In recent years, much attention has been lavished on the New Women of rap and rock. From rap stars such as Queen Latifah to bands such as Velocity Girls, popular music has been aggressively redefined by a new generation of women, with a startling range of musical styles.
Yet, women's role in contemporary music, and in music history, extends far beyond MTV or the latest riot grrrl troupe. In Girls! Girls! Girls!, Sarah Cooper has assembled a broad- ranging collection of essays to provide an entertaining and impressionistic portrait of women and music. Whether in the form of Helen Kolawole's discussion of the bitch- bashing misogyny of gangsta rap or Caroline Sullivan's exuberant assessment of women rock critics, the volume raises, and addresses, some of the most provocative and challenging issues concerning women's active involvement in and relationship to music. From indie labels to opera queens, from symphony orchestra to salsa queen, from swing to women's music in South Asia to the confessions of a British country music fan, Girls! Girls! Girls! has something for everyone, music critics, feminists, and fans alike.