The Music Book Podcast
A podcast about music books, talking to authors about how they wrote their books about music! Hosted by music writer Marc Masters.
Episodes
49 episodes
049 Jim Saah on Photographing Punk
On this episode, Marc talks with Jim Saah, author and illustrator of “In My Eyes: Photographs 1982-1987,” originally published in 2021 and out in a second edition now. It’s a huge, beautiful book of black and white photographs tak...
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51:31
048 Marcus J. Moore on De La Soul
On this episode, Marc talks with Marcus J. Moore, author of “High and Rising: A Book about De La Soul,” published today, November 19. It’s a biography of the legendary rap trio that also weaves in Moore’s own story as well as the ...
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49:18
047 Laura Davis-Chanin and Liz Lamere on Alan Vega
On this episode, Marc talks with Laura Davis-Chanin and Liz Lamere, co-authors of “Infinite Dreams: The Life of Alan Vega,” a deep and thorough portrait of the man most know as half of the innovative duo Suicide, but who al...
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54:30
046 Steve Wynn on The Dream Syndicate
On this episode, Marc talks with Steve Wynn, author of “I Wouldn't Say It If It Wasn't True: A Memoir Of Life, Music, And The Dream Syndicate,” published in August of 2024. It’s an entertaining and insightful memoir of his music-obsessed life, ...
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48:23
045 Jonathon Grasse on Eric Dolphy
On this episode, Marc talks with Jonathan Grasse, author of “Jazz Revolutionary: The Life and Music of Eric Dolphy,” due out on October 15. It’s a thorough history of the legendary jazz multi-instrumentalist, who produced an impre...
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49:35
044 Corey duBrowa on The EP
On this episode, Marc talks with Corey duBrowa, author of “An Ideal For Living: A Celebration of the EP,” published in early 2024. It’s an overview of some of the best EP’s from the 1950s until the present, with decade-themed chap...
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55:33
043 Henry Rollins on Staying Fanatic
On this episode, Marc talks with Henry Rollins, author of “Stay Fanatic! Volume 4,” the latest entry in his series of books chronicling, as he puts it, “Lessons in Possession and Confessions of Obsession.” Written in diary form, “...
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1:09:33
042 David Stubbs on Why People Get Rothko But Don't Get Stockhausen
On this episode, Marc talks with David Stubbs. He’s the author of “Fear of Music: Why People Get Rothko But Don't Get Stockhausen,” originally published in 2009 and recently reissued. It's an examination of how avant-garde visual ...
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50:58
041 Frans de Waard on RRRecords
On this episode, Marc talks with Frans de Waard, author of “America’s Greatest Noise,” published in July of 2024 by Frans’s own imprint, Korm Plastics. It’s the story of Ron Lessard, founder of RRRecords in Massachusetts, which he...
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55:18
040 Robyn Hitchcock on 1967
On this episode, Marc talks with Robyn Hitchock, author of “1967: How I Got There and Why I Never Left,” published in July of 2024. You probably know Robyn as an incredibly creative and accomplished musician. His first book could ...
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48:39
039 Toby Manning on Pop and Politics
On this episode, Marc talks with Toby Manning, author of “Mixing Pop and Politics: A Marxist History of Popular Music,” published in May of 2024. It’s an extensive examination of pop music from the early 1950’s to the present in A...
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49:45
038 Mike Smith on Popular 60s Jazz
On this episode, Marc talks with Mike Smith, author of “In With The In Crowd: Popular Jazz in 1960s Black America,” published in May of 2024. Smith argues that most studies of 60s jazz focus on the avant-garde centered around John...
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56:04
037 Tom Maxwell on 90s Chapel Hill Music
On this episode, Marc talks with Tom Maxwell, author of “A Really Strange and Wonderful Time: The Chapel Hill Music Scene, 1989-1999,” published in April of 2024. It's the story of a community where musicians played in each other’...
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55:23
036 Tara Lopez on Chuco Punk
On this episode, Marc talks with Tara Lopez, author of “Chuco Punk: Sonic Insurgency in El Paso,” published today, June 4th, 2024. It’s a fascinating history of how punk rock developed and grew in the Texas city of El Paso, and th...
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45:53
035 Bill Sassenberger on Toxic Shock Records
On this episode, Marc talks to Bill Sassenberger, author of “Toxic Shock Records - Assassin of Mediocrity: A Story of Love, Loss, and Loud Music,” published in the spring of 2024 by Fluke Publishing. Bill and his wife Julianna ran Toxic Shock R...
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39:51
034 Laina Dawes on Black Women in Heavy Metal
On this episode, Marc talks to Laina Dawes, author of “What Are You Doing Here?: A Black Woman's Life and Liberation in Heavy Metal,” first published in 2013 by Bazillion Points books, then republished in a new edition in 2020. It...
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49:54
033 Michael Veal on John Coltrane and Miles Davis
On this episode, Marc talks to Michael Veal, author of “Living Space: John Coltrane, Miles Davis, and Free Jazz, from Analog to Digital,” released in April 2024. It’s a fascinating, complex study of John Coltrane’s work from 1965 ...
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51:36
032 Jon Fine on Indie Rock's Failed Revolution
On this episode, Marc talks with Jon Fine editor of “Your Band Sucks: What I Saw at Indie Rock's Failed Revolution (But Can No Longer Hear),” published in May of 2014. It’s a memoir of his time in the late 80s band Bitch Magnet, a...
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1:00:27
031 Ira Robbins on Trouser Press
On this episode, Marc talks with Ira Robbins, editor of “Zip it Up! The Best of Trouser Press Magazine, 1974-1984,” published in March 2024. It’s an anthology of pieces published in the New York-based magazine Trouser Press, which...
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47:49
030 Will York on San Francisco Post-Punk
On this episode, Marc talks with Will York, author of “Who Cares Anyway: Post-Punk San Francisco and the End of the Analog Age,” published in April 2023. It’s a thorough and fascinating history of underground music in San Francisc...
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1:02:33
029 Michael Azerrad on Amplifiying Nirvana
On this episode, Marc talks to Michael Azerrad, author of “The Amplified Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana,” published in October of 2023. It’s an update of his 1993 biography of Nirvana, in which he annotates his original boo...
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52:19
028 Marshall Gu on Krautrock
On this episode, Marc talks to Marshall Gu, author of “Krautrock,” published on November of 2023. Part of the 33.3 "Genre" series, it's a look at Krautrock through chapter-length examinations of 12 individual groups: Can, Faust, C...
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37:37
027 Simon Price on The Cure
On this episode, Marc talks to Simon Price, author of “Curepedia: An A to Z of The Cure,” published on December 12, 2023. It’s a literal encyclopedia of the great British band the Cure, arranged in alphabetical order by subjects, ...
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38:38