This book proceeds from the assumption that music is always a social indicator; that is, it tells us something about the world around us. It responds to, mirrors, and influences the society in which we live. This comprehensive social history is organized chronologically around themes and issues which explicate the connection between music and other social processes. These include the multicultural influences in US popular music; the impact of technological advances; the significance of class, race, gender, ethnicity, and region; the importance of political context; and the power of consumer preferences.

Rockin' Out is necessarily encyclopedic; still, it balances information with analysis. The text begins with the invention of sound recording and the rise of Tin Pan Alley, and proceeds through discussions of blues, country, and rhythm and blues as historical background. As such, it provides students with significant discussions of the preconditions and formative influences of the music. Garofalo discusses rock and soul, punk and disco, rap and metal, and alternative music as well as all of the sub-genres and stylistic variants of these sounds. This is the only text that covers the total range of US popular music in the 20th century, locates them in their social context, and provides an interdisciplinary analysis of their significance.