ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

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Browse ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists:

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2026 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

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BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED POPULAR MUSIC

• Victoria Allen, "B-Side: Recollection in post-industrial indie pop" in Industrial memory in North East England: Negotiating Northernness (University of Manchester Press)
• Mike Alleyne, Black British Music in America, 1967–2000: Atlantic Crossover (Routledge)
• Keith Cameron, 168 Songs of Hatred and Failure: The Music of the Manic Street Preachers (Hachette Mobius)
• Ted Kessler and Hamish McBain, A Sound So Very Loud: The Inside Story of Every Song Oasis Recorded (Pegasus Books)
• Bruce H. Klauber and Andrea Kauffman, Let Me Be Frank: The Extraordinary Life and Music of Frank Sinatra Jr. (University Press of Mississippi)
• Simon Raymonde, In One Ear: Cocteau Twins, Ivor, and Me (Nine Eight Books)
• Lionel Richie, Truly: An Inspirational Journey Through the Life of a Musical Legend (Harper One)
• John Robb, Live Forever: The Rise, Fall and Resurrection of Oasis (Harper North)
• Damien Somville and Marie Benoit, Taylor Swift: The Story Behind Every Track (Black Dog & Leventhal)
• Jaime Taylor, Studio Electrophonique: The Sheffield Space Age, from The Human League to Pulp (Manchester University Press)
• Ian Wade, 1984: The Year Pop Went Queer (Nine Eight Books)

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED ROCK MUSIC

• Pat Blashill, Someday All the Adults Will Die!: The Birth of Texas Punk (University of Texas Press)
• Helen Chase, Magazine the Band: A Biography: 1978–2025 (McNidder and Grace)
• Audrey Golden, Shouting Out Loud: Lives of the Raincoats (Orion/White Rabbit)
• Jonathan Gould, Burning Down the House: Talking Heads and the New York Scene That Transformed Rock – The Definitive Band Biography of the 1970s Avant-Garde (Mariner Books)
• Steve Harris and Bruce Dickinson, Iron Maiden: Infinite Dream — The Official Visual History (Thames & Hudson)
• Alan Light, Don't Stop: Why We (Still) Love Fleetwood Mac's Rumours (Atria Books)
• Mary Lucia, What Doesn't Kill Me Makes Me Weirder and Harder to Relate To: A Memoir (University of Minnesota Press)
• Paul McCartney, Wings: The Story of the Band on the Run (Liveright)
• Ozzy Osbourne with Chris Ayres, Last Rites (Grand Central Publishing)
• Greg Prato, Alternative for the Masses: The '90s Alt-Rock Revolution: An Oral History (Motorbooks)
• Ron Rosenbaum, Bob Dylan: Things Have Changed (Melville House)
• Joe Shooman, Iron Maiden: Fifty Years of the Beast (Michael O’Mara Books)
• Griffin Woodworth, Prince, Musical Genre and the Construction of Identity (University of Michigan Press)

BEST HISTORICA RESEARCH IN RECORDED CLASSICAL MUSIC

• Walter Aaron Clark and Pepe Romero, Pepe Romero (University of Rochester Press)
• Tim Grieving, John Williams: A Composer's Life (Oxford University Press)
• Nigel Simeone, Edward Elgar and Adrian Boult (Boydell Press)
• Ingeborg Solbrekken, The Voice of the Century: Kirsten Flagstad (Indiana University Press)

BEST HISTORICA RESEARCH IN RECORDED JAZZ

• Vilde Aaslid, "Spontaneous Composition and Charles Mingus's 'Scenes in the City,” Open Access Musicology 3 (2025): 33-56
• Matthew Reed Baker, 1970s Jazz Fusion (Bloomsbury Academic)
• Steven C. Bowie, Concerto for Cootie: The Life and Times of Cootie Williams (University Press of Mississippi)
• Luca Bragalini, Duke Ellington's Symphonic Visions (University Press of Mississippi)
• Con Chapman, Sax Expat: Don Byas (University Press of Mississippi)
• Kwame Coleman, Change: The New Thing and Modern Jazz (Oxford University Press)
• Courtney M. Nero, Have Horn, Will Travel: The Life and Music of Herman “Junior” Cook (University of North Texas Press)
• Luis F. Paredes, "Casting Spells with Melody: The Ascension of Yma Sumac to the Throne of Exotica in the 1950s" in Constructed Latinx(s) Identities: Racialized Bodies in Visual and Textual Culture (Amherst University Press)
• Emma Wimberg, "Stride Organology: Fats Waller's Victor Pipe Organ Recordings, 1926-1928,” Journal of the Society for American Music 19/2: 128-146

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED COUNTRY, FOLK, WORLD, OR ROOTS MUSIC

• Jacqueline Cogdell DjeDje, Fiddling Is My Joy: The Fiddle in African American Culture (University Press of Mississippi)
• Chris Goertzen, Eck Robertson at the Crossroads of American Fiddling (University Press of Mississippi)
• Lydia Hamessley, Dolly Parton (Oxford University Press)
• Eddie Huffman, Doc Watson: A Life in Music (University of North Carolina Press)
• John Minton, Folk Music and Song in the WPA Ex-Slave Narratives (University Press of Mississippi)
• Ted Olson and Matteo Ringressi, The Rich-R-Tone/Folk Star Story: Appalachia On Record, 1946–1954 (Bear Family Records)
• Claudio Palomares-Salas, Mexican Canto Nuevo: Music, Politics and Resistance (Oxford University Press)
• Tamara Saviano, Poets and Dreamers: My Life in Americana Music (Texas A&M University Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED BLUES, GOSPEL, HIP HOP, FUNK SOUL OR WORLD MUSIC

