beatles. Solid State takes readers back to 1969 and into EMI's Abbey Road Studio, which boasted an advanced solid state transistor mixing desk. Womack focuses on the dynamics between John, Paul, George, Ringo, and producer George Martin and his team of engineers, who set aside (for the most part) the tensions and conflicts that had arisen on previous albums to create a work with an innovative (and, among some fans and critics, controversial) studio-bound sound that prominently included the new Moog synthesizer, among other novelties. As Womack shows, Abbey Road was the culmination of the instrumental skills, recording equipment, and artistic vision that the band and George Martin had developed since their early days in the same studio seven years earlier. A testament to the group's creativity and their producer's ingenuity, Solid State is required reading for all fans of the Beatles and the history of rock 'n' roll.

The definitive story of George Martin's later years, producing the Beatles and beyond. Sound Pictures traces the story of George Martin and the Beatles' incredible artistic trajectory after reaching the creative heights of Rubber Soul. As the bandmates engage in brash experimentation, creating such masterworks as Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles (The White Album), and Abbey Road, the internal stakes and interpersonal challenges become ever greater. During his post-Beatles years, Martin attempts to discover new vistas of sound recording with a host of acts, including Jeff Beck, America, Cheap Trick, Paul McCartney, and Elton John. His creative breakthroughs are followed by unprecedented commercial success. This is a must-read for anyone interested in the Beatles, music production, and the life of a true musical innovator.

Discover the untold story of the man behind the music.Maximum Volume offers a glimpse into the life of George Martin, the producer who shaped the sound of the Beatles. This first volume traces Martin's journey from a working-class childhood to his groundbreaking role as head of Parlophone Records. Explore his early musical influences, his experiences in the Fleet Air Arm during World War II, and his unlikely discovery of the Beatles. Uncover the painstaking efforts Martin undertook to prepare the Beatles' revolutionary sound for the British music marketplace. From number-one hits to the landmark album Rubber Soul, witness the creation of Martin's unmistakable musical signature. This biography is for: Beatles enthusiasts Music history buffs Anyone curious about the creative process behind iconic recordings

Azza Amari, a headstrong, hijab-wearing international student flees her dangerous life in the Paris ghetto to enroll at staid Northwestern Ohio State College.

2017 Seymour Medal from the Society for American Baseball Research2016 Pete Delohery Award for Best Sports Book from Shelf Unbound When it opened in 1965, the Houston Astrodome, nicknamed the Eighth Wonder of the World, captured the attention of an entire nation, bringing pride to the city and enhancing its reputation nationwide. It was a Texas-sized vision of the future, an unthinkable feat of engineering with premium luxury suites, theater-style seating, and the first animated scoreboard. Yet there were memorable problems such as outfielders’ inability to see fly balls and failed attempts to grow natural grass-which ultimately led to the development of AstroTurf. The Astrodome nonetheless changed the way people viewed sports, putting casual fans at the forefront of a user-experience approach that soon became the standard in all American sports.The Eighth Wonder of the World tears back the facade and details the Astrodome’s role in transforming Houston as a city while also chronicling the building’s storied fifty years in existence and the ongoing debate about its preservation.

SOUND PICTURES offers a powerful glimpse into the mind, the music, and the man behind the sound of the Beatles. The second book of two, SOUND PICTURES traces the story of George Martin and the Beatles' incredible artistic trajectory after reaching the creative heights of Rubber Soul.

This condensed paperback encyclopedia documents the enduring cultural impact and musical legacy of the Beatles, providing readers with a one-stop resource to the Fab Four's compelling story and breadth of achievements.Legendary in music and popular culture, the Beatles were one of the most successful bands of all time. The collective achievements of the Fab Four affect a broad demographic that includes today's children, Millennials, Gen Xers, and Baby Boomers. This one-volume condensed paperback edition of The Beatles Encyclopedia brings the Beatles' dramatic story alive, highlighting the humanity of the quartet of artists that has made them an enduring artistic and social phenomenon.The entries in this condensed encyclopedia provide in-depth biographical information about the Beatles and their circle as well as fascinating historical background and key details about their most important works, giving readers broad coverage that addresses the major aspects of the band's and its individual members' phenomenal achievement. The easy-to-use A–Z resource also includes a biographical chronology and a discography as well as a bibliography that directs readers to excellent sources of additional information in print and online.