Product Description

To celebrate 100 years of DJing, Bill Brewster and Frank Broughton have expanded and updated their classic account of the history of the disc jockey.



The DJ was born on Christmas Eve, 1906 when Reginald Fessenden became the first person to play a record over the radio. A century later and the DJ is the central figure in popular music. From these humble ‘talking jukebox’ origins to today’s DJ superstars earning rock star salaries with a fanbase to match, the history of the DJ is fascinating and unpredictable. The story of these unlikely cultural icons takes the reader through the swinging sixties, through the sequinned revolution that was disco, via hip hop and house to mass-market global domination.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #55244 in Books
• Published on: 2006-05-22
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 608 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
The self-styled "definitive" history of the humble art of spinning plates of vinyl, Last Night A DJ Saved My Life steps up to the turntables with worthy pretensions. The work of journalists Bill Brewster and Frank Broughton, who, between them, have worked on The Face, i-D, Rolling Stone, and Musik, they certainly know their deep house from their speed garage. But while Last Night A DJ . . . is an impressively knowledgeable compilation of information, they never quite decide whether this is an intellectual resource, a complete history, or if they're playing these records just for kicks.

So in the preface fun is poked at "abstract nonsense about postmodern intertextuality", and the pair thunder into well-reasoned, impassioned debate about the DJ being a modern-day shaman--pulse-racing stuff, which makes it all the more uncomfortable when it segues into an unremittingly dull chronological history of the invention of the record deck. The pace quickens with an excellent chapter on Northern Soul, and in hot pursuit follow impressive histories of the reggae, hip-hop and disco genres. But then Acid House--perhaps Britain's most important musical evolution ever--is given short shrift and techno is dismissed over a mere ten pages as "house's swotty offspring". The term "definitive", it seems, has been faded out of the mix.

Last Night A DJ . . . is no Bible for the penitent vinyl worshipper, and its difficult chronology makes it an uncomfortable read. Still, if you think that Northern Soul records were made in Leeds and disco began with the Bee Gees, there's a wealth of knowledge here that'll put you right --Louis Pattison

Express
'the best 'club culture' book ever to emerge'

From the Author
author review of last night a dj saved my life
Firstly, we feel that it is indeed an exhaustive history of the disc jockey (and, in turn, of dance music itself). We are happy to take criticism where and when it is warranted, but some of your reviewer's comments are simply untrue. Firstly, there is no "unremittingly dull" history of the record deck. We don't remember writing one, and I can't find it anywhere in the book. Secondly, the reason we skimmed over acid house is because; a) acid house was all about marketing rather than genuine innovation (pretty much everything that happened during this period had already happened elsewhere already, usually in New York) and; b) Matthew Collin and Sheryl Garratt had already written excellent books on the subject, and it was pretty pointless treading on familiar territory. As far as techno is concerned, point taken (the US edition will cover this in greater depth). Far too many UK journalists seem genuinely affronted that we have not devoted hundreds of pages to the last ten years (which is where most British dance journalists' knowledge begins and ends), while overlooking the fact that we spent months and years tracking down long forgotten DJs who REALLY made history and, sadly, had all but been forgotten. The reaction from DJs all over the world to this book tells a different story. They love it.