The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock and Roll: The Definitive History of the Most Important Artists and Their Music

by Jim Miller and Jim Miller

Book Overview

The ultimate gift for rock and roll fans--the classic history from Rolling Stone that brings to life the evolution of a dynamic, revolutionary art form.

Beginning with rock's roots in blues, jazz and gospel, here are eye-opening portraits and critical assessments of Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry, the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, James Brown and Bob Dylan, and more, all the way up to Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, U2, Prince,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0679737286
• ISBN13: 9780679737285
• Release Date: November 1992
• Publisher: Random House
• Length: 720 Pages
• Weight: 4.01 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.5" x 9.0" x 12.0"

Customer Reviews

Great book.

The package came in the mail in just a few days and was in excellent condition. Thanks!

LOVE IT!

I really enjoy this book, it is very interesting and illustrated in such a wonderful way. I highly recommend for Rock N Roll history lovers! Price was great and I received it quite speedily!

Great!

Bought this for my 16-year-old son, and he is studying it like I've never seen him study anything. It is a great way to educate our younger people on the beginnings of rock-n-roll, and every day, my son says "Mom, did you know that..." and shares some new thing he learned from the book. Very complete reference guide, also, and interesting to look through even for an old fogey like me. Worth every penny.

Much more than I expected at this price

I am fond of The Rolling Stone series. This is history of Most important artists, and for me every important for the rock & roll music can be found in this book. (And much more than I expected at this low price). I am big music fan and this is real thing for my library. Strongly recommended.

Where Has This Classic Gone?

When The Rolling Stone History of Rock and Roll's FIRST EDITION was published I bought two copies as gifts. Since that time, both people who were lucky enough to get copies of this classic have somehow managed to lose the books. And I have been trying to find a copy for myself for several years but no one seems to have it. The photographs in this FIRST EDITION are excellent and do give us the best glimpse back into the history of rock and roll that I've ever seen. And even though the biographical information is not exquisitely detailed, it does provide readers with a general overview of the Big Picture of Rock and Roll History, from soup to nuts, of how Rock and Roll all got started and its evolvution. The book peaks with the Woodstock Era, but takes us up to around the end of the 70's, around the days of Led Zeppelin and the birth of heavy metal. Here's what I find very annoying: When the Second Edition came out, much of the writing and photography was edited out - for reasons I can't begin to fathom. Personally, I wouldn't want the second edition on my book shelf. The publishers have ruined a good thing when all they had to do was create a Volume II edition, and they would have sold more copies of both editions - as companions. Rather than make a second volume as a companion to the first, they butchered this historical book and gave over to the Punksters that followed. Gone are the pictures of Jimmy Page, the Woodstock photo, and many more, in place of Johnny Rotten and other Punks that really turned what was a good thing, Rock and Roll, into an angry, painful noise that basically signalled an end to the good times and the poignancy of artists like Jethro Tull, or even Pink Floyd, and focused on negativity. This era (the 80's - 90's, would have been better left to a separate volume. But to destroy the First Edition, in my opinion, was butchery. You just don't do that. It's like changing the Mona Lisa because you think there should be fruit trees in the background. Or a modern skyscraper to show what came later. If you're lucky enough to have a copy of the original, keep it. It's a keepsake. And Rolling Stone, if you're listening ... what in the hell were you thinking when you trashed this great book? If anyone has a copy they'd like to sell, please let me know! Long Live Rock and The First Editions