Books aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, and before and after the chronicles of Harry Potter; they certainly weren't mine either. That was until I stumbled upon a genre that I’d previously assumed just didn’t exist if it wasn‘t a celebrity biography: those books about sex, drugs and rock n’roll. Needless to say, popular music is a genre that doesn’t require a whole lot of selling. But here, I’ll be counting down (my/our/Stereoboards?) top five music books of all time. Because, let’s face it, if you spend enough time reading about music on internet pages - you might as well read about it on actual pages too. Just a little suggestion.
'England’s Dreaming' by Jon Savage
If you’d never even heard of Punk, you still couldn’t pass this up. Savage’s ability to create memorable characters with a subject grounded in reality is startling. After all, it’s not like he’s got a boring cast-list to work with: Malcolm McLaren (a man who inevitably provokes an emotional response, regardless of whether you knew him beforehand), Vivienne Westwood (renowned fashion eccentric and national treasure) and of course, Johnny Rotten himself. Boiling down the movement’s most visceral qualities and translating them into a book any rock fan should have lying around, England’s Dreaming documents some of guitar music’s most impassioned and poisonous moments. And could seriously have you thinking punk rock was the greatest musical period of the modern era.
Britpop by John Harris
If the cocaine fuelled, flag-waving days of the 1990s wouldn’t produce a rock novel for the textbooks, then nothing would. In this comprehensive history of the period, John Harris recalls the days of Oasis/Blur chart showdown, the burgeoning music nationalism and the spiralling downfall that paralleled the rise of Robbie Williams and the Spice Girls. Writing for publications like the NME and Select, Harris put’s his musical noggin’ to good use, spinning a triumphant tale of sex, drugs and rock n’ roll - brought together with quotes and personal accounts with some of the most prominent men and women of Cool Britannia, that precious time when it felt like music really mattered again.
Retromania by Simon Reynolds
If there was any testament to the fact that music is more than a drunken night out or the backdrop to a bus journey - it’s this. Retromania highlights the fact that music and pop culture have always stridden forward with one eye glaring backwards, we all take this fact for granted, but this account subsequently attempts to test every assumption we’ve ever known about this phenomenon. Thought provoking, original and insightful: Simon Reynolds has written a seminal work that fuses the inherent excitement of music culture with an interesting perspective on the state of modern pop. The man’s apt ability to provoke enjoyment and simultaneously have you learn something too, is bloody cheeky to put it mildly. A scorcher.
The History of the NME by Pat Long
Reliving the antics of this paper’s past is inevitably going to be a good read. Perhaps the most cosmopolitan and bohemian publication of it’s heyday, the stories of it’s writers are probably some of the most engaging, albeit jealousy inspiring, of the entire spectrum of jobs and occupations anyone could possibly have. From an insider, one might expect a tale more loyal to the pages he once wrote for, but no - Pat Long has managed to record some of the most intimate tragedies and home truths of the company, without giving it any romance or sense of unneeded balance. Celebrating it’s 60 years with this chronicle, the man has triumphantly shown the magazine’s inner wit, charm and courage - proving these things don’t just exist on it’s pages alone. Near impossible not to like.
33 Revolutions per minute by Dorian Lynskey
There’s perhaps no more exciting way to read about pop music, than to find out exactly how it stuck two fingers to the system. Charting a journey through the protest song, Lynskey illustrates 33 examples of musical delinquency, each accompanied with gripping accounts of their social clout, artistic ferocity and historical context. Whether you’re a prospective revolutionary or simply a backseat aficionado with a taste for politics - this narrative of ballsy rebellion including James Brown, Gill Scott-Heron, The Clash and Greenday - it’s one that no music fan can afford to miss. If there’s one striking thing about this epic, it’s the encyclopedic nature of it. Lynskey’s book is striking in that it reemerges and reignites the causality of pop history’s greatest tunes, and their hardest struggles - all whilst preserving the gravitas some of these battles deserve. A bloody good book, and worth every single penny.
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
We don't run any advertising! Our editorial content is solely funded by lovely people like yourself using Stereoboard's listings when buying tickets for live events. To keep supporting us, next time you're looking for concert, festival, sport or theatre tickets, please search for "Stereoboard". It costs you nothing, you may find a better price than the usual outlets, and save yourself from waiting in an endless queue on Friday mornings as we list ALL available sellers!
'England’s Dreaming' by Jon Savage
