From Presley to Springsteen

The first decades of the rock and roll era changed popular music forever and introduced songs that remain beloved standards over a half-century later. But what did it feel like in the rooms where those songs were being written, recorded, and mixed? What creative alchemy and happy accidents transpired to turn these records into classics?

This book examines ten of the rock era’s most iconic songs, including Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode” and Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run.” Along the way, it reveals how singers like Elvis Presley and Aretha Franklin reimagined “Hound Dog” and “Respect” through their sheer force of personality. It also takes you inside the studio to see how producers George Martin, Phil Spector, and Brian Wilson created a symphony of sounds. Other chapters explore how the lyrics of “Satisfaction,” “Like a Rolling Stone,” and “What’s Going On” gave voice to the feelings of a new generation. Writing with a historian’s careful attention to detail and a fan’s love for music, Louis Masur invites us to hear these enduring songs anew.