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The Rough Guide Book of Playlists, 2nd edition
iPods and MP3 players have changed the way we listen to it’s all about songs rather than albums, and making your own compilations. This is the first music guide that gets a book of 500 playlists, each of them packed with great music to rip or download. It features artists from Marvin Gaye to Nick Cave, Björk to Manu Chao, Rufus Wainwright to Thelonious Monk, Frank Sinatra to Franz Ferdinand, genres from Britpop to Krautrock, dub to Motown, bebop to bhangra, punk to drum’n’bass, fado to gangsta rap, and themes including Broken hearts, motoring music, protest songs, and covers that beat the originals. Packed with quirks and silliness including singing drummers, aliens, chickens and insects, drinking songs, and even music raved about in Murakami novels.
- GenresMusicReferenceNonfiction
432 pages, Paperback
First published October 17, 2005
About the author
Mark Ellingham
52 books3 followersMark Ellingham was born in Wiltshire, UK, in 1959. After leaving Bristol University in 1981, he was unable to find an interesting job and decided to create his own, writing the first Rough Guide (to Greece). He secured a publishing contract – Routledge paying an advance of £900 ($1800) – midway through writing it. The book was an immediate success and Mark and various friends set to work turning the Rough Guides into a series, producing a dozen further titles over the next five years.
In 1985, Mark and a group of Rough Guide writers and editors, including current travel publisher Martin Dunford, bought the series from Routledge and became independent publishers. They developed more than 200 titles, covering travel and reference subjects as diverse as world music and pregnancy, before selling the company to Penguin Books, in 2002.
Mark (and Martin) continued to run Rough Guides’ publishing at Penguin, 25 years on from that first title, and created a new one-off “ultimate travel experience” series – 25s – to mark the anniversary.
Mark is also a contributing editor for the world music magazine, Songlines, a director of the travel magazine, Wanderlust, and co-publisher of Sort Of Books, which have published bestselling books by Chris Stewart and Tove Jansson, among others. He lives in North London with his wife, Natania Jansz, who co-wrote the first Greece book and now runs Sort Of Books, and their son, Miles. Mark says his interests and passions are charted by the titles on the Rough Guide list, ranging through music, film, football, literature and science. He is currently involved in campaigns to raise awareness of the impact of aviation on Climate Change.
Mark left Rough Guides in 2007 but continues to work as a co-editor on the encyclopedic Rough Guide to World Music. He is also a contributing editor at Songlines World Music magazine, and runs a green and ethical publishing list for Profile Books.
In 1985, Mark and a group of Rough Guide writers and editors, including current travel publisher Martin Dunford, bought the series from Routledge and became independent publishers. They developed more than 200 titles, covering travel and reference subjects as diverse as world music and pregnancy, before selling the company to Penguin Books, in 2002.
Mark (and Martin) continued to run Rough Guides’ publishing at Penguin, 25 years on from that first title, and created a new one-off “ultimate travel experience” series – 25s – to mark the anniversary.
Mark is also a contributing editor for the world music magazine, Songlines, a director of the travel magazine, Wanderlust, and co-publisher of Sort Of Books, which have published bestselling books by Chris Stewart and Tove Jansson, among others. He lives in North London with his wife, Natania Jansz, who co-wrote the first Greece book and now runs Sort Of Books, and their son, Miles. Mark says his interests and passions are charted by the titles on the Rough Guide list, ranging through music, film, football, literature and science. He is currently involved in campaigns to raise awareness of the impact of aviation on Climate Change.
Mark left Rough Guides in 2007 but continues to work as a co-editor on the encyclopedic Rough Guide to World Music. He is also a contributing editor at Songlines World Music magazine, and runs a green and ethical publishing list for Profile Books.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 4, 2008
This is an adequate if not stunning collection of thematic playlists, many for particular artists, but others for various music genres and yet more on conceptual topics (songs about train, weather, etc.) It has a British slant, with few prominent British acts left unlisted. It's also, as one would expect from the Rough Guide label, quite good on world music.
