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History Of Rock And Roll

The premise of this work is that rock 'n' roll matters, and that it means what it says. It seems that rock 'n' roll music has seldom been given its due as an art form, that it is somehow relegated to a category of less "mature" or "serious" artistic pursuits by the media and the intellectual community. Some critics use the generic term "Pop" to refer to any popular music, including all contemporary rock musicians, as if the fact of rock 'n' roll's immense commercial success implies that it cannot really be taken seriously alongside, say, classical music, or even Jazz. Beyond artistic circles, rock 'n' roll is usually given even less credibility; the ideas and feelings and beliefs expressed and reflected in rock songs tend to be dismissed by non-fans, by the Establishment as a whole, as quaintly naive at best, childish and irrelevant at worst.
What's even more disturbing is that these attitudes often seem to be held by fans of rock music themselves. We may still listen to the radio stations, dance and sing along to the old favorites or the new hits, but when we gather in serious intellectual or political forums, to share our views on the great issues and ideas of the day, we leave rock 'n' roll behind, back in the closet where old baseball gloves and Barbie dolls gather dust. Especially for the Baby Boom generation, which grew up on rock 'n' roll, and certainly took it seriously in youth, this desertion, or embarrassment, or hesitation, or whatever it is, casts a sad pall over approaching middle age: sure, in our youth we believed in all those great ideals, but that was when we were young and carefree; now we've got responsibilities, and well, it's just not so simple as all that.
In defiance of this trend, and in view of the apparent retreats from idealism that have permeated the past decade or two, this book celebrates rock 'n' roll as a legitimate art form, and more, as a strong current in American and world culture, which contains a central and...