THE BUSINESS: A History of Popular Music

A name many music lovers will know, legendary impresario Simon Napier-Bell takes us inside the world of popular music from sheet music to streaming. Not just a cradle for talent and expression, the music business has made people rich beyond their wildest dreams. Simon balances seductive anecdotes, pulling back the curtain on the gritty and absurd side of the industry, with an insightful exploration of the relationship between creativity and money. He describes the evolution of the industry from its birth in 1710 when the British Parliament first established the right of ownership in creative works, to the huge global market it has become today with streaming and downloads. You will uncover a treasure trove of musical facts including how a formula for writing hits in the 1900s which helped create 50,000 of the best-known songs of all time; how Jewish immigrants and Black jazz musicians dancing cheek-to-cheek established a template for all popular music that followed; and how rock tours became the biggest, quickest, sleaziest and most profitable ventures the industry had ever seen. We shine on this crazy diamond through the days of the American musical, Irving Berlin, pirating and other problems, dodgy producers, booze, the wireless, world wars, payola, record companies regrouping, Michael Jackson and Madonna, drugs and DJs, rap, the end of Classical and EMI, and new directions. With a cast of characters, and songs in chapter titles, index of quotations and bibliography. 388pp, paperback.