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Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop

Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop

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  • Create Date：2022-05-15 08:52:05
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Bob Stanley
  • ISBN：0571322409
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Summary

Bob Stanley's Yeah Yeah Yeah tells the chronological story of the modern pop era， from its beginnings in the fifties with the dawn of the charts， vinyl， and the music press， to pop's digital switchover in the year 2000， from Rock Around the Clock to Crazy In Love。 It was more than just music - it could be your whole life。

Yeah Yeah Yeah covers the birth of rock， soul， punk， disco， hip hop， indie， house and techno。 It also includes the rise and fall of the home stereo， Top Of The Pops， Smash Hits and "this week's highest new entry"。 Yeah Yeah Yeah is the first book to look back at the entire era: what we gained， what we lost， and the foundations we laid for future generations。

There have been many books on pop but none have attempted to bring the whole story to life， from Billy Fury and Roxy Music to TLC and Britney via Led Zeppelin and Donna Summer。 Audacious and addictive， Yeah Yeah Yeah is essential reading for all music lovers。 It will remind you why you fell in love with pop music in the first place。

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Reviews

Robbin Vokes ，

The Story of Pop Music from Bill Haley to Beyonce I'm reading this gradually。 Lots of good information; a chapter on Elvis。 The Story of Pop Music from Bill Haley to Beyonce I'm reading this gradually。 Lots of good information; a chapter on Elvis。 。。。more

Brent Corcoran ，

Punk is as American as EnglishReally good。 Sometimes its purple prose borders on the ultraviolet， but that's rock journalism for you。 Written from a British perspective， so has some American blindspots。 Still worth reading。 Punk is as American as EnglishReally good。 Sometimes its purple prose borders on the ultraviolet， but that's rock journalism for you。 Written from a British perspective， so has some American blindspots。 Still worth reading。 。。。more

Sid Nuncius ，

I enjoyed Yeah Yeah Yeah a lot。 It’s comprehensive， readable and fantastically knowledgeable， although its huge scope did mean that it had its limitations。Bob Stanley knows whereof he speaks。 The breadth and depth of his knowledge is plain， as is his enthusiasm for pop music in all its forms。 Of course， he doesn’t like everything he hears， but he’s largely unhampered by prejudice and gives bands like Sweet， for example， the credit they deserve rather than sneerily dismissing them as many Rock Fa I enjoyed Yeah Yeah Yeah a lot。 It’s comprehensive， readable and fantastically knowledgeable， although its huge scope did mean that it had its limitations。Bob Stanley knows whereof he speaks。 The breadth and depth of his knowledge is plain， as is his enthusiasm for pop music in all its forms。 Of course， he doesn’t like everything he hears， but he’s largely unhampered by prejudice and gives bands like Sweet， for example， the credit they deserve rather than sneerily dismissing them as many Rock Fans （with capital letters， of course） do。 It’s a fascinating history， with some good analysis of well-known artists and a fine array of less well known stuff which I’ve thoroughly enjoyed investigating。Obviously， no-reader will agree with all Stanley’s judgements。 I found his rather airy dismissal of much of Joni Mitchell’s work strange， and his failure even to mention the groundbreaking I Can See For Miles by The Who quite shocking – but then he also cites with approval Loudon Wainwright III’s first album which I bought at the time and got him to sign when I saw him live on his first UK tour， so I can forgive the odd lapse elsewhere。More seriously， although it’s a long book， its sheer scale of ambition means that no-one gets real， in-depth treatment and quite often I felt I wanted a good deal more about styles or artists than was on offer here。 It’s probably unfair to criticise the book for this because it’s not really what it sets out to do， but that nagging sense of wanting to know more did haunt me rather often。That said， it’s a fascinating， enjoyable read which I can recommend to any pop music fan。 。。。more

Nadya ，

Veel informatie， lastig te lezen door alle namen en verwijzingen。 Encyclopedie

Jason ，

The best， most thorough book about the history of pop music I’ve ever read， an engaging and insightful read even for those of us who feel like we already know everything。

