'Smithsonian Rock and Roll,' A People's History of Rock, Out October 24 On Smithsonian Books

"If rock and roll were a planet, Bill Bentley would be the head astronaut and 'Smithsonian Rock and Roll' would be the operator's manual." -- Wayne Coyne, Flaming Lips

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - August 29th, 2017 - In December 2015, the Smithsonian called on rock and roll lovers around the world to collect photos and stories of their favorite moments in music. Fans dug through attics, basements, closets, shoeboxes, digital cameras, and photo albums to upload great rock shots to rockandroll.si.edu. From Woodstock to the Whisky a Go Go, from Lollapalooza to the 9:30 Club, and all the rockin' places in between, fans overwhelmingly responded with their favorite rock and roll moments.

The result is Smithsonian Rock and Roll, a gorgeous coffee-table book of mostly crowd-sourced rock and roll photography, showcasing unseen photographs from fans and music industry insiders. Out October 24th via Smithsonian Books, the book features photos of over some of rock's most iconic artists -- including the likes of Aretha Franklin, Chuck Berry, The Who, Rolling Stones, and Metallica -- along with accompanying write-ups from music industry veteran Bill Bentley.

Check out a gallery of exclusive images over at Billboard, alongside an interview with Bentley:http://bit.ly/2wQpw3t

In total, the book features 142 artists spanning more than six decades of music history. Presented together, these photographs create a kaleidoscopic history of the music, the concerts, and the fans. Smithsonian Rock and Roll is the perfect book for music lovers who want to see their favorite artists in new ways, both onstage and behind the scenes.

Bill Bentley is a musical Zelig who has spent over four decades in the industry, most recently as A&R Director at Concord Music Group and Vice President of Warner Bros. Records. He has been a drummer, record store clerk, DJ, concert promoter, music producer, and record label publicist. Through it all he's also been a writer, and in 2007 he was given the ASCAP Deems Taylor award.

Rock Legends on Bill Bentley and 'Smithsonian Rock and Roll':

"Bill Bentley is a music mensch." - Lou Reed

"Within minutes of meeting Bill for the first time back in the early '80s, we found ourselves talking about Joe Tex's 'The Love You Save' and Roky Erickson's 'Don't Slander Me' in the same paragraph. I knew right there and then that he'd always be a voice to which I would attend." - Elvis Costello

"For the better part of five decades, Bill Bentley and I have been listening to the music of the spheres together, and these visuals are a thrilling roadmap to where we've been and, one hopes, where we're going." - Billy F Gibbons, ZZ Top