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If you loved
Books like How Music Works
An expansive, deeply curious exploration of how physical spaces, technology, and human nature collaborate to create the sounds that move us. These 12 books are the closest matches in mood, pace and themes, with what each one shares with How Music Works.
- intellectually stimulating
- expansive
- curious
- warm
- 01
The song machine
John Seabrook
A backstage pass into the hyper-engineered, psychologically manipulative, and endlessly fascinating factory of modern pop music.
- 02
Perfecting Sound Forever
Greg Milner
A fascinating, century-spanning exploration of how technology has shaped the very nature of what we hear and believe to be real.
- 03
The Rest Is Noise
Alex Ross · 2007
A sweeping, symphonic journey through the turbulent twentieth century, heard through the brilliant and chaotic music it produced.
- 04
The history of jazz
Ted Gioia · 1997
An immersive, brilliantly portrayed journey through the breakthrough styles and legendary figures of a defining musical era.
- 05
This Is Your Brain on Music
Daniel J. Levitin
A backstage pass to the neuroscience of your favorite playlist, revealing why a simple melody can make you weep or dance.
- 06
Mood Machine
Liz Pelly
An unsparing, deeply researched look behind the curtain of modern music consumption that will permanently alter how you hear your favorite playlists.
- 07
How Language Works
David Crystal
A delightful, eye-opening tour through the invisible architecture of the words we use every day.
- 08
How the Mind Works
Steven Pinker
A witty, expansive masterclass that dismantles the magic of human consciousness to reveal the fascinating evolutionary machinery whirring beneath.
- 09
The Creative Act
Rick Rubin
A quiet, expansive meditation that treats the creative process not as a series of tasks, but as a spiritual way of moving through the world.
- 10
Mo' Meta Blues: The World According to Questlove
Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson and Ben Greenman
A rhythmic, deep-diving memoir that spins the album cuts of a life lived entirely through the lens of music and Black culture.
- 11
How we got to now
Steven Johnson
A thrilling intellectual treasure hunt that reveals the invisible threads connecting a glass of clean water to the invention of the microchip.
- 12
Dilla Time
Dan Charnas
A masterclass in rhythm and a bittersweet tribute to a quiet genius who rewired the heartbeat of modern music.