Charles ，

very ambitious and it mostly succeeds。 Lots of interesting trivia， but it's impossible to keep all the names in your head。 This book would be good to have as a reference rather than something you read from start to finish。Still， it kept me interested and I learned a lot。Not really a spoiler， but it has almost nothing about Beyoncé。 very ambitious and it mostly succeeds。 Lots of interesting trivia， but it's impossible to keep all the names in your head。 This book would be good to have as a reference rather than something you read from start to finish。Still， it kept me interested and I learned a lot。Not really a spoiler， but it has almost nothing about Beyoncé。 。。。more

Davidg ，

For the most part， this is an enjoyable read through popular music from the dawn of rock and roll until the beginning of the new millennium。 Bob Stanley does a pretty good job but he does often let his prejudices show。 Although he condemns ‘rockism’， he presents similar fixed opinions on what is ‘good’ or ‘important’。 Much of what was actually popular in the charts is ignored or condemned; clearly， the public got it wrong。 Only punk and it’s associated values are praised。 Obviously， Coldplay are For the most part， this is an enjoyable read through popular music from the dawn of rock and roll until the beginning of the new millennium。 Bob Stanley does a pretty good job but he does often let his prejudices show。 Although he condemns ‘rockism’， he presents similar fixed opinions on what is ‘good’ or ‘important’。 Much of what was actually popular in the charts is ignored or condemned; clearly， the public got it wrong。 Only punk and it’s associated values are praised。 Obviously， Coldplay are poor but so are Radiohead and many others - they are dismissed in under a sentence or just mentioned briefly in a footnote。 On the other hand， obscure electronic and dance acts， who were never ‘popular’ get multiple paragraphs。 Is it really about ‘popular’ music， or what is considered worthy。 。。。more

Gary Fowles ，

Bob Stanley attempts the impossible with this doorstop of a book， namely by trying to cram the whole universe of modern pop （‘52-‘99） into a smidge under 800 pages。 What’s amazing is not only that he manages this， but that does so in such an ordered way。 This took me a while to get though purely because every few pages I was forced to go and dig through my records to hear something I’d forgotten about。 As well as numerous trawls through YouTube for the gems I’d never heard before。My only major n Bob Stanley attempts the impossible with this doorstop of a book， namely by trying to cram the whole universe of modern pop （‘52-‘99） into a smidge under 800 pages。 What’s amazing is not only that he manages this， but that does so in such an ordered way。 This took me a while to get though purely because every few pages I was forced to go and dig through my records to hear something I’d forgotten about。 As well as numerous trawls through YouTube for the gems I’d never heard before。My only major niggle is that Stanley’s own band， Saint Etienne hardly get a look in。 Considering they have morphed throughout their career， oftentimes predicting future changes in pop long before they happened。 。。。more

