If You Can Kill It I Can Cook It

Before there was Snoop Dogg there was Swamp Dogg. The original was born Jerry Williams Jr., in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1942. He first won fame as a 12-year old soul singer called Little Jerry-before he later decided, at the end of the 1960s, to create a new identity for making music and mischief. Thus did Little Jerry become Swamp Dogg-a legendary singer, songwriter and record producer whose singular voice and ideas have shaped the history of soul, country, hip-hop, and R&B. But if music is Swamp Dogg's first love, this storied man of taste has another one: food. In 1972, Swamp Dogg proclaimed that he would write a cookbook so transformative that the legacies of culinary giants like Julia Child, Betty Crocker, and even Colonel Sanders would pale in comparison. He stated that "It is the book that Hemingway wanted to write and that Agatha Christie couldn't." Now, more than 50 years later, that work is finally here. If You Can Kill It, I Can Cook It is a book for those who appreciate recipes seasoned with personality and history, and stories to go with dinner. This is more than a cookbook: it's a biographical artifact and a journey into the mind of a chef who'll teach you how to make "Baked Beans Bo Diddley", "James Brown In Flight Chicken" and "Willie Nelson Potatoes Platter". It's also a glimpse into the savory life of a musical genius, richly illustrated with tales and photos of family, food, music, and business.