The Rough Guide to Country Music (Rough Guide Music Guides)

The ultimate handbook to one of America's richest and most firmly rooted musical traditions. Covering every phase of the music, from western swing and bluegrass to the "alternative country" sound of the 1990s, it's both a record buyer's guide and anencyclopedia. Features include: Insightful essays that trace Country's growth from hand-me-down folk to a major American industry, plus concise biographies of hundreds of performers. Critical album reviews, from the earliest commerical recordingsof the 1920s through to the multiplatinum artists of today.