• Lynn Abbott and Doug Seroff, Stand the Storm: Spiritual Quartet Singing in the Struggle for Black Education (University Press of Mississippi)
• Arthur Baker, Looking for the Perfect Beat: Remixing and Reshaping Hip-Hop, Rock and Rhythms (Faber & Faber)
• Rob Bowman, Land of a Thousand Sessions: The Complete Muscle Shoals Story 1951–1985 (Malaco Records)
• Jibola Fagbamiye and Conor McCreery, Fela: Music is the Weapon (Amistad Books)
• Charlotte Grabli, "The Musical Afterlives of the Kongo Kingdom: Music and Power Between Cuba and Central Africa in the Twentieth Century" in Textures of Power: Central Africa in the Long Twentieth Century (Leuven University Press)
• Steven Cushing, Blues Before Sunrise 3: Guitar Slingers and Backbeaters (University of Illinois Press)
• Alejandro Madrid, “Listening through the Colonial Noise: Things, Sound Objects, and Legacy at the Berliner Phonogramm-Archiv’s Konrad T. Preuss Collection,” Journal of the American Musicological Society 78/1 (Spring 2025):
• Seth Neblett, Mothership Connected: The Women of Parliament-Funkadelic (University of Texas Press)
• Qian Zhang, "Adaptation and optimization across Audiovisual Platforms: Hot Song Production in the Chinese Music Industry,” Popular Music 44/1: 8-22

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH ON RECORD LABELS OR GENERAL RECORDING TOPICS

• Emilia Barna, Working in Music on the Semiperiphery: Local Cultural Production and Global Capitalism (Central European Press)
• Samantha Bennett, Gear: Cultures of Music and Audio Technologies (MIT Press)
• Michael Kinnear, Pathé Frères – To Conquer the World with Sound (Bajarana)
• Andrew Leyshon and Allan Watson, The Rise of Platform Music Industries (Agenda Publishing)
• Alexander Newman, Greensleeves: The First 100 Covers (OneLove Books)
• Martin Porter and David Goggin, Buzz Me In: Inside the Record Plant Studios (Thames & Hudson)
• John Stropes, Leo Kottke/6- and 12-String Guitar: A Companion (Stropes Edition Ltd.)

2025 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

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BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED POPULAR MUSIC

• Paul Burgess and Louise Colbourn, Hardcore: The Cinematic World of Pulp (Thames & Hudson)     
• Patrick Clarke, Bedsit Land: The Strange Worlds of Soft Cell (University of Manchester Press)     
• Cary Ginell, Watch Your Frazolagy! The Lexicon of Meredith Wilson's “The Music Man” (independently published)      
• Stephen Koch, illustrated by Katherine Strause, From Almeda to Zilphia: Arkansas Women Who Transformed American Popular Song (Et Alia Press)
• Ellis Nassour, Jesus Christ Superstar: Behind the Scenes of the Worldwide Musical Phenomenon (Applause)
• Pat O’Grady, Bee Gees, Process and Latent Elements in Music Production (Ashgate)
• Thomas Z. Shepard and Gayden Wren, Recording Broadway: Life in Cast Albums (Applause)     
• Gordon Ross Thompson, Sixties British Pop: Outside In Volume 1: Downtown, 1956-1965 (Oxford University Press)
• Gordon Ross Thompson, Sixties British Pop: Outside In Volume 2: Itchycoo Park, 1964-1970 (Oxford University Press)
• Kevin Winkler, Bette Midler: An Opinionated Guide (Oxford University Press)   

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED ROCK MUSIC

• Peter Checksfield, Cliff Richard: The Shadows Years: Every Song from Every Session 1958-1968 (independently published)
• Frank Decaro, Disco: Music, Movies and Mayhem Under the Disco Ball (Rizzoli)
• David Hamilton Golland, Livin' Just to Find Emotion: Journey and the Story of American Rock (Rowman & Littlefield)
• Tara López, Chuco Punk: Sonic Insurgency in El Paso (University of Texas Press)           
• Douglas K. Miller, Washita Love Child: The Rise of Indigenous Rock Star Jesse Ed Davis (Liveright)       
• David Toop, Two Headed Doctor: Listening for Ghosts in Dr. John's “Gris-Gris” (MIT Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED CLASSICAL MUSIC

• Amy C. Beal, Terrible Freedom: The Life and Work of Lucia Dlugoszewski (University of California Press)
• Richard Beaudoin, Sounds as They Are: The Unwritten Music in Classical Recordings (Oxford University Press
• Gwynne Kuhner Brown, William L. Dawson (University of Illinois Press)
• Christina Guillaumier, Sergei Prokofiev (Reaktion Books)
• Howard Hanson, A Romantic Symphony: The Autobiography of Howard Hanson, ed. Vincent A. Lenti (University of Rochester Press)
• Mark Jones, British Bell Records on Shellac & Vinyl: Church Bells, Tower Bells, Carillons & Handbells (Bristol Folk Publications)
• Robert Sholl, Olivier Messiaen: A Critical Biography (Reaktion Books)
• Ute Stoecklin, trans Chris Walton, Meinrad Schütter, Maverick Swiss Composer (Toccata Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED JAZZ

• Paul Alexander, Bitter Crop: The Heartache and Triumph of Billie Holiday's Last Year (Canongate)      
• Carlos Garnett with Jaime J. Ortiz, Mango Tree Musician: The Carlos Garnett Autobiography (McFarland & Co.)   
• Jonathon Grasse, Jazz Revolutionary: The Life & Music of Eric Dolphy (Jawbone)
• Ádám Havas, Bruce Johnson and David Horn, eds., The Routledge Companion to Diasporic Jazz Studies (Routledge)  
• Aaron J. Johnson, Jazz Radio America (University of Illinois Press)
• James Kaplan, 3 Shades of Blue: Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, and the Lost Empire of Cool (Penguin)
• Yvetta Kajanová, Ubuntu Fusion Music (Jazz under State Socialism) (Peter Lang)
• Richard Morton, Labyrinth: British Jazz on Record 1960-75 (Landsdowne)          
• Darren Mueller, At the Vanguard of Vinyl: A Cultural History of the Long-Playing Record in Jazz (Duke University Press)
• Ricky Riccardi, Liner notes to Centennial: King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band (Archeophone)
• W. Anthony Sheppard, ed., Beyond the Bandstand: Paul Whiteman in American Musical Culture (University of Illinois Press)          
• Bob Suren, Weird Music That Goes on Forever: A Punk's Guide to Loving Jazz (Microcosm)
• Kyla Titus and Chica Boswell Minnerly, The Boswell Legacy 2nd Edition: The Story of the Boswell Sisters of New Orleans and the New Music They Gave to the World (independently published)     
• Fumi Tomita, Early Jazz: A Concise Introduction, from Its Beginnings through 1929 (State University of New York Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED COUNTRY, FOLK, WORLD, OR ROOTS MUSIC

