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Move on Up

Chicago Soul Music and Black Cultural Power
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( 55 ratings, 5 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Move On Up by Aaron Cohen explores the vibrant history of Chicago soul music from the 1960s to the 1980s, highlighting its role as a powerful marker of Black empowerment. The book delves into the stories of iconic artists like Curtis Mayfield, The Chi-Lites, and Chaka Khan, and their jazz-inspired, optimistic sounds that echoed through a city grappling with social unrest, segregation, and economic challenges. Cohen connects music to the rise of Black-owned businesses, the campaign of Chicago’s first Black mayor, Harold Washington, and broader Afrocentric philosophies, illustrating how soul music served as a voice for progress and cultural pride during turbulent times.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book is ideal for readers interested in African American music history, cultural studies, and those seeking insight into soul music’s social impact within urban America. Music enthusiasts, historians, and fans of Chicago’s rich musical heritage will find this work especially engaging.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

A Chicago Tribune Book of 2019, Notable Chicago Reads

A Booklist Top 10 Arts Book of 2019

A No Depression Top Music Book of 2019

Curtis Mayfield. The Chi-Lites. Chaka Khan. Chicago’s place in the history of soul music is rock solid. But for Chicagoans, soul music in its heyday from the 1960s to the 1980s was more than just a series of hits: it was a marker and a source of black empowerment.

In Move On Up, Aaron Cohen tells the remarkable story of the explosion of soul music in Chicago. Together, soul music and black-owned businesses thrived. Record producers and songwriters broadcast optimism for black America’s future through their sophisticated, jazz-inspired productions for the Dells and many others. Curtis Mayfield boldly sang of uplift with unmistakable grooves like “We’re a Winner” and “I Plan to Stay a Believer.”

Musicians like Phil Cohran and the Pharaohs used their music to voice Afrocentric philosophies that challenged racism and segregation, while Maurice White of Earth, Wind, and Fire and Chaka Khan created music that inspired black consciousness. Soul music also accompanied the rise of African American advertisers and the campaign of Chicago’s first black mayor, Harold Washington, in 1983.

This empowerment was set in stark relief by the social unrest roiling in Chicago and across the nation: as Chicago’s homegrown record labels produced rising stars singing songs of progress and freedom, Chicago’s black middle class faced limited economic opportunities and deep-seated segregation, all against a backdrop of nationwide deindustrialization.

Drawing on more than one hundred interviews and a music critic’s passion for the unmistakable Chicago soul sound, Cohen shows us how soul music became the voice of inspiration and change for a city in turmoil.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Critically acclaimed, Move On Up is praised for its deep research, vivid writing, and passionate portrayal of Chicago's influential soul scene. Jonathan Eig calls it an "extraordinary achievement" and the definitive account of a crucial slice of American popular culture. The New York Review of Books highlights Cohen's expert documentation of the city's monumental musical contributions during the 1960s and 1970s. Booklist recognises the book among the top arts titles for its fresh perspectives on African American artists and music history.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780226653037

Publisher: The University of Chicago Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 30 September 2019

Country: United States

Imprint: University of Chicago Press

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 152.0mm

Height: 229.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 272

About the Author

Aaron Cohen covers the arts for numerous publications and teaches English, journalism, and humanities at City Colleges of Chicago. He is the author of Aretha Franklin's Amazing Grace.

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