When Rock Met Disco is a must-have book for anyone who likes rock, disco, or both.
Very interesting reading. Could the people who led the war against disco start a war against reggaeton please? To death and taking no prisoners, if possible!
I thank the author and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.
The opinion I have expressed above is based solely on what I think and feel about this book.

Music history buffs, disco and rock fans alike will love this immersive history of the scene in the 70’s and the intersection of the two genres. This is a fun, groovy book!

I enjoyed many portions of this book and I think the author is a very talented writer who obviously did a lot of deep research while writing this.

However, overall, I was a little disappointed in how much of the book was spent on the history of disco. The blurb of the book and even its front cover seemed to stress that the book was mostly going to be about "when rock met disco" as opposed to "the history of disco."

While the history is interesting and, like I wrote above, I admire the research and writing the author did, the book wasn't quite what I expected it to be. However, I attribute that more to the publisher than to the author.

This is such a fun book to read - I grew up outside of Detroit and listened to WDRQ ("Disco Q") every Saturday night - I was too young to be able to go to Discos but kept thinking "If only I were older!" I could still listen to the music and adopt some of the fashions - Gloria Vanderbilt Jeans, Candie's shoes, Danskin top and Faberge perfume. This book is so descriptively written that it brought me back to the smells, and feel of the fabric! This book talks about the rise of Disco and the backlash as well as rock groups getting on the disco train to produce disco like songs or records (KISS, Grateful Dead, Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart) to name a few. I had no idea that Ethel Merman made a disco album or that there is an album called Sesame Street Fever. The author also breaks down types of Disco - Soul, Euro, Body Music, Pop, Disco Rock. Some of the parts of the book I felt were particularly humorous were parts talking about health concerns -- "Disco Foot" or "Disco Finger" - finger because of snapping too much to the beat. The author also lists all of the various discos in NYC in its heyday and included a list of songs from some of the aforementioned "rockers" and others who dipped their toe into disco. There is also mention about roller skating and "roller boogie" which I remember quite well but alas I could not skate well. The book addresses the disco demolition days and anti-disco sentiments - which most likely was rooted in racist and homophobic prejudices Musicians did not like disco because it usurped live music and thus paying gigs. I still enjoy listening to disco and this book made me smile as I read it. I recommend this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Rowman & Littlefield, Backbeat for an ARC and I am leaving my honest review voluntarily.

Thank you to Net Galley for this e copy of “ When Rock Met Disco” by Shawn Bush in exchange for an honest review.. I was born in 1965 so I was a preteen and early teen during the height of disco which ran from 1975-1979 and didn’t realize there was so much drama associated with it.This book is chock full of interesting facts including the most famous discos, the most famous songs and the rock bands who recorded disco songs sometimes much to the dismay of their fans. Sometimes chaos and riots ensued. A vey enjoyable read!

Delighted to highlighted this new release in “How Civilized,” a round-up of new and notable cultural history and pop culture titles in the Books section of Zoomer magazine. (see column and mini-review at link)

I was in High School in the late 70s, so I was definitely exposed to disco. Interesting story. I liked the photos and the interviews. But the Appendix for the Rock-Disco crossover made my blood boil…Pink Floyd? The Doobie Brothers? Seriously? This must be the author’s opinion. , which I don’t agree with most of his choices. However, the rest of the book is an informative tale of the music of those times.

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Rowman & Littlefield, Backbeat for an advance copy of this book on the intersection of rock music and disco, the hits that were made, the backlash that followed, and a history of this maligned genre.

Not since the riots that followed the premiere of Igor Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring has a form of music caused so much violence, teeth gnashing, explosions at baseball games, and record burning. Disco is more than a love/hate, it is more of a love the way it makes my body feel, and hate everything about it from production, engineering and song craft. Well except for that Rolling Stones song, that was good. Or that Kiss song, that was pretty fist pumping. Or that Doobie Brothers song. And my mom really loves that Rod Stewart song, so that's ok. But the rest of disco is just awful. People always find exceptions. Unlike most musicians who hated disco, until there disco influenced song went number 1. Writer, journalist and promoter Steven Blush looks at the history of Disco music and its intermingling with rock music, and the legacy of two tastes that taste great together in When Rock Met Disco:The Story of How The Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart, KISS, Queen, Blondie and More Got Their Groove On in the Me Decade.

The book begins with a brief overview of rock music in the 1970's showing that most bands were hungover either from success or excess, with song making or even performing high on their lists of well highs. Into this grew a music that brought people to the dance floor, with beats and grooves that made even the squarest person want to dance, and for those who could dance this lead to more of a chance of meeting others of the opposite sex who also wanted to move and groove. Within a short period Disco was big business, with Discos opening and attracting crowds who would pay to get into a club to dance, buying drinks, which was good for the liquor industry, and the music they were hearing. Soon 12 inch singles became a thing, which made more money for the music companies, and the music slowly began to get corrupted. Into this came rock musicians, looking to take there music into new directions, hopefully to the Hot 100 Charts.

