Music-History & Criticism

An epic journey through sea shanties, high tides and seven seas. From the international bestselling singer comes The Book of Sea Shanties. The world sang in harmony with Nathan Evans, the Glaswegian postie turned singer of sea shanties. Join him as he takes you...

A vivid, dramatic account of how half a dozen kinds of modern music--punk rock, art rock, disco, salsa, rap, minimalist classical--emerged in new forms and cross-pollinated all at once in the middle seventies in NYC. Punk rock and hip-hop. Disco and salsa. The loft...

In July of 1969 the Beatles returned to Abbey Road studios; where they had first begun their incredible partnership with producer George Martin; seven years earlier. The band recaptured the magic and camaraderie from the earliest sessions and Abbey Road would go on to...

Inside the making of one of the biggest-selling albums of all time: Fleetwood Mac's Rumours Fleetwood Mac's classic 1977 Rumours album topped the Billboard 200 for thirty-one weeks and won the Grammy for Album of the Year. More recently, Rolling Stone named it the...

Winner of a National Book Critics Circle award, a rollicking and unforgettable memoir by the man who helped bring the music of the blues into the mainstream"Without Lomax it's possible that there would have been no blues explosion, no R&B movement, no Beatles and...

Let's head backstage at Cleveland's legendary rock and roll landmarks as club owners, talent bookers, performers, promoters, and concertgoers share stories from the 1950s through 1990s about ... Where it all began: the Cleveland Arena, site of the first-ever rock concert, anywhere. The hugely...

Writings and interviews engaging the artists and themes from Blank Forms' public programming, from Thulani Davis to Charles CurtisThis iteration privileges new texts produced for the publication. These include an interview with the idiosyncratic Texan singer-songwriter and visual artist Terry Allen, conducted by curator...

As the definitive biography of American-bred rocker Tom Petty, this updated and revised book examines his extensive music career, his personal life and his many public battles. After a momentary but pivotal encounter with Elvis Presley at age 10, Petty felt destined to pursue...

A one-of-a kind survey of rap and hip hop history from 1973 to today by Chuck D, arguably the most influential rapper in the world. In the more than 40 years since the days of DJ Kool Herc and "Rapper's Delight," hip hop and...

A landmark history of post-punk, the basis of the documentary film directed by Nikolaos Katranis Renowned music journalist Simon Reynolds celebrates the futurist spirit of such bands as Joy Division, Gang of Four, Talking Heads, and Devo, which resulted in endless innovations in music,...

Blues is the cornerstone of American popular music, the bedrock of rock and roll. In this extraordinary musical and social history, Robert Palmer traces the odyssey of the blues from its rural beginnings, to the steamy bars of Chicago's South Side, to international popularity,...

Two kids in their early twenties walk down the Bowery on a spring afternoon, just as the proprietor of a club hangs an awning with the new name for his venue. The place will be called CBGB & OMFUG which, he tells them, stands...

Finally back in print! The must-have book on Gibson's killer acoustic guitars, now updated. From the 1920s to the present, Gibson and its flat-tops have been synonymous with American music. Whether the music you listen to is from the North or the South, the...

"The metal band everybody knows--but nobody has ever figured out. Ben Apatoff has taken the ultimate deep dive into the dark legend of Metallica, one of rock's weirdest and most fascinating mysteries. In this brilliant book, he tells the definitive story of how a...

This entertaining history of Cuba and its music begins with the collision of Spain and Africa and continues through the era of Miguelito Valdés, Arsenio Rodríguez, Benny Moré, and Pérez Prado. It offers a behind-the-scenes examination of music from a Cuban point of view,...

"Excellent social history...an indispensable account of a time of beauty and terror." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review A modern epic of the battles between innocence and cynicism, joy and terror Los Angeles in the 1960s gave the world some of the greatest music in rock...

