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jazzy_daveAaron J. Leonard "Whole World In An Uproar" (Repeater Books)
Whole World in an Uproar by Aaron Leonard is a fascinating look at countercultural music during the long 60s and how the various power structures sought to repress it.
This is less about any out-and-out censorship attempts and more about the attempts at repression as well as the monitoring, often unlawfully, of artists. Using declassified FBI files, memoirs, publications of the period and interviews, we get a view of just how willing the government was and still is, to impede citizens even if they aren't breaking any laws. Other institutions, from religious groups to media outlets, also readily did what they could to control people by labelling music as evil, whether for pointing out social ills or for bringing races together to enjoy music. Yes, having Blacks and whites enjoying music at the same venue was enough to get the government and the religious right all up in arms.
Reading this account is both entertaining and informative. In retrospect, some of the names under surveillance seem unfathomable from our current time and knowing how the rest of their lives played out. At the time, however, they were considered a threat just by representing change.
I highly recommend the book to those interested in social history and music history, especially where politics and religion intersect with popular culture.
Whole World in an Uproar by Aaron Leonard is a fascinating look at countercultural music during the long 60s and how the various power structures sought to repress it.
This is less about any out-and-out censorship attempts and more about the attempts at repression as well as the monitoring, often unlawfully, of artists. Using declassified FBI files, memoirs, publications of the period and interviews, we get a view of just how willing the government was and still is, to impede citizens even if they aren't breaking any laws. Other institutions, from religious groups to media outlets, also readily did what they could to control people by labelling music as evil, whether for pointing out social ills or for bringing races together to enjoy music. Yes, having Blacks and whites enjoying music at the same venue was enough to get the government and the religious right all up in arms.
Reading this account is both entertaining and informative. In retrospect, some of the names under surveillance seem unfathomable from our current time and knowing how the rest of their lives played out. At the time, however, they were considered a threat just by representing change.
I highly recommend the book to those interested in social history and music history, especially where politics and religion intersect with popular culture.
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