Three Chords and the Truth: Hope, Heartbreak, and Changing Fortunes in Nashville

Rating:
Summary: Sensation and Cliche
Review: An exercise in pseudo case-study, this book leaves the reader with the feeling that they've just done a marathon reading session of the National Enquirer. Throughout the pages and pages of intimate details of many current country music personalities (much of which is negative), the reader continues to wonder how exactly the author found out all this information. He appears to have been everywhere at once, but his voice or presence never appears in the text. The best example of this is the picture of Garth Brooks driving his pickup, obviously from the inside as the truck is moving, with the caption, "Garth drives alone in his truck." If he was alone, where was the photographer? The text is the same way throughout. One wonders if the people the author got his information from knew how he would present the details. The writing is much like the country songs he decries: trite, sensationalist, and filled with cliches. It's readable, but unsympathetic toward most of his subjects and slanted toward a particular type of country music

Rating:
Summary: Don't Bother
Review: This book is too biased to be taken seriously- The author cuts down every artist he wasn't given direct access to. He discribes encounters he couldn't have seen, and quotes conversations he couldn't have heard. Apparently he isn't a fan of radio-friendly country music, and if you are you won't enjoy the way he puts down your favorite artists. There's no doubt Mr. Leamer did his research, but when he couldn't find information he made it up.

Rating:
Summary: Great to read a book by a writer that has some moxy .
Review: To-days music fan is finally demanding to know the truth about it's Stars. You finally realize that after reading the rash of books that come out on the heals of Stardom, that they are basically a re-hash of the perfect picture painted by a publisist or the star involved. Laurence Leamer gives you a glimpse of reality and makes you aware that stars should be accountable for everything even if it is in the past.I would personally like to see him dig a little deeper. Congratulations Laurence, get in touch, I can help you with your dig!!