Secret History of Rock: The Most Influential Bands You've Never Heard

The official history of rock and roll is the tale of groups like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, of wildly popular albums, and of almost incalculable sums of money. The secret history of rock and roll is the story of lesser-known artists whose work has shaped modern rock.

Investigating 15 separate genres and influences, this book discusses, identifies and annotates the most significant, if not the most celebrated, rock and roll talents of all time. Profiles of influential rock musicians who are virtually unknown, including Philip Glass, Captain Beefheart, Half Japanese, and Brian Eno.

“More of a reference guide than anything. The blurbs about each band are short, but contain annotated discographies to point you towards different eras of each band's sound. Keeping in mind this came out in '98 before the proliferation of music forums like /mu/ and rateyourmusic that brought many of these acts more widespread attention, but it's hard to consider many of these groups (Kraftwerk, Brian Eno, Black Flag, The Stooges, etc) particularly secret. Still a solid guide for anyone who has exhausted the bands on classic rock radio and is looking to start a deeper dive on early, influential musicians.”