How Women Made Music
A Revolutionary History from NPR Music
A Revolutionary History from NPR Music
Drawn from NPR Music's acclaimed, groundbreaking series Turning the Tables, the definitive book on the vital role of Women in Music--from Beyoncé to Odetta, Taylor Swift to Joan Baez, Joan Jett to Dolly Parton--featuring archival interviews, essays, photographs, and illustrations. The ultimate celebration of Women in Music from the NPR Music series--Turning the Tables--featuring superstars and hidden geniuses, archival interviews, essays, rare photos, and specially commissioned illustrations. Turning the Tables, launched in 2017, has revolutionized recognition of female artists, whether it be in best album lists or in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame How Women Made Music: A Revolutionary History from NPR Music brings this impressive history and fascinating reshaping to the page and includes material draws from more than fifty years of NPR's coverage of great musical heroes and intriguing creators. This book is a must-have for music fans, songwriters, feminist historians, and those interested in how artists think and work, including: - Joan Baez talking about nonviolence as a musical principle in 1971 - Dolly Parton's favorite song and the story behind it - Patti Smith describing art as her "jealous mistress" in 1974 - Nina Simone, in 2001, explaining how she developed the edge in her voice as a tool against racism. - Taylor Swift talking about when she had no idea if her musical career might work - Odetta on how shifting from classical music to folk allowed her to express her fury over Jim Crow This incomparable hardcover volume is a vital record of history destined to become a classic and a great gift for any music fan or creative thinker.
Reviews with the most likes.
4.5 stars. Although this book includes lists of the 150 greatest albums made by women and the 200 greatest songs by 21st century women, it is definitely not one of those rigid Billboard-style countdowns that inevitably invites arguments about why your favorite song is #36 when it obviously should be in the top twenty. Instead, its chapters are arranged thematically, each one touching on issues of race, sexual orientation, and class. Dozens of women who contributed to NPR's Turning the Tables series offer a mix of brief essays about the songs and longer think pieces on the impact of the music on their lives. Excerpts from archival NPR interviews with the artists are scattered throughout. The women who are profiled include superstars (Whitney Houston, Taylor Smith) and lesser known performers (Germfree Adolescents, Suzanne Ciani, Gal Costa). While nearly all of the women were challenged by the white male-dominated music industry, the focus is not on barriers but on the remarkable, enduring music they produced.
The book may be a little overwhelming to digest in one sitting; its richness is best savored slowly. I have a list of new-to-me women performers to explore, so I'm not even going to complain that The Bangles' masterpiece album All Over the Place should have been ranked much higher than #139.
