33⅓
33 1⁄3 (Thirty-Three and a Third) is a series of books with each volume written about a single album.[1] The series title refers to the rotation speed of a vinyl LP.[2]
Contents
History[edit]
Originally published by Continuum,[3] the series was founded by editor David Barker in 2003.[1] At the time, Continuum published books on philosophers; series editor Ally-Jane Grossan mentioned that Barker was "an obsessive music fan who thought, 'This is a really cool idea, why don't we apply this to albums'."[3] PopMatters wrote that the range consists of "obscure classics to more usual suspects by the Beach Boys, the Beatles, and the Rolling Stones".[1]
In 2010, Continuum was bought out by Bloomsbury Publishing, which continues to publish the series.[3] Following a leave, Barker was replaced by Grossan in January 2013.[2] In 2016, Daphne Brooks, Kevin Dettmarr, Amanda Petrusich, and Gayle Wald assumed co-editorial duties.
Several independent books have been spun off of the series. The first, Carl Wilson's 2007 entry on Celine Dion's Let's Talk About Love, was expanded for a 2014 Bloomsbury reissue with material not specifically pertaining to the Dion album and retitled Let's Talk About Love: Why Other People Have Such Bad Taste. Joe Bonomo, at the invitation of Barker, expanded his 33 1/3 proposal on Jerry Lee Lewis's Live at the Star Club, Hamburg album into a full-length book about Lewis, the album, and his career titled Jerry Lee Lewis: Lost and Found, published by Continuum in 2009. A rejected proposal from writer Brett Milano for an entry on Game Theory's 1987 album Lolita Nation was instead expanded by Milano into a biography on the band's leader Scott Miller; that project, titled Don't All Thank Me at Once: The Lost Genius of Scott Miller was released by 125 Books in 2015.[4]
In August 2017, Bloomsbury announced the launch of 33 1⁄3 Global,[5] an extension of the 33 1⁄3 series to popular music from around the world. The first two sub-series launched were 33 1⁄3 Brazil, edited by Jason Stanyek, and 33 1⁄3 Japan, edited by Noriko Manabe.[6] The first book for 33 1⁄3 Brazil was Caetano Veloso's A Foreign Sound by Barbara Browning.[7] The first books for 33 1⁄3 Japan were Supercell ft. Hatsune Miku by Keisuke Yamada and Yoko Kanno's Cowboy Bebop Soundtrack by Rose Bridges.[8]
Published titles[edit]
As of December 2018[update], 135 books have been published in the main series.
Main series[edit]
- ^ Intentionally mis-numbered
33 1⁄3 Japan[edit]
| # | Work (date of book publication) | Artist | Year (album) | Author of book | ISBN # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Supercell (2017) | Supercell ft. Hatsune Miku | 2009 | Keisuke Yamada | ISBN 9781501325977 |
| 2 | Cowboy Bebop Soundtrack (2017) | Yoko Kanno | 1998 | Rose Bridges | ISBN 9781501325854 |
| 3 | Game (Perfume album) (2018) | Perfume | 2008 | Patrick St. Michel | ISBN 9781501325908 |
33 1⁄3 Brazil[edit]
| # | Work (date of book publication) | Artist | Year (album) | Author of book | ISBN # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A Foreign Sound (2018) | Caetano Veloso | 2004 | Barbara Browning | ISBN 9781501319235 |
| 2 | Getz/Gilberto (2018) | Stan Getz and João Gilberto | 1964 | Bryan Daniel | ISBN 9781501323959 |
| 3 | Tim Maia Racional Vols. 1 & 2 (2018) | Tim Maia | 1974 | Allen Thayer | ISBN 9781501321535 |
Forthcoming titles[edit]
2019
- Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version by Jarett Kobek on the album by Ol' Dirty Bastard (1995)
- Tin Drum by Agata Pyzik on the album by Japan (1981)
- The Holy Bible by David Evans on the album by Manic Street Preachers (1994)
- One Grain of Sand by Matthew Frye Jacobson on the album by Odetta (1963)
- Golden Hits of the Shangri-Las by Ada Wolin on the compilation album by The Shangri-Las (1966)
- Southern Accents by Michael Washburn on the album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1985)
- Switched-On Bach by Roshanak Kheshti on the album by Wendy Carlos (1968)
- Blue Lines by Ian Bourland on the album by Massive Attack (1991)
- Hamilton by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins on the original Broadway cast recording of Hamilton (2015)
- The Wild Tchoupitoulas by Bryan Wagner on the album by The Wild Tchoupitoulas (1976)
2020
- Diamond Dogs by Glen Hendler on the album by David Bowie (1974)
- Voodoo by Faith A. Pennick on the album by D'Angelo (2000)
- Judy at Carnegie Hall by Manuel Betancourt on the album by Judy Garland (1961)
- Suicide by Andi Coulter on the album by Suicide (1977)
- I’m Your Fan: The Songs of Leonard Cohen by Ray Padgett on the album by various artists (1991)
- The Velvet Rope by Ayanna Dozier on the album by Janet Jackson (1997)
- From Elvis in Memphis by Eric Wolfson on the album by Elvis Presley (1969)
- Ghetto: Misfortune's Wealth by Zach Schonfeld on the album by 24-Carat Black (1973)
- Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963 by Colin Fleming on the album by Sam Cooke (1985)
- Blue Moves by Matthew Restall on the album by Elton John (1976)
- Once Upon a Time by Alex Jeffery on the album by Donna Summer (1977)
- Murder Ballads by Santi Elijah Holley on the album by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds (1996)
- Tapestry by Loren Glass on the album by Carole King (1971)
- The ArchAndroid by Alyssa Favreau on the album by Janelle Monáe (2010)
- Rio by Annie Zaleski on the album by Duran Duran (1982)
- Vs. by Clint Brownlee on the album by Pearl Jam (1993)
- Avalon by Simon Morrison on the album by Roxy Music (1982)
33⅓ Japan
- Fantasma by Martin Roberts on the album by Cornelius (1997)
- AKB48 by Patrick Galbraith and Jason Karlin
- Soundtrack for My Neighbor Totoro by Kunio Hara on the soundtrack album by Joe Hisaishi (1988)
- Happy Hour by Brooke McCorkle on the album by Shonen Knife (1998)
33⅓ Brazil
- Sorriso Negro by Mila Burns on the album by Dona Ivone Lara (1981)
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Yoder, Anne K. (April 2, 2006). "Introduction and Interview with Series Editor David Barker". PopMatters. Archived from the original on May 22, 2018.
- ^ a b Benfer, Amy (August 28, 2014). "33⅓ book series celebrates records – and its 10th anniversary". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 6, 2018.
- ^ a b c Brown, Harley (February 25, 2015). "How the 33 1/3 Series, In Spite of Two Shrinking Industries, Continues to Thrive". Billboard. Archived from the original on July 26, 2017. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
- ^ Zaleski, Annie (January 1, 2016). "The lost pop genius of Scott Miller". Salon. Archived from the original on January 6, 2016.
- ^ "New series announcement: 33 1/3 Global". 333Sound. August 9, 2017. Archived from the original on March 20, 2018.
- ^ "33 1/3 Global editor highlight: Noriko Manabe". 333Sound. August 31, 2017. Archived from the original on May 22, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
- ^ "33 1/3 Brazil". Bloomsbury Publishing. Archived from the original on May 22, 2018.
- ^ "33 1/3 Japan". Bloomsbury Publishing. Archived from the original on May 22, 2018.
External links[edit]
- Official blog for the series
- TimesOnline on the book series.