• Simon Benoît, Damien Somville and Lalie Walker, Dolly Parton All the Songs: The Stories Behind Every Track (Black Dog & Leventhal)
• David Browne, ‘Talkin’ Greenwich Village: The Heady Rise and Slow Fall of America’s Bohemian Music Capital (Hachette)       
• Catherine Hiebert Kerst, California Gold: Sidney Robertson and the WPA California Folk Music Project     (University of California Press)                                
• Lee Jaffe, Hit Me with Music: Roots, Rock, Reggae (Rizzoli)         
• David Junk with Fred Bronson, Rockin' the Kremlin: My Incredible True Story of Gangsters, Oligarchs and Pop Stars in Putin's Russia (Rowman & Littlefield)     
• Sheryl Kaskowitz, A Chance to Harmonize:  How FDR’s Hidden Music Unit Sought to Save America from the Great Depression—One Song at a Time (Pegasus Books)           
• David Katz, Solid Foundation: An Oral History of Reggae (White Rabbit Press)
• John Masouri, Pressure Drop: Reggae in the Seventies (Omnibus Press)   
• Alice Randall, My Black Country: A Journey through Country Music’s Black Past, Present, and Future (Atria/Black Privilege Publishing)       
• Craig Smith, I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night: The History of a Classic American Labor Song (McFarland & Co.)        

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED BLUES, R&B, GOSPEL, HIP HOP, FUNK OR SOUL MUSIC

• The Blind Boys of Alabama with Preston Lauterbach, Spirit of the Century: Our Own Story (Hachette)
• Todd Boyd, Rapper's Deluxe: How Hip Hop Made the World (Phaidon Press)      
• Steven Gamble, Digital Flows: Online Hip Hop Music and Culture (Oxford University Press)       
• Marguerite L. Harrold, Chicago House Music: Culture and Community (Belt Publishing)
• David W. Johnson, The Life and Music of Booker "Bukka" White: Recalling the Blues (University Press of Mississippi)      
• Matthew D. Morrison, Blacksound: Making Race and Popular Music in the United States (University of California Press)          
• Staci Robinson, Tupak Shakur: The Authorized Biography (Crown)           
• Dawn Silva, The Funk Queen: An Autobiography (New Rising Publishing)           
• Elijah Wald, Jelly Roll Blues: Censored Songs and Hidden Histories (Hachette)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH ON RECORD LABELS OR GENERAL RECORDING TOPICS

• Janet Borgerson and Jonathan Schroeder, Designed for Success: Better Living and Self-Improvement with Midcentury Instructional Records (MIT Press)
• Jeremy Braddock, Firesign: The Electromagnetic History of Everything as Told on Nine Comedy Albums (University of California Press)        
• Rob Drew, Unspooled: How the Cassette Made Music Shareable (Duke University Press) 
• Greg Ehrbar, Hanna-Barbera, The Recorded History: From Modern Stone Age to Meddling Kids (University Press of Mississippi)     
• Alison Fenstock, ed., How Women Made Music: A Revolutionary History from NPR Music (HarperOne)
• Anette Hoffmann, Knowing by Ear: Listening to Voice Recordings with African Prisoners of War in German Camps (1915–1918)    (Duke University Press)        
• Glen McDonald, You Have Not Heard Your Favourite Song: How Streaming Changes Music (Canbury Press)          
• Marisol Negrón, Fania Records, Latin Music, and Salsa’s Nuyorican Meanings (Duke University Press)        
• Liz Pelly, Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Cost of the Perfect Playlist            (One Signal Publishers)         
• George Plasketes, Chicagoland at 45 rpm: The Mid-60s Midwest Music Mecca (McFarland & Co.)
• Brian F. Right, The Bastard Instrument: A Cultural History of the Electric Bass (University of Michigan Press)
• Guido van Rijn and Max Vreede, Paramount 12000/13000 Series, updated and expanded edition (Agram Books        )
• Gavin Williams, Format Friction: Perspectives on the Shellac Disc (University of Chicago Press)
• Fumitaka Yamauchi and Ying-fen Wang, eds, Phonographic Modernity: The Gramophone Industry and Music Genres in East and Southeast Asia (University of Illinois Press) 
• Burcu Yıldız, “Transcultural Memory in the Study of Folk Music in Turkey: 78-rpm Records of the Ottoman American Diaspora,” The World of Music, Vol. 13, No. 1: 123-166.          

2024 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

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BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED POPULAR MUSIC

• Stephen Bruel, Remastering Music and Cultural Heritage: Case Studies from Iconic Original Recordings to Modern Remasters (Focal Press)
• Laura Flam and Emily Sieu Liebowitz, But Will You Love Me Tomorrow?: An Oral History of the ’60s Girl Groups (Hachette Books)
• Brigette Adair Herron and Scott Creney, The Story of the B-52's: Neon Side of Town (Palgrave Macmillan)
• Allyson McCabe, Why Sinéad O'Connor Matters (University of Texas Press)
• Neil O’Connor, Dark Waves: The Synthesizer and the Dystopian Sound of Britain (1977-1980) (Rowman & Littlefield)
• Nate Patrin, The Needle and the Lens: Pop Goes to the Movies from Rock ’n’ Roll to Synthwave (University of Minnesota Press)
• Douglas Reside, Fixing the Musical: How Technologies Shaped the Broadway Repertoire (Oxford University Press)
• Victor Szabo, Turn On, Tune In, Drift Off: Ambient Music's Psychedelic Past (Oxford University Press)

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED ROCK MUSIC

• John Brackett, Live Dead: The Grateful Dead, Live Recordings, and the Ideology of Liveness (Duke University Press)
• Will Hermes, Lou Reed: The King of New York (Farrar, Strauss and Giroux)
• Rory Hoy, All You Need is HELP! (New Haven Publishing)
• Judson L. Jeffries, Shannon M. Cochran, and Molly Reinhoudt, Feel My Big Guitar: Prince and the Sound He Helped Create (University Press of Mississippi)
• Jen B. Larsen, Hit Girls: Women of Punk in the USA, 1975-1983 (Feral House)
• Paul Metsa and Rick Shefchik, Blood on the Tracks: The Minnesota Musicians Behind Dylan's Masterpiece (University of Minnesota Press)
• Kevin Mulryne, Yes: The Tormato Story (Five Per Cent Something Publishing)

