(PR) Releasing just in time for Texas History Month, The Music of the Alamo: >From 19th Century Ballads to Big-Screen Soundtracks by William R. Chemerka and Allen J. Wiener (Bright Sky Press, Feb 2009) traces the musical history of the Alamo and offers the only complete discography and detailed title list of written or recorded songs about the Shrine of Texas Liberty. For 13 days in 1836, a small band of Texan and Tejano defenders, including Davy Crockett, William B. Travis, and Jim Bowie, stood their ground inside the Alamo against an overwhelming Mexican force commanded by Gen. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. In the decades that followed, the valiant struggle of the gallant garrison resonated from sea to shining sea.
Not only has the stirring story been told in literature, but it has also inspired a wide range of music. From 19th Century folk ballads, minstrel show tunes and orchestral marches to recent pop chart hits, children's songs, theatrical productions and big-screen film scores, every generation has heard melodies that helped them "Remember the Alamo!"
The Music of the Alamo provides Alamo buffs, students of history, music aficionados and pop culture mavens with research not found in any other source and 100 full color illustrations documenting the evolution of the Alamo legend in the country's imagination. Accompanying the title is a CD with tracks ranging from the early 19th Century to the 21st, proof that these songs of "old San Antone" have ongoing appeal.
William Chemerka is the founder of The Alamo Society and has edited the organization's quarterly, The Alamo Journal, since 1986. He has appeared on The History Channel as an on-camera consultant in productions including The Real West: The Battle of the Alamo; Live >From Austin: Davy Crockett; and Wild West Tech: The Alamo, among others. Texas Monthly calls Chemerka "the Google of Alamo Buffs." Allen J. Wiener is the author of The Beatles: The Ultimate Recording Guide.
For more information, visit www.brightskypress.com
