There have been few times in modern music history that an instant shift in how we listen to — and view — music has occurred. However, the launch of MTV on August 1, 1981, was certainly one such occurrence. Instantly, music fans were now “listening with their eyes” rather than relying solely on their ears. 'MTV Ruled the World: The Early Years of Music Video' is the first book to focus solely on the channel’s important building-block years, specifically from the channel’s launch to when MTV’s original group of VJs left the channel. Comprised of over 70 all-new interviews ("Weird Al" Yankovic, Daryl Hall, John Oates, Joe Elliott, Phil Collen, Rob Halford, Stewart Copeland, Rick Springfield, Jerry Casale, Geddy Lee, Ann Wilson, Chuck D, Alan Hunter, Nina Blackwood, etc.), the book is not only an eye-opening account of the early years of MTV, but also of the music industry, important music developments/events, and the “Big... More > ‘80s” in general.< Less
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By rtgenid
Feb 28, 2011
Excellent book so far, I still have a few chapters to go....... but has been great to go back in time through Greg's writing and read about how the whole MTV thing came about along with the various stories from the VJ's, musicians and others that had a part in creating MTV. Highy recommended !!! Rich
Much like how YouTube break artists now in 2011, MTV did that for musicians throughout the 1980s and much of the 1990s and created a new cultural identity for its audience. Through Greg Prato's 70 new interviews with a wide variety of folks such as MTV founder Bob Pittman, drummer Stewart Copeland of the Police, and original VJ Martha Quinn, MTV Ruled The World is a very insightful, first-hand account of the cutting-edge video cable channel from a variety of angles and acts as a solid reference book on second half 20th century popular culture. --John Sullivan, rock novelist ("Rock and Roll Murder", "Opportunity Rocking")
