2017 marks the 50th anniversary of what many think is the greatest Beatles album. This book is a new way of telling the album's story and is split into two distinct halves: A: The "A-side" is all about the Beatles, the music on the album, the recording process, how the disc was received at the time and how subsequently it has been acknowledged as one of the greatest albums ever recorded. B: The "B-side" looks at the state of the world in 1967. It covers the Summer of Love, anti-war protests, the Six-day War, the death of Che Guevara, the launch of Rolling Stone magazine, Jimi Hendrix's first UK tour as a solo artist - and many more events of global significance. Fascinating photographs and text build up a complete picture of the world as it was when one of the most famous albums of all time was released.

The concept behind Ruth and Martin's Album Club is simple: make people listen to a classic album they've never heard, then ask them to review it. Compiled here are the blog's greatest hits, as well as some new and exclusive material, each entry boasting a comprehensive introduction by all-round music geek Martin Fitzgerald: Ian Rankin on Madonna's Madonna. J. K. Rowling on the Violent Femmes' Violent Femmes. Chris Addison on Marvin Gaye's What's Going On. Bonnie Greer on The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds. Brian Koppelman on The Smiths' Meat Is Murder. Anita Rani on The Strokes' Is This It. Richard Osman on Roxy Music's For Your Pleasure. And many, many more.

Chameleon, entertainer, actor, and iconoclast. It would be difficult to think of a rock star who has had a more varied and influential career than David Bowie and the list of bands and musicians who have been influenced by Bowie reads like an A to Z of popular music. But Bowie himself has skillfully and consistently maintained his credibility as the most innovative performer of his generation by staying one jump ahead of the many who seek to imitate him. Classic Tracks: David Bowie explores this icon in detail. While his many artistic incarnations are known, few know David Bowie the man, and as this book will show, through its exploration of his diverse body of work, the only real constant factors in his career are his incredible voice, his imagination and his supreme talent for artistic reincarnation. Every track of each of his albums is examined in great detail, giving you an insight to both the music, and the enigmatic man who created it.

Bruce Springsteen Like a Killer in the Sun, originally published in Italian, is the definitive book on the work of Bruce Springsteen, showing his unique narrative talent and offering an accurate critical examination of his poetics. It presents 117 among his best lyrics, expounded and annotated with the philological care used for the classics of literature. In his introduction, Leonardo Colombati draws the attention to the fact that Springsteen is an author grafted on the line that goes from Whitman to Steinbeck, from Flannery O Connor to Raymond Carver. The book also contains Springsteen s biography and discography, plus an exclusive interview with Bruce Springsteen. With forewords by Academy Award winner Ennio Morricone and music critic Dave Marsh, a committee member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Springsteen s biographer. Like a Killer in the Sun is a book for anyone who wants to listen to a powerful and inspired voice coming from the heart of America.

On January 1, 1967, a new contract between 'Colonel' Tom Parker and his sole client, Elvis Presley, gave Parker a 50 per cent cut of royalties and profits that Presely generated. It was an unashamed grab for a bigger piece of a pie that had actually been shrinking for some time. Parker's plan to re-establish Presley as a star after he left the army in 1960 had been successful at first, with the success of films like "G.I. Blues" and "Blue Hawaii" and their soundtracks. But as the decade progressed the films became formulaic, the music bland, and sales declined. By 1967 Presley's singles struggled to break the top 20, and he hadn't had a number one for six years. Yet by the end of 1968 he was artistically revitalized, re-emerging in a TV comeback special of December that year slimmed down for the now iconic black leather suit, playing country-soul influenced rock like he meant it and loved it. It was the pivotal moment of the second great period of Presley's career, which lasted through to the end of 1970, during which he recorded some of his most enduring records, including "Suspicious Minds" and "In The Ghetto". In "Return Of The King" author Gillian Gaar shows how Presley reclaimed his crown, making an extraordinary transition from fading MoR balladeer to engaged, vital artist.

Pop music and rock music are often treated as separate genres but the distinction has always been blurred. Motti Regev argues that pop-rock is best understood as a single musical form defined by the use of electric and electronic instruments, amplification and related techniques. The history of pop-rock extends from the emergence of rock'n'roll in the 1950s to a variety of contemporary fashions and trends - rock, punk, soul, funk, techno, hip hop, indie, metal, pop and many more. This book offers a highly original account of the emergence of pop-rock music as a global phenomenon in which Anglo-American and many other national and ethnic variants interact in complex ways. Pop-rock is analysed as a prime instance of 'aesthetic cosmopolitanism' - that is, the gradual formation, in late modernity, of world culture as a single interconnected entity in which different social groupings around the world increasingly share common ground in their aesthetic perceptions, expressive forms and cultural practices. Drawing on a wide array of examples, this path-breaking book will be of great interest to students and scholars in cultural sociology, media and cultural studies as well as the study of popular music.

