Anatomy of a Song: The Oral History of 45 Iconic Hits That Changed Rock, R&B and Pop by Marc Myers

I ended up getting this book as an Audiobook which is a really great way to “read” a book about music. The reason it took so long to review this book was that we decided to listen to it at night before bed.

 

Each night we would listen to the story behind one of the 45 rock, pop, R&B, blues, country etc. songs. Then we would go and find a copy of the song and listen to it. Occasionally, we would then go back and listen to the story behind the song again.

 

I don’t think I am very good at Audiobooks. I got distracted sometimes which meant I was replaying it. I started listening to the song discussed then started listening to a bunch of other songs.

 

This is not the first Audiobook I have listened to – the others have been stories though, not biographical information that I have been trying to absorb. I might have focused better on this book had I been in the car and focused only on driving, not trying to multi-task on a whole bunch of other things.

 

All of that being said, I enjoyed the book. I love music and I love the detailed stories behind the writing and recording of music. This did not disappoint in those respects. It is a detailed discussion of all the factors that went into creating these 45 iconic songs.

 

One might be surprised that it is not always the most popular tune by an individual or group that is chosen. That came as a surprise and again, prompted us to turn off the book and start talking about certain songs which again pulled us away from listening to the book.

 

I guess I can focus on a book for hours but don’t let me start multi-tasking and listening to a book because I get pulled wildly off course. I know I will end up listening to this again. In fact, I have a road trip coming up and I will be sure to let you know if the experience is different when I am anchored to the car, the road and driving.

The book is great even with all that. I recommend this one for music buffs everywhere. Just not sure I would recommend getting an audio book unless you are a seasoned audio book listener who someone who is not easily distracted!