Showing titles in History & Criticism

At the time, it was unclear why the UK government targeted the Spiral Tribe travelling sound system. Even after arresting many key members and launching one of Britain's biggest court cases against them. Was it really because they were a marauding horde of anarcho-techno-pirates, their outlandish music calling a generation to rise up in rebellion against conservatism, convention, and even consensus reality?

The cassette tape was revolutionary. Cheap, portable, and reusable, this small plastic rectangle changed music history. Make your own tapes! Trade them with friends! Tape over the ones you don't like! The cassette tape upended pop culture, creating movements and uniting communities. This entertaining book charts the journey of the cassette from its invention in the early 1960s to its Walkman-led domination in the 1980s to decline at the birth of compact discs to resurgence among independent music makers.

Embrace over fifty years of Earth, Wind & Fire through percussionist and vocalist Ralph Johnson’s profound memoir. Ralph has seen it all and, for the first time, shares the inside story of their rise to fame through uplifting music, the challenges of the music industry, and the iconic mega band’s mission to ascend themselves and listeners to greater heights. Rhythm & Fire is a roadmap of music, resilience, and reflection as Ralph Johnson digs deep to tell the motivational story of Earth, Wind & Fire, from humble roots to worldwide fame and success.

In 100 brief chapters, John M. Borack discusses and ranks the greatest moments in Beatles history. An avid Fab Four fan since childhood and a music journalist for more than 35 years, Borack has created a book to agree with and disagree with, and one that is sure to spark conversations. A love letter to the greatest rock band of all time, The Beatles 100 is a book for Beatles buffs and casual fans alike.

That Thin, Wild Mercury Sound is the definitive treatment of Bob Dylan's magnum opus, Blonde on Blonde, not only providing the most extensive account of the sessions that produced the trailblazing album but also setting the record straight on much of the misinformation that has surrounded the story of how the masterpiece came to be made. Including many new details and eyewitness accounts, as well as keen insight into the Nashville cats who helped Dylan reach rare artistic heights, it explores the lasting impact of rock's first double album.

In Here We Are Now: The Lasting Impact of Kurt Cobain, Charles R. Cross, author of the New York Times bestselling Cobain biography Heavier Than Heaven, examines the legacy of the Nirvana front man and takes on the question: why does Kurt Cobain still matter so much, 20 years after his death?...

2025 ASSOCIATION FOR RECORDED SOUND COLLECTIONS AWARDS CERTIFICATE OF MERIT * AUDIOFILE MAGAZINE EARPHONES AWARD The audiobook edition of How Women Made Music: A Revolutionary History brings listeners closer than ever to their creative heroes. Featuring rare interview excerpts with Nina Simone...

A reaction to the likes of the previous decade's yuppies and acts like M.C. Hammer, grunge became a sound and culture for angst-ridden teens and the disaffected youth who were proud to be plain. Combining punk, metal, and hard rock, the grunge sound emanated out of Seattle from groups like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Alice in Chains, giving the young decade its trademark sound.

Wie man über den Tod des eigenen Kindes hinwegkommt (Tears in Heaven); wie die "Bravo" für eine Familienzusammenführung bei Abba sorgte (Knowing You, Knowing Me); und wie die Liebe an und für sich zum tödlichen Spiel werden kann (Suicide Blond)...

Wie Leonard Cohen Janis Joplin flach legte (Chelsea Hotel Nr.2); und wie die britische Königin-Mutter Pete Townshend von The Who dazu brachte, eines seiner besten Lieder zu schreiben (My Generation)...

Distinguished guests nominate a great musician for BBC Radio 4's Great Lives For 20 years, Great Lives has been a linchpin of Radio 4, presented by Joan Bakewell, Humphrey Carpenter, Francine Stock and Matthew Parris. In it, a household name is invited to choose one of their heroes to discuss...

Audiobuch über das Leben und Wirken des legendären Sängers und Songwriters. John Denver lebt: zumindest in den Gedanken der immer noch riesigen Fangemeinde des 1997 durch einen Flugzeugabsturz ums Leben gekommenen amerikanischen Sängers und Songwriters. Jetzt ist ein Hörbuch über ihn erschienen, das über das Leben und Wirken des Künstlers informiert. Das Hörbuch enthält dazu Interviewpassagen von einer Pressekonferenz, die John Denver auf seiner letzten Deutschlandtournee im Jahre 1995 gegeben hat.

Kurt Cobain. GG Allin. Wendy O. Williams. Duane Allman. Travis Barker. Jimmy Page. Janis Joplin. Ozzy Osbourne. Chrissie Hynde. Dee Dee Ramone. Chris Cornell. Marc Bolan. Tommy Lee. Amy Winehouse. Jimi Hendrix. What do these artists all have in common? They’re rowdy rock stars whose over-the-top lifestyles spun out of control, landing them deep in Rock & Roll Nightmare territory. Rock & Roll Nightmares: True Stories, Volume 1 is a meticulously-researched, up-to-date, entertaining, and shocking book that rounds up the tragic tales from the 1960s to the present day.

Read by the author. In this special seasonal edition, bestselling author Robert J. Morgan shares the incredible stories behind traditional holiday hymns of faith, including Christmas, Easter, and more. Is there a festive season of the year that is complete without one of your favorite hymns? Not...

Charly Hübner zeigt sein schriftstellerisches Talent. Selten wurde so leidenschaftlich über Musik geschrieben, selten so eindrücklich über den Effekt, den diese auf einen Jugendlichen haben kann. Dieses Hörbuch ist eine Schatzkiste voller Erinnerungen und Anekdoten eines Lebens, für das der Frontmann der lautesten Band der Welt seine berühmten Weisheiten geschrieben haben könnte: "I'm in love with rock'n'roll, it satisfies my soul". Ob als pickliger Jugendlicher in der Dorfdisko, wenn das erste Mal "The Hammer" gespielt wird, oder bei der Party nach der ersten Filmpremiere - immer ist Motörhead als Soundtrack dabei.

There may be no more joyous iteration in all of music than 1980s hard rock. It was an era where the musical and cultural ideals of rebellion and freedom of the great rock 'n' roll of the '50s, '60s, and '70s were taken to dizzying heights of neon excess. Attention to songcraft, showmanship, and musical virtuosity (especially in the realm of the electric guitar) were at an all-time high, and radio and MTV were delivering the goods en masse to the corn-fed children of America and beyond.

Factory Records has become the stuff of legend. The histories of the label have been told from many perspectives, from visual catalogues and memoirs to exhibitions. Yet no in-depth history has ever been told from the perspectives of the women who were integral to Factory's cultural significance. Told entirely in their voices, I Thought I Heard You Speak is an oral history that reveals the true cultural reach of the label and its staying power in the twenty-first century.

The Allman Brothers Band’s Brothers and Sisters was not only the band’s best-selling album at over seven million copies sold, it was also a powerfully influential release, both musically and culturally, one whose influence continues to be profoundly felt.

In an extraordinary story unfolding across two hundred years, Kristina Gaddy uncovers the banjo's key role in Black spirituality, ritual, and rebellion. Through meticulous research in diaries, letters, archives, and art, she traces the banjo's beginnings from the seventeenth century, when enslaved people of African descent created it from gourds or calabashes and wood.

Paper Cuts is the inside story of the slow death of the British music press. But it's also a love letter to it, the tale of how music magazines saved one man's life. Ted Kessler left home and school around his 17th birthday, determined 'to be someone who listened to music professionally'. That dream appeared forlorn when he was later arrested for theft behind the counter of the record shop he managed during acid house's long hot summer of love.