Overview

Black British Music in America 1967–2000: Atlantic Crossover historically examines musical and cultural relationships through popular music recordings, exploring the transatlantic journeys via academic, critical, and commercial reception of the music. It addresses an overlooked area of Black popular music, investigating the fluctuating fortunes of artists and the contradictions of exporting such recordings to America. Examining a complex history spanning the last four decades of the twentieth century, the author reveals the chronologies and the recording industry circumstances shaping the presence of Black British music in America. Readers will discover the conditions under which key recordings were made and released, through detailed analysis and new interviews with participating producers and artists. Including exploration of chart histories, this book also dissects the content of the recordings, uncovering the elements that made many of them successful. Black British Music in America 1967–2000 will interest all those who study popular music, cultural studies, and music production, as well as popular music listeners.

Full Product Details

Author:   Mike Alleyne
Publisher:   Taylor & Francis Ltd
Imprint:   Routledge
ISBN:  

9781032836553

ISBN 10:   1032836555
Pages:   236
Publication Date:   22 June 2026
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Forthcoming
Availability:   Not yet available  
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Table of Contents

Acknowledgements List of Figures Preface Introduction Chapter 1: Remixing Black Popular Music History: The Black and the British The Cultural Sound Stage Black British Outsiders The Voice and the Instrumental Text The Weight of History Dread Out There: The Plight of Black British Reggae Relocating Heatwave Chapter 2: Crossing Over, Genre Politics and Music Production The Mainstream and the Charts Cultural Dislocation Genre and Crossover: Charting a Discourse Record Labels and Genre Labelling Music Production Chapter 3: Breaking Into America: The 1960s and 1970s The Artistic Soundscape The Beatles and Early Black British Pop The Foundations: American Arrival The Equals: The ""Black Skin Blue Eyed Boys"" Cymande: Sending the Transatlantic Cultural Message Joan Armatrading: Beyond Stereotypes Chapter 4: The Margin and the Mainstream: The 1970s Hot Chocolate: “Brother Louie” and Breaking America Beyond “Brother Louie” Blue-Eyed British R&B: The Average White Band and Kokomo Chapter 5: Transitions, Technologies, and Tensions: The Late 1970s and 1980s The Britfunk Era and Echoes of the 1970s Ska’s Second Wave and American Indifference Technology Topography Imagination’s New Dimensions Chapter 6: The New Black British Invasion Continues: The 1980s Total Contrast: Sync or Swim Eddy Grant: Electric Propulsion Billy Ocean: The Breakthrough Journey Loose Ends: The Art of “Hangin’ On” Chapter 7: Commercial Consolidation: The 1980s and 1990s Five Star: Broken by America Des’ree: “Listen as Your Day Unfolds” Soul II Soul: American Conquest Visual Grooves: Soul II Soul Music Videos Caron Wheeler and UK Blak Roachford: A Single Instance Sade: Platinum Life Chapter 8: Selling Seal to the States The Beginning The “Crazy” Music Video The Second Self-Titled Album The Human Being Reset Record Company Calamities Black British Songstress Status Chapter 9: The Ephraim Lewis Case Study: 1992-1994 Unveiling Skin Discovery and Signing The Music Video for “It Can’t Be Forever” The Textures of Skin The Unreleased Second Album Chapter 10: Remastering the Mix: 1990s Snapshots and Black British Echoes Equalizing the Past Maxi Priest: Reggae Roots, Pop Success Massive Attack: Remixing Stardom Mark Morrison: The Mack Hits Back Atlantic Coda Bibliography Discography Filmography Index

Reviews

Black British Music in America, 1967–1998: Atlantic Crossover is a timely and original intervention that strengthens the growing body of scholarship on Black British music and its transatlantic relationships. Alleyne combines musicological insight with industry experience to chart how questions of race and cultural legibility affect the reception of Black British artists in the United States during a pivotal period. His attention to recordings and archival sources, enriched by lived testimony, highlights the politics of diaspora and the emergence of distinctly Black British modes of expression. This book should be a key reference for scholars and practitioners seeking to understand the historical dialogue between Black British and Black American musical worlds. Matthew Williams, University of York, UK I've been waiting for someone to write this book. Mike Alleyne has finally documented the transatlantic journey of Black British artists properly, from Hot Chocolate and Cymande through to Soul II Soul and Seal, with the chart data and interview evidence to back it up. As string arranger on Soul II Soul's first album and co-writer on Mark Morrison's first single, I know this terrain well. The domestic indifference, the American confusion about artists who didn't fit their categories, the constant question of whether to sound ""American enough."" Alleyne gets this. He's done the work, spoken to the producers, traced the label politics. That chapter needed telling and Alleyne's told it well. Mykaell Riley, University of Westminster, UK

Author Information

Mike Alleyne is Professor Emeritus with the Department of Recording Industry, Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU). His publications include co-editing the award-winning collection Analyzing Recorded Music (2023), The Essential Hendrix (2020), and The Encyclopedia of Reggae (2012), and co-editing Prince and Popular Music (2020). His work has been published in Popular Music & Society, Rock Music Studies, Popular Music History, Ethnomusicology Forum, and American Music Perspectives.

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