Last Night a DJ Saved My Life: The History of the Disc Jockey

by Bill Brewster, Frank Broughton

“A riveting look at record spinning from its beginnings to the present day . . . A grander and more fascinating story than one would think.” —Time Out London   This is the first comprehensive history of the disc jockey, a cult classic now updated with five new chapters and over a hundred pages of additional material. It’s the definitive account of DJ culture, from the first record played over airwaves to house, hip-hop, techno, and beyond.   From the early development of recorded and transmitted sound, DJs have been shaping the way we listen to music and the record industry. This book tracks down the inside story on some of music’s most memorable moments. Focusing on the club DJ, the book gets first-hand accounts of the births of disco, hip-hop, house, and techno. Visiting legendary clubs like the Peppermint Lounge, Cheetah, the Loft, Sound Factory, and Ministry of Sound, and with interviews with legendary DJs, Last Night a DJ Saved My Life is a lively and entertaining account of musical history and some of the most legendary parties of the century.   “Brewster and Broughton’s ardent history is one of barriers and sonic booms, spanning almost 100 years, including nods to pioneers Christopher Stone, Martin Block, Douglas ‘Jocko’ Henderson, Bob ‘Wolfman Jack’ Smith and Alan ‘Moondog’ Freed.” —Publishers Weekly

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, History, Pop Culture, Biography, Audiobook, Art

626 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2000

About the author

Bill was originally a chef, working first in London and then Geneva, before returning back to the UK in 1981. His first break as a writer was in 1988 working for cult football magazine When Saturday Comes, where he remained until 1993.

He moved to New York in 1994, where he soon met his writing partner Frank Broughton. Within a fortnight of their meeting they started plotting their first book together. The first collaboration came in 1998 with The Manual, a Ministry Of Sound-branded book, but it was with Last Night A DJ Saved My Life (published in 1999), they began to build a reputation. Subsequent to that, they wrote a further two books, How To DJ (Properly) and The Record Players.

Reviews

[Meredith Enos · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is clearly well researched, but the prose bogs it down. It takes a fascinating subject and makes it sometimes painful to read about--painful as in laden with pedantry and cliche. It feels like it was written by one of those fanboys who loves "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and knows why Angel was wearing that bracelet in that one episode and will tell you about it for 15 minutes got turned on to hiphop.

The interviews were good, though.

[Anna Bogdanova · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I'm in two minds about this book. On the one hand, it's truly unique and it tackles an important and undernarrated history. On the other hand, it really shows that the authors can't really handle either the popular non-fiction genre, or the genre of the academic essay. It's a bit all over the place: the structure goes by musical genre, but you end up skipping decades back and forth. Instead of offering analysis, it usually devolves into listing names of DJs and clubs. And don't even get me started on all the biases that the authors seem to be oblivious to. In short, I'm glad that this book exists and I enjoyed rummaging through it to make a few discoveries. But, unfortunately, it fails as a "history.

[Carlex · Rating 5 out of 5]

(My apologies for mistreating the English language)

Four and half stars.

If you have seen my profile you may think that this book is quite far from the usual, but not so much if we consider my interest in popular culture and, in addition, for my studies of sociology (although I am not working in this discipline) that has left me "installed" the curiosity about social phenomena. Of course as a young “dancing king” I frequently attended nightclubs, so from my own experience this is familiar to me.

On the other hand, I did not know the phenomenon in itself, that is, the cultural meaning and the history of the music that today has derived in dance music and in our case with the figure of the DJ. A fascinating story of counterculture, working classes and racial minorities (actually not really minorities), gay subculture and drugs, a lot of drugs.

The elements (that is, the technology) for the first disc jockey to be born more than a century ago are: 1 gramophone + 1 radio. And this is how all starts (including the first disputes over copyright and the interests of the record companies). Although of course there is a third element missing: the dance floor. Over time, there will come the many and varied ways to mix and alter the music.

This book is an extensive work that very accurately analyzes the DJ "without going into philosophical questions" (or sociological ;-) in the words of the authors; that is, a book written from the dance floor: (the authors have a long experience as music journalists), with historical data, quotes from relevant people, etc.

In this brief review just highlight some unknown aspects of this story. As an example of counterculture: the diffusion of the first rock and roll by the independent radio DJs, before their "whitening" and popularization, or the irruption of acid-house in UK in late eighties, as a form of rebellion in the hard years of Margaret Tatcher’s era. The great role of the dance floor in the black subculture (hip-hop, funky, break-dance), or the “disco” in the gay subculture in the 70s (until it was almost devastated all by the AIDS epidemic in the early eighties). In the middle I leave many episodes: for example, you can search the therms of "Nortern Soul" in the 70s UK, or the historical influence of Studio 54.

