This duology is FANTASTIC!!! Thank you for the tips of my toes, publishers and author, for the chance to read about such influential songs. I have always thought I had been exposed to some great music, but this book, along with volume one, has put me to shame. I put two playlists together on Spotify inspired by the songs discussed and I listen to them regularly. And, yes, I do sing quite loudly in my car. At first I was a bit upset about the choices of the journalist/author, but by the end of this book I finally had clarity that eras were made by obscure or emotional choices as well as the songs we all would pick for such a list, and would automatically fit all genres. That’s not what the growth and inspiration of music is all about; it’s about finding the harmony in your brain and allowing serendipity to find the melody in your heart. And this book puts everyone on the right track.
I can only hope there will be a volume three. Please please please Marc Myers, you are my only hope.

I found this book to be really interesting, even if I don’t know all the songs in it. The structure is consistent so you know what each song analysis will look like. I enjoyed hearing from the musicians and composers. I’m sure I’ll dip in and out of this book.

Really neat. I love music as much as I love reading, so this book was up my alley. I didn’t read the first book before reading this one. (I don’t feel it was necessary to read first but I will be going back)

It was so interesting to read the break down of the songs most of us know from the past. Though I will say I was a little surprised by some of the songs. I really hope there are more of these books to come.

Since I don't know when I've kept Anatomy of a Song by Marc Myers on my book wish list but never got around to reading it. When I saw the sequel, Anatomy of 55 More Songs, here, I jumped at the chance to read it. I really enjoy the analysis part of songs for the same reasons I enjoy dissecting a book. This sequel goes through 55 more songs on top of the original 45, and there are so many notable songs such as Earth, Wind, and Fire's "September" as well as "Rapture" by Blondie, "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey, and so many more.

You move through the book chronologically, so you're swept away through the time period as well. This means you get to know the trends and what was going on in the music industry at that time. There's no need to read the song analyses in order or in their entirety, but it helps to understand more than just the song at hand. I didn't read every passage because I either didn't know the song or didn't like it.

Although I knew a ton of information about songs like the most famous Journey song and "Roundabout" by Yes, there were many other songs that I knew but not as intimately. If you enjoy learning how a song came about, the instruments and arrangements used, and how the artists, writers, producers, etc., felt about it, this is the place to learn. I felt that it could reach casual music fans as well as more hard-core ones, which is a challenge for a writer, but this book felt equally comfortable for both. It's up to you if you want to delve into the music further. (Now that's an idea--include a streaming app, link, or outlet for this book.)

Most songs reviewed are pop songs or songs that became popular by your less mainstream bands and singers. This book seemed to talk about 60s through 80s tunes and pretty much stops at 80s songs, but since this is a regular column in the Wall Street Journal, I'm assuming more discussion will come.

Generally, my tastes lean toward classic rock, hard rock, prog rock, metal, and that type of fare, so this is different from the music books I tend to read, but I found it enjoyable. It's fun to page through, stop to read about a song, and then move on. I hate to call it a "bathroom book," but it's one that could sit on your coffee table after you've read it and be available to any other music fans. It does pique my interest in the previous volume--I cannot imagine what songs the author tackles in that edition.

This is a continuation of songs that the author has put together. His first book contained 45 iconic music hits. This one as the title states contains 55 songs that according to the authors opinion changed Rock, R&B and Soul these songs are at least 25 years old, and they have qualities that still make them popular. These songs have what the author calls a "Oh Wow" factor. These songs are listed based on their release date starting with 1964 and continuing to 1996. Depending on your age you may recognize them all. I know I did. The author describes that there have been Neuroscience based studies that explain why songs from decades ago the power have to relax us, to rekindle memories that transport us to time when life seemed simple. The author put in a large amount of research to give what many wonder about their favorite songs, how they were conceived, written, and recorded and does this allowing the artist and those involved did to but these songs together and how they came about. I found myself going to various social media sites to watch videos of these song and the memories they brought back were great. This is the type of book where you can read it all the way through or a few songs at a time. Either way it is a great read.