Jack Caulfield ，

Informative but occasionally aggravating history of pop music。 Stanley traces the history of pop from the fifties to the turn of the millennium。 He reasons that with the decline of physical media and the death of pop music magazines and TV shows like Top of the Pops， pop music is basically （if not entirely， he concedes） dead beyond this point。 I can definitely sympathize with not finding much worth talking about in recent pop music， but this still feels like something of a cop-out。Elsewhere， the Informative but occasionally aggravating history of pop music。 Stanley traces the history of pop from the fifties to the turn of the millennium。 He reasons that with the decline of physical media and the death of pop music magazines and TV shows like Top of the Pops， pop music is basically （if not entirely， he concedes） dead beyond this point。 I can definitely sympathize with not finding much worth talking about in recent pop music， but this still feels like something of a cop-out。Elsewhere， the coverage can be uneven。 The nineties coverage in particular feels a bit rushed compared to the rest， though what's there is good。 And Stanley gets pretty petulant about artists he doesn't like: half the Sex Pistols chapter is devoted to slagging off The Clash; the chapter on 'new wave' （pretty narrowly defined） spells out his distaste for the genre pretty clearly; Radiohead and Talking Heads each get one rather dismissive sentence; in the prog chapter， Dark Side of the Moon is termed 'largely tuneless' and King Crimson aren't discussed at all; Patti Smith is brought up over and over again， but only as a punchline （he reckons she's pretentious）; and he's oddly snooty about Stevie Wonder。 The rationale for what's included is somewhat arbitrary; sometimes he abandons what was in the charts in a given period based on the idea that it didn't reflect what people were really into （i。e。 he thinks it was naff）。 But it means he finds a way to sneak in the likes of Can， My Bloody Valentine， and Aphex Twin， so I can't complain too much。Stanley makes a big deal out of the poptimist/rockist divide （if you don't know what this means， don't look it up; it's an imaginary distinction journalists made up to have a fight about）， and you sense that this informs his tastes。 He seems to value a sort of authenticity he redefines on the fly so that it can apply equally to Public Image Ltd or to Deee-Lite， according to his whims。The book is organized into chapters on different genres （and occasionally particularly significant artists） which sometimes feel rather random in terms of what they include: Queen， for instance， go unmentioned in the chapter on glam rock and are instead covered in a chapter on metal， placed in the middle of the eighties。 He's not a fan of theirs， as you might expect; you get the sense he just threw them in as an afterthought。 Elsewhere， the transpositions are quite clever and effective: The Stooges and Velvet Underground aren't covered until a chapter on the transitional moment of 1975， on the basis that this was when their influence really started to be felt， in the form of punk。 And soul from the mid-70s onwards isn't covered （with the exception of Michael Jackson and Prince） until the final chapter traces its development throughout the eighties and nineties into modern R&B。Overall， it's a decent journey through modern music and a way of filling in any gaps in your knowledge， if you can bear with the author's posturing。 。。。more

Joe O'Donnell ，

Setting out to write a history of Pop Music would appear to be a monumental， if not foolhardy， undertaking。 By extension you are essentially tasked with writing an overview of much of the cultural history of the 20th and 21st centuries。 And even if you succeed in completing this mammoth task， the danger is that you will end up creating what amounts to a dry， dense reference book。 That “Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！” – Bob Stanley’s story of Pop Music – not only avoids these pitfalls， but manages to be emine Setting out to write a history of Pop Music would appear to be a monumental， if not foolhardy， undertaking。 By extension you are essentially tasked with writing an overview of much of the cultural history of the 20th and 21st centuries。 And even if you succeed in completing this mammoth task， the danger is that you will end up creating what amounts to a dry， dense reference book。 That “Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！” – Bob Stanley’s story of Pop Music – not only avoids these pitfalls， but manages to be eminently， enthrallingly readable， speaks to how much of a towering achievement it is。The name Bob Stanley will be familiar to many as the driving force behind the 90’s art-popsters Saint Etienne， and even the most cursory of glances through “Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！” will confirm that his talents don’t start and end at the mixing desk。 Notwithstanding the book’s subtitle of being “The Story of Pop Music from Bill Haley to Beyoncé”， Stanley takes quite a broad view of what defines ‘Pop’， meaning his history encompasses everything from 60s garage rock， Heavy Metal， Rap， Acid House and Techno。 This vast breadth of knowledge – and a distinct ‘genre-fluid’ approach - allows Stanley to map connections between artists and across genres that would not have been immediately obvious to a non-expert reader。 So if you were heretofore unaware of the links between Doo-wop and Hip-Hop， or the distant connections between Philadelphia Soul and British Glam Rock， or what Grandmaster Flash and Adam Ant – or， indeed， Roy Orbison and Joy Division – what might have in common， “Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！” will plug all of the holes in your pop knowledge。 For Bob Stanley， much of the momentum behind the growth and evolution of Pop Music is bound up with the importance of cities。 Time-after-time throughout “Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！”， we see how metropolises - whether they be Liverpool， Detroit， San Francisco， or Kingston – were crucial to the development of popular music over the last seven decades。 Stanley is also remarkably clear-sighted on how technological advances （from improved amplification on to synthesisers and samplers through to downloading and ipods） have been so important to how pop music has mutated over the last half-century。A huge part of the appeal of “Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！” is how opinionated and irreverent a writer Bob Stanley is， and he rarely seems content to kowtow to the standard rock journo consensus。 Hence， he launches a stout defence of the once terminally unfashionable Bee Gees， re-appraises Blondie as being the ultimate super-connector between classic rock/punk and disco/house， and courageously （and， in my view， correctly） makes an argument for situationist pranksters The KLF being the greatest pop group of all-time。“Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！” clocks in at a weighty 600-plus pages， but what makes its reading time pass in the blink of an eye is Bob Stanley’s exquisitely-calibrated penchant for a one-line quip。 The Pet Shop Boys are described as “channelling the unlikely inputs of Grandmaster Flash and Alan Bennett”; Dr。 Feelgood vocalist Lee Brilleaux is recounted as having “the kind of voice you might hear if Ford Cortinas could sing”; while the 80s starlet Kim Wilde is cruelly， if accurately， dismissed as having “emerged in 1981 with a three-years-too-late budget Blondie sound she’d bought from a petrol station in Hertfordshire”。Unlike so many music history books， “Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！” is refreshingly free of rockism。 Stanley is unafraid to upset the critical apple cart; for example， he laments Pop’s degeneration into complacent middle age during the 1980s （“an era of conservative calculation”）， and pleasingly sees the artform as only being roused out of its slumber by the arrival of the future shock of House and Techno。Amazingly astute in its observations， encyclopaedic in its command of history， and blessed with an immaculate turn-of-phrase， “Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！” is a kaleidoscopic -and immensely enjoyable - journey through the history of pop。 。。。more