About Studio 54, I cannot resist to explain the experience of the disco group Chic, when they were not allowed to enter in the New York most famous disco -even if here they were playing their own songs- and in revenge the group composed "Fuck Out", a song that retitled became the great hit "Freak Out". The book is full of anecdotes like this one. So, maybe, the the only criticisms of the book is that it is excessively detailed in some moments, and perhaps a chronology a bit confusing.

I can not extend more in this rich and prolific story, only to say that currently the disc-jockey is an entrenched figure that in some cases have abandoned the purity and anonymity of the “deejays” (strictly the protagonists are the music and the dance-floor) have achieved stardom as musical producers.

[Tosh · Rating 5 out of 5]

A super interesting history of the DJ and his record collection. This book basically covers the time when a man or woman played a record in front of an audience. It covers stuff from the 20's to of course the Disco era to the Northern Soul.

I am not into dance music or DJ culture, but saying that this is truly a fascinating history of records and the role it plays in individuals lives as well as social groups of all sorts. The Northern Soul cult is beyond fascinating. DJ's locating old Motown, Stax recordings that WERE NOT HITS. Yet are beautiful records. The DJ's would protect their source with their lives. Also the connection between Gay sub-culture and disco clubs is one fascinating read. Really this is truly a great book. One doesn't have to be a music lover to appreciate the history of DJing (that goes beyond discos, etc.)

[Trevor Angst · Rating 4 out of 5]

I imagine it’s difficult to write a precise and accurate account of the DJ origin story and it’s evolution through music without worry of incorrectly appointing forerunner status on certain artists or omitting them all together. But I think Bill Brewster and Frank Broughton did it. This is a very dense book and it’s very comprehensive about the DJ role in music; I don’t think I’d want to read anything longer about DJ history than the 600 pages I just finished reading (I read the most updated and revised version). You have to be really patient with this book to appreciate it. That means putting it down more than you’d like to, just to hear some of the sounds described. I don’t think I’d recommend reading it as fast as I did for this reason. It’s also a book probably best to own instead of borrow to reference. It would be worth doing.

There is a lot of original interviews conducted, and extractions from about 160 books I saw listed on the back. To a lesser degree, some magazines and periodicals and a few other TV/radio/film sources and sleeve notes.

Chapter breakdown: radio origins, the beginning of clubs, northern soul (my personal fav), reggae, disco and disco roots, hi-energy, hip hop, US garage, house, techno, baleaeic, acid house, UK sounds and contemporary, superstar status EDM DJ’s of the past decade or so.

[shayzilda · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rating::
I was extremely invested in this book! I appreciate all the research and passion that the authors put into this. I would have gave it 5 stars, but I was very disappointed in the very biased conclusion. The authors clearly have memories from the late 80's-late 90's writing multiple chapters (which I enjoyed), but it was the opinion of the new era of music that left a bad taste in my mouth. It had a vibe of "young kids these days don't know what good music is, it was much better in my time". After all that the DJ has been through to get to where they are now, to finally gain full respect in their form of art, to be belittled for becoming "mainstream". There is no denying that there is a oversimplification of the SOME modern day DJ "performances", but the majority of rising stars and underground artists coming out today are just as invested in this art form as in "good ol' days".

[Gregarious cline · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is my bible. I reread it every couple of years and get something new and vital out it every time. I'm glad I initially read it years after I started DJ'ing or it might have over loaded my circuits. It's fascinating that the principles that made these historic DJs, DeeJays, and DiscJockeys amazing still hold true today. A must read for anyone who has ever attempted DJ'ing once or more.

[Glenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A 600 page history of the disc jockey is a lot, which is the book’s strength as well as its flaw. The authors did their research and provide a seemingly exhaustive account of the evolving role of dj’s, exhaustive being the key word in that I got exhausted reading this and kept falling asleep. That’s not to say Brewster and Broughton don’t write well. I found the first half of the book to be very engaging, despite an onslaught of unfamiliar names that I’d forget within a couple of pages. It’s once we get to (US) house music that things take a sharp turn. Before then the authors are talking about music that has to various extents penetrated the mainstream, e.g. disco, hip hop and reggae. Once they get to more specialized tastes (Balearic, anyone?) I lost interest, and they were unable to convince me of the importance of the disc jockeys who spun those genres and why they matter to anyone outside of the fans of those genres. Also, at times the editing is a bit weird. They wrote of the passing of one of the top disco dj’s of the seventies, and then a few sentences later mentioned that said dj doesn’t listen to much new music. I think that comes with the territory of being dead, no? All in all, props for being so thoroughly researched, though a condensed history would read much better.

