Karaoke : The Global Phenomenon, Paperback by Xun, Zhou; Tarocco, Francesca, ISBN 1861893000, ISBN-13 9781861893000, Like New Used, Free shipping in the US

Usually thought of as the pastime of desperately bad singers and slurring drunks, karaoke has never enjoyed a particularly stellar image. Xun and Tarocco, however, reveal its surprisingly complex history and significant cultural impact around the world. Originating in postwar Japan, karaoke soon spread to Southeast Asia and the West. Karaoke traces how it became a wildly successful social phenomenon that constantly evolved to keep pace with changes in technology and culture. Drawing on extensive research and international travels, the authors chart the varied manifestations of karaoke, from karaoke taxis in Bangkok to nude karaoke in North America to the role of karaoke in prostitution. Documenting the unpredictable fantasy world of Karaoke bars and the people who inhabit them, and showing how obsession with performance and song has touched politics, history and pop culture throughout global society, Karaoke will delight anyone who has had the courage to take the mike and front the 'empty orchestra.'