Rock and Roll ... and the Beat Goes On

Book excerpt: Rock & Roll is here to stay--so get back to the roots of this exciting, explosive music with the man who saw it all happen: legendary radio personality Cousin Brucie! The artists presented here played vital roles in the earth-shattering changes that unfolded over the decades, from the time rock started to roll in the 50s. Elvis swiveled his hips to the screams of teens--and the horror of their parents. Then came the attack of the Union Jack, with the madness of Beatlemania quickly followed by The Dave Clark Five, The Rolling Stones, The Who, and countless others. Petula Clark and Dusty Springfield belted it out with newly emerging girl power. Teens across America went "Surfing USA" to the sounds of The Beach Boys, while Detroit Soul had kids dancing in the streets. Hippies flew high on Jefferson Airplane--and Woodstock galvanized a nation. Records like Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and Pet Sounds changed the way music was produced forever. Cousin Brucie puts the music in its historical context. The songs unfold against a backdrop of social upheaval, from JFK, Martin Luther King, Jr., civil rights, and anti-war movements to the first Earth Day, Batman, Women's Lib, and Watergate. The book teems with archival photographs, posters, album covers, record labels, newspaper articles, magazine covers, poems, quotes, and more.