Not Dead Yet is Phil Collins' candid, witty, unvarnished story of the songs and shows, the hits and pans, his marriages and divorces, the ascents to the top of the charts and into the tabloid headlines. As one of only three musicians to sell over 100 million records both in a group and as a solo artist, Collins breathes rare air, but he has never lost his talent for crafting songs that touch listeners around the globe. This is the story of his epic career, from child actor to one of the most successful songwriters of the pop music era. A drummer since almost before he could walk, Collins received on-the-job training in the seedy, thrilling bars and clubs of 1960s swinging London before finally landing the drum seat in Genesis. Later he would step into the spotlight on vocals after the departure of Peter Gabriel, and compose the songs that would rocket him to international solo fame with the release of Face Value and `In the Air Tonight'. Whether he's recalling jamming with Eric Clapton and Robert Plant, pulling together a big band fronted by Tony Bennett, playing twice at Live Aid, or writing the Oscar-winning music for Disney's smash-hit animated film Tarzan, Collins keeps it intimate and his storytelling gift never wavers.

Gered Mankowitz was the man who created the enduring and defining image of not only Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones but of "the rock star". Now you can enjoy the best of his 50-year career in this defining tome of photography which chronicles music history, and tells you more about relevant popular culture than any text book could.

David Bowie's career as a pioneering artist spanned nearly 50 years and brought him international acclaim. He continues to be cited as a major influence on contemporary artists and designers working across the creative arts. Published to accompany the blockbuster international exhibition launched at London's Victoria and Albert Museum, this is the only book to be granted access to Bowie's personal archive of performance costume, ephemera and original design artwork by the artist, and brings it together to present a completely new perspective on his creative work and collaborations. The book traces his career from its beginnings in London, through the breakthroughs of Space Oddity and Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, and on to his impact on the larger international tradition of twentieth-century avant-garde art. Essays by V&A curators on Bowie's London, image, and influence on the fashion world, are complemented by Howard Goodall on musicology; Camille Paglia on gender and decadence and Jon Savage on Bowie's relationship with William Burroughs and his fans. Also included is a discussion between Christopher Frayling, Philip Hoare and Mark Kermode, held at the V&A, of Bowie's cultural impact. Over 300 images include personal and performance photographs, costumes, lyric sheets giving an unique insight into Bowie's world.

If ever there were Satanic Majesties of rock their name was Led Zeppelin. The band that out-sold the Rolling Stones and made Robert Johnson's deals with the devil look like a playground game of conkers were as high, inflated and glorified as their namesake. In Stephen Davis's scorching account of their phenomenally successful career, no aspect - however disquieting - is ignored. The narcotic, alcoholic and psychotic wreckage they wreaked, the disturbing influence of the notorious mage Aleister Crowley on lead guitarist Jimmy Page and the death of John Bonham are all recorded. Above all, the exultant, blazing charge of their music and its effects on Led Zeppelin and their fans is scrutinized.

Hammer of the Gods by Stephen Davis is a fierce and fearless story about a band that remain a legend of musical, sexual and mystical power. It is the last word in rock 'n' roll savagery.

The Beach Boys: All The Songs is a detailed look at the recorded output of this most unique and influential popular music group. From the 1962 debut Surfin' Safari through to 2012's That's Why God Made the Radio - the first record Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys had made together in sixteen years. This book covers all the material released by the major labels. To qualify, a song must have been issued commercially and released under the name "Beach Boys." Some of the truly obscure are included, such as `Howdy from Maui', a collaboration with Jeff Foxworthy from 1996. As well as covering the highest UK and US chart placings, each album is dissected with explanations on each song including songwriting credits and also includes background information to the making of each album. Documented in chronological order, each album release is given its own chapter and "orphaned" tracks such as B-sides and outtakes are also included within the appropriate time line. Author Rick Swan also provides bios for the key band members as well as the supporting musicians and the book is capped off with a full song title index for easy reference. Whether you are just starting out on your discovery of The Beach Boys or a longstanding fan, this detailed tome provides great insight into this most enduring band.

How does one young man survive the deaths of his entire family and manage to make something worthwhile of his life? In Things The Grandchildren Should Know Mark Oliver Everett tells the story of what it's like to grow up the insecure son of a genius in a wacky Virginia Ice Storm-like family. Left to run wild with his sister, his father off in some parallel universe of his own invention, Everett's upbringing was 'ridiculous, sometimes tragic and always unsteady'. But somehow he manages to not only survive his crazy upbringing and ensuing tragedies; he makes something of his life, striking out on a journey to find himself by channelling his experiences into his, eventually, critically acclaimed music with the Eels. But it's not an easy path. Told with surprising candour, Things The Grandchildren Should Know is an inspiring and remarkable story, full of hope, humour and wry wisdom.

As heard on BBC 6 Music with Shaun Keveny, BBC Radio 5 Live and Talk Radio with Eamonn Holmes The age of the rock star, like the age of the cowboy, has passed. Like the cowboy, the idea of the rock star lives on in our imaginations. What did we see in them? Swagger. Recklessness. Sexual charisma. Damn-the-torpedoes self-belief. A certain way of carrying themselves. Good hair. Interesting shoes. Talent we wished we had. What did we want of them? To be larger than life but also like us. To live out their songs. To stay young forever. No wonder many didn't stay the course. In Uncommon People, David Hepworth zeroes in on defining moments and turning points in the lives of forty rock stars from 1955 to 1995, taking us on a journey to burst a hundred myths and create a hundred more. As this tribe of uniquely motivated nobodies went about turning themselves into the ultimate somebodies, they also shaped us, our real lives and our fantasies. Uncommon People isn't just their story. It's ours as well.

