Music/Life/Radio Interview with Robert G. Pielke

Interviewer - Dan Sauter: "Pielke talks about his book which investigates rock music from a philosophical perspective. We discuss several of the concepts he uses in this book as well as his science fiction trilogy [A New Birth of Freedom]. (1 hr)

Oakland, CA (I-Newswire) June 18, 2012 - **************************************

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Robert Pielke, author of Rock Music in American Culture: the Sounds of a Revolution, talks about his book which investigates rock music from a philosophical perspective. We discuss several of the concepts used in the book, including how a cultural revolution succeeds, and examine two prominent symbols of the revolution: Elvis as the negation of the traditional values of the 50’s, and the Beatles which affirm the new social changes of the 60’s.

Pielke talks about the ultimate values embodied in this cultural revolution (Freedom and Individuality primarily) and what is necessary for a cultural revolution to succeed. Along the way, he maintains that this is essentially a "conservative" revolution -- in the philosophically legitimate meaning of the term. His article on this topic, "Political typologies: A Suggested Clarification," was published in Reason Papers #9.

Some of the prominent thinkers include Rudolph Otto and Mircea Eliade (both have written phenomenological studies of religion; Paul Tillich (a major contemporary theologian and the theory of symbolism); Marshall McLuhan (media studies) and Herbert Marcuse (cultural revolutions).

He also discusses why he (and many others) think that the real cause of the demise of the Soviet Union was rock and roll -- and not President Reagan's clarion call: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"

We also talk to Bob about his love of rock music, which spans early folk to modern metal, discuss some of his favorite new artists, and talk about his other books including his new science-fiction, alternative history, time travel, double first contact trilogy called A New Birth of Freedom. The Visitor has already been published by Alternate Dimensions Press. The Translator and The Historian will be published by Whiskey Creek Press.

Bob is a retired professor of philosophy and the author of numerous scholarly articles and books. He is originally from Baltimore and now lives in Claremont, California. [Does he sound like Dr. Demento to you, too?]

Pielke's website

Pielke's FaceBook site

Daniel Sauter – Host and Executive Producer – musician, IT professional, recording engineer, and geek-of-all-trades. His resume includes the bands American Diatribe, Visitor 42, Gunpowder, Greg Volker & Deer Crossing, Lower Sound, and Illegal Action.