Recommended by Professor Long
During the semester I don’t have the long-term memory for novels, so I tend to read nonfiction for pleasure, and my greatest non-literary pleasure is music. This book by Jack Hamilton examines the period of popular music I am listening to the most right now (1960s rock, pop, and soul), with an emphasis on collaboration and musical inspiration between black and white artists. Each chapter pairs two artists—one black, one white—and performs close readings of their songs side-by-side, showing how each influenced the style and development of the other. It’s a refreshing look at a period of unprecedented artistic exchange before our racial expectations about musical genres ossified. Make no mistake, it’s an academic book and has some of the tics of academic writing, but can also be enjoyed by a popular audience.