Popular Music in the Manchester Region Since 1950

Manchester was ‘at the heart of English pop music creativity for at least three decades’. While Merseyside and London were clearly key players, in the second half of the 20^th century Manchester’s music scene attained a striking national and international profile. From the ‘beat’ boom of 1963-5, moving on respectively to Northern Soul at its early 1970s zenith, the moment of punk in 1976, post-punk, the emergence of Factory Records and its associated institutions, and, finally, the arrival of Oasis and the flowering of Britpop in the mid-1990s, ‘Madchester’ was the epicenter. This fascinating book celebrates this contribution and delves into the music cultures and subcultures around the city during one of the most exciting eras in musical history.