Rock History

Rock and roll thrives on rhythm, but the drummers who drive that pulse often stay in the shadows. In Backbeats: A History of Rock and Roll in Fifteen Drummers, acclaimed music historian John Lingan brings these unsung heroes into the spotlight, delivering a fascinating journey through six decades of rock history. Lingan’s deep research and vivid storytelling explores the lives of fifteen drummers who didn’t just keep time—they shaped the sound of rock and roll.

Have you ever wondered what Martin Luther’s 95 Theses actually said? If so, you’re not alone. Finally, there’s an accessible guide to Luther’s most revolutionary words. Martin Luther changed the course of church history. His 95 Theses are considered a groundbreaking document that sparked the Reformation and altered countless lives. But most people today have never read them and don’t understand them. In Martin Luther’s 95 Theses: Celebrating the Protestant Reformation in the 21st Century, Peter DeHaan takes Luther’s contentions and turns them into understandable, bite-sized ...

Spanning three decades worth of astute, acerbic, and overall astounding music writing, Kick Out the Jams is the first large-scale anthology of the work of renowned critic Dave Marsh. Ranging from Elvis Presley to Kurt Cobain, from Nina Simone to Ani DiFranco, from the Beatles to Green Day, the book gives an opinionated, eye-opening overview of 20th-century popular music—offering a portrait not just of an era but of a writer wrestling with the American empire.

The revealing backstory of the album with no name that spawned 'When the Levee Breaks', 'Black Dog,' 'Stairway to Heaven', and 'Rock 'n' Roll'. Four tracks each side; eight killers, no fillers. This is how they did it.

As an only child reeling from the demolition of her parents’ toxic marriage, the New York City underground music scene offers a young Ali a different family of misfits and talented outsiders to belong to. She becomes the bass player for edgy band Speedball Baby, a decision that will take her around the world—from onstage at the legendary CBGBs to the red-light district of Amsterdam. She’s often the only girl in a broken-down tour van, being strip-searched at the Croatian border, chased by lunatics, and navigating the seedy underbelly of a male-dominated music scene.

Of all the musical developments of rock in the 1960s, one in particular fundamentally changed the music's structure and listening experience: the incorporation of extended improvisation into live performances. While many bands—including Cream, Pink Floyd, and the Velvet Underground—stretched out their songs with improvisations, no band was more identified with the practice than the Grateful Dead. In Get Shown the Light Michael Kaler examines how the Dead's dedication to improvisation stemmed from their belief that playing in this manner enabled them to touch upon transcendence.

Ashley Wilkes of Gone with the Wind helped to seal Rock Island's reputation as the "Andersonville of the North". McAdams separates truth from fiction about the Rock Island Barracks, the prison that held tens of thousands of Confederate soldiers. Revealing that Rock Island was not without its problems - ignominious punishments, inadequate facilities, malnutrition, and lack of basic supplies - McAdams shows how Union officers sought to maintain humane conditions in the face of a war that raged on longer than anyone anticipated.

Throughout her career, spanning more than two decades, Jessica Hopper, a revered and pioneering music critic, has examined women recording and producing music, in all genres, through an intersectional feminist lens. The First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic features oral histories of bands like Hole and Sleater Kinney, interviews with the women editors of 1970s-era Rolling Stone, and intimate conversations with iconic musicians such as Björk, Robyn, and Lido Pimienta.

A top-10 list is nobody’s perfect tool, especially when trying to measure up 10 of the most significant and influential bands of the British Invasion. Nevertheless, this book presents 10 biographies of classic bands of the era widely regarded as the best of the best, putting their contributions to music in sharp focus. And what contributions they have made! Over half a century later, their songs still ring out on radios, their names are well-known to many, and songs released today are inspired by the music they produced.

Black Snake is the story of four leaders - LaDonna Allard, Jasilyn Charger, Lisa DeVille, and Kandi White - and their fight against the pipeline. It is the story of a new generation of environmental activists, galvanized at Standing Rock, becoming the protectors of America's natural resources.

From 1962 to 2019, The Rolling Stones, the greatest rock ‘n’ roll band in the world had blazed bold, new musical territory in popular music and wowed millions upon millions of dedicated fans worldwide. Here is the group’s incredible story in their own revealing words. Written and narrated by author and actor Geoffrey Giuliano, here is the ultimate Stones audio compendium for every fervent fan, pop philosopher, historian, and all inspired school and university systems. The last word on The Rolling Stones history by the Stones themselves and audiobook master Giuliano.

All You Need Is Myth is a timely philosophical conversation about ancient concepts that continue to reverberate in the modern age of mass media and global communication. Author Steve Wagner proposes that the Beatles and the iconic stars of the classic rock era function as modern forms of classical archetypes familiar in mythologies and religious traditions throughout history.

In this new audiobook, broadcaster and music writer Alan Cross narrates the definitive history of Oasis. Cross succeeds once again in revealing the fascinating history behind the music in the same compelling way we've come to expect from his long broadcasting career.

By turns fascinating, funny, and bizarre, this book offers insight into the peculiar choices and idiosyncratic psychologies of hundreds of top musicians from the 1960s to the present. Originally published more than two decades ago to great success, it's been out of print for years and has now been completely updated and expanded to feature dozens of exclusive interviews, including conversations with groups like The Black Keys, The Killers, Twenty One Pilots, Coldplay, Cage the Elephant, and Vampire Weekend.

High on a cliff in Hawaii in 1807, an irrepressibly curious native boy dives into the sea and swims to an American merchant ship anchored offshore, embarking on an extraordinary adventure that will change history.

JFK's Secret Doctor tells a thrilling story of adventure and a historic medical career. Set against the grand panorama of 20th century world events, it captures the remarkable life and spirit of climber and medical visionary Hans Kraus (1905–1996). Kraus was taught English by writer James Joyce, escaped Nazi-dominated Europe, and was JFK's secret back specialist.

Presenting "The Complete Guide to Raising Plymouth Rocks," a new eBook that is set to become the ultimate reference point for all enthusiasts involved in or contemplating the venture of raising Plymouth Rocks. Dive into the enchanting world of Plymouth Rock Chickens as you flip through this comprehensive guide. This book transports its readers on a journey from understanding the origins and significance of this distinctive chicken breed in the first few chapters, to discerning the fundamental equipment required for their upbringing, planning an ideal chicken coop, and establishing healthy ...

Rock & Roll Nightmares, Volume 1 scratched the sinister surface with tales of the 27 Club, rock ‘n’ roll suicides, plane crashes, curses, and more. Now the award-winning series continues with concert mayhem, a look at the “baby groupie” trend of the 1970s, Satanic panic, horrific home invasions, musicians who’ve died on stage, rockers who lived on borrowed time, gun-toting music producers, deadly DJs, and much more.

In this excerpt from her historically significant autobiography first published in 1889, American suffragette, educator, and president of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union Frances Willard gives us a deeper understanding of the ethos of the woman’s temperance movement, as well as the day to day struggles and triumphs of the movement in the US at the time.

In The Pied Pipers of Rock 'n' Roll, Wes Smith examines the phenomenon of the AM deejays who captivated a generation and helped define the counterculture that has forever changed the landscape of American youth. Smith takes a close look at nine of the men who made this happen and explores the reasons for their influence and its lasting effects on the generation whose lives still unfold to the soundtrack laid down by these platter-spinners of their youth.