Seth ，

A really fun read， except when Bob Stanley occasionally veers into patriarchal wankery。

Martin Cole ，

Superb history of pop music。

Tomás Ciuffardi ，

Terminé este librazo！ Más allá de sus 740 y pico de páginas es un verdadero viaje por la historia de la música y de los tiempos que la acompañaron。Me encanta la historia de la música y he leído mucho de los grupos que me gustan， pero en este libro también aprendí de muchas otros géneros en el que me considero un novato。 El soul， electrónica， rockabilly， country。。。 ufff！ Mil cosas！ Y por supuesto los favoritos de siempre。。。 muy bacán 🤘

Livia Damaceno ，

Brilliant。 Necessary。 Magical。 That's the three words that resume this book。When I first started reading it， I thought: 'No way， it's just not possible'。 You could say that my expectations were low。 It was my sheer obsession about music writing and history that made me pick up this book， I wasn't expecting much。 The premise of a whole tome on pop music， that could encapsulate the whole of its history is quite frankly， ridiculous。 I'm so glad to be proven wrong because this book it's delightful， Brilliant。 Necessary。 Magical。 That's the three words that resume this book。When I first started reading it， I thought: 'No way， it's just not possible'。 You could say that my expectations were low。 It was my sheer obsession about music writing and history that made me pick up this book， I wasn't expecting much。 The premise of a whole tome on pop music， that could encapsulate the whole of its history is quite frankly， ridiculous。 I'm so glad to be proven wrong because this book it's delightful， incisive and managed to paint a really thorough picture of one of the most exciting art form of the 20th century。 Stanley took a quite daunting task and made it seem effortless - don't get me wrong， the book is really well researched and serious， - it's the passion and great writing that makes the book so easy and entertaining to read。 If you are a fan or just don't get why people would bother to go on about pop music， I urge you to tackle this big boy and find out what the hype is all about。For me specifically， this book left me with a slightly melancholic under taste， since as a millennial， the ship of pop has long sailed。 It's just amazing that this book exists and paid homage to all the mavericks and magicians that made pop music so exciting and dangerous。 。。。more