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredibly robust and well-rounded history of DJing, popular music, and especially dance music culture. However, Brewster often writes about women (whose contributions to DJing and dance music are given a mere two pages in the five-hundred-plus page book) with a sexist bent, and though he highly reveres the music, the way he writes about people of color behind many of the music styles showcased in the book is rather insensitive and results in more than a few eye-rolls.

There are quite a few books on dance music in my to-do list that, I'm hoping, will fill in the gaps LNADSML leaves unfilled, and offer other more diverse and illuminating points of view on the subject. Despite its shortcomings though, I came out of LNADSML with a much greater appreciation for DJing and dance music culture, as well as its "unsung hero" status within popular music, and I think people, whether they're interested in electronic music or not, should give this book a try.

[Adrian Gonzalez · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book reads exactly how experiencing the scene feels irl - fleeting, jumbled, and loose

a great history for those of us who weren't there back in the day to contextualize what dynamics of the party have been omnipresent, and which we've arrived at due to advancements in technology & industry shifts

would love an update for the late 2010s and beyond. a lot of the things they predicted came true and there's something to be said about how the dj's role as an expert producer is holding up as the industry is trying to usher ai into the equation

[Kirk Chantraine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Do you mark a book as read when you have to stop reading since it makes you so angry? Sexist, inaccurate, pretentious and condescending - if you have any attachment to DJing or appreciation for music stay away. Gag...

[Meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting primer on DJing and the development of different club cultures, prose was at times painfully heavy handed and long-winded. spotify playlist of every song mentioned in the book definitely elevated the reading experience

[Chuck Pee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I teach "electronic music history" because of this book!!!

[Tony Calder · Rating 5 out of 5]

This excellent book does what the title claims - it presents the history of the DJ from the very first time a record was played on a radio broadcast (in 1906) through to a century later when the revised edition of this book was released.

While it does look at the role of the DJ on radio, the vast majority of the book is devoted to the DJ in clubs and parties. In doing this, what it also does is provide a comprehensive look at the history of dance music from the rock n roll era onward because much of the development in dance music trends was driven by DJs. Indeed, the chapters are broken down by musical genre rather than by specific time periods.

The book is very well researched and many of the top DJs (from the 70s onward) were interviewed and their observations have been incorporated into the text. At the end of the book there are 17 pages of playlists from various DJs or from various clubs, which provide an invaluable resource for anyone who has an interest in the different genres of dance music.

[John Defrog: global citizen, local gadfly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lengthy history of the disc jockey, tracing the evolution from radio and the concept of playing records in dance clubs (both of which enraged musician unions everywhere, claiming it would put them out of work) to the rise of disco, techno, house and superstar DJs. At 600 pages, it’s a bit of a slog, but the thesis of DJ as shaman leading celebratory dance rituals – along with the idea that DJs have done as much if not more than music artists to shape the evolution of music – is rather convincing, though it probably helps if yr a regular clubber or raver. Still, it’s worth reading to learn the real story of how disco evolved. Hint: there was so much more to it than the Village People and the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack.

[Cole Rich · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars This book is only for the nerdiest of music nerds. It is a tedious and lengthy read but taught me so much about music that I didn’t know. It is historically important from a music, drug, gay and racial history perspective. I listened on Audible but I think this is best read on paper with your phone or ipad next to you queueing up the songs cited on Youtube. This is not a book for young people given the adulation of drugs in the book by the author.

[Erica Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Underground cultures often get left out of history books, so I’m very glad that this book exists to document the underground dance floors of the last 100 years in such painstaking (perhaps excessive) detail. The interviews and micro-histories are fantastic. The prose and chapter organization, not so much. But if you can get through that (and the overwhelming maleness of the book, which the authors duly recognize) it’s a fascinating read!

[Jason Friedlander · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best single-edition book about DJ culture that I’ve read, and it’s hard to imagine another one topping it. It spans the history of DJing from marginalized early 20th century radio jockeys to the ultra-commercialized EDM superstars of the 2010s. It exhaustively goes through the revolutionary eras of disco and rave and most importantly does so in a very accessible manner. There are other books about these topics that go into deeper detail on certain aspects of the culture, but none (as far as I know) handle the breadth of this history as well as this. Great book and probably the best starter reading material about DJ culture and history. The only flaw I’d say is worth considering is that it has a focus on the U.S. and the UK and nearly nothing on scenes in different parts of the world. Still a fantastic read and I highly recommend it for everyone.

