Grown Up All Wrong: 75 Great Rock and Pop Artists from Vaudeville to Techno

Rating:
Summary: the best popular music critic currently writing
Review: I've been following Christgau's work in the Village Voice for almost twenty-five years now. Though he can be a bit prolix, if there exists a more astute observer of pop culture, I've failed to find him/her. Chief among his many strengths as a critic is the fact that he (like the sorely missed Pauline Kael) has never forgotten that art should first be pleasurable. He is also as immune to knee-jerk put-downs (cf his recent favorable review of rap artist Canibus) as he is mindless hype. In short, he has the best ears in the business and will extend both your listening range and pleasure if given half a chance.