Electric Shock: From the Gramophone to the iPhone, 125 Years of Pop

 

"It's a brave writer who steps back to offer a wider narrative . . . but Peter Doggett is foolhardy enough for the task and carries it off with elan . . . Electric Shock imparts delight and curiosity in the music it chronicles with such pithy vivacity." (The Observer)

"A magisterial book . . . an invaluable and often surprising piece of social history." (Mail on Sunday)

"The fact that Doggett makes sense of such a bewildering jungle of material and keeps it so readable is a tribute to his impressive research and easy writing style. He also has a nice line in challenges to conventional criticism . . . this magnificent book is highly recommended for anyone with more than a passing interest in popular music over the last century or so." (Literary Review)

"An altogether heroic endeavour" (The Independent)

"Rich and intelligently curated . . . The author does a deft job in recycling the momentous musical events of the 1960s, not least in recreating the era's moral febrility and air of surrealism."

(Financial Times)

"Peter Doggett's previous book on Bowie was exemplary - and this might be a better read . . . A great history book" (Record Collector)

"A nigh-on definitive account of pop's development and impact . . . rendered compelling by Doggett's effortless, laconic eloquence . . . Dauntlessly comprehensive, elegantly parlayed." (Mojo)

"Witty and compelling . . . By abandoning the often sneering tone of rock critics, he gives the discipline fresh hope. Opinion may be cheap in 2015, but Doggett's wealth of knowledge and passion feel more valuable than ever." (Esquire)