Fifty Years of the Concept Album in Popular Music
From The Beatles to Beyoncé
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
About this book
The concept album is one of popular music's most celebrated-and misunderstood-achievements. This book examines the untold history of the rock concept album, from The Beatles to Beyoncé. The roots of the concept album are nearly as old as the long-playing record itself, as recording artists began using the format to transcend a mere collection of songs into a listening experience that takes the listener on a journey through its unifying mood, theme, narrative, or underlying idea.
Along the way, artists as varied as the Moody Blues, Jimi Hendrix, Joni Mitchell, Pink Floyd, Parliament, Donna Summer, Iron Maiden, Radiohead, The Notorious B.I.G., Green Day, Janelle Monåe, and Kendrick Lamar created albums that form an extended conversation of art and music. Limits were pushed as the format grew over the subsequent eras. Seminal albums like the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, the Who's Tommy, Marvin Gaye's What's Going On, stand alongside modern classics like Liz Phair's Exile in Guyville, Kendrick Lamar's good kid, "m.A.A.d city, " and Beyoncé's Lemonade. Mixing iconic albums with some newer and lesser-known works makes for a book that ventures into the many sides of a history that has yet to be told-until now.
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Information
Table of contents
- Cover
- Half-Title Page
- Dedication
- Title Page
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: Ramblinâ on My Mind
- Part 1 The Founding Era (1967â9)
- 1 We Hope You Will Enjoy the Show: Sgt. Pepperâs Lonely Hearts Club Band
- 2 This Day Will Last a Thousand Years: Days of Future Passed
- 3 We Are the Other People: Weâre Only in It for the Money
- 4 The One That Rambles on for a Million Miles: Electric Ladyland
- 5 Amazing Journey: Tommy
- Part 2 The Golden Era (1970â4)
- 6 God Knows Where Weâre Heading: Whatâs Going On
- 7 I Am On a Lonely Road and I Am Traveling: Blue
- 8 Weâll Have Superman for President: Thick as a Brick
- 9 Like a Regular Superstar: The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
- 10 And If the Band Youâre in Starts Playing Different Tunes: The Dark Side of the Moon
- Part 3 The Modern Era (1975â89)
- 11 Tear the Roof off the Sucker: Mothership Connection
- 12 Fairy Tale High: Once Upon a Time . . .
- 13 Thereâs No Returning on This Chartered Trip Away: Zen Arcade
- 14 As Soon as Youâre Born Youâre Dying: Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
- 15 This Is a Recording: 3 Feet High and Rising
- Part 4 The Postmodern Era (1990â9)
- 16 I Wanna Be Mesmerizing Too: Exile in Guyville
- 17 I Am the Silencing Machine: The Downward Spiral
- 18 I Feel Like Death Is Fuckinâ Callinâ Me: Ready to Die
- 19 A Handshake of Carbon Monoxide: OK Computer
- 20 I Chose to Use My Heart: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
- Part 5 The New Millennium (2000â16)
- 21 Iâve Been Taken for Lost and Gone and Unknown for a Long, Long Time: SMiLE
- 22 All Across the Alien Nation: American Idiot
- 23 If You Want to Be Free: The ArchAndroid
- 24 The One in Front of the Gun Lives Forever: good kid, m.A.A.d city
- 25 Wonât Let My Freedom Rot in Hell: Lemonade
- Conclusion: When Everybody Who Is Lonely Will Be Free
- Works Cited
- Index
- Copyright