As
we did in 2021 and 2023, we're attempting to again increase book coverage in the
community. After a review posts, we try to do a discussion with the
reviewer. This go round, we're talking to Ty about his "SILENT SISTERS: PROFILES OF THE SHORT LIVES OF KAREN CARPENTER, PATSY
CLINE, CASS ELLIOT, RUBY ELZY, JANIS JOPLIN AND SELENA
." Ty?
Ty: Ellen Hunter Ulken does a series of sketches -- six female singers who have passed away. So the big reveal for me -- and the author doesn't seem to realize what she's typed -- is that Selena wasn't a big seller. Is that right, by the way?
Because of the film starring Jennifer Lopez, there's this misconception that Selena was a popular female singer selling millions like various other popular singers and, no, that is not true. She has no album that made it to three million sales, for example, in the US -- only three sold more than a million and that's counting the soundtrack to SELENA. DREAMING OF YOU is her best selling album worldwide and that's five million copies sold worldwide -- almost three million of those -- almost -- are sold in the US. By comparison, Jennifer Lopez's J-LO and ON THE 6 outsold anything by Selena -- that's in the US and that's worldwide. Jennifer's an artist from the '00s and Selena's from the 90s so it might be better to compare her to a different singer.
Ty: Linda Ronstadt.
Okay, Lina's LIVING IN THE USA, SIMPLE DREAMS, WHAT'S NEW and CRY LIKE A RAINSTORM, HOWL LIKE THE WIND? Each one of those four albums sold more than any Selena album. And her 1976's GREATEST HITS probably sold more copies in the US than everything Selena put out.
Ty: True crime interest benefited Selena, I'm sure. I don't want to talk about Cass to much because -- let me start with this. Kat's "Thom Donovan and AMERICAN SONGWRITER need to learn what facts are." went up this month. Kat's right -- and the book gets this right -- Cass auditioned for I CAN GET IT FOR YOU WHOLESALE. The role went to Barbra Streisand. For some stupid reason, AMERICAN SONGWRITER reported this month that Cass auditioned for FUNNY GIRL. It's nice reading about Cass but I'm looking forward to May when Owen Elliot-Kugell's MY MAMA, CASS: A MEMOIR comes out. So that's one reason I don't want to talk about the Cass section. The other is "Harold" and a feature that you want to write about. Every week, we get together and ideas are pitched. Ava and C.I. long ago dubbed WIKIPEDIA "Crapapedia" because it can't get facts right. At The Mamas and the Papas entry, as Ava and C.I. have long pointed out, the original group has an album that's not noted even in the discography. In the sketch on Cass, the author notes "Harvey." That's what Denny dubbed the sound of the four of them singing together, saying it took on a fifth voice. I think it's time to do the Mamas and the Papas piece and Harvey fits into that. I enjoyed the Cass sketch, the Patsy Cline sketch and the Janis Joplin sketch and would recommend the book based on those. Otherwise? I'd say take a pass.
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Previous book discussions:
"Book Talk (Mike, Ava and C.I.)"
"Book Talk (Stan, Rebecca, Ava and C.I.)"
"Book Talk (Mike, Ava and C.I.)"