ANATOMY OF 55 MORE SONGS by Marc Myers, a well-known Wall Street Journal reporter, provides "The Oral History of 55 Hits That Changed Rock, Pop, and Soul." Readers will be familiar with many of the titles – in fact, the Library Journal review suggests using the songs - released between 1964 and 1996 - as a basis for a playlist! For each piece of music, Myers provides a black and white photo of the principle artist and then several pages of commentary based on his interviews with singers, musicians, producers, and writers. It was interesting to note the connections and influences between songs or artists (e.g., Dionne Warwick's "Walk on By" and Roberta Flack's version of "Killing Me Softly with His Song"). The 55 iconic songs span a range of styles and performers from The Beach Boys ("Good Vibrations"); Creedence Clearwater Revival ("Bad Moon Rising"); Elton John ("Rocket Man"); Carly Simon ("Nobody Does it Better"); and Talking Heads ("Burning Down the House") to many more. Fans will undoubtedly enjoy the insights Myers shares.

After the excellent, informative, and engaging ANATOMY OF A SONG, I was primed to expect the utmost in insightful, crisp, immersive stories in Marc Myers' ANATOMY OF 55 MORE SONGS. This book, highlighting the stories and the people behind the songs we love and that define our lives, is everything I hoped for -- and then some. I am thrilled with this book and with the memorable, heartfelt, and mind-stirring stories of the music that has been the undercurrent of my life. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Grove Atlantic for an advanced copy of this oral history on the creation of some legendary songs.

Reading about the creation of any kind of art can be a both humbling and inspiring for artists. For creative types to share how their works come forth in the world, gives hope to all artists that hey, if they could do it so could I. And also humbling in the fact that some lyrics do come from dreams, or a casual comment from someone. Combine these words with music, either from the artist or a lick tossed out by a studio musician and boom alchemy takes place and from simple words and noise, music is created. Music that in many instances pass the test of time. Journalist Marc Myers has in his column for The Wall Street Journal has been writing about the history of great songs and has collected them in Anatomy of 55 More Songs: The Oral History of Top Hits That Changed Rock, Pop and Soul a sequel to his 2016 book, that looks at the creation of many songs, with interviews from singers, songwriters and many others.

The book offers a look at fifty-five songs, ten more than his previous book. The criteria is that the song that he is discussing must be at least twenty-five years old, and fit that definition of being an iconic song, both for the era and today. Chart placement is not a factor, as readers can see that many of these songs that are considered classics didn't chart that high, or were neglected at the time. Myers interviews as many people as he can, singer, songwriter, lyricist producer, studio musicians, anyone who can offer insight or interesting tidbits about what makes that song persevere. Interviewing different people sometimes is difficult as not many in music can remember the whole story, or even the real story, depending on the amount of pharmaceuticals they musicians might have been sharing the studio with. The are listed chronologically featuring classic country, R & B, rock of course and others.

The book is very well done, well laid out and filled with fascinating tidbits about music, writing, playing and developing songs. Myers is a very good interviewer, and in turn the subjects seem to find him easy to talk with, and worthy of sharing stories with. The is plenty of technical discussions, instruments used, what guitar was played, discussion of studio tricks, Gary Numan's discussion on the Moog he came across and how it was set to play. The studio people's stories are good too, sharing how a part of a song might have come together, or how a song came together with lots of input, or sometimes just from the creator. I found the discussions from professional songwriters unusual, as I can't imagine writing a song and not knowing who would sing it or how they planned to do it. Myers has a nice relaxed writing style and almost seems to bring the reader in with him while he discusses songs with various people.

