Strange Stars: David Bowie, Pop Music, and the Decade Sci-Fi Exploded

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A Hugo Award winner explores the massive influence that science fiction has had on popular music, particularly on David Bowie and the heady, experimental 1970s sceneIn the 1960s and 70s old s and lingering repressions were falling away, replaced with a new kind of hedonistic freedom that included sex, drugs, and rock n roll Although it didn t factor into the stereotype, it also included science fiction.Strange Stars tells the story of how incredibly well read artists David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, and many brought Sci Fi s cosmic flare to their lyrics, sounds, and styles, and changed pop music forever. Read Strange Stars: David Bowie, Pop Music, and the Decade Sci-Fi Exploded Author Jason Heller – kino-fada.fr Great title, great cover, great concept, meh content By the end, I really felt like Heller had had to dig to find artists and songs to support his thesis, relying heavily on the obscure and only vaguely sci fi ish There was also a lack of first hand research and or personal interviews, which gave the book a dry, academic tone In the end, the result is a book that a could have been a 50 page paper, rather than a 200 page book and b will likely have limited appeal to the general public, Great title, great cover, great concept, meh content By the end, I really felt like Heller had had to dig to find artists and songs to support his thesis, relying heavily on the obscure and only vaguely sci fi ish There was also a lack of first hand research and or personal interviews, which ga...This is fantastic I was a child in the 70s and I am familiar with much of the music and books Heller discusses not so much on movies although I do know Star Wars and Star Trek which wasthan enough to get me through so I figured this would be a fun trip down memory lane, as it were Nope Not one piece of nostalgic fluff in sight That s not a bad thing, in case you aren t sure I was so absorbed with the connections I hadn t considered or wasn t aware of that it was as if I d This is fantastic I was a child in the 70s and I am familiar with much of the music and books Heller discusses not so much on movies although I do know Star Wars and Star Trek which wasthan enough to ...This took a while to finish because I kept having to look up songs I knew most of the Bowie stuff, but not a lot of the other stuff Would ve liked a littleanecdote humanizing, but the connections themselves were enough in the end Clever to...Heller uses sci fi to tie together everything from Sun Ra to Bowie to X Ray Spex and even some New Romantic stuff from the 80s It s really all I could ever ask for in a book and possibly the most interesting music book of 2018.Great overview of the many, many artists who were influenced by Sci Fi and incorporated it into their music in the 1970 s There is only brief mention of music after 1980 Many of the examples are well known, such as David Bowie, Sun Ra, Hawkwind, and Rush, but manyare not This took a long time to read because I kept wanting to search for and listen to the listed songs There is probably no reason to read this unless you also want to seek out the songs I wish there were a website Great overview of the many, many artists who were influenced by Sci Fi and incorporated it into their music in the 1970 s There is only brief mention of music after 1980 Many of the examples are well known, such as David Bowie, Sun Ra, Hawkwind, and Rush, but manyare not This took a long time to read because I kept wanting to search for and listen to the listed songs There is probably no reason to read this unless you also want to seek out the songs I wish there were a website accompanying the book with quick and easy links to all songs, but that is too much to ask for.Some of the new to me things I found from this book Paul Kantner Blows Against the Empire perhaps the first Sci Fi concept album Nominated for a Hugo Award in 1971.Marvin Gaye A Funky Space Reincarnation...I enjoyed this book very much, but to me, it was the very definition of a mile wide and an inch deep Heller tracks down and catalogs what seems to be every one of the hundreds of science fiction themed songs recorded during the 70s and duly notes if they were inspired by any specific book or movie What s mostly missing is any sort of broader historical context as to exactly why any of this stuff was happening beyond Star Wars came out and was really popular, Heller doesn t seem too I enjoyed this book very much, but to me, it was the very definition of a mile wide and an inch deep Heller tracks down and catalogs what seems to be every one of the hundreds of science fiction themed songs recorded during the 70s and duly notes if they were inspired by any specific book or movie What s mostly missing is any sort of broader histori...I m disappointed in a way I have criticized others before in other reviews, in so much as I m wishing this book covered things it doesn t.I did enjoy what is there It puts forth an interesting premise But I think it misses things that should ha...My teenage musical interests tended to be deep and specific As I readabout 1970s pop music theI realize that I m ignorant of so much of it even now This book filled in some very serious gaps.This book isn t just about songs that literally reference sci fi though there is that remember disco Star Wars but also about the interaction between sci fi authors and rock musicians Hawkwind and Moorcock and the fact that a lot of 70s prog an...it s fun and all, but i can t help but feel that it s just another in a series of books which follow such a particular pattern that certain aspects of it can t help but feel shoehorned in i really wanted heller to tie bowie inoften to the other things he was discussing, but it seems like the throughline floats above the rest of it at too much a remove.for all its flaws, dave thompson s children of the revolution did a better job of a similar task, using the story of marc bolan as the it s fun and all, but i can t help but feel that it s just another in a series of books which follow such a particular pattern that certain aspects of it can t help but feel shoehorned in i really wanted heller to tie bowie inoften to the other things he was discussing, but it seems like the throughline floats above the rest of it at too much a remove.for all its flaws, dave thompson s children of the revolution did a better job of a similar task, using the story of marc bolan as the connecting thread for the history of glam rock there s j...Actually a 4.5, because I appreciated the amount of genres taken into consideration.As the subtitle suggests, David Bowie fans will enjoy this book and indeed his music is the anchor that holds the theme together However, non fans will enjoy it too, if they are music and or sci fi fans, as many musical artists and genres are discussed, from folk to glam to funk to new wave to electronica to disco to hard rock to indie Sci fi novels and movies get a look in, too, as they serve as inspiration Actually a 4.5, because I appreciated the amount of genres taken into consideration.As the subtitle suggests, David Bowie fans will enjoy this book and indeed his mus...

Strange Stars: David Bowie, Pop Music, and the Decade Sci-Fi Exploded
  • English
  • 24 August 2019
  • Hardcover
  • 302 pages
  • 1612196977
  • Jason Heller
  • Strange Stars: David Bowie, Pop Music, and the Decade Sci-Fi Exploded