We are pleased to announce that two UIP books have been named winners of the Deems Taylor/Virgil Thomson Book Awards in pop music for titles published in 2020: Unlikely Angel: The […]
Welcome to the University of Illinois Press virtual exhibit for the 2022 International Bluegrass Music Association annual conference! Explore our extensive collection of books, journals, blog posts, and more. Use […]
Welcome to the University of Illinois Press’s virtual exhibit for the 37th Annual International Country Music Conference! We hope you’ll step inside our virtual booth and browse new books, featured […]
Lydia R. Hamessley, author of Unlikely Angel: The Songs of Dolly Parton, answers questions about her inspirations, Appalachian music, songwriting, and, of course, music legend Dolly Parton. Q: Why did […]
We are pleased to announce Banjo Roots and Branches edited by Robert B. Winans has won the American Musical Instrument Society’s Nicholas Bessaraboff Prize. The Nicholas Bessaraboff Prize is awarded […]
In three decades as a singer and songwriter Robbins placed a staggering 94 songs on Billboard’s country music charts. His musical style ranged from rockabilly rave-ups to pop standards and […]
The University of Illinois Press thinks country and western music hung the moon. Our list of C&W books reads like a who’s who of that musical form’s rhinestone-studded history. You want singers? […]
George Hamilton IV departed the world two years ago today. Unrelated to the actor and tanning phenomenon of the same name, IV, as he was sometimes called, ambled out of […]
Story songs had won love from an admiring public since the days when drunken Vikings flung wandering skalds into a nearby volcano. When the wireless came along, story songs filled […]
There is a possibly apocryphal story about Loretta Lynn’s classic “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” Supposedly, Lynn’s original version of the song included ten (or eight or twelve) verses. Hearing it, her […]
Born on July 23, 1971, Central Illinois native Alison Krauss has been awarded with more Grammys than any other female artist. The singer and fiddle player has put up sales […]
Bluegrass singer Ginger Boatwright was born on September 21st in 1944. She has been involved in various bands throughout the years including the Grammy nominated Red White and Blue(grass), the […]