Johnny's Cash and Charley's Pride

Peter Cooper is an award-winning musician and respected music journalist. He is the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Senior Director, Producer, and Writer, and a senior lecturer in country music at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music. He is a Grammy-nominated music producer, and a songwriter whose works have been recorded by John Prine, Bobby Bare, Jim Lauderdale, and others. He has appeared on The Tonight Show and The Late Show with David Letterman and was, along with the like of the Kings of Leon and financial guru Dave Ramsey, named one of Nashville's "10 Most Interesting People" by Nashville Arts & Entertainment magazine. Peter Guralnick has written extensively on American music and musicians. His most recent book, "Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock 'n' Roll" , was a New York Times best-seller and a Washington Post Notable Non-Fiction pick for 2015. His other books include the prize-winning Elvis Presley two-part biography "Last Train to Memphis" and "Careless Love"; the acclaimed trilogy on American roots music, "Sweet Soul Music", "Lost Highway" and "Feel Like Going Home"; the biographical inquiry "Searching for Robert Johnson"; the novel "Nighthawk Blues"; and "Dream Boogie", a biography of Sam Cooke. He splits his time between Nashville and Massachusetts. Peter Guralnick has written extensively on American music and musicians. His most recent book, "Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock 'n' Roll" , was a New York Times best-seller and a Washington Post Notable Non-Fiction pick for 2015. His other books include the prize-winning Elvis Presley two-part biography "Last Train to Memphis" and "Careless Love"; the acclaimed trilogy on American roots music, "Sweet Soul Music", "Lost Highway" and "Feel Like Going Home"; the biographical inquiry "Searching for Robert Johnson"; the novel "Nighthawk Blues"; and "Dream Boogie", a biography of Sam Cooke. He splits his time between Nashville and Massachusetts.

• •Foreword by Peter Guralnick•Introduction•Chapter 1BeginningsAside: A Tender Lie•Chapter 2Innovation Begat TraditionAside: Bill Monroe Weighs In•Chapter 3A Memphis Flash, A Nashville SoundAside: Elvis Plays the Opry•Chapter 4Kris Kristopherson, The Going UpAside: A Hairy-Legged Town•Chapter 5Merle Haggard and David Olney, Wise MenAside: More Advice•Chapter 6StorytellingAside: A Big Sadness•Chapter 7Some Stuff You Mostly Don’t HearAside: Tim Carroll’s Business Plan•Chapter 8The End of the LineAside: Ol’ Brother Merle•Chapter 9A Short Strange Trip with Porter WagonerAside: Opry Banter•Chapter 10Merle Haggard and the Door to HopeAside: Tommy Collins’ Funnies•Chapter 11Don Light and the Impossibility of Unscrambling EggsAside: From Don Light•Chapter 12Taylor Swift and the Hybrid Art of UnderstandingAside: Shel Silverstein, Hyena Genius•Chapter 13Jimmy Martin, Hotshot with a Teardrop in his EyeAside: Bus Ruined Bluegrass•Chapter 14Loretta Lynn, The Anti-PoetAside: Loretta and Ernest•Chapter 15Lloyd Green, and Significant SteelAside: Lloyd Green and Mike Auldridge•Chapter 16Requiem for a Short BitchAside: The Mayor of East Nashville•Chapter 17“Hello, I’m Johnny Cash”Irish Bar, Jacksonville, Florida•Chapter 18George Jones: Walk Through this World with Me•Chapter 19Which is the Last One, So This Is Really An Afterword

“Musician, singer, songwriter, producer, author, professor, and music journalist…Peter Cooper is a modern day renaissance man.” -- Bob Edwards, NPR