Spin: Greatest Hits: 25 Years of Heretics, Heroes, and the New Rock 'n' Roll

by Tom Morello, Spin Magazine, Doug Brod (Editor)

The official book celebrating the 25th anniversary of SPIN magazineFrom its first issue in 1985, "SPIN" has cultivated a reputation for brilliant writing and broad musical coverage, including genres and artists long abandoned by its competitors. From punk to electronica, goth to gangsta rap, emo to garage rock, and hip-hop to indie rock, "SPIN" has covered it all and featured interviews with leading artists through every musical wave of the last 25 years." Greatest Hits" brings together some of the classic stories that have appeared in the magazine, each with a new introduction by the author offering historical perspective on the article.Compiles the best articles from well-known writers such as Chuck Klosterman, Jonathan Ames, Elizabeth Gilbert, and David Hajdu Features the best "SPIN" interviews with Lou Reed, Noel Gallagher, Chuck D, and other influential musiciansIncludes hilarious sidebars such as "Six Extreme Metal Bands That Could Be Mistaken for Flavors of Herbal Tea," "Six Misguided Attempts to Falsify Rock History," and morePacked with great writing and information spanning a quarter-century of iconic music and musicians, " Greatest Hits" is an essential keepsake for music fans and lovers of pop culture.

272 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 2, 2010

About the author

American guitarist best known for his tenure with the band Rage Against the Machine and then with Audioslave. Morello is currently a touring musician with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. He is also known for his acoustic solo act called The Nightwatchman, and his latest group Street Sweeper Social Club. Morello is also the co-founder (along with Serj Tankian) of the non-profit political activist organization Axis of Justice, which airs a monthly program on Pacifica Radio station KPFK (90.7 FM) in Los Angeles.

Born in Harlem, New York, and raised in Libertyville, Illinois, Morello became interested in music and politics while in high school. He attended Harvard University and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Studies. After his previous band Lock Up disbanded, Morello met Zack de la Rocha and the two founded Rage Against the Machine together. He is best known for his unique and creative guitar playing style, which incorporates feedback noise, unconventional picking and tapping as well as heavy use of guitar effects. Morello is also noted for his leftist political views and activism; his creation of his side project The Nightwatchman offered an outlet for his views while playing apolitical music with Audioslave. He was ranked number 40 in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".

In 2011 it was announced that Morello would write a new 12-issue comic book series for Dark Horse Comics, entitled Orchid. The series is a post-apocalyptic story in which the title character is "a teenage prostitute who learns that she is more than the role society has imposed upon her." The first issue was published in October 2011, and Morello is releasing an exclusive new song to accompany each issue. Orchid is illustrated by Canadian artist Scott Hepburn.

The release party sponsored by Dark Horse was held at Jetpack Comics in Rochester, New Hampshire on October 12, 2011.