“Satisfaction.” “Like a Rolling Stone.” “My Generation.” “A Change is Gonna Come.” “The Sound of Silence.” “Papa's Got a Brand New Bag.” “Respect.” “You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin.’” “Stop! In the Name of Love.” “Turn! Turn Turn!” You could hardly touch the radio dial in the year 1965 without hearing 2-3 minutes of what would come to be a seminal, groundbreaking classic.

During that year, Bob Dylan redrew the limits of what rock and pop musicians could write and sing about, and, with The Beatles, established the template of the long-play record album as an integral work of art (rather than a mish-mash of random songs thrown together by near-sighted record executives), inspiring a cadre of revolutionary acts across the varied spectrum of pop music --- from rock and soul to jazz and country --- to start questioning the “rules.” The result was an arms race of musical creativity and social commentary, while a much more crucial scenario --- a complicated war, social and racial disharmony, and a bitter generational culture divide --- led some to believe we were on “The Eve of Destruction.”

"1965 is an engrossing account of a meeting at the crossroads of American music history and culture. If you were there, it will take you back; if you weren’t, it may make you wish you had been."

Author and music historian Andrew Grant Jackson (STILL THE GREATEST: The Essential Songs of The Beatles' Solo Careers) documents the dazzling, turbulent times in his thoroughly researched new book, 1965: The Most Revolutionary Year in Music. Moving through the year chronologically from winter to autumn, sometimes day-to-day, Jackson highlights the competitive rivalry between the major acts of the year, as each new release by The Rolling Stones or The Beatles or The Beach Boys would inspire the rest of the historically gifted pack to reach deeper into their own bag of talent and creativity. About the creation of The Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood,” Jackson opines, “On the surface, Lennon's short and abstract lyrics were the antithesis of Dylan's, but the American had freed him up to express alienation and ennui in a way that hadn't been done before.”

Jackson takes the reader on a tour of all the year's burgeoning hotbeds of musical creativity --- London, Motown, Nashville, Memphis, San Francisco, Los Angeles --- revealing the arcane rivalries between Motown and Stax-style soul, and the insurrection of Bakersfield on Nashville's dominance of country music. While the music is center stage, the author never fails to integrate the cultural, political and social events that inspired it all, keeping the reader grounded in the context of the times.

1965 is an engrossing account of a meeting at the crossroads of American music history and culture. If you were there, it will take you back; if you weren’t, it may make you wish you had been.