1973: Rock at the Crossroads by Andrew Grant Jackson
1973: Rock at the Crossroads by Andrew Grant Jackson
1973 was the year rock hit its peak while splintering -- just like the rest of the world. Ziggy Stardust traveled to America in David Bowie's Aladdin Sane. The Dark Side of the Moon began its 937-week run on the Billboard chart, inspired by the madness of Pink Floyd's founder, while all four ex-Beatles scored top ten albums, two hitting #1.
FM battled AM, and Philly strove to supplant Motown on the airwaves as the era of protest soul gave way to disco, while DJ Kook Herc birthed hip hop in the Bronx. The glam rock of the New York Dolls and Alice Cooper forked into glam metal and punk. Hippies and rednecks made peace in Austin thanks to Willie Nelson, while outlaw country, country rock, and Southern rock each pointed toward modern country.
Led Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy mirrored the rise of funk and reggae. The singer-songwriter movement led by Bob Dylan, Neil Young, and Joni Mitchell flourished at the Troubadour and Max's Kansas City, where Springsteen and Marley shared the bill. Elvis Presley's Aloha from Hawaii was NBC's top-rated special of the year, while Elton John's albums dominated the #1 spot for two and a half months.
Just as U.S. involvement in Vietnam drew to a close, Roe v. Wade ignited a new phase in the culture war. While the oil crisis imploded the American dream of endless prosperity, and Watergate's walls closed in on Nixon, the music of 1973 both reflected the fragmenting world and brought us closer together.
Thomas Dunne Books, Hardcover, 1st Edition, 1st Printing, 2019, 428 pages
THIS IS A BRAND NEW BOOK. THERE IS A BLACK "CLOSEOUT/REMAINDER" MARK ON THE BOTTOM PAGE EDGES.