The Finger: A Comprehensive Guide to Flipping Off
By M.J. Loheed, Matt Patterson, and Eddie Schmidt with photography by Stephanie Hernstadt

The foreword in this book states, "A middle finger coveys your inner turmoil to the outside world. It transforms your hand into a powerful tool - a lightning rod of anger." Also stated is the disclaimer, "Never before has something so thorough been written about something this ridiculous." Oh how true...

THE FINGER: A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO FLIPPING OFF traces the history of the world's nastiest gesture from past to present times as well as showing famous fingers (somewhat limited-probably by the threat of lawsuits from the various stars) and the best use of the finger in films. But it is more than just a historical analysis - this book helps empower you with the tools and insight to truly vent your true feelings to the world! I'm talking about "how to" guides of technique and practice to make your delivery perfect. There is even a "finger food" section, with a recipe that I am going to HAVE to try this year: Christmas finger cookies (of course each cookie gives the famous gesture!). In addition to gut-busting photos and diagrams, the book is also filled with "finger facts". One of these relates to the Beatles, saying: "A fish-and-finger pie," whatever the hell that means, is mentioned in the Beatles' song Penny Lane. Actually, that British slang phrase is a sexual reference. Finally, you can be fluent in finger gestures around the world as the subject of area-specific gestures are explored.

Tired of having to pose for stupid photos? This book tells how to sneak the defiant gesture into the picture. Sneaking "the finger" into photos is pure rebellion. One of my favorite "photo finger" memories occurred during my freshman year, when our marching band was lining up for its annual photo. With 200+ members, it took quite a while to assemble everyone - and nobody noticed that the entire tuba section was giving the finger in the photo…that is until we got the pictures back and each of their hands had been meticulously "whited-out" to obliterate the offending gesture.

THE FINGER: A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO FLIPPING OFF is a hilarious masterpiece of satirical brilliance! The perfect book to place in your bathroom to get howls of laughter from unsuspecting visitors!

WHAT A DEAL! Anyone who orders THE FINGER from ooze.com and mentions EAR CANDY will get a free FINGER shirt! (XL or L only - and while supplies last)

Smile: The Story of Brian Wilson's Lost Masterpiece
By Domenic Priore

Rather than an in-depth analysis of Smile that many (including myself) are salivating for, SMILE: THE STORY OF BRIAN WILSON'S LOST MASTERPIECE gives a purely historical portrayal of Smile in the context of the '60s LA scene. While this isn't necessarily a bad thing - it is important to see Smile as it happened and what was happening around it - it will disappoint those Smile-scholars who are looking for any unturned stones in the archeological digs of Smile: one rock 'n roll's great mysteries. After all, the book is titled "The Story Of", not "The Analysis Of". So there is truth in advertising!

What I like about the book is that it contains mostly vintage interviews with Brian Wilson regarding Smile. This is simply because over the years, Brian's interpretation and memories of Smile has been somewhat…well, skewed and contradictory. The passage of time simply has not made Brian himself a great source of accurate information when you want to find out about Smile. Which is ironic, since he is the composer! There is a lot of Van Dyke Parks input, with the book basically being a forum for him to finally speak his mind about Smile. One of the interest sting tidbits of info that Priore tells is Capitol's sabotage when it came to the promotion & sales of PET SOUNDS. But with the success of "Good Vibrations", Capitol threw itself wholeheartedly behind the promotion of Smile.

The book is a great companion piece to the BEAUTIFUL DREAMER Smile documentary, although the two projects differ in their final analysis of Smile in 1967. BEAUTIFUL DREAMER contends that Smile was "inappropriate music for the time" (meaning 1967), while Priore states that Smile was the next logical progression in Brian's musical growth and that the non-release of Smile basically killed the relevance of the Beach Boys for the rest of the '60s (and for the first half of the '70s until the Beach Boys reemerged as an "oldies act"). But while BEAUTIFUL DREAMER leaves a huge gap between when Smile was abandoned in 1967 and its final resurrection in 2003 - Priore leaves no such gap, telling the whole, continuous story.

Note: This is a condensed version of the review - for the extensive review of Smile: The Story of Brian Wilson's Lost Masterpiece Click here

The Mystical One: George Harrison (After the Break-Up of the Beatles)
By Elliot J. Huntley

THIS is the George Harrison book I have been waiting for! Too many previous bios on Harrison (and face it - all of the other former Beatles) spend about ¾ of the book about the Beatles years and then give a brief overview of their subsequent post-Beatles years. And when it comes to George Harrison, these are the years I find most interesting. In THE MYSTICAL ONE: GEORGE HARRISON (After the Break-Up of the Beatles) Elliot J. Huntley painstakingly covers each even (whether major or trivial) and musical releases of the "quiet" Beatle. While I don't agree with all of his assessments of Harrison's music (they sometimes feel overly gushing), I still find his takes on these songs interesting. You get the whole story of the "He's So Fine"/"My Sweet Lord" plagiarism saga, as well as other tidbits like: how George got into HAND MADE FILMS; the SHANGHAI SURPRISE debacle (didn't know that Jeff Lynne worked on the film soundtrack!); and a full telling of the "Threetles" recordings for the Beatles Anthology project.

This is vital book that tells the tale that rarely gets told: there was a life after The Beatles!