A very different look at music in the 1970's and '80's and the legacy that came from disco meeting rock music. One always reads about the singer/songwriter, and changes in the industry, but disco was the one thing that really made it all about money. The time that Disco was big surprised me, considering the legacy that it left, in music, culture, and fashion, even drugs. Blush is very good at writing about the music, the business, even the business of clubs and those ancillary business that suddenly were making lots of money from disco. Blush never goes down any holes and is very good at presenting a straight narrative, with plenty of quotes from musicians of the era and after. I enjoyed the ending pages which showed rock songs that used the disco influence, complete with producers and studio musicians and little bits of information. Also Anton Fig really got around. I never knew he played with Kiss.

A very good book of musical history, with a very good view of a era that everyone says they hated musically, but someone was buying those records. I admit to being a proud watcher of Dance Fever on Saturday nights, and Solid Gold, and having the Disco Duck album. I quite enjoyed this book, and think most music fans would also. A great Father's Day, or even Mother's Day gift, cause you know Mom loves that Rod Stewart song.

A book accessible enough to neophytes to the subject, yet insightful enough to grab those who've read quite a bit about the disco era, Blush's book is a must-read for anyone with an interest in late-70s pop culture.

There's some great music history and pop culture history in this book. However, if you're looking for a book solely focused on the overlap between rock music and disco, you might be surprised by the first third of the book. While the book is good, I feel like the name is a little misleading. Of course, there are a lot of references early on to rock stars and their views of disco, but the first part of the book is about disco history, along with a lot of history surrounding 1970s discos like 54. Rock stars make an appearance here and there, but they don't tend to take center stage until about half way through. There is some repetitiveness in the book, the same fact mentioned a few different times (such as key KISS songs becoming popular in certain years, or Rod Stewart's view on disco); I'm unsure if those were meant to be expanded on or simply an editing error, but it had the feeling that they were restated in order to give the book some length.

The appendixes are very interesting- I can't say for many books that I spend time on them like I did for this book. The musicology is definitive and complete.

Blush's writing style is very straightforward and readable and kept me reading. The interspersing of the narrative along with quotes and excerpts from interviews was unique, but a feature that really helped me connect his secondary work to the musicians' words

Between 1974 and 1980 Disco grew from an unknown start in the Gay Baths of New York until it had taken over almost every dance venue in the country. By late 1978 everyone was getting into the act with the most egregious being the Rolling Stones and the Grateful Dead.

But by 1980 the whole disco scene had mostly disappeared. Why, people were getting bored of the same music over and over but just repackaged with all the same banal words. The beginning of the great recession and the start of the AIDS epidemic also contributed to the end.

Like Disco, the book starts out well but before you know it it fades into fluff and repetition.

When Rock Met Disco by Steven Blush will be released on April 7, 2023. Rowman and Littlefield provided an early galley for review.

The heyday of disco ran from 1974 to 1980. I was still a pre-teen for most of that time period. Thus, I never set foot into an actual disco during that time. The closest I ever got was an afterschool disco dance in our middle school gym. However, I was fully fascinated by the music, the culture and the allure of it all. By the time I was old enough to go out clubbing in the early 80's, discos had evolved somewhat. But all the same aesthetics still remained - people getting dressed up to dance to rhythmic beats and to try to make those connections with others.

Blush takes the time to lay the foundations of the culture before focusing on his topic of the rock crossovers. This is important. Readers who were not there at the time need to know the whys, the hows and the wheres to get the full picture. One entire chapter is devoted to talking about several of the most famous New York City discos and how each had their own unique vibes and flavors. The back half of the book focuses on the rockers who ventured into the disco waters and then the extreme backlash that the dance genre received come 1979. Blush's writing style is engaging and creative.

I liked the added touch of quotes from folks who were part of the scene back in the day as well as song lyric snippets that are sprinkled in along the way.

I love reading about rock and the history of it along with the different stories about the artist and songs. I ate this up. I love the disco, studio 54 stories and era. I love this!!
I just reviewed When Rock Met Disco by Steven Blush. #WhenRockMetDisco #NetGalley
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I really enjoyed this. It’s not going to be for everyone, but the people who like this era of music will be happy. It’s not a subject that gets covered in more than a passing way. The author, although a little biased and not afraid to show it, covered a lot more than I expected.

When it comes to nonfiction, there’s a tendency to be a little dry, and that’s the case here, but I’ve read his other books and expected it. As I said, I enjoyed it, and would recommend it.