The appeal of the banjo has been shown to be timeless and universal---adaptable to almost any form of popular music. It was one of just a few instruments that could be faithfully reproduced in the early days of sound recording, and its recording history dates back to 1889. Heier documents that history on cylinders and 78-rpm disks in the pre-LP era ending in the mid-1950s. The book offers a comprehensive compilation of all such recordings on which the banjo plays a solo role or dominant part. Organized by performer or performing group, the recordings are listed chronologically with...

Set against the backdrop of deteriorating living conditions for hundreds of millions of people in developing and debtor countries, this volume concentrates on the structural adjustment policies designed to facilitate debt repayment and to stabilize indebted economies and the effects these policies have on the human rights of affected peoples. Conducted by contributors from various disciplines, this analysis provides distinctive insights into the relationship between international economic decisions and human welfare.

The volume begins with general chapters on the issue of world debt;...

This study assesses the political effects of the Second Vatican Council on the politics of American Catholics. After discussing Catholic contributions to political development since the Middle Ages, Gelm argues that changes since Vatican II signify a major departure from the Church's authoritarian and anti-democratic actions of the past. Among the most significant changes has been the increased political activism of America's Catholic bishops. Gelm has surveyed the political attitudes of U.S. Catholic bishops and investigated their political values and motives. Emphasizing the way in which...