When I was a kid I used to lie down in front of the t.v. and draw by the hour. Even though I'll never be a great artist I still enjoy drawing on occasion and like to collect books with interesting drawings and illustrations. Robert Crumb has been one of my favorites since the early '70's. He has a gift at story telling that often includes interesting mixes of the profound and the profane. The "R. Crumb Handbook" is a great autobiography, intro to Crumb's work and an insightful tour of the popular American culture he grew up in. A fantastic bonus that is included with the book is Crumb's music CD. Crumb is an avid 78 collector and his appreciation of American music in the early part of the last century is evident on the CD. There are waltzes, jug band, old time country and a number of other types of music played by Robert Crumb with a variety of other musicians. If you ever wondered about the type of music your relatives might have listened to when radio was just getting started 80 years ago, this may be a good place to start.
