Peter Shapiro (journalist)

For other people with the same name, see Peter Shapiro (disambiguation).

Peter Shapiro (born 1969) is an American lawyer and music journalist. He wrote several reference works on music genres including Disco and Hip-hop, before moving into practice focusing on media law.

Peter Shapiro
Born	1969 (age 54–55)
Nationality	USA
Education	B.A., M.A
Alma mater	University of Michigan, University of Sussex
Occupation(s)	Lawyer, music journalist
Notable work	Turn the Beat Around: The Secret History of Disco, Modulations: A History of Electronic Music

Biography

Shapiro has written for Spin, URB, Music Week, Uncut, Vibe, The Wire and The Times.^[1][2] He has written a number of Rough Guide reference works focused on music genres. These include The Rough Guide to Drum N' Bass in 1999 and The Rough Guide to Soul and R 'n' B, which was published in 2006. His 2005 book, The Rough Guide to Hip-Hop, has been cited as an "important" reference source on the subject, with entries that are "comprehensive and commendable".^[3][4][5][6]

After a decade in music journalism Shapiro moved into law. As of 2024 he specializes in media law and intellectual property, working for the BakerHostetler law firm.^[7]

Turn the Beat Around: The Secret History of Disco

In 2005 Shapiro authored the book Turn the Beat Around: The Secret History of Disco which charted the history of the Disco genre including from the Swingjugend of Nazi Germany and the Zazous of France, to how the repetitive beats "opened the doors to techno, house and hip-hop". It received positive critical reception, which included a review in The Observer that highlighted how the book rehabilitates the "dinosaur" that is Disco, and Gary Lachman of The Guardian stated he "put down the book knowing a great deal more about disco than I ever wanted to".^[1]

Bibliography

• Shapiro, Peter (1999). The Rough Guide to Drum N' Bass. London: Rough Guides. ISBN 9781858284330.^[3]
• Shapiro, Peter, ed. (2000). Modulations: A History of Electronic Music Throbbing Words on Sound. Caipirinha Productions. p. 255. ISBN 9781891024061.^[8][9]
• Shapiro, Peter (2000). Soul 100 Essential CDs : the Rough Guide. Rough Guides. ISBN 9781858285627.
• Shapiro, Peter; Authors, Individual (2002). Young, Rob (ed.). Undercurrents The Hidden Wiring of Modern Music. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9781441109934.^[10]
• Shapiro, Peter; Kennedy, Angus (2002). The Rough Guide Website Directory. Rough Guides. ISBN 9781843530114.
• Shapiro, Peter (2005). The Rough Guide to Hip-Hop. London: Rough Guides. p. 416. ISBN 1-84353-263-8.^[5][6][11]
• Shapiro, Peter (2005). Turn the Beat Around: The Secret History of Disco. Faber & Faber. p. 368. ISBN 9780571359820.^[1]
• Shapiro, Peter (2006). The Rough Guide to Soul and R 'n' B. Rough Guides. ISBN 9781843532644.^[4]

References

1. Reviews of Turn the Beat Around:

   • Moyer, Matthew (15 April 2005). "Turn the Beat Around: The Secret History of Disco". Library Journal. 130 (7): 89. ProQuest 196856145. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
   • Woodcraft, Molloy (14 August 2005). "When mirrorballs ruled". The Observer. Archived from the original on 14 November 2005. Retrieved 25 May 2024. Disco is dead? Not in Turn the Beat Around, Peter Shapiro's exhilarating and informative rehabilitation of the dancing dinosaur, says Molloy Woodcraft
   • Thompson, Ben (31 July 2005). "Turn the Beat Around by Peter Shapiro". The Independent. Archived from the original on 23 October 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
   • Lachman, Gary (11 June 2005). "Disco infernal". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 October 2015. Retrieved 25 May 2024. Peter Shapiro and Dave Haslam take Gary Lachman back to the 70s with Turn the Beat Around and This Is Not Abba
   • "Book Smarts: We Pick Our Favourite Dance / Electronic Music Books - Attack Magazine". Attack Magazine. 22 April 2020. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
   • Shanklin, Phil (11 October 2018). "Turn The Beat Around – Peter Shapiro (2005) – A Real Life Review". reviewsrevues. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
   • Sandall, Robert (17 July 2005). "Music: Turn the Beat Around by Peter Shapiro". The Times. Archived from the original on 27 November 2021. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
2. "Peter Shapiro - The Wire". The Wire. Archived from the original on 16 April 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
3. Paoletta, Michael (1999). "Rough guides explores Dancefloor rhythms & artists". Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 44. ProQuest 227141902. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024. Shapiro's enclyclopedic guide encompasses jungle, hardcore techno, big beat, and trip-hop. Like Bidder's book, Shapiro's offers selective historical insight (A Guy Called Gerald and Alex Reece, for instance), as well as (almost) up-to-the-minute snippets on today's artists like Air, DJ Rap, and Thievery Corporation
4. Shanklin, Phil (30 May 2020). "The Rough Guide To Soul And R&B – Peter Shapiro (2006) – A Real Lives Review". reviewrevues. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
5. Leach, Andrew (September 2008). ""ONE DAY IT'LL ALL MAKE SENSE": HIP-HOP AND RAP RESOURCES FOR MUSIC LIBRARIANS". Music Library Association. 65 (1): 9–37. ProQuest 196722463. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024. Another two important reference sources that provide biographical information are the All Music Guide to Hip Hop, edited by Vladamir Bog danov, and Peter Shapiro's The Rough Guide to Hip-Hop. Although the books are similarly arranged, the biographical sketches in The Rough Guide to Hip-Hop are a bit more thorough
6. PieKarski, Bill (2004). "THE RAP ON HIP-HOP". Library Journal. 129 (12): 47–50. ProQuest 196758150. Archived from the original on 9 June 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024. This pocket-sized encyclopedia includes 150-plus entries, predominantly biographical. Black-and-white portraits are generous and well selected, and the choice of entries is comprehensive and commendable
7. "Professionals - Peter B. Shapiro BakerHostetler". BakerHostetler. Archived from the original on 5 December 2023. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
8. The Oxford Handbook of Computer Music - Page 352 0195331613 R. T. Dean - 2009 - Shapiro, P., ed. 2000. Modulations. A History of Electronic Music: Throbbing Words on Sound. New York: Caipirinha
9. Dadas, Caroline (1 February 2001). "Modulations: A History of Electronic Music; Throbbing Words on Sound". Library Journal. 126 (2): 97. Archived from the original on 9 June 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
10. Battaglia, Andy (26 February 2003). "Rob Young, Editor: Undercurrents: The Hidden Wiring Of Modern Music". AV Club. Archived from the original on 8 June 2024. Retrieved 8 June 2024. In a pair of rich essays on the robotics of rhythm, Peter Shapiro and Biba Kopf chart a searching line from New Orleans marching bands to James Brown to Kraftwerk, mixing the militaristic traces of brass bands with the post-War hauntings of Germany's Autobahn.
11. Kwaku (2001). "Words & deeds". Billboard. Vol. 113, no. 31. p. 26. ProQuest 227148082. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024. However, if you're more interested in something that covers today's key players, then Peter Shapiro's handy, pocket-sized The Rough Guide to Hip-Hop (Rough Guide/Penguin, roughguides.com) fits the bill.

External links

• Peter Shapiro on the 'roots' of Euro-Disco
• "The secret History of Disco Featuring Peter Shapiro" on YouTube