Overview

OVER THE LAST SEVEN DECADES, ome of rock 'n' roll's most celebrated figureheads have flirted with the imagery and theater of the Third Reich. From Keith Moon and Vivian Stanshall kitting themselves out in Nazi uniforms to Siouxsie Sioux and Sid Vicious brandishing swastikas in the pomp of punk, generations of performers have associated themselves in troubling ways with the aesthetics, mass hysteria, and even ideology of Nazism. Whether shock factor, stupidity, or crass attempts at subversion, rock 'n' roll has indulged these associations in a way not accepted in any other art form. But how accountable should fans, the media, and the music industry be for what has often seemed a sleazy fascination with the eroticized perversions of a fascist regime? In This Ain't Rock 'n' Roll, award-winning music historian Daniel Rachel navigates these turbulent waters with extraordinary delicacy and care, asking us to look anew at the artists who have defined us, inspired us, and given us joy--and consider why so many have been drawn to the imagery of a movement responsible for some of the twentieth century's worst atrocities. Rachel asks essential questions of actions often overlooked or underplayed, while neither casting sweeping judgment nor offering easy answers. In doing so, he asks us to reassess the history of rock 'n' roll, and he sheds new light on the grim echoes of the Third Reich in popular culture and the legacy of twentieth (and twenty-first) century history as it defines us today.nd sheds new light on the grim echoes of the Third Reich in popular culture--and the legacy of twentieth (and twenty-first)-century history as it defines us today.

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9781636142852

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Reviews

Madness, the Selecter, the Beat, UB40, the Specials--these were just some of the biggest names in the 1970s and 1980s movement of punk-influenced ska and reggae-based songs, antiracist and antisexist at heart, on the airwaves. British music writer Rachel presents a rich and vibrant history of that era and of the bands and record companies that made it happen, with a special focus on 2 Tone Re-cords founder, Jerry Dammers . . . It's a big fat book about an important, if sometimes neglected, part of cultural music history . . . when music of the African diaspora was heard and embraced around the world.-- ""Booklist, starred review on Too Much Too Young"" In this important exploration of the relationship between pop music and the Third Reich, Daniel Rachel challenges the motivations of those artists who sought glamour and notoriety in exploiting Nazi imagery. In doing so, he raises once more the question that was put to Leni Riefenstahl after 1945, when she claimed that, while fascinated by Nazism, she was politically naïve and ignorant of the fate of six million Jews: How could you not know? --Billy Bragg, from the introduction Music historian Rachel presents a meticulous profile of the British record label that helped popularize post-punk ska music in the late 1970s and early '80s . . . Rachel effectively balances his enthusiasm about the label and what it stood for with a clear-eyed assessment of how a movement intended for good can go up in flames. -- ""Publishers Weekly, on Too Much Too Young"" In Too Much Too Young: The 2 Tone Records Story, the musician and writer Daniel Rachel demonstrates that the 2 Tone record label's groundbreaking mix of Jamaican ska and English punk, in particular the music of the Specials, was more than a homegrown entertainment for British teenagers at the dismal end of the 1970s. 2 Tone changed a generation of young Britons for the better . . . Mr. Rachel's account . . . is fascinating.-- ""Wall Street Journal, on Too Much Too Young""

Author Information

Daniel Rachel is a former musician turned award-winning and best-selling author. His previous books include Too Much Too Young, the 2 Tone Records Story; Isle of Noises: Conversations with Great British Songwriters; and The Lost Album of the Beatles: What If the Beatles Hadn't Split Up? He has also written sleeve notes for many artists including the Kinks, Madness, Ocean Colour Scene, Ray Davies, and Bryan Ferry. He lives in London.

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