In the posthumous Rockonomics: A Backstage Tour of What the Music Industry Can Teach Us about Economics and Life, Alan B. Krueger's premise is a simple one: that the music industry reveals much more about American culture than just its predilection for pop stars.
Krueger's bona fides were as strong as they come. As a labor economist, he was known widely for his research on the minimum wage. Krueger taught economics at Princeton University for more than three decades, advised President Bill Clinton and served as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers for Barack Obama.
In Rockonomics, he turns that expertise on the music industry, comparing it with the economy at large. There exists a clear parallel, he argues. One example: both the country's top 1% and the top 1% of performers are experiencing tremendous growth. Everyone below that? Not so much. As digitization fundamentally disrupts music sales, nowadays "Americans spend less money on music in a typical year than they do on potato chips."
Krueger's analysis is engaging, clear and often funny. Along with ample studies, graphs and economics 101, he includes fascinating interviews with industry veterans like Cliff Burnstein, who manages Metallica, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Gillian Welch; drummer Steve Ferrone, of Heartbreakers fame; and John Eastman, lawyer to Paul McCartney and Billy Joel.
Krueger died this past March, before the release of Rockonomics, but his wisdom looms large in its lessons. "Music," he reminds us, "more than money, is the tonic of happiness." --Katie Weed, freelance writer and reviewer