Showing titles in History & Criticism

Unlock the secrets of music appreciation and jazz history without needing a degree in music theory. Whether seeking a relaxing evening soundtrack or an upbeat rhythm for your daily commute, this engaging audio journey turns abstract sounds into human stories. Dive directly into the lively pulse...

Experience the sweeping rise and dramatic fall of a European dynasty that conquered nations and defined classical music. Perfect for an educational commute, this immersive historical journey transports you to the grand courts of Central Europe. Witness how a medieval frontier became a...

THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES, GRAMMY-NOMINATED BESTSELLER A SUNDAY TIMES, GUARDIAN, OBSERVER, ROLLING STONE, AND ROUGH TRADE BOOK OF THE YEAR A panoramic experience that tells the story of Beastie Boys, a book as unique as the band itself-by band members AD-ROCK and Mike D, with contributions from Amy...

Minimalist Music looks critically into the music’s past, shows how the genre thrives across styles, and points the way toward minimalism’s ongoing future. Minimalism as a genre is best defined not by any style or flavor but by its means. Certain rhythms and chords in other music may identify...

An avant-garde pop album rich with tension and fear, 1980’s Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) marked a pivotal point in David Bowie’s career. Standing at the bleeding edge of the new decade between the experimental Berlin Trilogy (Low, Heroes, and Lodger) and 1983’s wildly successful...

In this beautifully crafted book, Freddy Cristobal Dominguez makes a provocative case for Dylan as a historian, offering a deep consideration of the musician's historical influences and practices. Utilizing interviews, speeches, and the close analysis of lyrics and live performances, Bob Dylan in the Attic is the first book to consider Dylan's work from the point of view of historiography.

Seemingly granted ‘classic album’ status within days of its release in 1997, OK Computer transformed Radiohead from a highly promising rock act into The Most Important Band in the World – a label the band has been burdened by (and has fooled around with) ever since. Through close musical analysis of each song, Dai Griffiths explores the themes and ideas that have made this album resonate so deeply with its audience, and argues that OK Computer is one of the most successfully realized CD albums so far created.

The blues grew out of the plantations and prisons, the swampy marshes and fertile cotton fields of the Mississippi Delta. With original research and keen insights, Ted Gioia - the author of a landmark study of West Coast jazz and the critically acclaimed The History of Jazz - brings to life the stirring music of the Delta, evoking the legendary figures who shaped its sound and ethos: Robert Johnson, Charley Patton, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Howlin' Wolf, B. B. King, and others. 

Brought to you by Penguin. Explore how music has changed our world through 50 pieces across classical, folk and world traditions with BBC presenter Tom Service, in this official Radio 3 compendium. Music transports us and defines us. As a form of expression, it has been passed down through oral...

We know how their music changed the world. But what really happened on the flights that ended their lives?Patsy Cline. Otis Redding. Jim Croce. Lynyrd Skynyrd. Randy Rhoads. Ricky Nelson. Stevie Ray Vaughan. John Denver. Aaliyah. Jenni Rivera. James Horner. Glenn Miller. Buddy Holly, Ritchie...

Mesmo sob vigilância, proibições e censura, a arte brasileira não se silenciou. A criação nunca parou. Em Chame o ladrão, Miguel de Almeida revela como músicos, escritores e cineastas encontraram formas inesperadas, e algumas brilhantes, de driblar a censura e fazer sua arte sobreviver.

Jazz legend Cootie Williams left home to start his career as a professional musician at the age of fifteen. In 1940, after eleven years as one of the major soloists with the Duke Ellington orchestra, Williams was lured away to the band of Benny Goodman, one of the most popular bands in the...

The year 1972 saw the beginning of a five-year span in which Stevie Wonder released five groundbreaking, critically acclaimed albums, garnering him more than half a dozen Grammys and more than 10 million albums sold, securing his place as one of the most important American musicians and songwriters in history. For the first time, uncover the untold story of an extraordinary artistic journey that shaped the greatest creative era in popular music history.

Swallowing the chaos wrought by his public persona and digesting it as a grandiose allegory of self-redemption, Kanye sublimates his narcissism to paint masterstroke after masterstroke on MBDTF, a 69-minute hymn to egotistical excess. Sampling and ventriloquizing the pop music past to tell the story of its future–very much a tale of our culture's wish for unfettered digital ubiquity–MBDTF is the album of its era, an aesthetic self-acquittal and spiritual autobiography of our era’s most dynamic artist.

Alex Niven charts the astonishing rise of Oasis in the mid 1990s and celebrates the life-affirming, communal force of songs such as “Live Forever,” “Supersonic,” and “Cigarettes & Alcohol.” In doing so, he seeks to reposition Oasis in relation to their Britpop peers and explore one of the most controversial pop-cultural narratives of the last thirty years.

A poignant, funny, and lively memoir of sexual awakening, music, and discovering one's true self. Pete Crighton came of age in the early/mid 1980s in the shadow of HIV/AIDS. Growing up in Toronto, he was terrified that his friends and schoolmates would find out that he was “different” at a...

'Hungry Beat is the story of an all-too-brief era where the short-circuiting of that industry seemed viable. But hell, the times were luminous as was the music these artists made. The songs and many of the players remain, and here they tell their story and lick their wounds' Ian Rankin The...

抛开枯燥的乐理与晦涩的术语，只需两小时，你就能在这趟跨越千年的西方音乐简史中，从零基础蜕变为拥有敏锐听觉的艺术赏析者。踏上这场穿越时空的声音之旅，感受从神圣的古老宗教吟唱到现代电子律动的心跳。我们将...

Embarque numa jornada imersiva pela evolução musical do ocidente, dos ritos antigos à revolução tecnológica moderna. Ideal para acompanhar suas caminhadas ou momentos de foco, esta narrativa educativa converte sons abstratos em imagens mentais vívidas. Sinta como o ritmo, a melodia e a...

Un viaggio evocativo nella storia della musica che trasforma l'ascolto quotidiano in un'esperienza culturale profonda. Perfetto per chi desidera arricchire i propri spostamenti imparando come i canti rituali del passato si siano evoluti fino alle moderne tracce elettroniche. Senza richiedere...