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The Philosophy of Modern Song
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The Philosophy of Modern Song Hardback - 2022

by Bob Dylan

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From the publisher

The Philosophy of Modern Song is Bob Dylan's first book of new writing since 2004's Chronicles: Volume One--and since winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016.

Dylan, who began working on the book in 2010, offers his extraordinary insight into the nature of popular music. He writes over sixty essays focusing on songs by other artists, spanning from Stephen Foster to Elvis Costello, and in between ranging from Hank Williams to Nina Simone. He analyzes what he calls the trap of easy rhymes, breaks down how the addition of a single syllable can diminish a song, and even explains how bluegrass relates to heavy metal. These essays are written in Dylan's unique prose. They are mysterious and mercurial, poignant and profound, and often laugh-out-loud funny. And while they are ostensibly about music, they are really meditations and reflections on the human condition. Running throughout the book are nearly 150 carefully curated photos as well as a series of dream-like riffs that, taken together, resemble an epic poem and add to the work's transcendence.

In 2020, with the release of his outstanding album Rough and Rowdy Ways, Dylan became the first artist to have an album hit the Billboard Top 40 in each decade since the 1960s. The Philosophy of Modern Song contains much of what he has learned about his craft in all those years, and like everything that Dylan does, it is a momentous artistic achievement.

Details

  • Title The Philosophy of Modern Song
  • Author Bob Dylan
  • Binding Hardback
  • Pages 352
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Simon & Schuster
  • Publication date 2022-11-01
  • Illustrated Yes
  • Features Illustrated
  • ISBN 9781451648706 / 1451648707
  • Weight 2.2 lbs (1.00 kg)
  • Dimensions 9.3 x 7.6 x 1.3 in (23.62 x 19.30 x 3.30 cm)
  • Category Biography / Autobiography
  • Library of Congress subjects Popular music - Writing and publishing, Essays
  • Dewey Decimal Code 782.421

Media reviews

Citations

  • Booklist, 11/01/2022, Page 0
  • Kirkus Reviews, 12/01/2022, Page 0
  • Library Journal, 11/18/2022, Page 1
  • Publishers Weekly, 01/09/2023, Page 0

About the author

Bob Dylan has released thirty-nine studio albums, which collectively have sold over 125 million copies around the world. He won the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature and has been awarded the French Legion of Honor, a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country's highest civilian honor. His memoir, Chronicles: Volume One, spent a year on the New York Times bestseller list.
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New York: Simon & Schuster, 2022. First edition. Hardcover. Fine/fine. First edition. Fine, fresh, unused copy in equally fine, crisp dust jacket. Hardcover. 339 pp with photographs. 'The Philosophy of Modern Song' is Bob Dylan's first book of new writing since 2004's 'Chronicles: Volume One,' offering a master class on the art and craft of songwriting with over sixty essays focusing and analyzing songs of other artists he admires. And while they are ostensibly about music, they are really meditations and reflections on the human condition.
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