Honestly I don’t have an interest in reading this book anymore and I want to be more selective with what I request.

Being born in 1978, this book brought back a lot of nostalgia, especially about Micheal Jackson. His accident on the Pepsi commercial, him singing "Billie Jean" at the awards show and introducing the moonwalk for the 1st time. This book also taught me why there is a disclaimer at the beginning of "Thriller" about the occult and how the Jehovah Witnesses almost banned him from the church because of the song. I enjoyed reading about some of the others as well. However, a lot of the artist and/or people I did not recognize. A lot of this book was extremely long, boring, and redundant, and would quickly jump from one subject matter to the next. I can tell the author did a lot of research as the book is very long (or seemed so). So in parts it was enjoyable, but other parts I struggled through. I received this copy for an honest review.

Very good book about music in the 80’s. I really enjoyed this book. Very good read. Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for the arc of this book in return for my honest review. Receiving the book in this manner had no bearing on this review.

Being also "from the 80s," Can't Slow Down was a walk down memory lane for me in many ways. It was interesting looking back and reading about details and context that we, in that time of having limited access to media (teen magazines, Much Music and the like for me in Canada), didn't have at the time. I felt, given the book was about 1984, that more coverage could have been given to the big 80s artists, rather than those late 70s and early 80s bands. However I can also see the rationale in documenting the events and artists who culminated in 1984. The book was organized by chapters on venues, rather than chronologically, so it jumped around more than I would have liked. Overall, though, it was an interesting read.

An entertaining, sprawling book that is notable for the catholicity of its interests and the strange connections Matos finds.

I was so excited to receive a copy of Can't Slow Down for review from NetGalley and Hachette. Not just about pop, Can't Slow Down is a insanely well researched book, delving into rap, country, metal, reggae and other genres. 1984 was just about the time I started discovering music on my own, and I definitely enjoyed this educational trip down memory lane. To be honest, I probably could have read this a lot faster if I hadn't been compelled to head to YouTube to queue up a few dozen music videos during each reading session -- not that I'm complaining! If you're not a music nerd this may not be the book for you, but if you're a fan, definitely check it out. I would love to read more books like this about other years.

As a lover of all things 80s including music across all genres, I chose to read 𝐂𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐒𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧 because I thought it would be an entertaining book about 80s pop music.
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Unfortunately, I did not connect with this book at all. The in-depth discussions about radio stations, court cases regarding electronics, computers, talk of digital recording, and all the other behind the scene, information, was simply too technical for my liking. It just didn’t resonate with me. And as a result, I chose not to complete the book. I put it down and added it to my DNF pile.
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But my journey did not end there. Because it was given to me by Hachette Books, I didn’t feel at ease giving up on it. So I decided to go back and give it another try. I pushed through page after page of ramblings that minimally held my interest. I was hoping, by the time I reached the middle of the book I would receive a little satisfaction. But nope. Nothing!
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I can point exactly what went wrong for me. The stories were too long and drawn out. Also, because a lot of the information gathered for this book was taken from newspaper and magazine articles, there was too much, “Newsweek said” and “Rolling Stones described”. It felt like one extended magazine article. In other words, there was a lot going on. Too wordy, and too much detail.
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For all the above reasons, I give this book 2 out of 5⭐️s. But as I always say, just because this book did not resonate with me, does not mean it will not resonate with you! Therefore, if you had planned to read it please continue to do so.
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𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘏𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.

Music really is the soundtrack to our lives. I have six older brothers and sisters who were all into music. So were my parents. I love all kinds of music, but I grew up most definitely a part of the MTV generation. I was eleven years old in 1984, so obviously, I’m the perfect demographic for Can’t Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop’s Blockbuster Year.. I received an ARC from NetGalley for my honest opinion of this book, which is released December 8, 2020 by Hachette Books.

You don’t have to be a child of the 1980’s to enjoy Can’t Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop’s Blockbuster Year. The book really isn’t just about 1984; there’s quite a good history of music-making and record and radio play of the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. I worked in radio in high school and college and played all sorts of music on several different types of stations: A/C (Adult Contemporary), CHR (Contemporary Hit Rock) and AOR (Album Oriented Rock). This book covers them all and more.

The reason 1984 was such a big year for music can be whittled down to one thing: Michael Jackson’s Thriller. It was released in 1983, but most of the singles and videos and awards came in 1984. The record in all forms sold more than 23 million copies in a few short years. And Michael Jackson videos did something else: the broke the color barrier on MTV. Before Jackson, there simply weren’t any African American (the author used the term Black because that was what we said at the time) artists on the hit-making music channel.

In 1984, cassettes were the number one source of music for people in the United States and UK. And another, new format was making in-roads: the compact disc. Players sold for hundreds of dollars, and a disc could set you back $20 (as opposed to vinyl or cassette which were around $10). I had no idea CDs were that old; I thought we were early adopters when we got our first CD player in the late 1980’s.

No band or artist of 1984 was left untouched. Everything from Duran Duran’s Seven and the Ragged Tiger and Arena to Willie Nelson’s duet with Julio Iglesias, to Wynton Marsalis’ Hot House Flowers to Run D.M.C.‘s crossover success, Can’t Slow Down covers the breadth of popular music in the United States and U.K. Once in a while the author reveals his opinions on artists, which I found jarring and unnecessary. He did not like Huey Lewis & the News, whose Sports would spawn four #1 hits. He also didn’t think much of Wham!’s Make it Big, even though it was a top seller that year.