This groundbreaking biography of a brilliant but disturbed performer explores the paradox of the man and the artist. Based on more than 100 interviews, this intelligent profile explores Morrison's roots; the hard times he went through in London, New York, and Boston; the making...

Grunge Is Dead weaves together the definitive story of the Seattle music scene through a series of interviews with the people who were there. Taking the form of an "oral" history, this books contains over 130 interviews, along with essential background information from acclaimed...

This book by the founding editor and former publisher of Bass Player magazine not only celebrates the 50-year history of Fender's revolutionary Precision Bass, it also - for the first time - illuminates the full scope of its profound impact on music and society....

Pink Moon explores how Nick Drake's third and final album has puttered and purred its way into a new millennium. Features interviews with producer Joe Boyd, string arranger Robert Kirby, and even the marketing team behind the VW Cabrio commercial that launched the album...

November 8, 2021, marks the fiftieth anniversary of the release of Led Zeppelin's untitled fourth album, which contains the most well-known rock song ever recorded, "Stairway to Heaven." At just over eight minutes long, the composition by guitarist Jimmy Page and singer/lyricist Robert Plant...

Neil Young is one of rock and roll's most important and enigmatic figures, a legend from the sixties who is still hugely influential today. He has never granted a writer access to his inner life - until now. Based on six years of interviews...

". . . a great blow-by-blow account of an exciting and still-legendary scene."---Marshall Crenshaw From the early days of John Lee Hooker to the heyday of Motown and beyond, Detroit has enjoyed a long reputation as one of the crucibles of American pop music....

This outstanding book treating the three most beloved composers of the Vienna School is basic to any study of Classical-era music. Drawing on his rich experience and intimate familiarity with the works of these giants, Charles Rosen presents his keen insights in clear and...

A Time Magazine Best Book of 2011, Featuring Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice In Chains, Mudhoney and more Twenty years after the release of Nirvana's landmark album Nevermind comes Everybody Loves Our Town: An Oral History of Grunge, the definitive word on the grunge...

Most of the hits from the Gin Blossoms' 1992 breakout album, New Miserable Experience are credited to "D. Hopkins," but the mysterious songwriter isn't mentioned anywhere else in the album notes, or even on the band's website. Joe became fascinated with the forgotten story...

"A biography that crackles with as much energy as the great bluesman's songs." --Ted Drozdowski, Boston Phoenix The epic, rollicking, up-and-down life of Muddy Waters--who went from Mississippi farmhand to musical legend, invented electric blues, and created the template for the rock-and- roll band...

In the first decade of the twenty-first century, Kanye West created the most compelling body of pop music by an American artist during the period. Having risen from obscurity as a precocious producer through the ranks of Jay Z's Roc-A-Fella records, by the time...

From rock and roll historian Ed Ward comes a comprehensive, authoritative, and enthralling cultural history of one of rock's most exciting eras. It's February 1964 and The Beatles just landed in New York City, where the NYPD, swarms of fans, and a crowd of...

Los Angeles, 1976. David Bowie is holed up in his Bel-Air mansion, drifting into drug-induced paranoia and confusion. Obsessed with black magic and the Holy Grail, he's built an altar in the living room and keeps his fingernail clippings in the fridge. There are...

The definitive survey, combining current scholarship with a vibrant narrative. Carefully informed by feedback from dozens of scholars, it remains the book that students and teachers trust to explain what's important, where it fits, and why it matters. Peter Burkholder weaves a compelling story...

This book aims to teach... Why this era of music is important and should not be overlooked. That it is a legitimate genre that is a significant part of the story of rock. Deep insights into how the scene was developing at the time....

After his breakthrough with Ziggy Stardust and before his U.S. pop hits "Fame" and "Golden Years" David Bowie produced a dark and difficult concept album set in a post-apocalyptic "Hunger City" populated by post-human "mutants." Diamond Dogs includes the great glam anthem "Rebel Rebel"...