• Philip Norman, George Harrison: The Reluctant Beatle (Scribner)

• Alex Pappademus and Joan LeMay, Quantum Criminals: Ramblers, Wild Gamblers, and Other Sole Survivors from the Songs of Steely Dan (University of Texas Press)
• Martin Popoff, The Who & Quadrophenia (Motorbooks)
• Martin Popoff, Pink Floyd and The Dark Side of the Moon: 50 Years (Motorbooks)
• Romund Ollivier and and Olivier Roubin, Elton John All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track (Black Dog & Leventhal)
• Nicholas Tochka, Rocking in the Free World: Popular Music and the Politics of Freedom in Postwar America (Oxford University Press)
• Warren Zanes, Deliver Me from Nowhere: The Making of Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska (Crown)

BEST HISTORICA RESEARCH IN RECORDED CLASSICAL MUSIC

• James Hepkoski, “'Listen and Be Amazed!': Odeon, Künneke, and the First Recordings of Complete Symphonies” (Journal of the American Musicological Society 76/1): 113-167.
• Sophia Lambton, The Callas Imprint: A Centennial Biography (Crepuscular Press)
• Richard Masters, Encyclopedia of American Classical Pianists, 1980s to the Present (Rowman & Littlefield)
• Howard Pollack, Samuel Barber: His Life and Legacy (University of Illinois Press)
• Harvey Sachs, Schoenberg: Why He Matters (Liveright Press)
• Paul Spicer, Sir Arthur Bliss: Standing Out from the Crowd (Crowood Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED JAZZ

• Con Chapman, Kansas City Jazz: A Little Evil Will Do You Good (Equinox Publishing Ltd.)
• Stephanie Crease, Rhythm Man: Chick Webb and the Beat that Changed America (Oxford University Press)
• Kurt Dietrich, Never Givin' Up: The Life and Music of Al Jarreau (Wisconsin Historical Society Press)
• Carmel Fields, Going Back to T-Town: The Ernie Fields Territory Big Band (University of Oklahoma Press)
• Burgin Mathews, Magic City: How the Birmingham Jazz Tradition Shaped the Sound of America (University of North Carolina Press)
• Brad Mehldau, Formation: Building a Personal Canon, Part 1 (Equinox Publishing Ltd.)
• Sean Mills, Eric Fillion and Désirée Rochat, Statesman of the Piano: Jazz, Race, and History in the Life of Lou Hooper (McGill-Queens University Press)
• Matt Phillips, John McLaughlin: From Miles to Mahavishnu to the 4th Dimension (Rowman & Littlefield)
• Judith Tick, Becoming Ella Fitzgerald: The Jazz Singer Who Transformed American Song (W. W. Norton)
• Alyn Shipton, The Gerry Mulligan 1950s Quartets (Oxford University Press)
• Sam Stephenson, The Jazz Loft Project: Photographs and Tapes of W. Eugene Smith from 821 Sixth Avenue, 1957–1965 (University of Chicago Press)
• Patricia Zarate de Perez, Reimagining Panama's Musical and Cultural Narratives of Jazz: Panamanian Suite (Lexington Books)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED COUNTRY, FOLK, WORLD, OR ROOTS MUSIC

• Ya-Hui Cheng, The Evolution of Chinese Popular Music Modernization and Globalization, 1927 to the Present (Ashgate)
• Amanda Minks, Indigenous Audibilities: Music, Heritage, and Collections in the Americas (Oxford University Press)
• Paulo Piccio, Laura Escalada Piazzolla, Daniel Villaflor Piazzolla; trans. Sir N. Antonio Peruch, Astor Piazzolla. The Father of the Nuevo Tango: Chronology, Works, and Annotated Discography (Edizione Curzi)
• Anastasia Gordienko, Outlaw Music in Russia: The Rise of an Unlikely Genre (University of Wisconsin Press)
• Mark Guarino, Country and Midwestern: Chicago in the History of Country Music and the Folk Revival (University of Chicago Press)
• Marysol Quevedo, Cuban Music Counterpoints: Vanguardia Musical in Global Networks (Oxford University Press)
• Michael Streissguth, Highways and Heartaches: How Ricky Skaggs, Marty Stuart, and Children of the New South Saved the Soul of Country Music (Hachette Books)
• John Szwed, Cosmic Scholar: The Life and Times of Harry Smith (Farrar, Strauss and Giroux)
• Jesse Gerlach Ulmer, The Cohen Brothers and American Roots Music (McFarland & Company)
• James Walvin, Amazing Grace: The Cultural History of a Beloved Hymn (University of California Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED BLUES, R&B, GOSPEL, HIP HOP, FUNK OR SOUL MUSIC

• Daneil Bedrosian, The Authorized P-Funk Song Reference: The Official Canon of Parliament Funkadelic 1956-2023 (Rowman & Littlefield)
• Darryl W Bullok, Queer Blues: The Hidden Figures of Early Blues Music (Omnibus Press)
• Amy Coddington, How Hip Hop Became Hit Pop: Radio, Rap, and Race (University of California Press)
• Lynneé Denise, Why Willie Mae Thornton Matters (University of Texas Press)
• Juanita Karpf, From Biblical Book to Musical Megahit: William B. Bradbury’s Esther, the Beautiful Queen (University Press of Mississippi)
• Reiland Rabaka, Black Women's Liberation Movement Music Soul Sisters, Black Feminist Funksters, and Afro-Disco Divas (Routledge)
• Guido van Rijn, The Chicago Blues of Jazz Gillum (Agram Books)
• Matthew Ruddick, Funkiest Man Alive: Rufus Thomas and Memphis Soul (University Press of Mississippi)
• Sly Stone with Ben Greenman, Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin): A Memoir (AUWA)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH ON RECORD LABELS OR GENERAL RECORDING TOPICS