From Sia to Elton John, Dusty Springfield to Little Richard, LGBT voices have changed the course of modern music. But in a world before they gained understanding and a place in the mainstream, how did the queer musicians of yesteryear fight to build foundations for those who would come after them? Pulling back the curtain on the colourful legacy that has shaped all of our musical and cultural landscape, music aficionado and writer Darryl W. Bullock reveals the inspiring and often heart-breaking stories of internationally renowned stars, as well as numerous lesser-known names that have driven the revolution from all corners of the globe: those whose personal stories against the threat of persecution during decades of political and historical turmoil - including two world wars, Stonewall and the AIDS crisis - has led to some of the most significant and soul-searching music of the last century. Bullock chronicles these struggles through new interviews and archival reports, dating from the birth of jazz in the red-light district of New Orleans, through the rock 'n' roll years, Swinging Sixties and all-singing and all-dancing disco days of the '70s, right up to modern pop, electronica and reggae. A treasure-trove of untold histories, David Bowie Made Me Gay is a moving and provocative story of the right to be heard and the need to keep the fight for equality in the spotlight.

The Drive-By Truckers' Southern Rock Opera takes listeners on a road trip through the American South, with stops along mean old highways and soul-sucking swamps, iconic recording studios and doomed chartered jets, and even Heaven and Hell. Along the way, the Truckers attempt to untangle the mess that is southern history by exploring the contradictory, dualistic nature of the region. Like twin paths intersecting and diverging before meeting again, the opera's libretto focuses on the lives of two bands: the fictional Betamax Guillotine, a stand-in for the Truckers themselves, and Southern rock gods Lynyrd Skynyrd. Rien Fertel takes us for a ride along the Truckers' winding road through the opera's Southlands, a region filled with youthful rockstar aspirations, fatal crashes, the wreckage of one band gone too soon, and the ambitions of another wrestling with the great hope and tragedy that is America.

Full lyrics for 70 rock classics complete with chord symbols and guitar boxes.

"Schippers' account of the rock music subculture in Chicago between 1992 and 1995 is an ethnographic study based on casual interactions with a core group of rock fans, interviews with rock musicians, and field trips into bars and clubs of the Wicker Park area. The result provides fascinating, informative anecdotal information. Drawing from theorists Anthony Giddens, Candace West, Don Zimmerman, Judith Butler, and others, Schippers interprets performances, gestures, and language as well as values-both implied and explicitly stated-as maneuvers employed by members of that subculture to undermine expressions of (and attitudes reflecting) sexism and bigotry."-Choice "An astute analysis of rock music's gender politics that manages to be both perceptive and fun to read-a rare feat."- Arlene Stein, author of Sex and Sensibility: Stories of a Lesbian Generation Given the long history of feminism and its contested place in popular culture, important, practical questions arise: What effect, if any, have feminist ideas and practices had on the lives of young men and women who grew up with them? How do these individuals negotiate the realities of gender in their daily lives? Employing the crucial feminist insight that gender is a constantly shifting performance and not an essential quality related to sex, Mimi Schippers explores the gender roles, assumptions, and transgressions of the men and women involved in the alternative hard rock scene. She uses the innovative term gender maneuvering to explain how gender and sexuality are negotiated and always changing features of social relations. This process operates as a cultural practice and as an individual strategy of resistance to socially prescribed gender roles. Schippers conducted extensive interviews with fans as well as musicians, including Ian MacKaye of Fugazi, Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, Kim Thayil of Soundgarden, Donita Sparks and Jennifer Finch of L7, Kat Bjelland and Lori Barbero of Babes in Toyland, Rose Marshack of Poster Children, Louise Post and Nina Gordon of Veruca Salt, and Liz Davis and Valerie Agnew of 7 Year Bitch. As it documents the development of a rock music genre that has so far received little academic attention, Rockin' out of the Box also demonstrates how this musical culture contributes to our understanding of the daily practices of gender relations among young people. Mimi Schippers is an assistant professor of sociology and women's studies at Tulane University.

The early history of the Rolling Stones--long shrouded in myth and confusion as a result of 40 years of the rock and roll lifestyle--is made clear in this concise account. Chronicling the band members from boyhood through the band's first record, cut in 1963, this biography contains rare photographs and never before published interviews with family members as well as every member who played with the band prior to the recognized line-up--including pre-Watts drummers Erky Grant and Mick Avory; Mick Jagger's cousin, Rick Huxley; early Stones member Dick Taylor; and Phil May, a schoolmate of Jagger and Richards and member of The Pretty Things. Every aspect of the band's development is explored, from their recording sessions to landing on the music charts, in this myth-shattering musical history.