Electric Shock

Peter Doggett follows popular music from the 1890s, when recording first made it possible to preserve a performance, to the streaming era, where almost any track can be summoned in seconds. Along the way he covers the first pop superstars of the twentieth century and the many routes by which music now reaches us, from chart singles to phone ringtones.

The book shows how these songs have done far more than fill the air. They have influenced the way people move through public spaces, how they see themselves, and how they speak to one another. Popular music has also challenged accepted moral standards and reshaped attitudes to race, gender, religion and politics.

The story runs from the sentimental ballads of the Victorian era, through the songs that scandalised America in the early twentieth century, to gangsta rap, death metal and the many branches of modern dance music. Doggett weaves anecdotes and vivid characters through critical discussion of the music itself.

Throughout, he places musical change within wider social and cultural history, showing how technological breakthroughs turned popular music into a central part of everyday life. It suits general readers interested in music and in how it has shaped society.