[Caden Mccann · Rating 4 out of 5]

A entertaining and well-researched history of DJing, ending with the onset of the new millennium. Reflecting my own tastes, I particularly liked the sections on the disco scene in New York, and the techno scene in Detroit. I would recommend this book for anyone with an interest in club music.

[Alex Becker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative, well written, and inspiring. Honestly just a really great and exciting book overall.

[Kasian Rwyczuk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This took a while, but with good reason (it's 552 pages). It is a complete and encyclopedic history of the DJ, from its beginnings on the radio and roots of Reggae, Disco, Northern Soul and Hip Hop, right through to the noughties. References to infamous clubs such as Paradise Garage and Loft and even more famous DJ's such as Larry Levan, Frankie Knuckles et.al make this a must read for anyone interested in the music and culture created by them. Long live the DJ.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a 3-star for historical and technical merit, but more of a 2 for personal enjoyment.

I love music books. The more niche, the better. I enjoy dance music and hip-hop. I also love reading about genres that I know next to nothing about. And I'll tell you what, out of hundreds of names and musical acts listed in this book, I bet I recognized about ten. I kept waiting to get to the David Guetta and Steve Aoki chapters, but this book is so niche that these superstars were mentioned once, maybe twice each. It was originally published before the new millennium, but it has been edited consistently, keeping up to date until about five or so years ago. I only had this one on my to-read list because one of my favorite podcasts, "You're Wrong About," cited it in their awesome episode on disco, sparking my interest in the untold history of the DJ.

However, I think this book is way too broad, long, and in love with itself to hold the attention of people who don't already know and worship the genre. It's a thick, dense read that is heavy on names, locations, track titles, and club histories, but spare on images and sensory details that could really emerge us in the time. It steers towards academia rather than entertainment, which is an odd choice, considering the subject matter. By the time I got past the section on US hip-hop, which was the most interesting, I started to skim a bit, realizing then that once I got interested in an era, the writers would move on to something else.

That's not to say this was a loss, even though it dragged. If you're looking for tracks to listen to, there's a great index of industry-chosen playlists at the end, so if you really want to immerse yourself, you can pop on your headphones and dive in. And I really liked how the authors went into the intersection of club and drug cultures and how the DJ was instrumental in that. Some of the parts of the whole were great, but mashed together in one huge book, they lost my interest quickly.

I see that I share a lot of issues I had with the book with other readers on here. I hated how non-linear it was--instead of going year by year, we jump back and forth in time to discuss different locations and sounds. I get that it took time for certain subgenres to reach all parts of the world, but it made things repetitive and difficult to follow. The authors also had clear biases on gender, class, race, and sexuality within DJ culture, barely giving lip service to anyone outside the box, even though they kept repeating flatly how the genre came from queer BIPOC from the very start.

I don't really know who this book is for. It assumes we already know quite a bit about the way the genres sound, so it isn't for total beginners. But dance music enthusiasts will probably be more interested in personal accounts rather than a history lesson. I guess if you love music books and want to check this off a list, you won't feel too jaded by the end.

[Keaton Witmer-Gautsch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wish I could rank it 3.5. It’s an amazing book for anyone interested in becoming a DJ or learning about the history of music that the DJ was born from.

[Bill Stepien]

I cherry-picked chapters around my musical tastes, so I can heartily recommend the parts on reggae and hip-hop. The authors admit that their treatment isn't comprehensive, but focused on their experiences and connections. Still, great stuff on the origins of DJing and the musical forms it spawned.

[Jay Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd give this 3 1/2 stars if that was offered. For me, the first 1/3 of the book was GREAT. The second 1/3 of the book was pretty good. And the last third felt rushed and bolted on. LOVED the photos and now I FINALLY feel like I could explain what 'Northern Soul' is to someone for the first time ever. Great playlist included in the back. Cheers!

[Johnpaul · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the other half. Read "The Oral History of Punk Rock by Legs Mc Neill" before during or after reading this book. The characters, music, moods and ideas all collide.

[Daniel Hood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Serves as a view on the evolution of subcultures as well a history on the music scenes within them.

[Will · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this over the course of two months, picking it up between books (esp. when waiting for a book to become available from the library) and then reading the last ~100 pages in the last few days of 2022. It's a long book--the edition I read totals ~560 pages--and, although it's been updated several times since its original publication in 1999--as recently as 2014--it still reads as somewhat dated in its latest chapters (in its presentation of streaming music).

Those qualms aside, I learned so much reading this book! Its breadth is exceptional--perhaps too much so. In addition to taking the reader through the early days of radio, to the early days of clubs and DJ-ing, to the rise of various genres (and subgenres) of the 1960s through 2000s, to the cultural context surrounding this progression, the authors also spend quite a lot of time describing, e.g., once-popular, long-closed clubs (and their resident DJs) that were integral to that history. I don't know that I needed to read everything in the book, although, in retrospect, I appreciate the attention to detail and the chronicling of places and people that made up the times.