Legal Aspects of the Music Industry (An Insider's View of the legal and practical aspects of the music business)
By Richard Schulenberg

I always remember that article from a few years back (I think it was in SPIN) that talked about a band (whose name was withheld) that had a million-selling release, had all the "perks" of rock stardom (such as a tour bus, etc) and went on tour. This article meticulously subtracted each and every charge the record company took out of the band's cut of the band's cut of the money. After all was said and done, the band members would have made MORE take home cash at a minimum wage job at a convenience store or burger joint! This is a perfect example of why musicians these days need some semblance of legal savvy.

Enter LEGAL ASPECTS OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY, which covers every imaginable and potential trouble spots that a musician might encounter. At first, some might be intimidated by the gargantuan size of this resource (at 560 pages) which looks like a college textbook - but, it is actually a straight-forward read that puts the sometimes baffling legalese into easy to understand terms. Included are sample contracts, what-to-look-for advice, "what if" scenarios and a useful glossary.

Now musicians have an ally. If they end up getting screwed by the record company (or management), they simply haven't read this book!

Rhythm & Beauty: The Art of Percussion
By Rocky Maffit

There is more to rhythm instruments than simply rock and roll drums! For any of those interested in the various percussion instruments, RHYTHM & BEAUTY: THE ART OF PERCUSSION is a fascinating journey through the myriad of percussion instruments and the history and background of each instrument. Of course the various forms of drums gets a healthy mention, since drumming is included in so many cultures around the world. Just an example: for fans of Celtic music, the bodhran is mentioned (along with its history). There were some instruments that I was familiar with, but didn't know the history behind, such as the tabla (used by The Beatles) and the steel pan (a.k.a. "Caribbean steel drums"). But there were many, many more mentioned that I had never heard of before.

RHYTHM & BEAUTY: THE ART OF PERCUSSION balances the text with beautifully displayed photographs, making it a joyous celebration of one of man's most primal urges - to make rhythm!

Warman's Beatles Field Guide
Edited by Tim Neely

WARMAN'S BEATLES FIELD GUIDE is a handy dandy pocket size reference book of Beatles memorabilia, albums, and singles that is perfect for those trips to record conventions, flea markets or Beatles conventions. Each area is broken down into easy to find & understand sections complete with color photos and a price guide. While the majority of the book concentrates on U.S. releases, there is also a section for British releases - which is good for those Beatles fanatics like myself who bought a lot of "import" albums in the '70s and were curious about the values of these. Label variations are discussed, along with how to spot a counterfeit. The only part of the book that I found unnecessary was a Beatles timeline at the end - it really doesn't fit in a collectors/price guide. If you are serious about collecting Beatles, you already know this info!

One interesting tidbit I found: my 1978 BEATLE TALK interview album is worth quite a bit more just because it is a Columbia Record Club edition (which just about doubles the value). I bought this record through that record club, played it once and have kept it in a protective plastic cover ever since. Also, the value of my British EP of MAGICAL MYSTER TOUR also surprised me (similar case-I played it once and put it up, since I had the American album).

WARMAN'S BEATLES FIELD GUIDE is a necessary purchase for the Beatlemaniac!

Breathing Out
By Peggy Lipton, Coco Dalton, David Dalton

As a pre-teen, one of the very first crushes I had was on Peggy Lipton when she starred in THE MOD SQUAD (my first being Elizabeth Montgomery in Bewitched). Of course being a Beatles fan I had heard about her fling with Paul McCartney. So naturally, I was interested in this on a Beatles-curiosity level. BREATHING OUT contains tons of interesting stories, albeit somewhat "sanitized" - especially for those interested in '60s pop-culture. Lipton went to parties at Rock Hudson's house (not knowing he was gay despite the overwhelming number of male guests!), followed the Beatles (bedding Paul McCartney in the process) and landed a role in the hit show THE MOD SQUAD. And of course with it being the '60s, she experienced free love to the max - with affairs with the likes of Paul McCartney, Keith Moon, Lou Adler, Elvis, Sammy Davis Jr., etc. By "sanitized", I mean that her retelling of her conquests are pretty discreet - this ain't no scandal biography! Lipton's marriage to Quincy Jones is told in great detail and the only truly sad part about the book is that the marriage failed…and I don't fully understand Lipton's explanation in the book…just something to do with depression. However, the book does end on a happy note, as Lipton overcomes the demons of depression, which had long plagued her.

Of course I loved her stories of following the Beatles and seeing them live. Her description of John Lennon was interesting - Lennon viewed her only as a groupie and did not hide his disdain for her. At one point Lipton mentions an affair with "Arthur", a married British man who had once been a publicist for The Beatles. I have a feeling that this "Arthur" is none other than Derek Taylor, who fits the description and happened to be living in LA at the time of the affair, doing publicity work for the Beach Boys. All indications point to Derek Taylor by the simple preponderance of evidence.

For music collectors, the book mentions a little known bit of trivia that I didn't know - Lipton actually recorded & released an album, PEGGY LIPTON: THE ALBUM, produced by her then boyfriend Lou Adler. After sinking $150,000 into the album, it quickly bombed upon release, becoming an instant collector's item.

While I enjoyed the "Beatles connection" in the book, it is just a little too "sanitized" to warrant a necessary purchase. In it's article about the book, PEOPLE magazine pretty much told the highlights.