Songbirds of the 60s – But Will You Love Me Tomorrow by Laura Flam and Emily Siue Liebowitz

Before the Beatles, Stones, Beach Boys and so many others, there were the Girl Groups: the Shirelles, Ronettes, Angels, and Crystals (to name just a few) and songs like "Be My Baby", "Soldier Boy", "Then He Kissed Me", and of course, the one that inspired this book's title, "Will You Love Me Tomorrow". Most of the early Girl Groups came out of the New York/New Jersey area, with another wave coming from Detroit, at the very beginning of Motown: the Marvelettes, Vandellas, and then the Supremes.

It was impossible, in the early 60s, to turn on the radio to your local pop station, and not hear those songs. They were the songs you sang along to, and likely danced to, if not then, a little later on. They were songs of love, hope, yearning, and desire.

This engaging book is a chronicle of the groups, their members, their producers, promoters, and the songwriters. Some of the singers became household names: Ronnie Spector, Martha Reeves, Darlene Love, and Diana Ross. Some of the songwriters are also renown: Carole King, Neil Sedaka, Ellie Greenwich, Stoller & Leiber, and Holland-Dozier-Holland. Other figures like Dick Clark, Don Kirshner, Berry Gordy, and the long shadow of Phil Spector figure prominently. 

The authors interviewed many of the surviving group members and others who contributed to their records and their fame. Their backstories are individual but make a collective, though not necessarily cohesive, whole. All of their music is part of our history and a backdrop to at least parts of our lives.

The book is organized more or less chronologically, but also topically. It takes us through such historical life-shaping milestones as the JFK assassination, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Vietnam War. Some of the most moving, and chilling, reminiscences are the descriptions of the discrimination and occasional violence that these nearly all Black groups encountered on road trips through the South. 

If you have an interest in the history of the last 65 years, popular culture, and music, you'll enjoy this book, and you'll hear your favorites again, playing in your head as you read along. 

Our National Nightmare – The Hidden History of Guns and the Second Amendment by Thom Hartmann

I became familiar with Thom Hartmann through his Substack, The Hartmann Report, which reports on current affairs and politics. Sometimes it is so unsettling I can only read it in small doses.

Since this book was published in 2019, gun deaths have gotten even further out of control. It seems as though there is a new incident of mass murder every week, sometimes even more often than that. It is clear that certain violent-leaning and suggestible individuals were empowered by the election and administration of Donald Trump, perhaps even more so after the January 6th insurrection, which fortunately failed. Even so, a future second term for him is a chilling prospect. That being said, in just four years, gun violence is far, far worse than it was at the time of publication and a revised edition would surely reflect that.

However, this little book is an important history and guide to the circumstances that have brought the United States to develop its dangerous relationship with firearms. It reinforced much of what I already knew on the topic, and illuminated some of the finer points of historical detail. I would recommend it for anyone interested in learning more about what brought this country to this point, and what can be done to enable much-needed change.