What makes the book particularly readable despite its length is the sincere affection the authors have for their subject. The authors, quite simply, love the love and connection created between the DJ, the club-goers, and the music. They also have a particular affection for the warmth and welcoming to all of DJ club culture; this is especially showcased in the book's chapters on Northern Soul, Garage, House, and UK Acid House (the latter of which, I think the authors must have grown up experiencing). I particularly liked those chapters, for that reason.

The last 100 pages or so cover the rise of the superstar DJ and superclub. Here's where the authors' affection and warmth clearly wane. How can a DJ connect with a club of thousands of persons? Or when they're only playing a two-hour set, in one club on a tour (rather than a longer set as a resident DJ)? The authors spend ~450 pages lovingly describing the rise of the DJ--a rise fostered through people (often Black, gay) finding acceptance and connection in a society that otherwise doesn't accept them--only to see that rise seemingly subverted through corporate interests and mainstreaming. It's a sad ending (and the authors are careful to not frame it as an ending, but rather a moment/phase), but an incredibly interesting contrast to the earlier 80% of the book.

I haven't really read any other books on music, but--thinking about the genre now--I think it would ideally educate the reader on music and the culture/history surrounding it, and inspire the reader to actually seek out that music. This book did both of those things (I regularly searched songs/artists mentioned, if for no other reason than to better understand what the authors were talking about); I'm happy I read it.

[Jovaughn Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Last Night a DJ Saved My Life is a comprehensive history of DJing over the last century and how innovative techniques spawned new genres of music. It's also a testament to the artistic merit of DJing which is commonly despised by people who think that DJing is nothing more than playing one record after another, without any sort of musicianship or skill. DJing is, in fact, a momentous artistic force that has helped to define eras in musical culture.

This book goes well with other music history books like Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation by Jeff Chang, and Energy Flash: A Journey Through Rave Music and Dance Culture by Simon Reynolds. There is a deep overlap between all three of these books which I found very satisfying.

Unfortunately, the problem with all music history books is that the subject matter is based around an auditory experience, so it's frustrating not being able to hear the music that these books are referencing. Luckily there are places like YouTube now where you can go and hear a few examples here and there, but that can become time-consuming. Last Night a DJ Saved My Life would inundate me with so many facts about songs and people that it became dizzying. It would be nice if there were comprehensive multi-part video documentaries about this stuff so that people can simultaneously experience the music while learning about it. If you're reading this review and have any suggestions, please let me know.

As a "bedroom DJ" myself, I found Last Night a DJ Saved My Life to be super inspirational whenever I went to read it. It's full of lessons that inspired me to work on my craft more, and for the right reasons. I'd recommend this book to any aspiring DJ, especially those who sense a deeper meaning to the craft.

[Madeleine Hague · Rating 2 out of 5]

Blecccchhh! From the back cover: "this is the definitive story of DJing and how the DJ became the central force in the evolution of music, creating everything from hip hop, reggae and disco to house, jungle and garage." Well....to be honest, the only categories I like in the aforementioned are Garage (the Little Steven Van Zandt variety) and Reggae. I can't stand rap, hip hop, EDM, techno, house and the only DJ's I really know and like are the old guys from CHUM-AM in Toronto, then CHUM-FM, then CFNY in Toronto, and John Peel and Little Steven. (That is the old definition of DJ, I realise.) Apparently one of my cousins has hit the big-time in Texas as a DJ, but I doubt I could last 10 minutes in a club where he does his "magic". But, back to the book: the first four chapters were least palatable to me: 1) Beginnings - Radio: Make-Believe Ballroom, 2) Beginnings: Clubs - Night Train, 3) Northern Soul and 4) Reggae. Next, we get Disco, then everything (for me) falls apart at Hip Hop Roots and beyond. I remember watching Henry Rollins eviserate the cult of the DJ, and I really liked what he said. In a nutshell, he said today's DJ's just take other people's music, mash it up and spit it back out at you. How does that make you so fabulous? You didn't write the stuff! As Henry said, "You can take Sam Cooke's sweat" (and make something different and crappy and walk around like you're God with your briefcase full of records). I grew up on The Beatles, Kinks, Motown, Stax, The Band, Dylan and the Rolling Stones, so you know where I'm coming from. As for the gushing comments on the back cover: how can the DEE JAY be the "central force in the evolution of music" when they don't WRITE ANY MUSIC! Such a short-sighted comment, and a book I never could read all the way through.