DAVID HAJDU'S NEW E-BOOK bears a weighty, Tocquevillian subtitle — Pop Music in America — in line with its aims however out of step with its tone. Now, the reason this occurred — or not less than the reason we've decided to simply accept —…

Unless you are a devoted listener of Top 40 pop music, you've most likely discovered yourself at one level or another complaining about the present state of mainstream music and the way it's too simplistic and unoriginal. Working example: …