Full Description
Black British Music in America 1967-2000: Atlantic Crossover historically examines musical and cultural relationships through popular music recordings, exploring the transatlantic journeys via academic, critical, and commercial reception of the music. It addresses an overlooked area of Black popular music, investigating the fluctuating fortunes of artists and the contradictions of exporting such recordings to America.
Examining a complex history spanning the last four decades of the twentieth century, the author reveals the chronologies and the recording industry circumstances shaping the presence of Black British music in America. Readers will discover the conditions under which key recordings were made and released, through detailed analysis and new interviews with participating producers and artists. Including exploration of chart histories, this book also dissects the content of the recordings, uncovering the elements that made many of them successful.
Black British Music in America 1967-2000 will interest all those who study popular music, cultural studies, and music production, as well as popular music listeners.
Contents
Acknowledgements List of Figures
Preface
Introduction
Chapter 1: Remixing Black Popular Music History: The Black and the British
The Cultural Sound Stage
Black British Outsiders
The Voice and the Instrumental Text
The Weight of History
Dread Out There: The Plight of Black British Reggae
Relocating Heatwave
Chapter 2: Crossing Over, Genre Politics and Music Production
The Mainstream and the Charts
Cultural Dislocation
Genre and Crossover: Charting a Discourse
Record Labels and Genre Labelling
Music Production
Chapter 3: Breaking Into America: The 1960s and 1970s
The Artistic Soundscape
The Beatles and Early Black British Pop
The Foundations: American Arrival
The Equals: The "Black Skin Blue Eyed Boys"
Cymande: Sending the Transatlantic Cultural Message
Joan Armatrading: Beyond Stereotypes
Chapter 4: The Margin and the Mainstream: The 1970s
Hot Chocolate: "Brother Louie" and Breaking America
Beyond "Brother Louie"
Blue-Eyed British R&B: The Average White Band and Kokomo
Chapter 5: Transitions, Technologies, and Tensions: The Late 1970s and 1980s
The Britfunk Era and Echoes of the 1970s
Ska's Second Wave and American Indifference
Technology Topography
Imagination's New Dimensions
Chapter 6: The New Black British Invasion Continues: The 1980s
Total Contrast: Sync or Swim
Eddy Grant: Electric Propulsion
Billy Ocean: The Breakthrough Journey
Loose Ends: The Art of "Hangin' On"
Chapter 7: Commercial Consolidation: The 1980s and 1990s
Five Star: Broken by America
Des'ree: "Listen as Your Day Unfolds"
Soul II Soul: American Conquest
Visual Grooves: Soul II Soul Music Videos
Caron Wheeler and UK Blak
Roachford: A Single Instance
Sade: Platinum Life
Chapter 8: Selling Seal to the States
The Beginning
The "Crazy" Music Video
The Second Self-Titled Album
The Human Being Reset
Record Company Calamities
Black British Songstress Status
Chapter 9: The Ephraim Lewis Case Study: 1992-1994
Unveiling Skin
Discovery and Signing
The Music Video for "It Can't Be Forever"
The Textures of Skin
The Unreleased Second Album
Chapter 10: Remastering the Mix: 1990s Snapshots and Black British Echoes
Equalizing the Past
Maxi Priest: Reggae Roots, Pop Success
Massive Attack: Remixing Stardom
Mark Morrison: The Mack Hits Back
Atlantic Coda
Bibliography
Discography
Filmography
Index
