The biographical dictionary of popular music : from Adele to Ziggy, the real A to Z of rock and pop /

Reference tome? Not so much. Great fun? Absolutely. This A-Z listing of more than 350 artists is basically one guy's take on the last century of music but since the guy in question is the award-winning editor of British GQ, we all win. Don't expect to open this book and find a history of your favorite band. Indeed, don't go in expecting to find your favorite band at all, let alone facts about its forming or discography. Jones' opinion is the only one that matters here, and he'll dedicate 16 pages to Frank Sinatra or 1 sentence to Genesis as he pleases. Ill-suited for research, but perfect for any music lover's nightstand.--Grove, Genevieve Copyright 2010 Booklist

While it is by no means a reference classic, this title is a mocking, lively read. Music journalist Jones (Jim Morrison: Dark Star) has created a hefty book with more than 350 entries, some rewritten excerpts and others based on the author's actual interviews. The book is as much about Jones as his subject, not relying on facts and details but rather offering coverage that is shamelessly biased. As he comments in the introduction, "there are dozens of music encyclopedias and many cleverly written [.] They're obsessively objective and pathologically comprehensive [whereas] this book is idiosyncratic and opinionated tempered with a bit of objectivity." From Abba to Zappa, the author tracks down his own previous experiences, delving into a variety of artists both legendary and obscure, showcasing his familiarity with many of the entertainers, especially the British ones. The work is chock full of cunning observations, e.g., he quips that, "Hall and Oates had an image problem.Hall looked like a market town hairdresser and Oates Super Mario's smaller brother." The book covers a wide range of topics including Sinatra, Dean Martin, spa music, singing in the shower, funeral music, successful bands with terrible names, and much more. Entry length varies, with George Harrison receiving one and a half pages, Shirley MacLaine garnering 13, and Keith Richard meriting a wordy 23. (Does Shirley MacLaine actually belong in this book?) Perhaps the disproportion is part of the charm. The ebook version offers hyperlinks to the artists' pages on iTunes. Though at times the book drags with meandering passages and banal trivia that is more autobiographical than biographical, the work is undeniably entertaining. -VERDICT While libraries will want to maintain more objective comprehensive resources in their music collections, this title could be considered an optional purchase offering humorous material and clever but subjective cultural analysis.-Bobbie Wrinkle, McCracken Cty. P.L., Paducah, KY (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Not the comprehensive reference the title promises, but a long-winded volume of music criticism by journalist Jones (When Ziggy Played Guitar: David Bowie and Four Minutes that Shook the World, 2012, etc.), editor of the U.K. version of GQ. The author has written a number of books about music and musicians, mostly of the rock variety. Coming-of-age just about when punk and new wave livened up the music scene in Britain and around the world, Jones shows off his intricate familiarity, particularly with London scenesters from ABC to X-Ray Spex. His tastes, though, seem to have grown more conservative and a bit broader to encompass some jazz, hip-hop and schmaltzy pop. "Like many critics, I tend to have an aversion to any hysterical celebration of the new and the fashionable," writes Jones in the opening of his entry on Gary Numan, "often choosing to be contrary just for the hell of it." This self-conscious awareness of how his words will be taken continues throughout the book, which is not so much a biographical dictionary of popular music as an autobiographical dictionary about pop music's relationship to Jones. The hapless buyer who takes the title seriously and expects a reference book will learn this, and only this, about Crosby, Stills Nash: "A varnished log cabin." The next entry, for Crosby, Stills, Nash Young, reads in its entirety, "A varnished log cabin with an unvarnished door." On Genesis: " The Carpet Crawlers' and Los Endos' are officially the two Genesis songs you're allowed to like." Jones is witty and enjoyable enough in small doses, but the book is filled with odd choices. One of the longest entries is on actress Shirley MacLaine, who gets 13 pages, while Aretha Franklin receives no mention (other than brief appearances in the entries on Michael Hutchence and Dave Stewart). Some choice nuggets hidden among an uneven "reference" book.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.