Five Years Ahead of My Time: Garage Rock from the 1950s to the Present

(Paperback)

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Five Years Ahead of My Time: Garage Rock from the 1950s to the Present tells of a musical phenomenon whose continuing influence on global popular culture is immeasurable.

The story begins in 1950s America, when classic rock 'n' roll was reaching middle age, and teenaged musicians kept its primal rawness going with rough-hewn instrumentals, practicing guitar riffs in their parents' garages. In the mid-1960s came the Beatles and the British Invasion, and soon every neighborhood had its own garage band. Groups like the Sonics and 13th Floor Elevators burnt brightly but briefly, only to be rediscovered by a new generation of connoisseurs in the 1970s. Numerous compilation albums followed, spearheaded by Lenny Kaye's iconic Nuggets, which resulted in a garage rock's rebirth during the 1980s and '90s.

Be it the White Stripes or the Black Keys, bands have consistently found inspiration in the simplicity and energy of garage rock. It is a revitalizing force, looking back to the past to forge the future of rock 'n' roll. And this, for the first time, is its story.

Reviews

"Five Years Ahead of My Time . . . is also a hymn, or rather, a never-ending praise of the one instrument that powered garage music like nothing else: the electric guitar, mass-produced and easily available. . . . Bovey's title is truly absorbing: easy accessible, well-informed, and convincing, as he lists hundreds of bands, their lineups, and several hundred songs to support his expertise chronologically. . . . Recommend[ed] work for anybody interested in the history of rock music, guitar bands from the sixties, and the (mostly forgotten or underrated) forerunners of 1970s punk rock."-- "Popcultureshelf.com"
"The 'simplicity and energy' that characterized much independently created music over the years is told in Bovey's remarkable book Five Years Ahead of My Time. . . . Here in a myriad of factual information is the saga of how bands could spring up in backrooms and garages and initially find life outside of record companies. . . . Bovey delves into numerous garage music nuances and categories with skill. . . . For musicos this is a gem of a book."-- "Methodist Recorder"

Author Bio

Seth Bovey is professor of English at Louisiana State University at Alexandria. He is also a musician and played in several garage bands in the 1970s and early '80s.