Bill Monroe Centennial

September 13 is the 100th anniversary Bill Monroe's birth. There are many ways you can celebrate and learn more about the Father of Bluegrass.

Bill Monroe 100th Birthday Celebration

From NPR: Bill Monroe: Celebrating The Father Of Bluegrass At 100

A few highlights from our own collection of materials by or about Monroe:

Bill Monroe: Father of Bluegrass Music (DVD 1190)

Blue Moon of Kentucky: Bill Monroe, 1936-1949 (CD 28899-28904)
This 6-disc box set includes all 60 of the legendary Monroe Brothers duets from 1946-38; all 16 of the 1940-41 performances that marked the very first appearance of Bill Monroe's recordings under his own name; and all of the classic Columbia sessions from 1945-49, including ... sides with Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and Chubby Wise as well as every alternate take from the Columbia sessions, a total of 50 previously unheard and unreleased out-takes" The book comprises a biographical essay by Charles K. Wolfe, notes on the songs, and a discography by Neil V. Rosenberg.

Can't You Hear Me Callin': The Life of Bill Monroe, Father of Bluegrass by Richard D. Smith (ML420.M65 S6 2000)

Monroe Instrumentals: 25 Bill Monroe Favorites transcribed by Todd Collins (MP131.M66 I5 2002)

Feedback Wanted on Kindles and Nooks

The library is considering making Kindles and Nooks available for check-out. We'd like to get some feedback from our users, regardless of whether you are a student, alum or faculty or staff member. Is this something you would use? If so, how? If we had them preloaded with books, what ones would you want or expect?

Let us know what you think. You can post feedback here or send email to library@berklee.edu.

More 9/11 Music-Related Events and Web Sites

In addition to our current display of music related to the 9/11 attacks, here are links on the subject, including 9/11 memorial concerts on Sunday at Berklee, Tufts and the Hatch Shell on the Esplanade.

Stan Getz Library Berklee College of Music's 9/11 Display

Happy Birthday, Buddy Holly, Chrissie Hynde and Gloria Gaynor

September 7 is a big day in pop music birthdays. Buddy Holly was born in 1936, disco diva Gloria Gaynor in 1949 and Chrissie Hynde, leader of the Pretenders, in 1951. Of course the library has plenty of recordings and scores of their works, but here are some highlights that you may not know about.

Rave on Buddy Holly (CD 33016) is a Buddy Holly tribute album featuring artists such as Patti Smith, Kid Rock and Modest Mouse covering his songs. It came out earlier this year and reached No. 15 on the Billboard 200 album charts. With a few exceptions, the library gets every album in the Billboard Top 50 within a week of its hitting the charts.

Gaynor's classic disco empowerment anthem "I Will Survive" is included in Audition Songs. Number One Hits: [20 Essential Audition Songs for Women] (MP1631.A93 N8 2005). What makes this score unusual is that it includes CDs with instrumental backing tracks, perfect for practicing or bringing to an audition. Or your next karaoke party.

In addition to her work with the Pretenders, Hynde also appears on Frank Sinatra's Duets II album (CD 6441). Especially if you are new to Berklee, you may not realize just how thorough our library catalog is. For most recordings and scores, our catalog indexes not only the main performer but other contributors who helped to create the work such band members, producers, composers and guest vocalists.

So celebrate these birthdays by making use of our library's uncommon resources.

Welcome, Freshmen. What Are Your Parents Listening To?

Welcome incoming freshman and returning students. As you get settled in, give some thought to what your parents will be listening to after they drop you off. Bob Boilen of NPR's All Songs Considered wrote about his own empty nester playlist and solicited stories from parents about their own experiences. Let us know what you'll be cranking up or what you think your parents will be listening to, perhaps "I'm Free" by the Who (from Tommy, CD 27561) or "Enjoy the Silence" by Depeche Mode (from Violator, CD 13801)

Music For Empty Nesters And College Freshmen

David 'Honeyboy' Edwards dies at 96; Chicago bluesman

David "Honeyboy" Edwards, considered the last of the original Delta bluesmen, has died. When the library reopens next week, you can explore his legacy by checking out his autobiography The World Don't Owe Me Nothing: The Life and Times of Delta Bluesman Honeyboy Edwards (ML420.E28 W6) which the Chicago Tribune's Howard Reich called "a memoir that has become a landmark of American musical history" in his obituary.

David 'Honeyboy' Edwards dies at 96; Chicago bluesman

Punk and Post-Punk in the Public Library

With our emphasis on popular music, most of our library displays are about that. But it is an unexpected subject for most public libraries, especially when the subject is more specifically British punk and post-punk. Steven Rosen reports on this display created by a member of the community at a Cincinnati branch library in CityBeat:

Madeira Celebrates British Punk Rock

Our own current display highlights the work of Berklee alumni on Broadway. Although the library will be closed for two weeks, we'll have a new display up during Check-In week.