Marisol García ，

Por su precisión， humor， osadía en ciertos juicios， distancia de encandilamientos oficializados， conocimiento cercano de aquello que refiere y， sobre todo， profundo amor por el pop （un género de características y motivaciones particulares， estratégicas y trabajadas， que nada tienen que ver con el descarte rockero con el que suele analizársele en la «prensa musical»， usualmente más centrada en figuras que en la artesanía de las canciones）， este libro es para mí referencia eterna。 ********** What Por su precisión， humor， osadía en ciertos juicios， distancia de encandilamientos oficializados， conocimiento cercano de aquello que refiere y， sobre todo， profundo amor por el pop （un género de características y motivaciones particulares， estratégicas y trabajadas， que nada tienen que ver con el descarte rockero con el que suele analizársele en la «prensa musical»， usualmente más centrada en figuras que en la artesanía de las canciones）， este libro es para mí referencia eterna。 ********** What creates great pop？ Tension， opposition， progress， and fear of progress。 I love the tensions between the industry and the underground， between artifice and authenticity， between the adventurers and the curators， between rock and pop， between dumb and clever， between boys and girls。 A permanent state of flux informed the modern pop era and taking sides is part of the fun […]。 Pop music isn't there to be contained。 It isn't school —it only has unwritten rules， and they're all there to be broken。 The energy and insight of pop comes from juggling its contradictions rather than purging them。 ********** 。。。more