Beatles For Sale on Parlophone Records covers all of the singles, albums and extended play discs issued by the Beatles in the U.K. from 1962 through 1970. Each record is given a separate chapter, which tells the stories behind how the songs appearing on...

Described as the perfect fusion of poetry and garage band rock and roll (the original concept was "rock and Rimbaud"), Horses belongs as much to the world of literary and cultural criticism as it does to the realm of musicology. While Horses pays homage...

Gritty, moving, funny, and always fascinating, Bill Graham Presents is the inside story of the explosive and unforgettable man who created the business of rock. As a child, Bill Graham fled Europe to escape Hitler's armies. He grew up on the streets of New...

Beethoven's Lives will be required reading for anyone interested in understanding how Beethoven biography has evolved through the ages. When Ludwig van Beethoven died in March 1827, the world of music felt an intense loss. The composer's funeral procession was one of the largest...

Few music groups have been able to sustain a fan base as passionate and dedicated as that of Phish, and this entertaining guide rewards those fans with everything they need to know about the band in a one-of-a-kind format. Packed with history, trivia, lists,...

It was 1969, and Miles Davis, prince of cool, was on the edge of being left behind by a dynamic generation of young musicians, an important handful of whom had been in his band. Rock music was flying off in every direction, just as...

Music writer Womack delivers a fascinating, in-depth look at the creation of Abbey Road, the Beatles' penultimate album released 50 years ago.... Womack displays a detailed and insightful analysis that fans will hope he applies to the band's other albums.― Publishers Weekly Acclaimed Beatles...

Aja was the album that made Steely Dan a commercial force on the order of contemporaries like Fleetwood Mac, the Eagles and Chicago. A double-platinum, Grammy-winning bestseller, it lingered on the Billboard charts for more than a year and spawned three hit singles. Odd,...

Recorded during the blazing hot summer of 1971 at Villa Nellce, Keith Richards's seaside mansion in southern France, Exile on Main Street has been hailed as one of the greatest rock records of all time. Yet its improbable creation was difficult, torturous...and at times...

Blackstar Theory takes a close look at David Bowie's ambitious last works: his surprise 'comeback' project The Next Day (2013), the off-Broadway musical Lazarus (2015) and the album that preceded the artist's death in 2016 by two days, Blackstar. The book explores the swirl...

An NPR Best Book of the Year"Without God Save the Queens, it is possible that the contributions of dozens of important female hip-hop artists who have sold tens of millions of albums, starred in monumental films, and influenced the direction of the culture would...

"Dylan remains the rare singer whose work is worth reading on the page. His words are consistently funny, alive to the sound of language, and of course appealingly cryptic." --The New York Times Book Review A new collection of Bob Dylan's most essential lyrics--one...

How long should I practice? Which pieces should I study? How can I develop a singing tone? All violinists ponder these questions, striving to make the most of their practice and performances. This enlightening and encouraging book holds the answers, offering a series of...

". . . extraordinarily far-reaching. . . . highly accessible." --Notes "No one has written this way about music in a long, long time. Lucid, insightful, with real spiritual, political, intellectual, and emotional grasp of the whole picture. A book about why music matters,...

A group biography of '90s punk rock told through the prism of Green Day, The Offspring, NOFX, Rancid, Bad Religion, Social Distortion, and more Two decades after the Sex Pistols and the Ramones birthed punk music into the world, their artistic heirs burst onto...

"Wonderful"--The New York Times. "Provocative, opinionated, and never dull"--Down Beat. "A singular book."--Studs Terkel. When it was first published, Alec Wilder's American Popular Song quickly became a classic and today it remains essential reading for countless musicians, lovers of American Song, and fans of...

Grammy-winning music producer, Ian Brennan's seventh book, Muse-Sick: a music manifesto in fifty-nine notes, acts as a primer on how mass production and commercialization have corrupted the arts. Broken down into a series of core points and actions plans, Muse-Sick is a concise and...