• Richard Bauman with Patrick Feaster, A Most Valuable Medium: The Remediation of Oral Performance on Early Commercial Recordings (Indiana University Press)
• Stephan Coates, Bone Music: Soviet X-Ray Audio
• Mark Cantor, The Soundies: A History and Catalog of Jukebox Film Shorts of the 1940s (McFarland & Company)
• Katherine Rye Jewell, Live from the Underground: A History of College Radio (University of North Carolina Press)
• Marc Masters, High Bias: The Distorted History of the Cassette Tape (University of North Carolina Press)
• David Menconi, Oh, Didn't They Ramble: Rounder Records and the Transformation of American Roots Music (University of North Carolina Press)
• Eva Moreda Rodriguez and Inja Stanović, Early Sound Recordings: Academic Research and Practice (Routledge)
• Elodie A. Roy, Shellac in Visual and Sonic Culture (Amsterdam University Press)
• Joel Selvin with Chris Strachwitz, Arhoolie Records Down Home Music: The Stories and Photographs of Chris Strachwitz (Chronicle Books)
• Howie Singer and Bill Rosenblatt, Key Changes: The Ten Times Technology Transformed the Music Industry (Oxford University Press)

2023 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

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BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED ROCK OR POPULAR MUSIC

• Simon Doonan, Transformer: A Story of Glitter, Glam Rock & Loving Lou Reed (Harper One)
• Rik Forgo and Steve Cafarelli, Eagles: Up Ahead in the Distance (The Eagles Trilogy) (Time Passages LLC)
• Cary Ginell, Carefully Taught: American History Through Broadway Musicals (Applause Books)
• Will Hodgkinson, In Perfect Harmony: Sing-a-Long Pop in '70s Britain (Nine-Eight Publishing)
• Brian Johnson, The Lives of Brian: A Memoir (Dey Street Books)
• Brian J. Kramp, This Band Has No Past: How Cheap Trick Became Cheap Trick (Jawbone Press)
• John Lingan, A Song For Everyone: The Story of Creedence Clearwater Revival (Hachette Books)
• Gary Parker, The Sonic Swagger of Elvis Presley: A Critical History of the Early Recordings (McFarland & Company)
• Michael R. Pitts, Nick Lucas: The Crooning Troubadour and His Guitar (McFarland & Company)
• Harry Shapiro, Gary Moore: The Official Biography (Jawbone Press)
• R. J. Smith, Chuck Berry: An American Life (Hachette Books)
• Bob Stanley, Let's Do It: The Birth of Pop Music: A History (Pegasus Books)
• Bernard H. Thorpe, Dean Martin – A Discography (self-published)

BEST HISTORICA RESEARCH IN RECORDED CLASSICAL MUSIC

• Rebecca Mitchell, Sergei Rachmaninoff (Reaktion Books)

• Kate Molleson, Sound Within Sound: Radical Composers of the Twentieth Century (Abrams Press)
• Ian Nagoski, Harry Kezelian and Harout Arakelian, Zabelle Panosian: I Am Servant of your Voice (die Keure)
• Nigel Simeone, Ralph Vaughan Williams and Adrian Boult (Boydell & Brewer)
• Hans Sturm, 75 Years on 4 Strings: The Life and Music of François Rabbath (Avant Bass)
• Massimo Zicari, The Voice of the Century: The Culture of Italian Bel Canto in Luisa Tetrazzini’s Recorded Interpretations (Open Book Publishing)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED JAZZ

• Rodger Coleman, Sun Ra Sundays (Digital Press of the University of North Dakota)
• Benjamin Fraser, Beyond Sketches of Spain: Tete Montoliu and the Construction of Iberian Jazz (Oxford University Press)
• Keith Hatschek, The Real Ambassadors: Dave and Iola Brubeck and Louis Armstrong Challenge Segregation (University Press of Mississippi)
• Richard Koloda, Holy Ghost: The Life and Death of Free Jazz Pioneer Albert Ayler (Jawbone Press)
• Aidan Levy, Saxophone Colossus: The Life and Music of Sonny Rollins (Hachette Books)
• Dave Liebman and Richie Beirach, Ruminations and Reflections - The Musical Journey of Dave Liebman and Richie Beirach (Cymbal Press)
• Gerry Mullgan and Ken Poston, Being Gerry Mulligan: My Life in Music (Backbeat Books)
• Alyn Shipton, On Jazz: A Personal Journey (Cambridge University Press)
• Tomasz Stańko and Rafał Księżyk, trans. Halina Maria Boniszewska, Desperado: An Autobiography (Equinox Publishing Ltd.)
• Caroline Vézina, Jazz à la Creole: French Creole Music and the Birth of Jazz (University Press of Mississippi)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED COUNTRY, FOLK, WORLD, OR ROOTS MUSIC

• Scott Billington, Making Tracks: A Record Producer's Southern Roots Music Journey (University Press of Mississippi)
• Stuart Borthwick, Positive Vibrations: Politics, Politricks and the Story of Reggae (Reaktion Books)
• John Cowley, Steve Shapiro and Ted Olson, Lovey's Original Trinidad String Band: Encore "Lovey"! (RWA Records)
• Marc Eliot, The Hag: The Life, Times, and Music of Merle Haggard (Hachette Books)
• Shana Goldin-Perschbacher, Queer Country (University of Illinois Press)
• Yolanda Broyles-Gonzáles, Rafael Figueroa Hernandez and Francisco Gonzáles, Mario Barradas & Son Jaracho (University of Texas Press)
• Ed Guy, Hank Williams' Discography: The Enhanced Version (Hank Williams Press)
• Alex Harvey, Song Noir: Tom Waits and the Spirit of Los Angeles (Reaktion Books)
• Larisa Kingston Mann, Rude Citizenship: Jamaican Popular Music, Copyright, and the Reverberations of Colonial Power (University of North Carolina Press)
• Francesca Royster, Black Country Music: Listening for Revolutions (University of Texas Press)
• Christopher Silver, Recording History: Jews, Muslims, and Music across Twentieth-Century North Africa (Stanford University Press)
• Merle Travis and Deke Dickerson, Sixteen Tons: The Merle Travis Story (BMG Books)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED BLUES, R&B, GOSPEL, HIP HOP, OR SOUL MUSIC

• Terri Brinegar, Voices of Black Folk: The Sermons of Reverend A. W. Nix (University Press of Mississippi)

