The Smashing Pumpkins erupted out of the obscurity of the Chicago music scene with a raw and dissonant sound that encapsulated the dissatisfaction and disillusionment of late '80s youth. They were associated with the Seattle scene that produced Nirvana, Pearl Jam et al but their music transcended the grunge sound. After legitimising heavy metal with the acclaimed Siamese Dream album, the band's ever-metamorphosing vision and Billy Corgan's individual journey as writer and musician found an apogee in the massively ambitious US number one double Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness. Book jacket.

The Smashing Pumpkins were one of the most influential '90s alternative rock groups. This folio transcribes 19 of their best note for note: Bullet with Butterfly Wings * Cherub Rock * Disarm * Geek U.S.A. * I Am One * Landslide * 1979 * Quiet * Rhinoceros * Siva * Thirty-Three * Today * Tonite Tonite * and more.

In a time when rock might have taken itself a bit too seriously, a teenaged fan took up her pen and tore down the walls. With gentle, biting humor and an enormous quantity of love Kate Fuller brought her favorite band to life - flaws and all. Collected here for the first time in print, her comic remains an incisive commentary on the absurdity of fame and a bittersweet glimpse into a shared past. For anyone who enjoyed the Pumpkins at their height, Billy the Egomaniac is a must-read.

Taking its title with suitable slacker irony from a song on Nirvana's In Utero, Milk It! is an anthology of pieces written in the heat of the moment-an urgent and diverse overview that mirrors the chaotic rush of the postmodern sounds it covers. Headnotes and connective material-the "stories behind the stories"-provide running commentary on the music business, rock criticism, a troubled generation, and an attempt to put the fast-moving alternative-rock era in perspective from the safe distance of the comparatively bland new millennium. Compiled by a critic who shared the Generation X outlook, attitude, and biting sense of humor with the musicians that he covered-Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Smashing Pumpkins, Hole, and many others-Milk It! is the first serious attempt to chart the alternative music scene. Compelling, amusing, and provocative, Milk It! captures the excitement of an era, and reckons with its enduring influence.

Originally published in 1972, this retro-gem has been reissued do to popular demand by teachers, parents and the kids - now adults - who first read it... Two days before Halloween, the towns-folk of Cranbury awaken to find all their pumpkins have been smashed...

CMJ New Music Report is the primary source for exclusive charts of non-commercial and college radio airplay and independent and trend-forward retail sales. CMJ's trade publication, compiles playlists for college and non-commercial stations; often a prelude to larger success.