New Rock Reads

James Campion, in addition to writing numerous books on the topic of rock, also reviews others’ efforts. Categorized by major artists below.

The Beatles	David Bowie
Bob Dylan	Elton John
Prince	The Rolling Stones
Miscellany	Various Artists

The Beatles

Dreaming the Beatles: The Love Story of One Band and the Whole World – Rob Sheffield (2017)

Fab: The Intimate Life of Paul McCartney – Howard Sounes (2010)

Hold On World – The Lasting Impact of John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Plastic Ono Band, Fifty Years On – John Kruth (2021)

John Lennon 1980: The Last Days in the Life – Kenneth Womack (2020)

Solid State: The Story of Abbey Road and the End of the Beatles – Kenneth Womak (2019)

Top of the Mountain: The Beatles at Shea Stadium 1965 by Laurie Jacobson (2022)

David Bowie

Silhouettes and Shadows: The Secret History of David Bowie’s Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) – Adam Steiner (2023)

Bob Dylan

Hard Rain: A Bob Dylan Commentary – Tim Riley (1993)

Elton John

Me – Elton John (2019)

Scattershot – Life, Music, Elton & Me – Bernie Taupin (2023)

Prince

Prince and the Parade and Sign “O” the Times Studio Sessions 1985 to 1986 – Duane Tudahl (2021)

The Beautiful Ones – Prince Rogers Nelson (2019)

This Thing Called Life: Prince’s Odyssey, On and Off Record – Neal Karlen (2020)

Rolling Stones

Parachute Women – Marianne Faithful, Marsha Hunt, Bianca Jagger Anita Pallenberg, and the Women Behind the Rolling Stones – Elizabeth Winder (2023)

Miscellany

60 Songs That Explain the ‘90s – Rob Harvilla (2023)

Exile in Guyville (33/13 Series) – Gina Arnold (2014)

Got to Be Something Here: The Rise of the Minneapolis Sound – Andrea Swensson (2017)

Jesusmania!: The Bootleg Superstar of Gettysburg College – Devin McKinney (2016)

Life on Two Legs: Setting the Record Straight on Queen, The Beatles, Elton and Bowie
and the Ultimate Rock Studio, Trident – Norman J. Sheffield (2013)

Louie Louie: The History and Mythology of the World’s Most Famous Rock ‘n’ Roll Song – Dave Marsh (1993)

Rock on Film: The Movies that Rocked the Big Screen – Fred Goodman (2022)

This is What it Sounds Like: What The Music You Love Says About You – Sudan Rogers and Ogi Ogas (2022)

You’re with Stupid – kranky, Chicago, and the Reinvention of Indie Music – Bruce Adams (2022)

The White Label Promo Preservation Society: 100 Flop Albums You Ought to Know – Sal Maída, Mitchell Cohen & Friends (2021)

Raising Hell: Backstage Tales from the Lives of Metal Legends – Jon Wiederhorn (2020) (Reviewed by Chris Barrera)

Shake It Up: Great American Writing on Rock and Roll and Pop from Elvis to Jay Z – Edited by Jonathan Lethem and Kevin Dettmar (2017)

The 33 1/3 B-Sides: New Essays by 33 1/3 Authors on Beloved and Underrated Albums – Edited by Will Stockton and D. Gilson

The Number Ones: Twenty Chart-Topping Hits That Reveal the History of Pop Music by Tom Breihan (2022)

Sweet Soul Music: Rhythm and Blues and the Southern Dream of Freedom – Peter Guralnick (1986)

Various Artists

Aerosmith – On Tour, 1973-85 – Julian Gill (2021)

Chuck Berry: An American Life – RJ Smith (2022)

Lou Reed – The King of New York – Will Hermes (2023)

The Band Has No Past – How Cheap Trick Became Cheap Trick – Brian J. Kramp (2022)

Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock ‘N’ Roll  by Peter Guralnick (2015)

Paul Simon: The Life – Robert Hilburn (2018)

Why Patti Smith Matters – Caryn Rose (2022)

Nightfly: The Life of Steely Dan‘s Donald Fagan by Peter Jones (2022)

Long Road: Pearl Jam and the Soundtrack of a Generation by Stephen Hyden (2022)

Rememberings – Sinéad O’Connor (2021)

Last Chance Texaco: Chronicles of an American Troubadour – Rickie Lee Jones (2021)

Anthem: Rush in the 70s / Limelight: Rush in The 80s – Martin Popoff (2020)

Total F*cking Godhead: The Biography of Chris Cornell – Corbin Reiff (2020)

Let Love Rule – Lenny Kravitz with David Ritz (2020)

Remain in Love: Talking Heads / Tom Tom Club / Tina – Chris Frantz (2019)

There Was A Light: The Cosmic History of Chris Bell and the Rise of Big Star – Rich Tupica (2020)

C’mon, Get Happy: Fear and Loathing on the Partridge Family Bus – David Cassidy (1994)

Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producer’s Life in Music – Ted Templeman as told to Greg Renoff (2020)

Levon: From Down in the Delta to the Birth of The Band and Beyond – Sandra B. Tooze (2020)

Objects in the Mirror – Thoughts on a Perfect Life from an Imperfect Person – Stephen Kellogg (2020)

Leon Russell: The Master of Space and Time’s Journey Through Rock & Roll History – Bill Janovitz (2023)

Shades of Springsteen: Politics, Love, Sports, and Masculinity – John Massaro (2021)

Tearing Down the Wall of Sound: The Rise and Fall of Phil Spector – Mick Brown (2008)

U2’s The Joshua Tree – Planting Roots in Mythic America – Bradley Morgan (2021)

Music is History – Questlove (2021)