The Rock Snob's Dictionary: An Essential Lexicon of Rockological Knowledge

The subtitle reads "An Essential Lexicon," but it isn't. "Essential" connotes a comprehensiveness that this lacks, which indicates that this book was not meant for education so much as fun and humor, and in this it succeeds admirably. So, what is a rock snob? Evidently, somewhat to my surprise, I am not. I'm a music fanatic, and I would have imagined that sufficient to gain rock snob status, but apparently not, since the book defines "rock snob" as: "reference term for the sort of pop connoisseur for whom the actual enjoyment of music is but a side dish to the accumulation of arcane knowledge." For me the actual enjoyment of the music has been paramount, so I am imagining that anyone who truly loves the music first is exempt, on technical grounds, from rock snobbishness. The joy of the book comes from the way they simultaneously elevate and then deflate various figures and artifacts from the world of rock. Many of their characterizations are dead on. I've never understood the esteem in which many hold Burt Bacharach. Folks, it really is just elevator music, and I don't care how much Elvis Costello tries to pump his reputation. The authors write about such figures with wit and derisive humor. The lists that litter the book are marvelous, and usually dead on. Plus, the book is fun to argue with. If you are a serious fan of music, you will spend a lot of time flipping through to see if your own candidates were included in the book, and a surprising number of the more arcane folks I searched for were to be found. For instance, I was amazed to see that Jim Dickinson, Dan Penn, The Fugs, and the Louvin Brothers showed up. I was somewhat disappointed that several of the folks I would have nominated were not, including: Can, Greg Sage and the Wipers (a monumental oversight), the Shoes, Moby Grape (though Skip Spence gets a nod), Robert Quine, Jack Logan (a shocker), R. Stevie Moore, the Buzzcocks (with an especial mention of their EP SPIRAL SCRATCH), the Mekons, Les Paul, the album HAVE MOICY!, guitar pioneer John Fahey, the Flying Burrito Brothers (though Gram Parsons, of course, has an entry), Rory Gallagher, and Second Edition (Johnny Lydon's aka Rotten project after the Sex Pistols). But like I said, this book isn't about completeness, but humor. There also is a cut off point. Few very recent bands receive a mention, even such crucial Rock Snob bands as Yo La Tengo (which inspired the wonderful ONION headline about a few dozen record store clerks dying at one of their concerts when the roof collapsed, crushing the crowd) fail to receive mention. In the end, the book really isn't for aspiring rock snobs, but actual rock snobs who get all the references, know all the books and movies mentioned in the lists, and "get" the self-mocking nature of the whole affair. My only real disappointment with the book is that if you have a pretty good knowledge of rock, you aren't going to learn much new. But at least you can laugh about your

This is a fantastic, compulsively readable little book that's both funny, snide and surprisingly informative. But, then again, I'm one of those jerks this was apparently written for. It's safe to assume a pair of rock snobs also wrote it. Only a rock snob could write, and appreciate, entries such as: "Drake, Nick: ... Was frequently photographed standing dolefully among trees...." "Eno, Brian: Egghead producer and electronics whiz with appropriately futuristic name and aerodynamic pate." "Big Star: ... recorded tunes that, while catchy, were too fraught with druggy tension to be commercial -- thereby guaranteeing the group posthumous 'great overlooked band status.'" "Albini, Steve: Self-consciously difficult Chicago-based producer who... pushes the bounds of rock iconoclasm by wearing glasses and having short hair." "Parsons, Gram: Southern, Harvard educated, trustafarian pretty boy who invented country-rock...." It's slim, it's amusing, and sometimes surprising. Who knew, for example, that Shuggie Otis was once offered the chance to join the Stones as a replacement for Mick Taylor? Or that the vocoder was developed in the 1930s as a telecommunications aid? Not me.

Mark Twain said that a classic is a book that everybody praises but nobody reads, and we have that kind of literary snobbery in rock music too. Here, certified rock snobs Kamp and Daly lay out a snobbishly informative definition and history of rock snobbery, followed by an encyclopedia of artists, albums, devices, and terms that snobs love to praise but may not have really heard. So here you can learn more about obscure darlings Captain Beefheart and Richard Thompson, genres alt country and old school, and even annoying critics-only terms like "rewards repeated listens" and "plangent," all with not just definitions but also discussions on why these people and things are snobworthy. I was surprised to find that I'm a credible rock snob myself, as I was familiar with at least three-quarters of the snob terms in this book and I am a longtime fan of such snob faves as Love, Bad Brains, and P.Funk. (Kamp and Daly could stand to beef up their funk snobbery, but maybe that should be a whole 'nother book!) But even I was unaware of the snob love for people like John Philips or Dexys Midnight Runners, who are revered for everything they did before and after they were temporarily famous. And that's what true snobbery is all about! I'm one of the very select few who know that... [~doomsdayer520~]

I was surprised that no one has written this book before. Everyone knows some know-it-all who just HAS to have the last word in any conversation about music. Like Dean, this dude who was my shift supervisor at the AutoZone. I remember putting "2112" on the tape player in the garage, and Dean lectured us for 10 minutes about how Ginger Baker and Mo Tucker were better drummers than Neal Peart from Rush (which is total b.s.), and rambled on about some "brilliant" Syd Barrett solo album that no one ever heard about. And whenever "Teenage Wasteland" came on the radio, Dean couldn't help himself from making sure we all knew that the song was really called "Baba O'Reilly". We were changing the coolant on an Impala one day and the owner had left "Metal Machine Music" and a Captain Beefheart CD on the dashboard, and old Dean just about went nuts. When the Impala owner came to pick up his car, you would have thought Dean was meeting his long-lost twin that the hospital separated at birth. Anyway, there's definitely someone like Dean who was your annoying freshman roommate, a chick you used to date, or you, so this book is awesome. Especially if you spend a lot of time on the can, since this book is broken down into bite-sized nuggets and doesn't require more than 2 minutes of attention at any given time. Rock on.

In the interest of full disclosure, I must admit that I am by no means a "Rock Snob." I worship very devoutly, humbly, and exclusively at the altar of the Beatles, the Stones, and The Who. I don't, for example, know anything about Shuggie Otis, Richard Hell, the MC5, Norwegian Death Metal, Countrypolitan, ESG, or the numerous other characters and concepts so hysterically defined in this accessible book. Or I should say, I didn't know about these things until I got this book, so I can definitely attest that the Dictionary ably fulfills one of its avowed goals of serving as a primer for curious music fans. Not every entry is as obscure as those I've mentioned. There were a lot I'd heard of but never quite fully understood or appreciated: Gram Parsons, Robert Fripp, John Mayall, XTC, and so on. In any event, it's so fun to page through (the cross references are excellent!) that it really doesn't matter if you know them or not. If you are any kind of music fan, you should definitley check this out - you'll get a laugh, some knowledge, and some ever-useful ammo next time a true Snob confronts you in an all-knowing tone. Besides the definitions, I also loved the interspersed editorial entries where the authors compile some special lists, such as "Fifth Beatles, in order of worthiness," "Rock Snob Filmography," and "Rock Snob Hall of Fame/Shame." Anyway, after reading this I still do not refer to Bob Dylan as Zimmie (and never will) but next time I meet someone who does, I'll know they're a Snob and be ready for battle!