Daniel Hiland ，

To try and encapsulate the history of pop music- from the 1950s to the 1990s- and at the same time do it justice， would seem a herculean （read “impossible”） task。 Sure， one can surf endlessly through the 1200-plus pages of the “All Music Guide to Rock，” and find most of what one is looking for， the operative word being “endlessly”- for that hefty tome holds over 11，000 album reviews， and in the process provides histories of the respective groups。 What it does not provide is a sense of how it all To try and encapsulate the history of pop music- from the 1950s to the 1990s- and at the same time do it justice， would seem a herculean （read “impossible”） task。 Sure， one can surf endlessly through the 1200-plus pages of the “All Music Guide to Rock，” and find most of what one is looking for， the operative word being “endlessly”- for that hefty tome holds over 11，000 album reviews， and in the process provides histories of the respective groups。 What it does not provide is a sense of how it all began， and how pop music progressed through a roughly forty-year span。Yet this is what St。 Etienne founder and musicologist Bob Stanley attempts， and for the most part succeeds。 Through its 599 pages， we’re led from Bill Haley to Beyoncé， drawing upon the author’s encyclopedic knowledge of the subject at hand。 What makes this book different from other historical accounts is Stanley’s definition of “pop。”“I wanted to argue that the separation of rock and pop is false… it includes rock， R&B， soul， hip hop， house， techno， metal and country。” Then he clarifies the issue: “Most basically， anything that gets into the charts is pop， be it Buddy Holly， Black Sabbath， or Bucks Fizz。” So， what we have is Bob Stanley drawing pretty much everything into the musical net。 The book is divided into five sections。 Part One includes Bill Haley， jump blues， Elvis， rockabilly， Rock ‘n’ Roll， skiffle， British Rock ‘n’ Roll， doo wop， Phil Spector， the Brill Building， and girl groups。 Part Two takes on The Beatles， the Beat boom， The Stones， the birth of soul， Dylan， the Byrd’s， folk rock， Motown， the London “look，” The Beach Boys， San Francisco， psychedelia， soft rock， deep soul， hard rock， and The Monkees。Part Three begins with the 1970s and electrified soul， Jamaica， glam， soft soul， progressive rock， boy bands， Abba， country and western， and Laurel Canyon。Part Four gets into punk rock， new wave， disco， The Bee Gees， post-punk， electropop， early rap， American rock， Michael Jackson， Prince， Madonna， Metal， Indie rock， The Pet Shop Boys and New Order。Part five brings things to a conclusion with House， techno， acid house， Manchester， hip hop， shoegazing， new psychedelia， grunge， Britpop， and another look at R&B。What’s fascinating， at least about the first two-thirds of the book is the connections that Stanley makes between all the styles， genres and sub-genres。 This is a man who has read， heard and seen a lot about pop music， and it shows。 And though he seems to get bogged down- or a little too focused on the erotic aspects of the music- there is a lot to learn， the result being a heightened appreciation for what it all means- or in some cases， does not。The author walks a tightrope here， trying to deal with something everyone loves- which is music， in all its shades and degrees of emotion and meaning。 But for the most part， Stanley does an admirable job， considering the scope of the topic at hand。 What’s puzzling is the groups and artists he omits。 Maybe there just wasn’t enough room for them all， or- less likely- he didn’t know about some of those he left out of the narrative。 Granted， he says that he wanted to focus on those at the forefront on whatever era they led the charge for。 But one wonders if there wasn’t some sort of snobbery involved。How else to account for nary a mention of Wire， the post-punk group whose sound is so unique that they seem to be their own genre- not to mention the fact that they’ve been recording and performing for over forty years？Where is Procol Harum， one of the first groups to successfully meld prog rock with orchestra。 Along those same lines， why does Electric Light Orchestra （who went much further than Procul Harum， in terms of wedding rock and classical music） merit only one slightly disparaging sentence in the notes on Page 270- as does Supertramp？ Alan Parsons goes missing， as well as Cat Stevens and Jim Croce。 Where are Tones on Tail， Saga， Simple Minds， or Love and Rockets？ How about Pere Ubu， the Bonzo Dog Band， Michael Martin Murphy， Dan Fogelberg， New Model Army， NRBQ， Thomas Dolby， Steeleye Span， the Comsat Angels， and Suzanne Vega？ The iconoclastic Deerhoof developed their own avant-garde style， beginning in 1994， and are still recording and performing- but they apparently don’t exist in Bob Stanley’s world。Yes， there’s plenty about The Monkees and Abba， as well as Prince and Madonna and Oasis。 But it seems a bit much to go on about their likes at the expense of some of the most accomplished artists to ever see the inside of a studio。 And while it’s not realistic to expect an author to include every single artist within the scope of a book such as this one， there seems to be a large blind spot。Given the length of the book， it’s understandable that fatigue could set in before reaching Page 556。 But there’s a sense that this weariness is shared by Bob Stanley， as well。 Bob states in the beginning that his goal was to describe both the birth of pop， as well as its decline （in the 1990s）。 By the time we get to the last few chapters， it’s hard to get enthused about shoegazing， hip hop， grunge， and Britpop。 Given all that’s gone before， it’s no wonder that Stanley includes a quote by Nik Cohn， who “likened rock to a boulder dropped in the middle of a lake; there had been ripples since 1955， he reckoned， each progressively smaller and less impressive。” Stanley followed this with and observation by Simon Reynolds， who compared the phenomena to “a blank sheet of paper that had been gradually colored in since the fifties until， by the early nineties， there were virtually no white spaces left。”Complaints aside， “Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！” is one of the only books of its kind。 Readers will benefit greatly from this history of pop music， and can take some comfort in the fact that “there’s enough in those four decades to spend a lifetime digging through， and even then you’ll never hear all of it。” Sounds like a great hobby， to me。 。。。more

Dave mcloughlin ，

Amazingly well researched and written。 So much fun to read， like taking multiple trips down memory lane， superb。

Tarita Henry ，

Covers everything， so nothing in depth。 He thinks the Eagles were a country band。 lol

Jonny Brick ，

Need to know anything about pop music？ Ask the Professor。 Wisdom on every page。

Anthony Reisinger ，

Enjoyable read for lovers of pop musicIt took me a long time to get through this book as I’m not an avid reader and it’s quite long。 However， as a music lover， I really enjoyed seeing the progression of pop music from the 50’s to 2000’s。