• Dan Charnas, Dilla Time: The Life and Afterlife of J Dilla, the Hip-Hop Producer Who Reinvented Rhythm (MCD)
• Lauron J. Kehrer, "Hip-Hop's Queer Roots: Disco, House, and Early Hip-Hop" in Queer Voices in Hip-Hop: Cultures, Communities, and Contemporary Performance (University of Michigan Press)
• Luigi Monge, Wasn't That a Mighty Day: African American Blues and Gospel Songs on Disaster (University Press of Mississippi)
• Matt Rogers, Goodnight Boogie: A Tale of Guns, Wolves & the Blues of Hound Dog Taylor (BMG Books)
• Fred Rothwell, Dynamite! Ike Turner's Recorded Legacy (Music Mentor Books)
• Julia Simon, The Inconvenient Lonnie Johnson: Blues, Race, Identity (The Pennsylvania State University Press)
• Guido van Rijn, The Naptown Blues of Leroy Carr (Agram Books)
• Guido van Rijn, The St. Louis Blues of Walter Davis (Agram Books)
• Cheryl Wills, Isn't Her Grace Amazing! The Women Who Changed Gospel Music (Amistad Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH ON WORLD MUSIC, RECORD LABELS OR GENERAL RECORDING TOPICS

• Bruce Adams, You're with Stupid: kranky, Chicago, and the Reinvention of Indie Music (University of Texas Press)
• Georgia Born, ed., Music and Digital Media: A Planetary Anthropology (UCL Press)
• Larry Jaffee, Record Store Day: The Most Improbable Comeback of the 21st Century (Rare Bird Books)
• Morgan Luker, “Matrix Listening; or, What and How We Can Learn from Historical Sound Recordings,” Ethnomusicology 66/2: 290-318.
• Kallie Marie, Conversations with Women in Music Production: The Interviews (Backbeat Books)
• William Moylan, Lori Burns and Mike Alleyne, eds., Analyzing Recorded Music (Focal Press)
• Michael Tau, Extreme Music: From Silence to Noise and Everything In Between (Feral House)

2022 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED ROCK OR POPULAR MUSIC

• Michael S. Begnal, The Music and Noise of the Stooges, 1967-71: Lost in the Future (Routledge)
• Dale Carter, Reading Smile: History, Myth and American Identity in Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks’ Long-Lost Album (Routledge)
• Michael G. Garber, My Melancholy Baby: The First Ballads of the Great American Songbook, 1902-1913 (University Press of Mississippi)
• Richard Houghton, Cream: A People's History (Spenwood Books)
• Mark A. Moore, Dead Man's Curve: The Rock 'n' Roll Life of Jan Berry (McFarland)
• Bill Schnee, Chairman at the Board: Recording the Soundtrack of a Generation (Backbeat Books)
• Jim and Joanna Smolko, Atomic Tunes: The Cold War in American and British Popular Music (University of Indiana Press)
• Dave Thompson, I Feel Love: Donna Summer, Giorgio Moroder, and How They Reinvented Music (Backbeat Books)
• Duane Tudhal, Prince and the Parade and Sign O' The Times Era Studio Sessions: 1985 and 1986 (Rowman & Littlefield)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED JAZZ

• Christian Broecking, trans. Jeb Bishop, This Uncontainable Feeling of Freedom: Irène Schweizer - European Jazz and the Politics of Improvisation (Broecking Verlag)
• Dottie Dodgion and Wayne Enstice, The Lady Swings: Memoirs of a Jazz Drummer (University of Illinois Press)
• Bill Milkowski, Ode to a Tenor Titan: The Life and Times and Music of Michael Brecker (Backbeat Books)
• Kevin Mooney, Texas Jazz Singer: Louise Tobin in the Golden Age of Swing and Beyond (Texas A&M Press)
• Celeste Day Moore, Soundscapes of Liberation: African American Music in Postwar France (Duke University Press)
• Richard Brent Turner, Soundtrack to a Movement: African American Islam, Jazz, and Black Internationalism (NYU Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED CLASSICAL MUSIC

• Colin Bain, Gigli: The Master Tenor (Barry Ashpole)
• Michael Faure, José Serebrier: Portraits of the Maestro (Amadeus Press)
• Daniel M. Grimley, Jean Sibelius: Life, Music, Silence (Reaktion Books)
• Mark Marrington, Recording the Classical Guitar (Routledge)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED COUNTRY, FOLK, WORLD OR ROOTS MUSIC

• Fred Bartenstein and Curtis W. Ellison, eds., Industrial Strength Bluegrass: Southwestern Ohio’s Musical Legacy (University of Illinois Press)
• Frances Barton and John K. Novak, Czech Songs in Texas (University of Oklahoma Press)
• Norm Cohen, Carson Cohen and Anne Dhu McLucas, eds., An American Singing Heritage: Songs from the British-Irish-American Oral Tradition as Recorded in the Early Twentieth Century (A-R Editions)
• Adil Johan and Mayco A. Santaella, eds., Made in Nusantara: Studies in Popular Music (Routledge)
• John Milward, Americanaland: Where Country & Western Met Rock 'n' Roll (University of Illinois Press)
• Ríonach uí Ógáin, Colm Ó Caodháin: An Irish singer and his world (Cork University Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED BLUES, GOSPEL, SOUL, HIP-HOP OR R&B

• Cey Adams, ed. Smithsonian Anthology of Hip Hop and Rap (Smithsonian Folkways)
• Jay Bruder, R&B in D.C. 1940-1960 (Bear Family Records)
• Daniel De Vise, King of the Blues: The Rise and Reign of B.B. King (Grove Atlantic Books)
• George Henderson, Blind Joe Death's America: John Fahey, the Blues, and Writing White Discontent (University of North Carolina Press)
• Robert M. Marovich, Peace Be Still: How James Cleveland and the Angelic Choir Created a Gospel Classic (University of Illinois Press)
• Kevin Mungons and Douglas Yeo, Homer Rodeheaver and the Rise of the Gospel Music Industry (University of Illinois Press)
• Howard Priestley, Love Factory: The History of Holland Dozier Holland (New Haven Publishing)
• Larry Simon, ed. John Broven, New York City Blues: Postwar Portraits from Harlem to the Village and Beyond (University Press of Mississippi)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORD LABELS

• Cary Ginell, Columbia 15000-D Series Discography (1924-1933): Familiar Tunes Old and New (Self-published)
• Mark Jones, The Famous Charisma Discography, 2nd ed. (Self-published)
• James Leary, Marcus Cederström and Richard Martin, Swede Home Chicago: The Wallin’s Svenska Records Story, 1923-1927 (Archeophone)
• Jessica Lipski, It Ain't Retro: Daptone Records & The 21st-Century Soul Revolution (Jawbone Press)
• Bill Nowlin, Vinyl Ventures: My Fifty Years at Rounder Records (Equinox Press Ltd.)
• Stephan Puille, David Giovannoni and Richard Martin, Etching the Voice: Emile Berliner and the First Commercial Gramophone Discs, 1889-1895 (Archeophone)
• Paul Slade, Black Swan Blues: The Hard Rise & Brutal Fall of America's First Black-owned Record Company (PlanetSlade)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH ON RECORD LABELS OR GENERAL RECORDING TOPICS

• Peter Adamson, "Early Scientific Study of Speech on Gramophone Recordings," For the Record (Journal of the City of London Phonograph and Gramphone Society) 79: 399-407 and 80: 459-467
• Daphne A. Brooks, Liner Notes for the Revolution: The Intellectual Life of Black Feminist Sound (Belknap Press)
• Janet Borerson and Jonathan Schroeder, Designed for Dancing: How Midcentury Records Taught America to Dance (MIT Press)
• Jehnie I. Burns, Mixtape Nostalgia: Culture, Memory, and Representation (Lexington Books)
• Howard Hope, The Remarkable Life of Colonel George Gouraud, the Man Who Brought the Edison Phonograph to Britain (self-published)
• Melle Jan Kromhout, The Logic of Filtering: How Noise Shapes the Sound of Recorded Music (Oxford University Press)
• Du Jun Min and Pekka Gronow, Contributions to the History of the Record Industry Vol. 11; Papers from the Shanghai Conference 28-29, 2019 (Gesellschaft für Historische Tonträger)
• Richard Raichelson, Orlando R. Marsh: Chicago’s Pioneer of Electrical Recording (Arcadia Records)
• Helen Reddington, She's at the Controls: Sound Engineering, Production and Gender Ventriloquism in the 21st Century (Equinox Press Ltd.)
• Eva Morena Rodriguez, Inventing the Recording (Oxford University Press)
• Ferenc János Szabó and Marietta B. Kaskötő, trans. Zsófia Hutai, “Eritis mihi testes”: Sound Recordings of the 1938 International Eucharistic Congress/„Eritis mihi testes” Az 1938-as
• budapesti Nemzetközi Eucharisztikus Kongresszus hangfelvételei (National Széchényi Library, Budapest)
• Anna L. Wood, Songs of Earth: Aesthetic and Social Codes in Music (University Press of Mississippi)
• Ben Wynne, Something in the Water: A History of Music in Macon, Georgia, 1823-1980 (Mercer University Press)

2021 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED ROCK OR SOUL MUSIC

• Steve Aldous, The Songs of Genesis: A Complete Guide to the Studio Recordings (McFarland)
• Mike Barnes, A New Day Yesterday: UK Progressive Rock & The 1970s (Omnibus Press)
• Eddie Floyd and Tony Fletcher, Knock! Knock! Knock! On Wood: My Life in Soul (BMG Books)
• David French, Heart Full of Soul: Keith Relf of the Yardbirds (McFarland)
• Jeff Gomez, Zeppelin Over Dayton: Guided By Voices Album By Album 
• Steve Howe, All My Yesterdays: The Autobiography of Steve Howe (Omnibus Press)
• Spencer Leigh, Bob Dylan Outlaw Blues (McNidder and Grace)
• Maureen Mahon, Black Diamond Queens: African American Women and Rock and Roll (Duke University Press)
• Mark Brown with Cynthia M. Unruh, My Life in the Purple Kingdom (University of Minnesota Press)
• Noel McLaughlin and Joanna Braniff, How Belfast Got the Blues: A Cultural History of Popular Music in the 1960s (Intellect Ltd.)
• Philip Norman, Wild Thing: The Short, Spellbinding Life of Jimi Hendrix (Liveright)
• Evan Rapport, Damaged: Musicality and Race in Early American Punk (University Press of Mississippi)
• David Roberts, Rock ‘N’ Roll Fantasy – The Musical Journey of Free and Bad Company (Jawbone Books)
• Ted Templeman, Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producer’s Life in Music (ECW Press)
• Gary Steele, Gentle Giant: Every album, Every song (On Track) (Sonicbond Publishing)
• Sandra B. Tooze, Levon: From Down in the Delta to the Birth of The Band and Beyond (Diversion Books)

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED POPULAR MUSIC

• Richard Carlin, Eubie Blake: Rags, Rhythm, and Race (Oxford University Press)
• Russ Giguere and Ashley Wren Collins, Along Comes The Association: Beyond Folk Rock and Three-Piece Suits (Rare Bird Books)
• Victoria Malawey, A Blaze of Light in Every Word: Analyzing the Popular Singing Voice (Oxford University Press)
• Andrew Mall, God Rock Inc.: The Business of Niche Music (University of California Press)
• Ted Montgomery, The Paul McCartney Catalog: A Complete Annotated Discography of Solo Works, 1967-2019 (McFarland)
• Jack Norton, Cornstars: Rube Music in Swing Time: The Rise and Fall of Freddie Fisher and his Schnickelfritz Band, Stan Fritts and his Korn Kobblers and the Hillbilly, Cornball, Novelty Jazz of the 1930s, 40s, 50s (self-published)
• Lucy O’Brien, She Bop: The Definitive History of Women in Popular Music, Revised and Updated 25th Anniversary Edition (Jawbone)
• David Sager, Nat Brusiloff and His Orchestra: Out of A Clear Blue Sky (1930-1934) (Rivermont Records)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED CLASSICAL MUSIC

