Scott Creney and Brigette Adair Herron, "The Story of the B-52s: Neon Side of Town" (Palgrave Macmillan, 2023)

New Books in the American South

The Story of the B-52s: Neon Side of Town (Palgrave Macmillan, 2023) is the first critical history of one of the most legendary and influential bands in American popular music. Locating The B-52s in the intellectual climate of their hometown of Athens, GA and following the band from New York's downtown scene in the early 1980s to their upcoming farewell tour, the book argues that The B-52s are much more significant political and musical influences on American society than their reputation as a silly party band suggests, and that their ongoing commitment to values including cooperation, mutual support, and using disruptive fun as a form of social change are an antidote to the neoliberalization sweeping both Athens and the rest of the Western world.

For example, the book shows how the band synthesized influences from the modern artists displayed at the University of Georgia art museum, early queer activism on campus in the 1970s, and their experiences as queer people living through the AIDS crisis to create music that continues to be artistically and politically influential today. The authors are active members of the Athens, GA music scene, and the book includes original interviews with a range of number close to the band.

Scott Creney is author of the work of creative nonfiction Dear Al-Qaeda: Letters to the World's Most Notorious Terror Organization (Black Ocean). They have written about music, books, and film for Clash Music, The Fanzine, Collapse Board, and Ablaze!, among others, and contributed six entries to 101 Albums You Should Die Before You Hear. Scott was also the bass player for the Athens band Tunabunny.

Scott on Twitter.

Brigette Adair Herron holds a Ph.D. in Adult Education from the University of Georgia and is author/co-author of numerous peer reviewed academic articles and a scholarly monograph. Her writing on music has been featured in the book 101 Albums You Should Die Before You Hear, and on the web publications Collapse Board, Vice, and Eldredge Atlanta. She is a multi-instrumentalist with a long history in the Athens music scene.

Brigette on Instagram.

Bradley Morgan is a media arts professional in Chicago and author of U2's The Joshua Tree: Planting Roots in Mythic America. He manages partnerships on behalf of CHIRP Radio 107.1 FM, serves as a co-chair of the associate board at the Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and volunteers in the music archive at the Old Town School of Folk Music.

Bradley Morgan on Twitter.

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