- Hardcover: 252 pages
- Publisher: Blast Books (October 15, 2013)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0922233446
- ISBN-13: 978-0922233441
From the 1950s to the 1980s, American corporations commissioned a vast
array of lavish, Broadway-style musical shows that were only for the
eyes and ears of employees. These improbable productions were meant to
educate and motivate the sales force to sell cars, appliances, tractors,
soda, and a thousand other products. Though most of these shows were
lost to the universe, some were recorded and distributed to convention
attendees via souvenir vinyl records. The little-known world of
industrial shows is reconstructed through the record collection of
author Steve Young, who has spent twenty years finding the extremely
rare souvenir albums as well as tracking down and interviewing the
writers and performers. Through the records themselves as well as
behind-the-scenes stories, a new perspective on American history,
culture, and business emerges. Eye-popping visuals, samples of
confounding and hilarious lyrics, and witty commentary by Young and
co-author Sport Murphy (who also contributes original artwork) bring the
topic to vivid, astonishing life. A companion website will offer
streaming audio of the songs which seem too crazy to be real—but not
only are they real, they're often a revelation.
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