A great book for music fans of course, and for musical historians, as Myers communicates quite well about what the music scene was like during a song's creation, which might help future scholars. This would also be a good book for creative types, poetry, fiction writers, as well as lyricists and playwrights. So many creative types talking about how they get inspiration, and how their minds work would probably feed the creative fires of quite a few people. If they can do it, it might push others to at least try. There might be a book about the person that tries someday.

This is a fun book to delve into bit by bit if you are a classic pop/rock music lover. It covers major radio hits from the sixties and into the nineties. When I first started the book one evening I experienced it by reading about the song, then listening to the song on YouTube. Quite honestly I was in a sort of nirvana, closing my eyes and letting the joy and wonder of this wonderful music wash over me, sometimes resulting in near tears because of its beauty. Each of these 55 songs is described, then followed by actual narratives from the artists themselves about the songs' creation, inspiration and recording methods. It was fun and interesting to read about many of my favorite songs' origins, but because I am not a musician a lot of the technicalities of the recording studio went over my head. However, I absolutely love most of these songs and likely own the physical records! So it was an enjoyable nostalgia trip, and I kept thinking what a great CD compilation this would make to accompany the book. If you don't like the songs you won't like the book- so here is a complete listing of the 55 songs discussed:

"Walk on By" DIONNE WARWICK
"Dancing in the Street" MARTHA AND THE VANDELLAS
"Sunshine Superman" DONOVAN
"Good Vibrations" THE BEACH BOYS
"Up, Up and Away" THE 5TH DIMENSION
"Get Together" THE YOUNGBLOODS
"The Weight" THE BAND
"Fire" THE CRAZY WORLD OF ARTHUR BROWN
"Bad Moon Rising" CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL
"Crystal Blue Persuasion" TOMMY JAMES AND THE SHONDELLS
"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" DIANA ROSS
"Paranoid" BLACK SABBATH
"Truckin'" GRATEFUL DEAD
"I'm Eighteen" ALICE COOPER
"Bang a Gong" T. REX
"Roundabout" YES
"Doctor My Eyes" JACKSON BROWNE
"Long Cool Woman" THE HOLLIES
"Rocket Man" ELTON JOHN
"Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" THE TEMPTATIONS
"I'll Be Around" THE SPINNERS
"Killing Me Softly with His Song" ROBERTA FLACK
"Smoke on the Water" DEEP PURPLE
"Hello It's Me" TODD RUNDGREN
"She's Gone" HALL & OATES
"Come and Get Your Love" REDBONE
"Sundown" GORDON LIGHTFOOT
"I'm Not in Love" 10CC
"Love is the Drug" ROXY MUSIC
"The Boys Are Back in Town" THIN LIZZY
"Fly Like an Eagle" STEVE MILLER BAND
"Year of the Cat" AL STEWART
"Barracuda" HEART
"Nobody Does It Better" CARLY SIMON
"Peg" STEELY DAN
"My Best Friend's Girl" THE CARS
"The Gambler" KENNY ROGERS
"September" EARTH, WIND & FIRE
"What a Fool Believes" THE DOOBIE BROTHERS
"Accidents Will Happen" ELVIS COSTELLO
"The Devil Went Down to Georgia" THE CHARLIE DANIELS BAND
"Good Times" CHIC
"Highway to Hell" AC/DC
"Cars" GARY NUMAN
"On the Radio" DONNA SUMMER
"Bad Reputation" JOAN JETT
"Rapture" BLONDIE
"Don't Stop Believin'" JOURNEY
"Steppin' Out" JOE JACKSON
"Burning Down the House" TALKING HEADS
"The Power of Love" HUEY LEWIS AND THE NEWS
"Small Town" JOHN MELLENCAMP
"Take it So Hard" KEITH RICHARDS
"Being Boring" PET SHOP BOYS
"If It Makes You Happy" SHERYL CROW

Thank you to the publisher Grove Atlantic, Grove Press for providing an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

Very interesting reading! Each song is introduced with a brief article explaining the context in which is came to be and the impact it had. Then interviews with songwriters, musicians, and industry members are used to explain how the song was born, how it changed and evolved, and how the performers felt about it. I learned lots of interesting tidbits (Can you imagine having Sheryl Crow as your 3rd grade music teacher? Did you know there is a very sweet reason why it's the 21st night of September???). That said, it's VERY boomer-centric (a 1996 song by Sheryl Crow is the most contemporary piece featured) and some of the choices are a little obscure. Still, anyone who enjoys music history and pop culture will find a lot to like here!