The only trouble with a book like this is that it leaves you wanting to hear the music, particularly when you're looking at a list of something obscure that you've never heard before. In that sense it does its job: it sends you looking for new music.
I'm admittedly old-fashioned on these topics, but I still worry what will happen to the music industry (and for that matter what is already happening to it) as the CD disappears and digital approaches to music are the only option. It already seems like too many of the artists who break out are underripe talents flogging one catchy single and unable to write their own music. But then I guess we've been making that kind of complaint about popular music for fifty years now.
The only trouble with a book like this is that it leaves you wanting to hear the music, particularly when you're looking at a list of something obscure that you've never heard before. In that sense it does its job: it sends you looking for new music.
I'm admittedly old-fashioned on these topics, but I still worry what will happen to the music industry (and for that matter what is already happening to it) as the CD disappears and digital approaches to music are the only option. It already seems like too many of the artists who break out are underripe talents flogging one catchy single and unable to write their own music. But then I guess we've been making that kind of complaint about popular music for fifty years now.
July 12, 2024
(I know this book's lists were aimed for iPod and MP3 players, but no matter what way or what electronics you use to listen to lists, this book gives you some good ideas.)
This book tackles lists from 2005 POV, but even now, no doubt many people still like to make lists and might want to use this in some way. These lists are generally by artists, groups, bands, genres, themes, countries or areas within them, plus some odder ideas. Mostly each one has 10 songs, but some have more or less than that; the name of the compiler is written at the end. Some songs appear on other lists, but they are few.
A few separate lists have been asked from musicians or other music experts. As I read, I could see that some lists used fairly obvious choices, some chose songs that were narrowed to only certain albums, and of course one may disagree with some choices completely. Perhaps some of the compilers were more lazy or dedicated on their task.
Of course this means that one could improve it by replacing some choices, or expand beyond 10, and so on... I think this book is expected to have this effect, even if it's not said aloud. ::) And of course, if you find some musicians, bands, themes are not here, you just go ahead and make a list.
Each list begins with a short introduction. Each song, if not by a single artist/band, mentions who played it, and on which album they can be found. Although I didn't check much of the songs here on Youtube, I think some lists may make you curious to try songs that way. Also, there is some level of UK-centredness in what music, bands, artists are included or not, but not so much it would annoy me.
This was lovely to read a bit every day, and now I miss doing this routine. Often some of the songs I read about lingered on my mind throughout that reading day. In the end, I'm surprised how enjoyable this was, inspiring, and making me want to listen more of my record collection too. 8)
This book tackles lists from 2005 POV, but even now, no doubt many people still like to make lists and might want to use this in some way. These lists are generally by artists, groups, bands, genres, themes, countries or areas within them, plus some odder ideas. Mostly each one has 10 songs, but some have more or less than that; the name of the compiler is written at the end. Some songs appear on other lists, but they are few.
A few separate lists have been asked from musicians or other music experts. As I read, I could see that some lists used fairly obvious choices, some chose songs that were narrowed to only certain albums, and of course one may disagree with some choices completely. Perhaps some of the compilers were more lazy or dedicated on their task.
Of course this means that one could improve it by replacing some choices, or expand beyond 10, and so on... I think this book is expected to have this effect, even if it's not said aloud. ::) And of course, if you find some musicians, bands, themes are not here, you just go ahead and make a list.
Each list begins with a short introduction. Each song, if not by a single artist/band, mentions who played it, and on which album they can be found. Although I didn't check much of the songs here on Youtube, I think some lists may make you curious to try songs that way. Also, there is some level of UK-centredness in what music, bands, artists are included or not, but not so much it would annoy me.
This was lovely to read a bit every day, and now I miss doing this routine. Often some of the songs I read about lingered on my mind throughout that reading day. In the end, I'm surprised how enjoyable this was, inspiring, and making me want to listen more of my record collection too. 8)
June 22, 2012
A good stepping stone for inspiration, but not always what I'd pick on some of the "best of.." lists. It did ,however, turn me on to several songs I'd forgotten or needed to check out.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews