A listing of the worst songs ever written according to readers of Dave Barry's weekly humor newspaper column.

"The Philosophy of Modern Song is Bob Dylan's first book of new writing since 2004's Chronicles: Volume One and since winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016. Dylan, who began working on the book in 2010, offers a master class on the art and craft of songwriting. He writes over sixty essays focusing on songs by other artists, spanning from Stephen Foster to Elvis Costello, and in between ranging from Hank Williams to Nina Simone. He analyzes...

"Do you dream of belting out a chart-topping single on stage in front of thousands of people? Even with talent and determination, it's a long, winding journey to the top. Chart your path to stardom, facing real-life choices as you go. Some choices may lead to center stage, while others lead to disappointment or redirection into another career field"--

An addictively readable, encyclopedic history of pop music that includes individual chapters to groups and individuals -- the Monkees, the Beach Boys, the Bee Gees, Michael Jackson, Prince, Madonna -- that changed the shape of pop music.

"Marcus Sullivan has always been the responsible older brother, stepping in to take care of his seven siblings when their father died. But when the perfectly ordered future he's planned turns out to be a lie, Marcus needs one reckless night to shake free from it all. Known throughout the world by only one name--Nico--pop songstress Nicola Harding is seen as the ultimate sex kitten. But it's all a lie. After a terrible betrayal she refuses to let anyone...

"The greatest popular songs, whether it's Aretha Franklin singing "Respect" or Bob Dylan performing "Blind Willie McTell," have a way of embedding themselves in our memories. You remember a time and a place and a feeling when you hear that song again. In Holding the Note, David Remnick writes about the lives and work of some of the greatest musicians, songwriters, and performers of the past fifty years"--

Believing that every great song has a fascinating backstory, Myers brings to life five decades of music through oral histories of forty-five transformative songs woven from interviews with the artists who created them. From "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" by Lloyd Price to "Losing my religion" by R.E.M., leading artists reveal the emotions, inspirations, and techniques behind their influential works. The result is a love letter to the songs that have defined...

"In this raucous psychological thriller, a disillusioned millennial joins a cliquey fan club, only to discover that the group is bound together by something darker than devotion. Day after day our narrator searches for meaning beyond her vacuous job at a women's lifestyle website--entering text into a computer system while she watches their beauty editor unwrap box after box of perfectly packaged bits of happiness. Then, one night at a dive bar, she...

Sori has worked her whole life to become a K-pop idol, until she realizes she doesn't want a life forever in the spotlight. But that's not actually up to Sori--she's caught between her exacting mother's entertainment company and her father's presidential aspirations. And as the pressure to keep her flawless public image grows, the last person she should be thinking about is her ex-boyfriend. Nathaniel is off-limits--she knows this. A member of one...

What do your musical choices say about you? Music opinions bring out passionate debate in people, and Hyden focuses on pop music rivalries, from the classic to the very recent, and draws connections to the larger forces surrounding the pairing. Along the way he explores burning out and fading away, gives readers a glimpse into the perennial battle between old and young-- and just may prompt you to give your least favorite band another chance.