Dixie Chicks

When lead singer Nathalie Maines criticized President George W. the music group became country radio pariahs overnight. Enduring lost airtime, plummeting album sales, record burning rallies, and death threats, the Dixie Chicks Soldiered on, without apology or regrets. Gradually and with great determination, they built a new fan base and climbed back up to the top, triumphing at the 2006 Grammy Awards and starring in a documentary about their struggles. This is their story, with all of its exhilarating, poignant, and inspiring ups, downs, and ultimate vindication.

In Dixie Chicks: Down-Home and Backstage, James L. Dickerson tells the behind-the-scenes story of the band, drawing from interviews with former band members, scores of insiders, and the band's enormous Internet fan base. This book recounts the early struggles to make it in the male-dominated country music world, the sometimes-fun and sometimes-wild adventures of life on the road, and the intimate details of the Chicks' evolution from bluegrass purists to country-pop divas.

Chronicles the rise to fame of the girl group whose music combines the traditional sounds of country with a mixture of modern country, Texas swing, bluegrass, and a touch of rockabilly.

Just two short years ago, The Dixie Chicks were practically unheard-of outside of Texas, but today, they're the hottest act in country music. The explosive popularity of their album Wide Open Spaces has rocketed the Chicks to the top of the charts, and in the last year alone, they have won three Grammys (Best Country Album, Best New Artist and Best Country performance by a duo or group with vocal), two Country Music Association awards and an American Music Award. Their new album is expected to do even better. Now, veteran country music writer Ace Collins has captured their whole inspiring story, from their early days playing to loyal fans in Dallas, right up to their current success and thrilling future!

This look at the Dixie Chicks, who have almost single-handedly reinvented a classic country sound, covers their career and evolution of the group, including their professional struggles to get Nashville to take them seriously, and their personal struggles. Color and bandw photos.

AMP's "personality" titles take a snapshot look at the lives of today's most popular entertainers, sports figures, and even a prince. Full-color photos throughout and a bio in each make them irresistible!

Women have been pivotal in the country music scene since its inception, as Charles K. Wolfe and James E. Akenson make clear in The Women of Country Music. Their groundbreaking volume presents the best current scholarship and writing on female country musicians. Beginning with the 1920s career of teenage guitar picker Roba Stanley, the contributors go on to discuss Polly Jenkins and Her Musical Plowboys, 50s honky-tonker Rose Lee Maphis, superstar Faith Hill, the relationship between Emmylou Harris and poet Bronwen Wallace, the Louisiana Hayride's Margaret Lewis Warwick, and more.