I bought this book a few years ago and was skimming through it again this morning. It's about looking not so much at "rock music" but "rock" as an aesthetic and an attitude. Pattison is an academic but the book (as well as the content, obviously) is thankfully accessible and doesn't rely on the usual tired and cliche thoughts about Boomer Rock that plague most books that have come down the pike. Pattison quotes and analyzes Mark E. Smith, the Troggs, Depeche Mode, and Meat Puppets lyrics as often as he looks at the Beatles, Stones, and the usual classic rock suspects. Quite a fun and thoughtful book! He points out many rules and trends in rock that I either never noticed or noticed but didn't really think to articulate. Anyone else a fan of this book?
― Cunga, Sunday, 16 November 2008 20:18 (fifteen years ago) link