"Even the most avid music fan will make some new discoveries in these pages." — The CurrentWhat makes a cult musician? Whether pioneering in their craft, fiercely and undeniably unique, or critically divisive, cult musicians come in all shapes and guises. Some gain instant fame, others instant notoriety, and more still remain anonymous, with small, devout followings, until a chance change in fashion sees their work propelled into the limelight....

A design monograph series on the most remarkable architects, designers, brands and design movements of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, each book contains a historical-critical essay discussing the life and work of the subject, followed by an illustrated appreciation of groundbreaking work.One of the few female architects to get world-wide recognition and the first to receive the Pritzker, Iraqi-British Hadid was nicknamed the 'Queen of the Curve'. Dramatic and confident, ...

A design monograph series on the most remarkable architects, designers, brands and design movements of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, each book contains a historical-critical essay discussing the life and work of the subject, followed by an illustrated appreciation of groundbreaking work.At 87 Manchester-born Norman Foster has an illustrious career that spans many decades. A titan of design and master of high-tech and sustainable architecture, Foster was instrumental in ...

Discover music that dared to be different, risked reputations and put careers in jeopardy – causing fascination and intrigue in some and rejection and scorn in others. This is what happens when people take tradition and rip it up.MusicQuake tells the stories of 50 pivotal albums and performances that shook the world of modern music – chronicling the fascinating tales of their creation, rec...

A relentless innovator, scoring chart hits while simultaneously incorporating radical and ground-breaking elements into his work.As with all great pop stars, Bowie's image changed with almost every new album release. This appetite for reinvention, both musically and visually, saw him dubbed the 'chameleon of pop'. But Bowie's influence extended well beyond his discography and make-up drawer. His androgynous qualities and public statements on his sexuality proved li...

What links Lead Belly, Lonnie Donegan and Black Betty? Whose gravestoneinspired Phil Spector's first hit? And for which song did Johnny Rotten replace the singer from Def Leppard?The rich history of popular music is built on a foundation of classic songs. From Tin Pan Alley to the Brill Building, Bob Dylan to Kurt Cobain, and Joni Mitchell to Amy Winehouse, gifted songwriters have crafted a cherished body of music that has become part of our...

"I have, by the way, seen 943 of the 1001 movies, and am carefully rationing the remaining titles to prolong my life." - Roger Ebert"1001 ways to give cinema new scope." - The HeraldExpert critics in each genre of film, from romance to horror and sci-fi, have once again painstakingly revised this list of essential must see-movies, cut and added films to bring the must-watch list bang up to date for 2013, fr...

Completely revised and updated to include the most up-to-date selections, this is a bold and bright reference book to the novels and the writers that have excited the world's imagination. This authoritative selection of novels, reviewed by an international team of writers, critics, academics, and journalists, provides a new take on world classics and a reliable guide to what's hot in contemporary fiction. Featuring more than 700 illustrations and photographs, presenting quotes from individ...

The Man Who Sold the World is a critical study of David Bowie's most inventive and influential decade, from his first hit, "Space Oddity," in 1969, to the release of the LP Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) in 1980. Viewing the artist through the lens of his music and his many guises, the acclaimed journalist Peter Doggett offers a detailed analysis—musical, lyrical, conceptual, social—of every song Bowie wrote and recorded during that period, as well as a brilliant explo...

A landmark history of post-punk and the basis of the documentary film directed by Nikolaos KatranisRenowned music journalist Simon Reynolds celebrates the futurist sound and spirit of such bands as Joy Division, Gang of Four, Talking Heads, and Devo, which resulted in endless innovations in music, lyrics, performance, and style. Reynolds explores these influences which continued into the early eighties with the video-savvy synth-pop of groups such as Human League, ...

The indispensable consumers' guide to the music of Frank Zappa - the genius of the absurd, and one of the most prolific and unpredictable characters of 20th century music.A thorough analysis of Zappa's complete recorded output, from the early days of the Mothers Of Invention, through his more avant-garde compositions and classical projects to the most recent posthumous releases. The guide features:An album by album analysisA full Zappa bibliographyDetails of when an...

"[Stanley is] as clear-eyed about music as he is crazy in love with it." —Mikael Wood, Los Angeles TimesA monumental work of musical history, Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! traces the story of pop music through songs, bands, musical scenes, and styles from Bill Haley and the Comets’ “Rock around the Clock” (1954) to Beyoncé’s first megahit, “Crazy in Love” (2003). Bob Stanley—himself a musician, music critic, and fan—teases out the connections and tensions tha...