Andrew Rock ，

A great insightful book about the full history of pop。 I learnt a lot about genres I had no knowledge of and also new facts about years I lived through。 Didn't agree with all that Bob says but non the less enjoyable for this。 A great insightful book about the full history of pop。 I learnt a lot about genres I had no knowledge of and also new facts about years I lived through。 Didn't agree with all that Bob says but non the less enjoyable for this。 。。。more

Gregory Jones ，

This is a near-encylopedic look at pop music in the 20th century。 What Bob Stanley has undertaken with this book is nothing but impressive。 Yet， at the same time， the decisions in reducing a book to a mere *checks notes* 600 pages leaves a lot of music in the wake。 In some ways， I think the editor could have suggested that Stanley turn this into a multivolume series。 It's a bit much for one book and that substantive quantity makes the thread of argument a bit difficult to follow。Stanley， to his This is a near-encylopedic look at pop music in the 20th century。 What Bob Stanley has undertaken with this book is nothing but impressive。 Yet， at the same time， the decisions in reducing a book to a mere *checks notes* 600 pages leaves a lot of music in the wake。 In some ways， I think the editor could have suggested that Stanley turn this into a multivolume series。 It's a bit much for one book and that substantive quantity makes the thread of argument a bit difficult to follow。Stanley， to his credit， seems to have a solid grasp on the variety of pop music styles that existed over this time。 His ability to bring in the "back story" to many hit songs and award-winning artists is quite impressive。 The interconnected nature of the trans-Atlantic music scene throughout the century was evident throughout the book。 In some ways， this is my biggest takeaway from the book。 It's impossible to study the music industry in isolation; genres and music were not limited by geography in the way those of us who study it might expect。The book is definitely important for people who study pop culture and pop music specifically。 Each chapter could probably be an entire book theme in and of itself。 That said， as a "flyover" level， this is really an intriguing book。 I would have liked to see a stronger argumentative arch connecting the book， but perhaps that's asking a bit much from such a vast argument。 Stanley's quirky writing style included plenty of vignettes and idiosyncratic turns of phrase that left me sometimes laughing and other times wondering what he meant。 Perhaps there's some transatlantic miscommunication going on there。 My final recommendation is that I would not necessarily use a book like this in an undergraduate class。 It's just too long。 I would， however， consider excerpting sections on specific developments in music。 For example， being able to see a favorite band （like Eagles） emerge in context in the late 60s is immensely helpful。 In that regard， scholars of music who want to situate other subjects in a larger context will love Yeah！ Yeah！ Yeah！ for it's chronological and thematic organization。 It commands a presence in the study of music history。 。。。more

Richard Barnes ，

A fantastic history of pop music。 Read it but make sure you have your phone with you so you can listen to the vast catalogue of records that Bob Stanley will introduce you to。As someone who felt they had a reasonable grasp of the sweep of music from Rock n roll to the early 2000’s （I’m 47， so as far as I’m concerned there’s hardly been a decent pop record since 2000）， I was very pleased to be thoroughly re-enlightened。Stanley covers everything and in style。 He has great turns of phrase （“a voice A fantastic history of pop music。 Read it but make sure you have your phone with you so you can listen to the vast catalogue of records that Bob Stanley will introduce you to。As someone who felt they had a reasonable grasp of the sweep of music from Rock n roll to the early 2000’s （I’m 47， so as far as I’m concerned there’s hardly been a decent pop record since 2000）， I was very pleased to be thoroughly re-enlightened。Stanley covers everything and in style。 He has great turns of phrase （“a voice like an old Ford Cortina” （Dr Feelgood）， “possibly the brownest record to appear on Top of the Pops” （Mouldy Old Bread））， but it’s his phenomenal knowledge and love for pop that makes this book so essential。Overall， this is a history of genres and sub-genres， and the chapters progress around common themes in mostly， but not constrained to， chronological order。 He zooms in on particular artists here and there （a chapter on Prince and Madonna as examples of corporate 80’s pop; Abba singled out because they were just so damn good）， sometimes he focuses on specific labels （Brill Building）， and sometimes a trawl through a specific year （1960 was a lean time for pop apparently， the raw energy of Elvis， Little Richard and Chuck Berry had been reined in and the Beatles were yet to fire up）。 By not restricting himself to a purely time linear story Stanley illuminates the movements and complex interweaving of musical styles and how they evolved， sparked off each other and occasionally vanished into dead ends （Glam Rock for example。。）。Stanley， above all， writes with wisdom and perception but without pretension。 Having been an avid NME reader in my youth， I can attest to how rare that combination appears in music writing。 His love for the pure， clean genius of pop shines through， as does his contempt for the pretensions of stuff like Prog rock （and a healthy disdain for English Folk Rock。。）。 He writes so well and convincingly that I couldn’t argue with his swift dismissal of pretty much all of the indie pop that I loved in the early 90’s。 I still love that music， but Stanley is so right about it。Read this book， listen to the music。 Do your mind， your ears and your soul a favour。 。。。more

