SOURCE: “Talking 'bout My Generation,” in The Economist, July 15, 1995, p. 67.

In the following review, the critic discusses the portrayal of pop music in The Faber Book of Pop.

Pop music “is the wonder of post-war British and American culture”, says Hanif Kureishi in The Faber Book of Pop. It is not as bold a claim as it seems. The development of pop music (broadly defined) into a global phenomenon is a cause for wonder. It is now almost impossible to avoid, hard as some try. It has infiltrated everything from films and television to the shopping mall, the airport, the corporate PR promo and the political rally. The same sounds can be heard everywhere. Madonna is arguably as well known a global product as Coca-Cola.

The success of pop music in becoming the music of the masses is not what this book is really about, however. To Mr...