The Rock Song Index, Second Edition, is a new version of a well-received index to the classic songs of the rock canon, from the late '40s through the end of the 20th century. The study of the history of rock music has exploded over the last decade; all college music departments offer a basic rock-history course, covering the classic artists and their songs.
A listing of over 7,500 rock songs presented alphabetically by artist that notes the album the song appeared on, its year of release, the producer, record company, and songwriters. Also briefly describes the song or its popularity and features an index alphabetized by song title.
The Song Index features over 150,000 citations that lead users to over 2,100 song books spanning more than a century, from the 1880s to the 1990s. The songs cited represent a multitude of musical practices, cultures, and traditions, ranging from ehtnic to regional, from foreign to American, representing every type of song: popular, folk, children's, political, comic, advertising, protest, patriotic, military, and classical, as well as hymns, spirituals, ballads, arias, choral symphonies, and other larger works. This comprehensive volume also includes a bibliography of the books indexed; an index of sources from which the songs originated; and an alphabetical composer index.
Rock music of all varieties has been influenced by classical music and vice versa, both in the form of direct quotes and in the form of borrowings of style, composition, and instrumentation. The average listener may be unaware of the many links between rock music and the classics. One might remember a few examples, such as Walter Murphy's chart-topping "A Fifth of Beethoven" or Eric Carmen's "All by Myself," but pass them off as interesting anomalies. However, the influence of the classics on rock music is pervasive and grows from a long line of precedents. This second supplement to Janell R. Duxbury's original 1985 discography, Rockin' the Classics and Classicizin' the Rock, brings the earlier work and first supplement up-to-date with hundreds of new entries documenting recently released or newly discovered examples of the interconnection between these musical genres. Duxbury details nearly 700 new examples of recorded rock instrumentals and songs that borrow musical themes from the classics. Variations range from contemporary renditions of complete classical works to brief classical quotes or phrases subtly incorporated into rock compositions. Duxbury also gives additional examples of recorded orchestral versions of songs originally composed and/or written by rock artists. In these examples, the musical style varies from strict classical interpretations to pop-style orchestral renditions. The second supplement then expands Duxbury's original compilation of sound recordings and live performances of rock groups performing with established orchestras and choruses, selected samples of recorded rock music that simulate baroque or classical sound/structure, examples of the manifest influence of rock on classical music, and instances of rock artists and classical artists switching roles. Lastly, this discography updates the 1985 version and the first supplement with new information, expanded details, and minor corrections to the earlier works. An extended list of selected non-rock background examples is included in several new appendixes. The Preface is updated. A general index includes the names of classical composers, rock artists and groups, orchestras, choruses, orchestra conductors, sound recording producers, and song or instrumental titles. With its incomparable scope and content, this supplement, together with Duxbury's previous discography, and its first supplement will be appreciated by students, researchers, record collectors, trivia buffs, music industry employees, and fans of rock music and the classics.
