In this provocative exploration of the many worlds of music making and hearing, Simon Frith smashes the accepted myths surrounding rock 'n' roll. Tracing the evolution of today's sounds, he goes back to rock's roots (gospel, jazz, country, etc.), then focuses on the ever-changing components of the modern record-making process (from FM radio to "Rolling Stone"). By analyzing both the possibilities and the limits of regulating leisure in a capitalist society, he challenges the prevailing view that media conglomerates' efforts to channel and control their markets have succeeded in turning rock into simply another prefab polyvinyl product. In its place he offers a startling new argument that shows how, in the end, the unpredictable and uncontrollable contradictions peculiar to rock's audience, its uses and its very nature, both resist and support the system -- and keep the music alive. -- From publisher's description.