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

I love music so found this an interesting read.

It covers popular songs and gives a back history on each one with interviews with the artists themselves.

I found it quite interesting

This is a wonderful book especially if you are into music. Here the author takes you through different songs but I am sure you have all heard most if not all of them. He speaks to the writers and other people with the record of how it was written and recorded. A very thorough book with each song that the author looks at. A really good book.

Anatomy of 55 More Songs by Marc Myers is a fun read that provides a behind-the-scenes look at the stories behind some of pop music’s biggest hits. Each song is briefly introduced by Myers, who provides some historical context for the artist and the period of the career when the hit was written. From there, the story is turned over to the musicians, producers, and writers who brought the songs to life.

The book's biggest strength also happens to be its weakness. Not every songwriter/musician is a storyteller. Some of the stories are deeply engaging and anecdotal, while others seem to stick to a fairly dry recounting of the facts. As a musician, it was fascinating to hear some of the technical details about how the songs came together (with information on production techniques, musical progressions, key changes, and more). Still, some of this may be of moderate to low interest to the average reader.

It's definitely worth a read for anyone interested in popular music in the second half of the 20th century, covering a wide variety of genres, with some of the world's biggest superstars and some artists who are lesser known to the general public.

"Anatomy of 55 More Songs" by Marc Myers was such an incredibly fun read for me. I used to love watching all of those behind the music type shows where they'd interview band members and talk about the ideas behind their songs, what inspired them, details about their craft, etc. I also happen to really love lists. This book checked those boxes for me.
To make it a little more fun for myself, I also created a playlist with all of the songs Myers writes about and listened to them after I read about each one. The technical aspects that the musicians discussed, interestingly enough, became easier to pick up on after reading this book.
Absolutely recommend for anyone who loves music history/appreciation and maybe those of you that want to pick up a little trivia knowledge)
Thanks to @netgalley for the advance copy!

THis book is a delight. I love the columns, and this enhances your appreciation of your favourite songs, and introduces you to many more that end up joining the list of your favourites! Perfect to read in one sitting, with your phone next to you to listen to each track and appreciate the nuances, or perfect to dip into every now and then. The effort that's gone into each little track essay is incredible, it must have been so difficult to put this together-deciding which song to include itself must have been a task. You end up learning so much about the music industry, through each song, where each track illuminates a different facet of the industry. It's so much that comes together to create those 3-4 minutes that give you so much joy-the perfect combination of talent, opportunity and hard work, that create magic. It's as closest to alchemy as we'll get, and this book helps give you a bit of an inside peek, to understanding that. Highly recommended.

Marc Myers is back with 55 more entries from his Wall Street Journal column telling the oral history of influential rock, pop, soul, and disco hits released between 1964 and 1996. As with the first of his collections, Anatomy of a Song, covering 45 numbers, each chapter tells the story of how each song was written, recorded, and released, how each artist came to record the song, how it fits into the evolution of rock- and soul-based popular music.

The 55 are even better than the 45, for me -- the song selection is more within my own lifetime, more a part of the soundtrack of my life, and better curated than the first collection in avoiding songs that have grown stale or were too obscure to begin with. Also, for me as a musician who plays a lot this kind of music, the emphasis this time around is more heavily skewed toward the inspiration and technique of songwriting as well as the technical aspects of the recording process.

As with the previous collection, it just amazes how many times the big hit was an afterthought in album production, how many of the people (particularly women) who inspired love songs never knew they were the inspiration, how many artists claim to not know how to read music, and various other tidbits.

