The Sound of the City: The Rise of Rock & Roll
A sweeping, anecdotal account of the great sounds and voices of radio–and how it became a bonding agent for a generation of American youthWhen television became the next big thing in broadcast entertainment, everyone figured video would kill the radio star–and radio, period. But radio came roaring back with a whole new concept. The war was over, th... See more
Random House Publishing Group • Something in the Air: Radio, Rock, and the Revolution That Shaped a Generation
There was virtually no way a man born in 1920 would (or could) share the same musical taste as his son born in 1955, even if they had identical personalities. That inherent dissonance gave rock music a distinctive, non-musical importance for a very long time.
Chuck Klosterman • But What If We're Wrong?: Thinking About the Present As If It Were the Past
But removing the essentialism of songwriting from the rock equation radically alters the context of its social value. It becomes a solely performative art form, where the meaning of a song matters less than the person singing it. It becomes personality music, and the dominant qualities of Presley’s persona—his sexuality, his masculinity, his larger
... See moreChuck Klosterman • But What If We're Wrong?: Thinking About the Present As If It Were the Past
If Elvis (minus Dylan) is the definition of rock, then rock is remembered as showbiz.