Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Plunges Into Music

This book has really caused my thinking-room time to exceed authorized limits...it's just so cotton-pickin' hard to put down. If you're into music of any kind, you'll most likely be hooked, too. Covers about every kind of musical trivia imaginable (could there ever be a volume 2? - It'd be tough to do), in practically every genre of music (does deal with Rock & Roll more than any other), all in easily digested snippets (still hard to put it down...there's time for one more article, isn't there?). I enjoyed it so much that I gave copies of this book to all the band-members in my bluegrass group, and they all loved it (but they did snarl about it extending their sit-down times well past when they had finished their business). Whale of a value for the time, as it's thick and not too expensive at all - good dollar per hour entertainment!

If you love to read while in the bathroom or if you just love trivia books or the kind of books that you can open to any page and just start reading, then the "Uncle John Bathroom Reader" series is for you! In one of the more recent books in this series, "...Plunges into Music", 'Uncle John' tries to be as musically diverse as possible by selecting tidbits of trivia from numerous genres. The book even includes historical facts on how certain musical instruments like Zildjian drums and the Les Paul guitar came to be, and how some genres were created, (sometimes by one person, like how Dick Dale invented surf rock). There are miscellaneous quotes, some deep, some funny, as well as top 10 lists from decades gone by, and articles filled with delicious trivia knowledge that you might not even know to look up anywhere else! Each page also includes an interesting nugget printed at the bottom like a footnote, such as "Steven Tyler of Aerosmith hates to be called 'Steve'" or "George Jones has a bumper sticker on his truck that says 'I Love Alan Jackson'" and then on the next page, "Alan Jackson has a bumper sticker on his truck that says 'I Love George Jones'". If you love to wow your friends with "hey, did you know..."'s, and if you are passionate about music or trivia and love to learn all you can in as few lines as possible, then you will love this book. Learn about some crimes that bands like Dave Matthews Band committed, or when the machine that was supposed to chuck meat at the audience during an Ozzy Osborne concert malfunctioned, or the one song that at least 100 suicides can be attributed to! Books like these are great because you can read through them annually. There's so much information in these books that it is impossible to remember everything you read. Therefore you can enjoy what's packed between the pages over and over again!

My husband is a 'reader' and he has a bookshelf full of Bathroom Readers next to the john. He remembers the stories and often quotes the trivia. It's a perfect gift for the person in your life who spends a bit of time on the throne each day.

The BRI (Bathroom Reader's Institute) has been around for a long time with dozens of fun filled trivia subjects in the general series, and now "Uncle John" has been specializing the last couple of years in specific subjects, all great fun to read. The latest, "Plunges Into Music", is a delightful plunge (pun intended) into the world of music and will not disappoint, whether you're a rock fan, opera or country. Even non-musicians will dig this volume. We get more trivia than we can remember, plus interesting bios on composers, instruments, and album history. It's carefully researched, as all BRI volumes are, but I did spot one boo-boo in the footnotes that run along the bottom of the pages, which makes it fun to point out. The claim is that a Marty Robbins tune in 1961 was the first to have distorted guitar. I have a CD from jazz guitarist maestro Django Reinhardt that contains a song from the year of his death, 1953, called "Night and Day" that has undeniable and easily heard distortion. Some claim Link Wray's "Rumble", the instrumental hit from the late '50's also had distortion. It certainly has a gnarly tone, fer sure. But that's a very small bone to pick. Like the other volumes, this is a great read from front to back or hit and miss. I also recommend, if you can find it, Dave Marsh's "Rock Book Of Lists", both volumes.

With the publication of PLUNGES INTO MUSIC, Uncle John & Co. must have about a baker's dozen of these interesting volumes to their credit. As with the other volumes, MUSIC focuses in on one subject and serves up its usual, crowd-pleasing combination of history, trivia, lists, rankings, quotes and extended articles that so many of us enjoy. If you are interested in the world of music, you'll want to own a copy of this book. PLUNGES INTO MUSIC is a hefty volume, weighing in at 513 pages. It features, in no particular order, a mixture of isolated facts, short 'quick read' blurbs, 2-3 page articles, extended pieces and very extended articles. An example of this last category would be the three-part Story of Music. Extended articles include Musical Presidents, Stradivarius Violins and Famous Music Producers. Under Quick Reads you'll find MTV Facts, Musical Firsts, Perfect Pitch, Musical Word Origins and Frank Sinatra's 'lucky break.' And Short Articles include Cover Versions, Silly Songs that were hits, Rock 'n Roller Obits, Ancient Instruments, Opera History and the Weird, Weird World of Music. By this late date, Uncle John has the PLUNGES concept down to a winning formula. PLUNGES INTO MUSIC features something for everyone interested in the subject and trivia buffs in general. You can read this book straight through or, as I did, jump in at any page. Whatever approach you take, you'll find yourself being introduced to some absolutely fascinating material. Recommended.