The author interviewed many of the artists. He seemed to like Van Halen a lot and spent a lot of time talking to “Edward.” Apparently sometime after fading from the spotlight, Eddie Van Halen wanted to make it clear he was grown up and preferred his formal name. The influence of Van Halen making heavy metal more accessible is covered in detail, as well as the spectacular exit of David Lee Roth after scoring big on the charts.

Some other bands that are covered include Def Leppard, Bon Jovi (and the fascinating fact that all the members of Bon Jovi were, from the first contract signed, considered employees of Jon Bon Jovi), Phil Collins, who was everywhere that year, to Twisted Sister, Ozzy Osbourne, Prince’s breakthrough year with Purple Rain, both the soundtrack and the movie, R.E.M., Los Lobos, Culture Club, The Go-Go’s, Madonna, ZZ Top, Cyndi Lauper, Bruce Springsteen, Chicago, Don Henley & Glenn Frey’s solo success (Don Henley’s Boys of Summer has to be one of my all-time favorite songs and videos), Pat Benatar, Daryl Hall & John Oates, Lionel Richie’s monster year including performing at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, just to name a few.

It was the year of soundtracks, besides Purple Rain there was Footloose and Ghostbusters, which were mega hits. There’s even mention that Ghostbusters ripped off Huey Lewis and the News’ I Want a New Drug, and there was a lawsuit. Twenty years later, the producers admitted they’d used Lewis and the News’ record as temp music and lobbied for the band to write the theme song, which they turned down. The suit was eventually settled out of court, quietly, by the end of the year.

Nineteen eighty-four is also the year of Nikki Six of Motley Crue’s fatal car crash in which he was driving drunk and only suffered minor injuries, as well as Def Leppard’s drummer Rick Allen’s accident where he lost his left arm. The Beach Boy’s Dennis Wilson died while surfing, and the irony was not lost that he was the only Beach Boy who actually surfed.

Can’t Slow Down also talks about the more socially-conscious efforts of Band-Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas, and continued into 1985 to cover USA for Africa’s We Are the World and Live Aid in the summer of 1985, but the author discounted all the older groups, calling Live Aid’s primary legacy was “this veritable golden parachute, putting the media spotlight back on acts with nothing to contribute to the present day,” which I thought was a rather cynical take on the day.

If you’re a fan of Billboard’s Hot 100, you’d be wise to pick up Can’t Slow Down to get a look at what radio and record playing was like in the mid-1980’s. If you’re Gen-X like me, it’s a great trip down memory lane, with mentions of groups long-forgotten.

What a ridiculously comprehensive look at the most definitive year in pop music. Each chapter provided a vivid snapshot of the industry trends, technological innovations, and larger-than-life personalities that ruled the MTV-era and shaped the social, economic and cultural landscape for decades to come. And it often uncovered some non-obvious insights on everything from shifting radio formats to ticket sales and concert promotion and broader, changing views of race, gender and sexuality.. More books like this please!

Nineteen Eighty Four was the first year I remember anything. I was 3 years old and Huey Lewis was on MTV singing "If This Is It" with his band the News, who were buried up to their necks in sand. That image triggered a lifelong obsession with music and 1984 was ground zero for me.

In Can't Slow Down, Michaelangelo Matos charts the year and all of it's stars: Michael Jackson, Madonna, Lionel Richie, Bruce Springsteen, Prince, Cyndi Lauper, WHAM, Duran Duran, Boy George, Phil Collins... it's an exhaustive list of once in a lifetime talents reaching their peaks all at once. Smaller groups and musical trends are given shorter shrift (Hi, Menudo), but as an overview of a seminal year in music, it's successful.

This book is a great jumping off point to dive deeper into the careers of these pop luminaries. They all have numerous books written about them, and some have even written their own stories.

I would first like to point out that I had not yet been born in 1984, instead coming into this world a whole three years later in '87, so that would make me more of a '90s kid... But, that didn't impact the enjoyment I had while reading this.

This is a very in-depth and fun look at the impactful year of 1984 and all it brought to the world in the way of music and how that year's music has gone on to impact so much more. In this meticulously researched book (which is pretty big, by the way) we get a deep dive into everything American pop through the course of the year and how that has gone one to change the game. This year was so effectual in pop culture that we still hear echoes of it today.

This is going to put you in such an 80's pop music mood. I suggest you set yourself up with a 1984 music playlist to enjoy while you read this.

Some of my favorite highlights were the origin story of Run-D.M.C., the focus on Michael Jackson and sections about Prince, the ultimate legend!!

One thing I really liked about this book was it didn't feel like a rapid fire shooting of fact after fact after fact, but instead a real story... Matos does a great job keeping you engaged and present inside the year of 1984. This was a really enjoyable book that I will admit took me some time to get through. But it was so worth it.

Read if you: Want a laser focused look at one explosive year in music history.

1984 represents a pivotal moment in music history: it saw the rise of Prince, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, and many more. Pop music isn't the only thing covered--Matos also explores country, heavy metal, and rap artists. You will definitely want to make your own music playlist to listen to while (or after) reading this!

Librarians/booksellers: Your pop culture and Gen X patrons/customers will love this!

Many thanks to Hachette Books and NetGalley for a digital review copy in exchange for an honest review.