Music Is History

July 26, 2021
“Whenever there’s a history happening, there’s more than one history happening,” writes five-time Grammy winner Questlove (Creative Quest) in this exuberant look at the last five decades of history through the lens of music. He explains how, throughout time, music has touched upon a wide range of societal, social, and racial shifts, influencing culture in instances both big and small. In an effort to examine these moments, he selects a song for each year (starting in 1971, when he was born), to unpack “what was happening in the world in general,” adding a layer of intimacy with biographical accounts of his life as a musician. The songs analyzed are quite varied: while A Taste of Honey’s 1978 hit “Boogie Oogie Oogie” may serve as the perfect encapsulation of the disco era’s carefree mindset, Steely Dan’s “Hey Nineteen” offers a more tongue-in-check lesson on aging. Conversely, Prince’s rerecorded version of “1999” registers as a failed attempt to resist change, and as a bittersweet reminder that the past is something that can’t be replicated. Richard Nixon’s presidency, “Black Power,” 9/11, and other key cultural touchstones are mentioned, with songs used as a springboard for further reflection into history and how memory actively shapes it. This stimulating work is sure to attract deep thinkers and music theorists everywhere. Agent: Marc Gerald, Europa Content.

Starred review from September 1, 2021

Musician and producer Questlove examines the artists, songs, and albums that affected him artistically and personally, from 1971 (the year of his birth) on. Each section is devoted to a different year and starts with a list (he loves lists) of important cultural events, then focuses on a noteworthy track. Questlove does more than just offer musical analysis: he puts the songs into context and digs into deep cuts and artists sometimes lost to history as he considers how we create history and how we think about popular music and culture. Steely Dan's "Hey Nineteen" becomes a jumping-off point for analyzing generation gaps; Living Colour's response to the racist Guns N' Roses song "One in a Million" leads to an exploration of race, music, and history. Questlove's playlists ("Singles I Actually Dig"; "Put You in My Mix") will make readers want to stop and listen--perhaps even on a Walkman, which was how Questlove first heard Public Enemy's It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back (the focus of 1988). VERDICT This inspired volume continues Questlove's thoughtful and thought-provoking work and is an enduring analysis of the effects of music on personal, political, and cultural histories.--Rebekah Buchanan, Western Illinois Univ., Macomb, IL

Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 15, 2021
The iconic drummer, composer, and DJ tracks modern American history through music and vice versa. Each chapter focuses on a specific year, beginning with 1971, when Questlove was born, and is structured around "a song that represents some idea connected to history: how it was experienced at the time, or how it is learned and understood, or what figures surface within it, or how different versions of it are reconciled, or how they cannot be." Interspersed throughout are lists of songs--and the author's commentary on each--divided into categories--e.g., songs worthy of being reinstated into communal memory; and hip-hop "deep cuts that...need to be excavated"; and songs in E minor, a key that "isn't just a way of life for funk songs, but a world unto itself. In grappling with the mass of E-minor songs, I have divided the E-minor theme into two camps, the songs that get over and the songs that under-whelm." Questlove also revisits songs by other artists on which he played drums. The scope of the book, like the author's vinyl collection, is enormous, yet his tone makes for a fascinating, page-turning read. Whether he's making a case that hip-hop was "at least in part a direct reaction to disco" or describing Bill Withers as his first true idol, Questlove makes for an engaging, dynamic narrator--just as he was in his excellent memoir, Mo' Meta Blues (2013). Events, he writes, "can feel like closed boxes until we find our way in....And that's why I decided to put 'Does Everyone Stare' [by The Police] not in 1979, the year it came out, but in 1981, the year it came out to me." The author adds private stories such as the day, in 1993, when the Roots were signed by Geffen and his mother told him she was divorcing his father. From explicating protest songs to sampling, Questlove continuously encourages readers to cross-reference historical happenings and to read (and think) critically. A palimpsestic, personal, and resonant journey with a living musical encyclopedia.

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October 15, 2021
Music is life for Questlove, the son of musicians and himself an accomplished and influential drummer, songwriter, DJ, producer, writer (Creative Quest, 2018), and director of the revelatory documentary, Summer of Soul. Music is also history, Questlove argues with ardor, unabashedly nerdy expertise, and percussive narrative power in this provocative 50-year investigation starting in 1971, the year he was born. Questlove explains why he thinks "of the America we live in as a series of songs" in substantial yet rollicking essays summarizing each year up to 2002, followed by a shrewd insider's overview of the subsequent years up to the present, a time period too recent for a full historical analysis. Questlove muses on the slippery nature of history; touches on signature events and landmarks in film, TV, sports, and books; offers close readings of musical styles and song lyrics, profiles musicians, and tells tales of his own musical experiences. He also presents intriguing musical lists and excellent indexes. Questlove's in-depth, witty, creative, personal, and authoritative musical history will keep people reading, listening, questioning, and musing for many years to come.

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