The legendary critic and author of Mystery Train “ingeniously retells the tale of rock and roll” (Publishers Weekly, starred review). Unlike previous versions of rock ’n’ roll history, this book omits almost every iconic performer and ignores the storied events and turning points everyone knows. Instead, in a daring stroke, Greil Marcus selects ten songs and dramatizes how each embodies rock ’n’ roll as a thing in itself, in the story it tells, inhabits, and acts out—a new language, something new under the sun. “Transmission” by Joy Division. “All I Could Do Was Cry” by Etta James and then Beyoncé. “To Know Him Is to Love Him,” first by the Teddy Bears and almost half a century later by Amy Winehouse. In Marcus’s hands these and other songs tell the story of the music, which is, at bottom, the story of the desire for freedom in all its unruly and liberating glory. Slipping the constraints of chronology, Marcus braids together past and present, holding up to the light the ways that these striking songs fall through time and circumstance, gaining momentum and meaning, astonishing us by upending our presumptions and prejudices. This book, by a founder of contemporary rock criticism—and its most gifted and incisive practitioner—is destined to become an enduring classic. “One of the epic figures in rock writing.”—The New York Times Book Review “Marcus is our greatest cultural critic, not only because of what he says but also, as with rock-and-roll itself, how he says it.”—The Washington Post Winner of the Deems Taylor Virgil Thomson Award in Music Criticism, given by the American Society of Composers, Authors & Publishers
(Fake Book). An invaluable collection of over 250 of the best rock songs of all time, with nearly 70 new songs added for this spectacular 2nd Edition! For piano, voice, guitar and all C instruments, this fake book includes melody, lyrics and chords for: All Right Now * Amanda * American Woman * Angie * Another One Bites the Dust * Baby, I Love Your Way * Back in the U.S.S.R. * Barracuda * Beast of Burden * Can't You See * Carry On Wayward Son * Centerfold * Cocaine * Come Sail Away * Don't Do Me Like That * Don't Stop * Dream On * Dust in the Wind * Every Breath You Take * Free Ride * Hurts So Good * I Shot the Sheriff * Imagine * I Want You to Want Me * Imagine * It's Still Rock and Roll to Me * Killer Queen * Lay Down Sally * Layla * Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds * Maggie May * My Generation * Nights in White Satin * Owner of a Lonely Heart * Piano Man * Point of Know Return * Refugee * Rhiannon * Rock and Roll All Nite * Roxanne * Something * Summer of '69 * Sunshine of Your Love * Susie-Q * Take the Long Way Home * Tears in Heaven * Walk This Way * We Will Rock You * White Room * Wonderful Tonight * You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet * and lots more! Features two tables of contents: one by artist, and one alphabetical by song title.
America’s Songs III: Rock! picks up in 1953 where America’s Songs II left off, describing the artistic and cultural impact of the rock ’n’ roll era on America’s songs and songwriters, recording artists and bands, music publishers and record labels, and the all-important consuming audience. The Introduction presents the background story, discussing the 1945-1952 period and focusing on the key songs from the genres of jump blues, rhythm ’n’ blues, country music, bluegrass, and folk that combined to form rock ‘n’ roll. From there, the author selects a handful of songs from each subsequent year, up through 2015, listed chronologically and organized by decade. As with its two preceding companions, America’s Songs III highlights the most important songs of each year with separate entries. More than 300 songs are analyzed in terms of importance—both musically and historically—and weighted by how they defined an era, an artist, a genre, or an underground movement. Written by known rock historian and former ASCAP award winner Bruce Pollock, America’s Songs III: Rock! relays the stories behind America’s musical history.
An index to the contents of 621 song books published between 1854 and 1992 and acquired by the State Library of Louisiana, Song Finder provides access to 32,000 songs, with emphasis on collections of theater songs, folk songs, children's songs, religious music, rock, country, and pop music standards. Also well represented are African-American music, movie and television theme songs, seasonal music, patriotic songs, military music, and songs of foreign lands. Three-fourths of the song books have never been indexed, and 85 percent are not included in any index currently in print. A third of the individual songs have never been indexed before. Songs can be located in Song Finder by title only. Under each title are letter symbols representing song books which include the song. Bibliographical information on the song books can be found in the first section of the book, the list of collections indexed, which also provides OCLC numbers to facilitate interlibrary loan. For each printing of a song, Song Finder notes whether the book provides music only, words only, or both words and music. The index also identifies lyrics in a foreign language and whether there is an English translation. Other indexes do not offer this kind of detail, which allows users to find the version of a song that is suitable to their needs. Also helpful to the user are cross references which link alternate titles and compensate for variant and nonstandard spellings. Users uncertain of the title of an advertising jingle, or the theme song of a film or television show, will find cross references from the name of the product or show to the correct song title.
Dave Marsh has been an editor and columnist at Creem and Rolling Stone. His books include Born to Run, Behind Blue Eyes: The Story of the Who, Glory Days, and Louie Louie. This virtual Methusaleh of rock critics currently serves as a music critic at Playboy and as editor of Rock and Rap Confidential.