Just great great stuff for music aficionados. Pro tip: listen to the song being discussed before, after, or even during its chapter while you're reading -- even if you think you know the song well, listen again for some of the things that are discussed, you'll be amazed. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced reading copy of this excellent book.

Anatomy of 55 More Songs by Marc Myers is pretty good.
In this book, Myers picks 55 influential songs and writes a short paragraph detailing why he picked each. He then includes an interview with the people involved in the song, discussing how it was written and what it means.
I think, overall, he does a good job. The introduction paragraphs are short, easy to read, and tell us what we need to know. The quality of the interview is mostly based on the person being interviewed, but Myers does a good job keeping it fairly short and keeping the interesting stuff. I also really appreciate the pictures of the band, giving us a little visualization. Myers picks a large range of songs as well. While they are mostly rock songs, it has different subgenres, and it also has some pop, funk, and country music.
I wish that there could have been some different photos, maybe a photo of the album or single. I also think the book could have benefitted from stating who is being interviewed, not just in the table of contents, but also at the beginning of each chapter. Related to that, I would have loved some extra information under the title of each song. Maybe the genre of music, how many sales, the record company.
All in all, I would recommend this book more for reference, and for people who are interested in this music. I would also recommend it for people who know more about different types of guitars and notes.

This book is a sequel - or one might say a continuation - of music historian Marc Myers’ Anatomy of a Song, which was published in 2016. Both volumes are loving gifts to music nerds, especially those who grew up in the 60s and 70s. Each song in the volume is given about 6 pages worth of analysis and oral history, starting with Myers’ background and analysis and including reminiscences from composers, singers, producers and other personnel involved in the music. We learn, for example, that Martha Reeve (of the Vandellas) was the administrative assistant at Hitsville studios, and asked to sing “Dancing in the Street” after hearing Marvin Gaye’s recording. The energy we hear in her version was partly due, she says, to the fact that she was angry that they had forgotten to turn on the recording equipment for the first take, which she thought was perfect!

The only downside to a book like this is that there are inevitably songs that the reader doesn’t like or even know. I ended up flipping by several chapters - but that’s not too harsh a criticism, as it would be impossible to choose a selection that would be interesting to everyone and also represent significant music history.

If you have a music lover in your life, treat them to this book. Better yet, buy the first one too for a jam-packed collection of 100 songs.

This book is fabulous, it takes me back so far into the days of these hits were played, to the extent of tying to find on my old records or CD's.
The book delve in the life of the various artists, that wrote and created the music from these hits. The concept of making songs seem s much easier and simpler in the early days, yet great hits that live on for generation are made. A very experimental time with very little technology and some very, very talented music and lyric makers.
A must read for anyone who is interested in music.
,

There is much to like about “Anatomy of 55 More Songs: The Oral History of 55 Hits That Changed Rock, R&B, and Soul” by Marc Myers. Mr. Myers hits on a lot of classic songs that helped shape popular music from 1964 until the present day. We see a wide variety of genres, covering Motown to heavy metal to California to British invasion. We learn about the inspiration for many of the songs, the situation surrounding the writing and recording of the songs, and the effect the songs had on the authors.

We also get the history directly from the key players, the artists, authors, and producers who were involved in making the song the hit it has become. I enjoyed learning about the backstory of several of the all-time greats, from Roxy Music to Joe Jackson to the Cars, and that I was wrong about Sheryl Crow and a bunch of other song inspirations!

However, there were parts that were difficult for me to get through, being a non-musician, all about the song structures and what the chord progressions were and how the guitars were tuned and other technical recording details. Probably very interesting for musicians, but not for me.

Well worth the read, a fun romp through the popular music of the past several decades.

I requested and received a free advanced electronic copy from Grove Atlantic, Grove Press via NetGalley. Thank you!