Love Always, Patsy: Patsy Cline's Letters to a Friend

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Summary: Authentic, personal, incisive, revealing, wholesome
Review: These letters in Patsy's own handwriting reveal her frustrations, her problems, her exhuberance, her love for Charlie, without adjectives -- plainly from the heart. We also are given a rare unembellished picture of what it was like to make it in the fledgling country music industry. The comments of Charlie Dick, Cindy Hazen and Mike Freeman with Patsy's own words give unexcelled accuracy to the order of events. Great.

Rating:
Summary: a whole new look at a legend
Review: These letters, literally found in an attic, were written by Patsy at the very beginning of her career and have only just surfaced after forty years. In l955 Treva Miller from rural Tenn. heard Patsy sing and wanted tojoin a fan club. Patsy didn't have one, so Treva started one for her and became Patsy's publicist and as well as her confidant. Together they shared the dream of Patsy's success, though Treva, sadly, did not live to see it.And Patsy of course, didn't live to enjoy it. Patsy's letters here are touching, moving and they make you realize how hard she had to work--music was a man's world--and how much she loved her work. The layout and design of the book are fabulous, making the letters clear and immediate. Hazen and Freeman have added context and explanation unobtrusively wherever needed. Bravo to the editors for this whole new look at Patsy Cline!

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Summary: From a member of Patsy's current fan club
Review: When I first heard that this book was being published, I awaited patiently but eagerly. My patience was rewarded with a truly sensational personal account of the real Patsy Cline. The letters tell of an ordinary woman and an aspiring young country singer with the hopes and dreams of making it in the country music field and the closeness and personal relationship that occurred between Patsy and Treva Miller Steinbicker. The photos included depict a beautiful, vibrant young woman. Mike Freeman and Cindy Hazen has made it possible for me, in Patsy's own words, to have an up close and personal feel of the young woman with the tremendously powerful voice that I have admired for so long. This book is a definite must read for anyone who has and always will love Patsy Cline. Thanks Mike and Cindy, for a gift that will grace my library.

Rating:
Summary: Heartwarming and genuinely touching!
Review: When I first heard that this book was being published, I awaited patiently but eagerly. My patience was rewarded with a truly sensational personal account of the real Patsy Cline. The letters tell of an ordinary woman and an aspiring young country singer with the hopes and dreams of making it in the country music field and the closeness and personal relationship that occurred between Patsy and Treva Miller Steinbicker. The photos included depict a beautiful, vibrant young woman. Mike Freeman and Cindy Hazen has made it possible for me, in Patsy's own words, to have an up close and personal feel of the young woman with the tremendously powerful voice that I have admired for so long. This book is a definite must read for anyone who has and always will love Patsy Cline. Thanks Mike and Cindy, for a gift that will grace my library.

Rating:
Summary: Rare Insight
Review: When I think of Patsy Cline, I always picture her as perhaps the first great female voice of Country and Pop music and one of the greatest voices of all time, male or female and of any musical genre. I had always assumed that she was one of those talented people that achieved stardom and succes quickly. However, thanks to Treva Miller (Patsy's devoted fan, fan club president and friend) we now can see that stardom and fame didn't come that easily for this gifted signer. Through her correspondence with Treva, Patsy tells the story of the early stages of her carreer. This collection of letters and post cards documents the disapointments and successes that Patsy experienced both in her professional life and in her personal life. Cindy Hazen and Mike Freeman do a wonderful job of mixing the contents of the letters with just enough background information to fill in the gaps for the reader. They have also included reproductions of each of Patsy's letters to Treva along with some personal photographs. Rarely do we get an opportunity to take a look at someone's life from this perspective. It's honest and true. Patsy Cline's songs will sound just a little bit different to me from now on.