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CW’s Books. Click on title to read online.
TALES OF THE OLD SEA DOG—a history of Captain William Smith, the legendary Pacific coast sailor.
PROFESSOR VALLEJO AND HIS CALIFORNIA PARLOR GUITAR
JAZZ WATER and the defense of frolic
RENO’S JAZZ HYSTERIA and CLICK HERE for some audio files for this book.
PROFIT PLOTS AND LYNCHING and its shorter summary, DREAMING UP NEVADA TERRITORY
HAPPY JOHN and the defense of frolic
FLYING WITHOUT INSTRUCTION–an online book about AW BAYER and invention of the attack helicopter. No PDF available for this.
CW’s SHORT OVERVIEW OF AMERICAN GOLD RUSH SONGS, with audio. No PDF available for this.
Books By CW Bayer
…can be read free or downloaded at cwrootsmusic.com
A CALIFORNIA SERIES
These three books tell specific stories that help trace the origins and early 20th century blossoming of California’s working class bohemianism.
1. TALES OF THE OLD SEA DOG—a history of Captain William Smith, the legendary Pacific coast sailor.
2. PROFESSOR VALLEJO AND HIS CALIFORNIA PARLOR GUITAR. The life of Andronico Vallejo and his long lost volume of parlor guitar pieces.
3. JAZZ WATER AND THE DEFENSE OF FROLIC. Continuing the look at “frolic” as begun in “Happy John”, this account of jazz origins is best read after reading “Happy John.” The separate origins of hot-ragtime—1908– and the word, “jazz”—1913– in California.
A NEVADA SERIES
PROFIT, PLOTS AND LYNCHING. The drama surrounding the effort to create Nevada Territory during the 1850s, long, detailed account.
DREAMING UP NEVADA TERRITORY. Material from “Profit, Plots & Lynching” reduced to a shorter format.
RHYMES FROM THE SILVER STATE, A collection of historical lyrics—poems and the words to songs defining the working class view of Nevada mining culture.
THE STRYCHNINE BANJO. The long-lost story of the most important mining song written in the far West during the 19th century–“The Days of ’49′”. Composed as a parody for a minstrel show burlesque in Virginia City, Nevada, during 1868 by banjoist Charley Rhoades, “The Days of ’49” became the anthem of the “pioneers”–the 49ers as they aged through the remainder of the 19th century.
RENO’S JAZZ HYSTERIA. During the 1920s, hot jazz helped define what became Nevada’s sin industry. Includes a look at Virginia City’s honky tonk scene from the late 1940s into the 1980s. Click for audio of Ragtime Bob Darch’s composition THE OPERA HOUSE RAG, published in 1960, recorded in 1962.
MORE
HAPPY JOHN AND THE DEFENSE OF FROLIC. A look at the life and times of 19th and early 20th century Tennessee banjo player, “Happy John” Woods. Containing historical accounts of this important musician, this book discusses the post-Civil War world of the African American banjo in the South. This books helps lay the foundation for the book, “Jazz Water.”
THE CELTIC HARP AT STONEHENGE
With references and quotations from a wide range of ancient writing, this book discusses the organizational principles in ancient thinking and outlines their ancient survival in what we now call “Celtic” culture. Part poetry, part science here are the planets, the scale, the harp, ritual and the shift to later, Hellenic ideas.
FLYING WITHOUT INSTRUCTION
The story of AW Bayer. Test pilot. Salesman. Crooner. Bon vivant. An amazing story of pioneering aviation, here is the controversial man at the center of initial efforts to create the light, attack helicopter. (Not available for download, an online book.) Click here to read “FLYING WITHOUT INSTRUCTION at flyingwithoutinstruction.com
A video about THE STRYCHNINE BANJO:
A video about the music scene in Virginia City 1965.
A video about FLYING WITHOUT INSTRUCTION: