Author Statement » Larry_Birnbaum_06A

I am jealous of Larry Birnbaum, for he seems to have heard every record ever made. Consequently he is one of those rare people who understands that rock'n'roll did not spring suddenly out of the brain of some fevered disc jockey, and his book is a rollicking ride through the vernacular music of several decades before “Heartbreak Hotel". (Donald Clarke, editor, Penguin Encyclopedia of Popular Music )

Before Elvis: The Prehistory of Rock 'n' Roll is an exemplary work of musical history, combining substantial new research with previously established material for a comprehensive vision of a previously fragmented field. Having a grasp of American music and its sources even pre-dating arrival in America, Birnbaum fulfills his promise of showing how rock 'n' roll after the rise of Elvis Presley was a natural outgrowth of the diversified society which preceded him. Attentive to commercial realities and the complex lives of musical artists, conversant with the musical motifs and lyric themes of the popular music world in both recorded and live performance, Larry Birnbaum paints a world inhabited by working artists who are fully conscious of their sources, influences and efforts at personal expression, naturally reaching for audiences ever eager for the new twist on a familiar tune. This is a significant work, rich with revelations. (Howard Mandel, author of Miles Ornette Cecil - Jazz Beyond Jazz )