THE
CALIFORNIA
SOUND
AN INSIDER'S STORY
THE
MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY OF
GARY LEE USHER
1938-1990
THE DELUXE COLLECTOR'S EDITION
30cm
x 22cm (8.75" x 11.75")
LIBRARY STYLED HARDCOVER
DARK BURGUNDY COLOUR WITH GOLD LETTERING
AND INLAID COLOUR PHOTO
725 PAGES
WITH
BONUS
EXTRAS
14 minute DVD
50 minute CD
Finally in the format in which it was originally conceived, here is the full musical biography of Gary Usher, covering his early forays in the music business, his collaborations with Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys; his enormous surf and hot-rod music catalogue, plus his work as a producer/executive at Decca, Columbia, Together, RCA and Elektra record companies circa 1964-1973, as well as all his recording, songwriting and production endeavours from 1974 until his death in May 1990. The who, when, where and whys are all covered, supported by a complete discography of released and unreleased (with exhaustive notes) material. If you are interested in music from California from the ‘60s to the ‘80s, then this is the book for you, told in the words of those who were there.
Previously available in five separate volumes, this DELUXE COLLECTOR’S EDITION gathers together all five volumes in one book, together with some additional colour plates and updated CD information.
This 725 page book includes 34 glossy photo pages and 4 full-colour plates, together with an additional APPENDIX EIGHT which includes the sections:
“ADDITIONS AND FEEDBACK”
“UNRELEASED RECORDINGS NOW AVAILABLE ON COMPACT DISC”; and
“GARY USHER IN THE STUDIO – DIALOGUE NOW AVAILABLE ON CD”
Also included FREE with this DELUXE COLLECTOR’S EDITION are two bonus extras; a 14 minute DVD and a 50 minute CD. These items WILL NOT be available separately.
DVD
– From 1981, this
14 minute
grass roots presentation centres on the reunion of Gary Usher and his
“Troops” held at the Woodland Hills home of
Usher’s
right-hand man Dick Burns. Includes a live performance of Younger
Girl and a jam session. There is
also some footage of the Usher
family and the El Rancho De Paz homestead, now sadly
demolished.
CD
– This 23 track CD
comprises
demos, dubs and out-takes circa 1959-1986, many of which are available
for the first time. Hear Gary Usher’s earliest solo efforts
from
1960 and 1961, together with recordings by The Hondells and demos by
Chuck Girard and Dick Burns.
THE
CALIFORNIA SOUND - An Insiders's Story
THE
MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY OF GARY USHER
VOLUME
FIVE
This
176 page 8x10 glossy coloured covered book is the final
volume of a FIVE volume set detailing every aspect of the recording
career of GARY USHER. This volume includes a COMPLETE as possible
DISCOGRAPHY of Usher related recordings circa 1961-1990. Also
included is a COMPLETE as possible discography of his UNRELEASED
material and all the songs he wrote for the various music publishing
companies he was signed to. Additional
discographies (of released and unreleasaed material) of CURT BOETTCHER,
DICK BURNS and CHUCK GIRARD are also included. A full chapter synopsis
for
all volumes is also featured, as is a thorough index for chapters 1-4,
and
11 pages of glossy photos (including a colour plate).
A volume by volume breakdown of this 600 page biography can be read here .
A short synopsis of the book can be found here.
More information on all of CMUSIC's books can be found here.
This
page is maintained by Ron
Weekes. Please contact him about
anything you think should be
listed on this page. Since this project is a labor of love, I work on
it when I can. Any ideas, contributions, or additions to make this page
dedicated to the life and music of Gary Usher will be appreciated.
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This page was last updated on 27 December 2011.