The Spree of '83: The Life and Times of Freddy Powers, w Exclusive Commentary From Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard

The Spree of '83: The Life and Times of Freddy Powers, w Exclusive Commentary From Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard

The Spree of '83: The Life and Times of Freddy Powers, w Exclusive Commentary From Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard

The Spree of '83: The Life and Times of Freddy Powers, w Exclusive Commentary From Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard

Paperback(2nd ed. Large Print)

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Overview

Country Music legend Freddy Powers, credited with introducing Dixieland Jazz into Country for the first time, is affectionately known as the 'Ol Blue Eyes' of Country Music, according to the L.A. Times, and if you were to "ask country superstars Willie Nelson, George Jones or Merle Haggard (they'll)...tell you that he's one of country music's best-kept secrets." That secret is spilled for the first time on paper in Powers' highly-entertaining and emotionally-touching page-turner "THE SPREE OF '83 - The Life and Times of Freddy Powers (with Exclusive Commentary from Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard)." Taking readers from the plains of West Texas into the Marine Core in the 40s before winding up in Arlington, TX alongside Willie Nelson as undiscovered artists in the early 50s before Freddy's career as one of Nevada's TOP performing acts exploded over the 1960s and 70s before landing in the studio with Willie Nelson to produce the Grammy-winning 1980 Over the Rainbow album. His career got even hotter in the 1980s when he joined forces with another country music superstar Merle Haggard, moving up to Lake Shasta in Northern California, where the two lived a truly rock & roll lifestyle on houseboats during the height of the roaring 80s, writing # 1 hit after # 1 hit, including "Natural High," "Let's Chase Each Other Around the Room Tonight," "I Always Get Lucky With You," among many more. After moving back to Austin, Texas onto Willie Nelson's golf course in the 1990s, Freddy hosted his own TV show, Rogers & Hammerhead, and mentored a new generation of country stars, including John Rich of Big & Rich, Pauline Reese, Mary Sarah. In the 2000s, just as Freddy was beginning to be acknowledged on a legacy level with induction in to the Texas Music Hall of Fame among many others, he was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. In the 2000s, just as Freddy was beginning to be acknowledged on a legacy level with induction in to the Texas Music Hall of Fame among many others, he was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. Battling over the next decade while founding his own Foundation, Freddy became an inspiration to others suffering from the disease, staying in the spotlight front of sold-out crowds even as his condition worsened. Presently in film production, the screenplay adaptation of The Spree of '83 is as cinematic as the book, and sure to be a hit with Freddy's legions of fans!

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781733025171
Publisher: Music Square Media
Publication date: 05/15/2021
Edition description: 2nd ed. Large Print
Pages: 375
Sales rank: 717,559
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Award-winning Music biographer Jake Brown has written 50 published books since 2001, featuring many authorized collaborations with some of rock's biggest artists, including 2013 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees Heart (with Ann and Nancy Wilson), living guitar legend Joe Satriani, blues legend Willie Dixon (authorized w/the Estate), country music legends Merle Haggard/Freddy Powers, heavy metal pioneers Motorhead (with Lemmy Kilmister), country rap superstar Big Smo, late hip hop icon Tupac Shakur (with the estate), celebrated Rock drummer Kenny Aronoff, legendary R&B/Hip Hop Producer Teddy Riley, late Funk pioneer Rick James, and Mopreme Shakur. Brown is also author of a variety of anthology series including the superstar country music anthology 'Nashville Songwriter' Vol I and II; the all-star rock producers anthology 'Behind the Boards' Vol. 1 and 2; all-star Rock & Roll drummers' anthology 'Beyond the Beats,' and the 'Hip Hop Hits' producers' series among many others. Brown recently released the audio books BEYOND THE BEATS, DOCTORS OF RHYTHM and forthcoming SCIENTISTS OF SOUND Record Producers series and PRINCE IN THE STUDIO - The Hits 1977 - 1994 under a long-term deal with Blackstone Audio, and has also appeared as the featured biographer of record on Fuse TV's Live Through This series and Bloomberg TV's Game Changers series, in all 6-parts of the BET "The Death Row Chronicles" docu-series. His books have received national press in CBS News, The Hollywood Reporter, Rolling Stone Magazine, USA Today, MTV.com, Guitar World Magazine, Billboard, Parade Magazine, Country Weekly, Fox News, Yahoo News, etc and writes for regularly for Tape Op Magazine (including the 2015 cover story feature with Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan). In 2012, Brown won the Association for Recorded Sound Collections Awards in the category of Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research.Catherine Powers is co-author and screenwriter/producer of the forthcoming biopic "THE SPREE OF '83," and late country star Freddy Powers longtime wife, creative partner and caretaker over his 15 year battle with Parkinson's Disease. Catherine co-founded and operated the Freddy Powers Parkinson's Foundation, and is to date an admired figure in the Parkinson's Disease community for her advocacy on Freddy's behalf.The Los Angeles Times affectionately referred to late, great Country Music star Freddy Powers, a "lauded songwriter" in the esteemed opinion of Rolling Stone Magazine, as the "Ol Blue Eyes' of Country Music" and wrote that if you were to "ask country superstars Willie Nelson, George Jones or Merle Haggard (they'll)...tell you that he's one of country music's best-kept secrets". The Texas Country Music Hall of Fame inductee has been to the top of the charts as both a producer for Willie Nelson's Grammy-winning LP Over the Rainbow and a songwriter for many of country music legend Merle Haggard's number one hits, including "Natural High," "Let's Chase Each Other Around the Room Tonight" and "I Always Get Lucky With You", taken to the top by both Merle Haggard and George Jones, among many others. Freddy's life story is now in production for adaptation to the silver screen, due to begin shooting in the fall of 2020.

Table of Contents

Foreword Tanya Tucker

Chapter 1 Sir Frederick

Chapter 2 The 50s - Freddy Enlists, Meets Buskirk, Willie Nelson & The World

Chapter 3 The 60s - The Tonight Show & Ruling Reno

Chapter 4 Diamond Gem's

Chapter 5 The Casino Days

Chapter 6 Over the Rainbow

Chapter 7 The Spree of '83 Begins!

Chapter 8 Natural High

Chapter 9 The Bread & Butter Band & Life On the Road With the Strangers

Chapter 10 Air Craft Carrier on a Lake

Chapter 11 The Air Fred Band

Chapter 12 Looking for a Place to Fall Apart

Chapter 13 The Country Jazz Singer

Chapter 14 Last Days on the Lake

Chapter 15 The Ballad of Freddy and Catherine

Chapter 16 Road to My Heart

Chapter 17 Willie's Hill & Coach Royal's Pickin' Parties

Chapter 18 Rogers & Hammerhead

Chapter 19 The Romance Continues

Chapter 20 Freddy Powers' 70th Birthday Roast

Chapter 21 The Royal Knights of the Raccoon

Chapter 22 Parkinson' Disease

Chapter 23 Freddy's 2nd Act

Chapter 24 The Stop the Truck Band

Chapter 25 Freddy Powers Legendary Pickin' Parties

Chapter 26 Mentoring a New Generation of Stars

Chapter 27 The Flora-Bama

Conclusion: Guitar on the Wall

Epilogue: June 21st, 2016

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