Rock 'N' Film

I love this book right from the opening sentence, with its fresh yet entirely proper reference to Elvis Presley's first (and timeless) record; the attention paid to the music--not least the black music--in that bizarre film The Girl Can't Help It; and the affection everywhere (including the relish of absurdities like the Teen Age Music International documentary that had Gerry & the Pacemakers take over from Chuck Berry in mid song). Dip into it, or read it straight through. Either way, you'll value it. --Michael Gray, author of Song & Dance Man III: The Art of Bob Dylan This is a first-rate book: well-researched, well-organized, well-written, and on a topic that is of wide interest yet poorly represented in print. James' work will substantially raise the level of discourse on the relationship between rock music and cinema. --Rick Altman, author of The American Film Musical In Rock 'N' Film, David E. James provides a complete overview of rock music in the movies, from the teenage exploitation flicks of the mid-fifties to Elvis Presley's decidedly lightweight years in Hollywood and the Beatles' forays into absurdism. Written with a director's eye for detail and a songwriter's understanding of the milieu, Rock 'N' Film is a comprehensive and invaluable guide to the on-again, off-again romance between rock and the silver screen. --Bruce Pegg, author of Brown Eyed Handsome Man: The Life and Hard Times of Chuck Berry David E. James' Rock 'N' Film is a valuable, capacious resource, tracing the intersection of popular music and motion pictures from Bill Haley to David Bowie, through exploitation films, documentaries, and every genre in between, on both sides of the Atlantic. Like Hendrix at Monterey, it leaves us wishing there were even more. --Marc Dolan, author of Bruce Springsteen and the Promise of Rock 'n' Roll Covering rock 'n' roll filmmaking in its entirety, this accomplished volume is readily accessible and written (as James himself notes) without the jargon that often mars film studies...Illustrated with a host of frame blowups, this informed, sharp, inviting, and absolutely authoritative book will be the source to beat on the subject of rock 'n' roll movies for quite some time...Summing Up: Essential. All readers. -- CHOICE Rock 'N' Film is an erudite and encyclopedic study of cinema's role in creating the social, cultural, aesthetic, and industrial worlds known collectively as rock 'n' roll. His knowledge of cinema, as well as his clear love for and deep understanding of popular music as both a sonic and cultural force, make his book an indispensable treasure trove for studying the role of the popular arts in shaping the look and sound of American culture...He has written a highly readable text, one that appeals to a broad audience and stands as a major contribution to interdisciplinary scholarship in the humanities. --Phi Kappa Phi, University of Southern California With Rock 'N' Film, David James has provided not only a signal contribution to the much-needed reimagining of film history and cinematic intermediality but also one of the most cogent and revealing histories of Western popular music in the second half of the twentieth century. --Diacritics