Rock'n America - Deena Weinstein

What is rock? This book offers a new and systematic approach to understanding rock by applying sociological concepts in a historical context. Deena Weinstein, a rock critic, journalist, and academic, starts by outlining an original approach to understanding rock, explaining how the form has developed through a complex and ever-changing set of relations between artists, fans, and mediators. She then traces the history of rock in America through its distinctive eras, from rock's precursors to rock in the digital age. The book includes suggested listening lists to accompany each chapter, a detailed filmography of movies about rock, and a wide range of visuals and fascinating anecdotes. Never separating rock music from the social, political, economic, and cultural changes in America's history, Rock'n America provides a comprehensive overview of the genre and a new way of appreciating its place in American society.

Deena Weinstein is Professor of Sociology at DePaul University in Chicago. She has published widely in the field of rock music, including Heavy Metal: A Cultural Sociology (1991) and social theory. She has also been a rock journalist for over two decades, writing album reviews and feature articles on various facets of rock music and conducting interviews with rock musicians.