Stoke Newington Literary Festival

Jon Savage & Martin Aston: Queer Pop, A His & Her Story
£8, 15:00, Sunday, Library Gallery

Britain and the world at large last year mourned the loss of a man who made some of his biggest hits posing as a bisexual alien, but pop music’s queer DNA has still hidden in plain sight on many occasions.

Music journalist and author Martin Aston’s latest book, Breaking Down The Walls of Heartache: How Music Came Out, explores that DNA in detail, taking in cultural milestones from Little Richard’s Tutti Frutti to Frankie saying Relax and Beth Ditto saying, well, whatever she wants to.

But it’s not just the headline acts like David Bowie (yes, that was the alien) who awoke teenagers on Top Of The Pops who Aston is shining a light on, and his book identifies the hidden pioneers who helped music come out across a century.

If you thought there was no such thing as a 1950s lesbian rockabilly trio or that the 1970s couldn’t possibly have had room for a gay country music band, then be prepared to learn a thing or two over the course of this event.

Martin, who has interviewed Bowie, Lou Reed and Morrissey among many others, for magazines including Q and Mojo, will have the tables turned on him by Jon Savage, the acclaimed author of comprehensive punk history England’s Dreaming.

BUY TICKETS:
https://stokenewingtonlitfest.eventcube.io/events/7155/jon-savage-martin-aston-queer-pop/

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