Wondrous ... He writes thoughtfully and insightfully about the artists and what it is about their material that taps into gay themes and culture ... A bodacious, playfully addictive history for music lovers one and all, no matter their gender or orientation.
Meticulously researched and entertainingly written ... Walters has written a wide-ranging, somewhat idiosyncratic—but thoroughly readable—slice of Americana that is absolutely not to be missed by pop culture mavens, LGBTQ+ readers, or anyone who wants to know how the music business finally came out of the closet.
In his massively instructive, entertaining, and insightful tome, the veteran journalist offers a much-needed corrective on how the queer canon of artists has been framed—and, in certain cases, denigrated—by the industry, politicians, the public, and critics (whose dismissive and sometimes homophobic reviews are quoted liberally—tea). Mighty Real is not a polemic, but the book’s dedication to depicting LGBTQ and allied musicians through the lens of queer history is exhilarating, an underline on the new ways even the most-written-about pop icons can be thought about even now.
Read Mighty Real by Barry Walters, and see if your toes don’t tap ... This is a hefty book, but the chapters are browse-able and generally short enough to read in under five minutes. It’s nostalgic, yet also serious in the history it presents. This is the kind of book you want to leave near your album collection, or wherever you get your tunes.
With exuberance, insight, and encyclopedic knowledge, Walters brings to life the songs and society that filled dancefloors, bedrooms, and streets as he uncovers yesteryear’s coded LGBTQ messages that paved the way for today’s unabashedly queer hits. Mighty Real is a masterful love letter to the music that liberated generations.
A comprehensive journey ... Uplifting, endlessly entertaining, and informative, the anthology honors decades of influential music-makers ... A knowledgeable, high-spirited tribute to queer music through the ages.
An ebullient love letter to LGBTQ+ and 'gay friendly' musicians ... Walters evocatively draws out how LGBTQ+ musicians battled oppression in their work even as they navigated a record industry that sought to silence sexual nonconformity while profiting off styles gay musicians made fashionable. It adds up to an impressive and expansive celebration of a rich chapter of music history.
