Author: Myers, Marc
Brand: Grove Press
Binding: Hardcover
Number Of Pages: 400
Release Date: 09-11-2021
Details: Product Description A lively, entertaining, wide-ranging oral history of the golden age of the rock concert based on over ninety interviews with musicians, promoters, stagehands, and others who contributed to the huge cultural phenomenon that is live rock Decades after the rise of rock music in the 1950s, the rock concert retains its allure and its power as a unifying experience—and as an influential multi-billion-dollar industry. In Rock Concert, acclaimed interviewer Marc Myers sets out to uncover the history of this compelling phenomenon, weaving together ground-breaking accounts from the people who were there. Myers combines the tales of icons like Joan Baez, Ian Anderson, Alice Cooper, Steve Miller, Roger Waters, and Angus Young with figures such as the disc jockeys who first began playing rock on the radio, like Alan Freed in Cleveland and New York; the audio engineers that developed new technologies to accommodate ever-growing rock audiences; music journalists, like Rolling Stone's Cameron Crowe; and the promoters who organized it all, like Michael Lang, co-founder of Woodstock, to create a rounded and vivid account of live rock's stratospheric rise. Rock Concert provides a fascinating, immediate look at the evolution of rock 'n' roll through the lens of live performances —spanning from the rise of R&B in the 1950s, through the hippie gatherings of the '60s, to the growing arena tours of the '70s and '80s. Elvis Presley's gyrating hips, the British Invasion that brought the Beatles in the '60s, the Grateful Dead's free flowing jams, and Pink Floyd's The Wall are just a few of the defining musical acts that drive this rich narrative. Featuring dozens of key players in the history of rock and filled with colorful anecdotes, Rock Concert will speak to anyone who has experienced the transcendence of live rock. Review Praise for Rock Concert: “Rock Concert tracks the growth of rock-and-roll audiences across the United States from small, dynamic shows after World War II to the televised double-stadium spectacle of Live Aid.”—Washington Post “With his new book Rock Concert, veteran journalist Marc Myers has marshalled an army to tell the free-wheeling story of the growth of this entertainment staple. Like Legs McNeil’s punk history classic, Please Kill Me and Frank Mastropolo’s recent, Fillmore East: The Venue That Changed Rock History, Myers’ book is a well-ordered oral history weaving through decades of fascinating facts and anecdotes.”—NYS Music “If your partner loves rock, gift them this book. Or, read it yourself and then impress them with your in-depth knowledge of the history of rock concerts.”—The Zoe Report “‘You had to be there.’ This account of the rise and evolution of rock through the lens of live performances that brings in DJs, performers, and music journalists takes you there to supply the context and legacy.”—Globe and Mail “Highly informative…from club gigs in the early 1950s to The Beatles in the early-mid 1960s; from Woodstock in 1969 to Live Aid in 1985; from branding to amplification/lighting; from media coverage to ticketing, Myers and many industry commentators expertly tick them off, one by one.”—Irish Times “Though its scope and subject matter is wide, Rock Concert is one of the best books on music to come out recently, and its pure first-person, direct quote narrative is the ideal format to tell the story.... Every page offers a new revelation.”—Houston Press “Entertaining. . . Myers’ book is not a simple hagiography of rock concerts; it’s a story of the development of the rock concert itself, from the 1950s to the 1980s. . . . Reading Myers’ anatomy of a rock concert (his earlier book is Anatomy of a Song) is bound to carry readers back to their memories of their favorite concerts and to encourage them to consider why those memories are so enduring.”—No Depression “Live performances—and plenty of them—have gone a long way to boost rock ’n’ roll’s popularity over the decades. There
EAN: 9780802157911
Languages: English