The Band that Played On: The Extraordinary Story of the 8 Musicians Who Went Down with the Titanic

by Steve Turner

Overview

The movies, the documentaries, the museum exhibits. They often tell the same story about the "unsinkable" Titanic, her wealthy passengers, the families torn apart, and the unthinkable end. But never before has "that glorious band," the group of eight musicians who played on as the Titanic slipped deeper and deeper into the Atlantic Ocean, been explored in such depth—until now.

Join renowned biographer Steve Turner as he shares an extraordinary portrait of eight men who were thrown together on a maiden voyage, never having played together as a band, and whose names will be forever linked because of an extraordinary act of courage in the face of death.

In The Band that Played On, Turner asks and answers key questions, including:

• How did the faith of the band members allow them to react with grace under pressure?
• Why does the story of the Titanic continue to fascinate?
• How does the legacy of that glorious band live on today?

Praise for The Band that Played On:

"The Band that Played On is, surprisingly, the first book since the great ship went down to examine the lives of the eight musicians who were employed by the Titanic. What these men did—standing calmly on deck playing throughout the disaster—achieved global recognition. But their individual stories, until now, have been largely unknown. What Turner has uncovered is a narrow but unique slice of history—one more chapter of compelling Titanic lore."

—Marjorie Kehe, Book Editor, Christian Science Monitor

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781595555465
Publisher:	Nelson, Thomas, Inc.
Publication date:	09/26/2012
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.80(d)
Lexile:	1280L (what's this?)

About the Author

Steve Turnerbegan his journalistic career as Features Editor of the British rock monthly Beat Instrumental . He has written many music biographies, including Conversations with Eric Clapton , Rattle and Hum (U2), and A Hard Day's Write (the Beatles).

Table of Contents

Introduction vii

1 "That glorious band." 1

2 "The world's greatest liner." 17

3 "A man with the highest sense of duty." 33

4 "I will write to you on board the Titanic." 49

5 "An exceptionally good performer on the piano." 59

6 "A thorough and conscientious musician." 73

7 "The life of every ship he ever played on." 91

8 "An intellectual turn of mind." 101

9 "The Titanic is now about complete." 111

10 "We have a fine band." 121

11 "A solemnity too deep for words." 135

12 "It is with great sadness that I have to give you the painful news." 155

13 "If you think you have a legal claim." 177

14 "A natural fruit of the evil of the age." 187

15 "The sweets of notoriety." 197

16 "I should cling to my old violin." 213

Sources 223

General Bibliography 225

Printed Sources 227

Notes 239

Picture Credits 243

About the Author 245

Index 247

Editorial Reviews

Turner's exhaustive research unearthed many…seemingly mundane details that resonate as powerfully as the sinking of the great ship itself. The Titanic's band has been immortalized in films such as James Cameron's 1997 blockbuster, "Titanic"…But Turner has done the band an even greater service. He has made them human.
—The Washington Post

Matthew Algeo

The story of the ship's band playing cheerful music to calm passengers as the Titanic sank seized the public's imagination from the earliest reports, and the musicians became instant legends, lauded for their bravery. They were hired through an agency and were technically second-class passengers, not employees of the shipping line, despite their shipboard duties. All eight men died, and survivors claimed that they heard music playing until the very end. The historical record on their personal lives is thin, but Turner (An Illustrated History of Gospel) clearly did extensive research and presents plausible scenarios when required to speculate. He offers a picture of the lives of these particular musicians, along with much information on the work of professional musicians generally in the early 20th century. He even takes on the 99-year-old debate about the last song played. Especially poignant are the stories about the surviving dependants of the band members and their difficulties with legal claims and retrieving personal effects. VERDICT Titanic completists will certainly want this book, which should also appeal to those interested in the perspective on music history.—Megan Hahn Fraser, Univ. of California-Los Angeles Lib.

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