Joel Whitburn Presents a Century of Pop Music: Year-By-Year Top 40 Rankings of the Songs & Artists That Shcped a Century

Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Hits Of The 20th Century
Review: I purchased this book a year ago-It lists every single pre rock & rock era song that topped the charts-Readers will also enjoy the short articles by Whitburn that chronicle what was going on in the world during the 20th century-This book is a must have.

Rating:
Summary: Good Read
Review: This book is one to put on a coffee table and also a great gift for any music fan. It lists the top 40 songs of each year from the 1900s right thru 1999, as well as the decade charts. There are some interesting charts comparing the chart history of the top artists from 1900-1950 and 1950-1999 based on their top hits. I highly suggest this book to everyone a great price for a great book.

Rating:
Summary: Good Read
Review: This book is one to put on a coffee table and also a great gift for any music fan. It lists the top 40 songs of each year from the 1900s right thru 1999, as well as the decade charts. There are some interesting charts comparing the chart history of the top artists from 1900-1950 and 1950-1999 based on their top hits. I highly suggest this book to everyone a great price for a great book.

Rating:
Summary: Mother of all Top 40 Charts
Review: This reference book doesn't contain any text or discussion, but is simply a year-by-year Top 40 ranking for U.S. Music in the 20th century.

There are several great things about this book. First, unlike other books which start in the 50s, this book starts at 1900(!) and goes all the way through 1999. Wow.

Second, the book has a bunch of other lists that help spice it up. It lists the top artists of each decade, as well as the top songs of each decade. There are also 1-page historical blurbs on each decade before the lists so readers can get a quick sense of what the lists signify.

Thirdly, the back of the book includes an index both by artist and song title (you can see which songs are reissued), which is also helpful.

There will always be a question as to the accuracy of Whitburn's lists early in the century. Without radio airplay being a factor, it is difficult to take information from various surveys and sheet music/recording sales from that time and have a definitive Top 40 list with no errors. Another problem with the book is that, well, there's a lot to look at, but little to read. To the average reader, the novelty of this book might wear off quickly.

Popular music fans and musical chart fans will love this book, however, and it is great to generate discussion as well as for reference use. I don't think it's a "must-have," as a good deal of this information can be found for free right on the good old "Internet," but it does have its purpose in some instances.