Joseph Stewart ，

This is a massive and somewhat dry book， although I did enjoy it， I read it as my "side book" and only read a chapter or so a night。 Its ni page Turner but rather a very straight laced account of popular music from the early 60's to the 2000's。 I'd hoped to learn more about the birth of rock and roll but Bov Stanley begins about a decade after that。 The book is clearly well researched and the author does a weird job of writing in a detached （too much so I'd say） fashion whilst still pushing his This is a massive and somewhat dry book， although I did enjoy it， I read it as my "side book" and only read a chapter or so a night。 Its ni page Turner but rather a very straight laced account of popular music from the early 60's to the 2000's。 I'd hoped to learn more about the birth of rock and roll but Bov Stanley begins about a decade after that。 The book is clearly well researched and the author does a weird job of writing in a detached （too much so I'd say） fashion whilst still pushing his bias with a heavy hand。 I would have liked some more personal anecdotes about the musicians in the book， and more of an involved voice from the author。 Honestly this book reads more like a textbook than the kind of music writing I've grown to love from someone like Chuck Klosterman。 I'm still glad I read it and I was really on the fence between 3 and 4 stars。 。。。more

Jeremy Shatan ，

One of the best music books ever。 Wildly entertaining and opinionated but full of facts， too。

Scott Taylor ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Yeah！

Matt Midlock ，

What a phenomenal overview of pop music。 Stanley covers a lot if ground and the chapters never overstay their welcome。 Dense but never plodding or boring， this book is a fascinating read for anyone interested in music！ Highly recommended！

russell barnes ，

Daunting in size but eminently readable， with bitesize chapters in which Stanley broadly-chronologically covers everything from hip hop to hardcore， rock to soul and everything in between。 It's the sort of read that makes you dig out your old cassettes and records， realise you haven't got anything to play them on， and have to search for playlists on Spotify instead。 There are two that i've found。 Daunting in size but eminently readable， with bitesize chapters in which Stanley broadly-chronologically covers everything from hip hop to hardcore， rock to soul and everything in between。 It's the sort of read that makes you dig out your old cassettes and records， realise you haven't got anything to play them on， and have to search for playlists on Spotify instead。 There are two that i've found。 。。。more

Emma ，

The best book about pop music ever。 Love the early chapters about Rock and Roll。

Chy ，

4。5 stars。Reading this was like traveling through time on a train and making stops throughout the years and musical eras。Admittedly I was only interested in reading about the early years of pop i。e。 the 1950s through the 1970s so in that regard this book was amazing！ I love how in depth it went covering all the various genres and diving into individual artists and songs。Once you pass the 1970s though and you get into hard rock， metal， new wave etc， etc， I skimmed through those parts because it j 4。5 stars。Reading this was like traveling through time on a train and making stops throughout the years and musical eras。Admittedly I was only interested in reading about the early years of pop i。e。 the 1950s through the 1970s so in that regard this book was amazing！ I love how in depth it went covering all the various genres and diving into individual artists and songs。Once you pass the 1970s though and you get into hard rock， metal， new wave etc， etc， I skimmed through those parts because it just didn't interest me。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0