An addictively readable, encyclopedic history of pop music that includes individual chapters to groups and individuals -- the Monkees, the Beach Boys, the Bee Gees, Michael Jackson, Prince, Madonna -- that changed the shape of pop music.

"First published in Great Britain by Faber and Faber Limited [in 2013] under the title Yeah, yeah, yeah : the story of modern pop"--Title page verso.

Part one. Flip, flop and fly: Bill Haley and jump blues ; A mess of blues: Elvis Presley ; Put your cat clothes on: Sun Records and rockabilly ; Teenage wildlife: rock 'n' roll ; Rock with the Cavemen: skiffle and British rock 'n' roll ; Whispering bells: Doo wop ; 1960: it will stand ; Walk with me in paradise garden: Phil Spector and Joe Meek ; The trouble with boys: the Brill building and girl groups -- Part two. Act naturally: the Beatles ; Needles and pins: the beat boom ; Who's driving your plane? The Rolling Stones ; This is my prayer: the birth of soul ; The rake's progress: Bob Dylan ; America strikes back: the Byrds and folk rock ; Up the ladder to the roof: Tamla Motown ; 1966: the London look ; Endless summer: the Beach Boys ; The golden road: San Francisco and psychedelia ; Pop gets sophisticated: soft rock ; Crying in the streets: deep soul ; I can't sing, I ain't pretty, and my legs are thin: hard rock ; Bubblegum is the naked truth: the Monkees -- Part three. 1970: Everything's gone gray ; Freddie's dead: electrified soul ; State of independence: Jamaica ; It came from the suburbs: glam ; The sound of Philadelphia: soft soul ; Progressive rock (and simpler pleasures) ; Young love: weenyboppers and boy bands ; See that girl: Abba ; Beyond the blue horizon: country and western ; Before and after the gold rush: Laurel Canyon ; 1975: storm warning -- Part four. Courage, audacity and revolt: the Sex Pistols, the Clash, and punk rock ; Cranked up really high: punk rock ; Pleasantly antagonistic: new wave ; Supernature: disco ; Islands in the stream: the Bee Gees ; Routine is the enemy of music: post -punk ; A shark in Jet's clothing: America after punk ; This is tomorrow: Kraftwerk and electropop ; Adventures on the wheels of steel: early rap ; Here comes that feeling: new pop ; American rock (Ooh yeah) ; Just a king in mirrors: Michael Jackson ; Highs in the mid-eighties: Prince and Madonna ; Some kind of monster: metal ; Poised over the pause button: the Smiths, REM, and the birth of indie ; 1985: What the fuck is going on? ; We were never being boring: Pet Shop Boys and New Order -- Part five. Chicago and Detroit: house and techno ; Smiley culture: Acid House and Manchester ; 1991: bassline changed my life ; All eyez on me: hip hop ; This is how you disappear: Bristol, shoegazing and a new psychedelia ; As a defense, I'm neutered and spayed: grunge ; Ever decreasing circles: Blur, Suede, and Britpop ; A vision of love: R&B.