Peak music experiences are a recurring feature of popular music journalism, biography and fan culture, where they are often credited as pivotal in people's relationships with music and in their lives more generally. Ben Green investigates the phenomenon from a social and cultural perspective, including discussions of peak music experiences as sources of inspiration and influence; as a core motivation for ongoing musical and social activity; the significance of live music experiences; and the key role of peak music experiences in defining and perpetuating music scenes. The book draws from both global media analysis and situated ethnographic research in the dance, hip hop, indie and rock 'n' roll music scenes of Brisbane, Australia, including participant observation and in-depth interviews. These case studies demonstrate the methodological value of peak music experiences as a lens through which to understand individual and collective musical life. The theoretical analysis is interwoven with selected interview data, illuminating the profound and everyday ways that music informs people's lives. The book will therefore be of interest to the interdisciplinary field of popular music studies as well as sociology and cultural studies beyond the study of music.

Peak music experiences are a recurring feature of popular music journalism, biography and fan culture, where they are often credited as pivotal in people’s relationships with music and in their lives more generally. Ben Green investigates the phenomenon from a social and cultural perspective, including discussions of peak music experiences as sources of inspiration and influence; as a core motivation for ongoing musical and social activity; the significance of live music experiences; and the key role of peak music experiences in defining and perpetuating music scenes. The book draws from both global media analysis and situated ethnographic research in the dance, hip hop, indie and rock ‘n’ roll music scenes of Brisbane, Australia, including participant observation and in-depth interviews. These case studies demonstrate the methodological value of peak music experiences as a lens through which to understand individual and collective musical life. The theoretical analysis is interwoven with selected interview data, illuminating the profound and everyday ways that music informs people’s lives. The book will therefore be of interest to the interdisciplinary field of popular music studies as well as sociology and cultural studies beyond the study of music.

This book examines regional and rural popular music scenes in Europe, Asia, North America and Australia. The book is divided into four parts.  Part 1 will focus on the spatial aspects of regional popular music scenes and how place and locality inform the perceptions and discourses of those involved in such scenes.  Part 2 focuses on the technologies and forms of distribution whereby regional and rural popular music scenes exist and, in many cases co-exist in forms of trans-local connection with other scenes.  Part 3 considers the importance of collective memory in the way that regional and rural popular music scenes are constructed in both the past and the present.  Part 4 examines themes of industry and policy, in relation to culture and music, as these impact on the nature and identity of rural and regional popular music scenes.

Why technology is not an end in itself, and how cities can be "smart enough," using technology to promote democracy and equity. Smart cities, where technology is used to solve every problem, are hailed as futuristic urban utopias. We are promised that apps, algorithms, and artificial intelligence will relieve congestion, restore democracy, prevent crime, and improve public services. In The Smart Enough City, Ben Green warns against seeing the city only through the lens of technology; taking an exclusively technical view of urban life will lead to cities that appear smart but under the surface are rife with injustice and inequality. He proposes instead that cities strive to be "smart enough": to embrace technology as a powerful tool when used in conjunction with other forms of social change-but not to value technology as an end in itself. In a technology-centric smart city, self-driving cars have the run of downtown and force out pedestrians, civic engagement is limited to requesting services through an app, police use algorithms to justify and perpetuate racist practices, and governments and private companies surveil public space to control behavior. Green describes smart city efforts gone wrong but also smart enough alternatives, attainable with the help of technology but not reducible to technology: a livable city, a democratic city, a just city, a responsible city, and an innovative city. By recognizing the complexity of urban life rather than merely seeing the city as something to optimize, these Smart Enough Cities successfully incorporate technology into a holistic vision of justice and equity.

Before Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Julius Erving, or Michael Jordan--before Magic Johnson and Showtime--the Harlem Globetrotters revolutionized basketball and spread the game around the world. In Spinning the Globe, author Ben Green tells the story of this extraordinary franchise and iconic American institution. We follow the Globetrotters' rise from backwoods obscurity during the harsh years of the Great Depression to become the best basketball team in the country and, by the early 1950s, the most popular sports franchise in the world. Green brings to life their struggles with racism and segregation, and their influence upon a nation's views about race and sport. We witness the Globetrotters' fall from grace to the brink of bankruptcy in the early 1990s, and their ultimate rebirth under Mannie Jackson today, as they once again amaze kids and families around the world. Now in paperback, this is the true and complete story of their amazing eighty years as a team, told with lyrical prose and masterful storytelling by Ben Green.

BE YOUR BEST You can be vegan and still perform at the top of your ability--run your fastest, lift your max, cross the finish line first. Combining dietary know-how with exercise physiology and a full workout program, this book details everything the vegan athlete needs to maintain energy and build muscle, including: *day-by-day meal plans *protein intake recommendations *the best calorie-rich foods *optimal fitness techniques *delicious meat-free, dairy-free recipes The Vegan Athlete shows how a diet of natural plant proteins, essential amino acids and carefully balanced vitamins provides more than enough nutrition to fuel a lean, strong body. Thanks to this book, you can follow a full-body program for getting and staying in shape that is truly cruelty-free.