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Preview
  • Party Lines

  • Dance Music and the Making of Modern Britain
  • By: Ed Gillett
  • Narrated by: Ed Gillett
  • Length: 12 hrs and 45 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (11 ratings)

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Party Lines

By: Ed Gillett
Narrated by: Ed Gillett
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Summary

A Guardian Guide Cultural Book of the Year 2023
An Irish Times Music Book of the Year 2023
'A deep, engrossing history' The Observer
'A fascinating deep dive' Jeremy Deller


From the illicit reggae blues dances and acid-rock free festivals of the 1970s, through the ecstasy-fuelled Second Summer of Love in 1988, to the increasingly corporate dance music culture of the post-Covid era, Party Lines is a groundbreaking new history of UK dance music, exploring its pivotal role in the social, political and economic shifts on which modern Britain has been built.

Taking in the Victorian moralism of the Thatcher years, the far-reaching restrictions of the Criminal Justice Act in 1994, and the resurgence of illegal raves during the Covid-19 pandemic, Party Lines charts an ongoing conflict, fought in basement clubs, abandoned warehouses and sunlit fields, between the revolutionary potential of communal sound and the reactionary impulses of the British establishment. Brought to life with stunning clarity and depth, this is social and cultural history at its most immersive, vital and shocking.

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'Excellent' The Sunday Times
'Reminds us why the dance floor matters . . . fascinating' Telegraph

©2023 Ed Gillett (P)2023 Macmillan Publishers International Limited
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What listeners say about Party Lines

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Telling the forgotten & overlooked narratives

Really interesting and informative on the scenes and events of the past that have shaped modern underground music today.

Writing and narration both really good. Finished in 2 days.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Recommended read for any raver

It feels like d&b has been largely overlooked apart from a short mention of the start of jungle which is a shame.

Also, how dare you say Kevin & Perry is unwatchable 🤣

Joking aside it was a great look back at the early days of the scene, feeling like an extended version of the Everybody In The Place documentary which I very much enjoyed.

I totally agree with the authors stance on the massive commercialisation of dance music and have seen some of my most loved events lose their soul chasing the dollar but there are still tons of small, incredible events happening on a weekly basis and the scene is thriving.

Admittedly my experience is very niche in the d&b scene in London and the south coast but after raving for the last 20 years I've never known such a close knit, welcoming, inclusive community as there is now and I don't share the sentiment that rave is on the decline, losing it's power or being suffocated by the government.

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