"We Didn't Start the Fire": Billy Joel and Popular Music Studies - Paperback

by Joshua S. Duchan (Editor), Ryan Raul Bañagale (Editor), Billy Joel (Foreword by)

Billy Joel has sold over 150 million records, produced thirty-three Top-40 hits, received six Grammy Awards, and been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Fans celebrate him, critics deride him, and scholars have all but ignored him. This first-of-its-kind collection of essays offers close analysis and careful insight into the ways his work has impacted popular music during the last fifty years. Using diverse approaches, this volume serves as a model for how any scholar can approach the study of popular music. Ultimately, these chapters interrogate how popular music frames our experiences, constitutes our history and culture, and gains importance in our daily lives.

Author Biography

Joshua S. Duchan is associate professor of music and director of graduate studies in the Department of Music at Wayne State University.
Ryan Raul Bañagale is associate professor of music and director of performing arts at Colorado College.