Popular Music

by Roy Shuker

Published 30 November 2011

Now in an updated fourth edition, this popular A-Z student handbook provides a comprehensive survey of key ideas and concepts in popular music culture. With new and expanded entries on genres and subgenres, the text comprehensively examines the social and cultural aspects of popular music, taking into account the digital music revolution and changes in the way that music is manufactured, marketed and delivered. New and updated entries include:

  • Age and youth
  • Black music
  • Digital music culture
  • K-Pop
  • Mash-ups
  • Philadelphia Soul
  • Pub music
  • Religion and spirituality
  • Remix
  • Southern Soul
  • Streaming
  • Vinyl

With further reading and listening included throughout, Popular Music: The Key Concepts is an essential reference text for all students studying the social and cultural dimensions of popular music.


Presenting a comprehensive A-Z glossary of the main terms and concepts used in the study of popular music, this fully updated second edition covers key new developments in the area, such as the impact of the Internet and Reality TV. Key definitions include: * important musical genres, from bhangra to punk rock * musical subcultures, from hippies to Goths * methodologies, from Marxism to postmodernism * musicological terms, from sound to harmony * musical phenomena, from girl groups to concept albums. All entries are fully cross-referenced and include suggestions for further reading and listening - making this an invaluable resource for anyone studying or interested in popular music.