• Rae Linda Brown, The Heart of a Woman: The Life and Music of Florence B. Price (University of Illinois Press)
• J. Peter Burkholder, Listening to Charles Ives: Variations on His America (Amadeus Press)
• William Corbett-Jones, Realms of Gold: My Life in Music (Self-published)
• Barbara Gentili, The Changing Aesthetics of Vocal Registration in the Age Of ‘Verismo,’” Music & Letters 101/4 (Winter 2020): 1-21.
• Mark Jones, The British Classical Record Industry, 1945 to 1959: Fidelity and Formats (Bristol Folk Publications)
• Jean-Michel Molkhou, Les Grands Quatuors a Cordes du XX Siècle (Buchet Chastel)
• Colin Roust, Georges Auric: A Life in Music and Politics (Oxford University Press)
• Amanda Sewell, Wendy Carlos: A Biography (Oxford University Press)
• Steven C. Smith, Music by Max Steiner: The Epic Life of Hollywood's Most Influential Composer (Oxford University Press)
• Fritz Zwart, Conductor Willem Mengelberg, 1871-1951: Acclaimed and Accused (Amsterdam University Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED JAZZ

• Travis Atria, Better Days Will Come Again: The Life of Arthur Briggs, Jazz Genius of Harlem, Paris, and a Nazi Prison Camp (Chicago Review Press)
• Derrick Bang, Crime and Spy Jazz on Screen 1950-1970: A History and Discography (McFarland)
• Will Friedwald, Straighten Up and Fly Right: Life and Music of Nat King Cole (Oxford University Press)
• Ofer Gazit, "Passing Tones: Shifting National, Social, and Musical Borders in Jazz-Age Harlem," Jazz and Culture 3/1 (2020): 1-21
• Maria Golia, Ornette Coleman: The Territory and the Adventure (Reaktion Books)
• Marty Grosz, It’s A Sin To Tell a Lie: My Life in Jazz (Golden Alley Press)
• Duncan A. Heining, Stratusphunk: The Life and Works of George Russell (self-published)
• Peter Jones, This is Bop: Jon Hendricks and the Art of Vocal Jazz (Equinox Press)
• Sarah Cassie Provost, "Playing for the King: Ziggy Elman, Benny Goodman, and 1930s Klezmer Swing,” Jazz and Culture 3/1 (2020): 22-44.
• Ricky Riccardi, Heart Full of Rhythm: The Big Band Years of Louis Armstrong (Oxford University Press)
• Wolfgang Sandner, trans. Chris Jarrett, Keith Jarrett: A Biography (Equinox Press)
• William Sites, Sun Ra's Chicago: Afrofuturism and the City (University of Chicago Press)
• Janet Tennant, Sax Appeal: Ivy Benson and Her All-Girl Band (Rowman & Littlefield)
• Kevin Whitehead, Play the Way You Feel: The Essential Guide to Jazz Stories on Film (Oxford University Press)
• Phil Woods, Life in E Flat - The Autobiography of Phil Woods (Cymbal Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED COUNTRY OR ROOTS MUSIC

• Kip Lornell, Capital Bluegrass: Hillbilly Music Meets Washington, DC (Oxford University Press)
• Bobbie Malone and Bill C. Malone, Nashville's Songwriting Sweethearts: The Boudleaux and Felice Bryant Story (University of Oklahoma Press)
• Ted Olson, "History the 'Great Man' Missed: Critiquing Ken Burns' Country Music," Old-Time Herald 15/1: 20-35
• Don Reid, The Music of The Statler Brothers: An Anthology (Mercer University Press)
• Malcolm L. Smith and Edmund Lacy, Appalachian Fiddler Albert Hash: The Last Leaf on the Tree (McFarland)
• Travis D. Stimeling, Nashville Cats: Record Production in Music City (Oxford University Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED BLUES, FOLK OR WORLD MUSIC

• John Cohen, Lance Ledbetter, and Eli Smith, The Harry Smith B-Sides (Dust to Digital)
• Rivka Havassy and Edwin Seroussi, East Mediterranean Judeo-Spanish Songs from The EMI Archive Trust, 1907-1912 (Hebrew University of Jerusalem Press)
• Andrew F. Jones, Circuit Listening: Chinese Popular Music in the Global 1960s (University of Minnesota Press)
• Bruce Lindsay, Two Bold Singermen and the English Folk Revival: The Lives, Song Traditions and Legacies of Sam Larner and Harry Cox (Equinox)
• Elizabeth Thomson, Joan Baez: The Last Leaf (Palazzo Editions)
• Guido van Rijn, The Texas Blues of Smokey Hogg (Agram Books)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH ON RECORD LABELS OR GENERAL RECORDING TOPICS

• Dan Alexander, Dan Alexander Audio: A Vintage Odyssey (Roman & Littlefield)
• Kyle Barnett, Record Cultures: The Transformation of the U.S. Recording Industry (University of Michigan Press)
• Robert Barry, Compact Disc (Bloomsbury Academic)
• Bill Dean-Myatt and Mike Langridge, Columbia, Regal & Phoenix: 10" masters issued in the UK (City of London Phonograph and Gramophone Society)
• Mark Brennan, Kick It: A Social History of the Drum Kit (Oxford University Press)
• David A. Less, Memphis Mayhem: A Story of the Music That Shook Up the World (ECW Press)
• Billy Miller and Michael Hurtt, Mind Over Matter: the Myths and Mysteries of Detroit's Fortune Records (Kicks)
• Neil Priddey, The Complete Harvest UK Vinyl Discography: Volume 2 (independently published)
• Ben Sidran, The Ballad of Tommy LiPuma (Nardis Books)
• Gene Tomko, Encyclopedia of Louisiana Musicians: Jazz, Blues, Cajun, Creole, Zydeco, Swamp Pop, and Gospel (LSU Press)
• Mads Walther-Hansen, Making Sense of Recordings: How Cognitive Processing of Recorded Sound Works (Oxford University Press)
• Jonathan Ward, Excavated Shellac: An Alternate History of the World’s Music (1907-1967) (Dust to Digital)

2020 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED ROCK AND POPULAR MUSIC

• Ken Caillat and Hernan Rojas, Get Tusked: The Inside Story of Fleetwood Mac's Most Anticipated Album (Backbeat)
• Robert Michael Bobb Cotter, The Complete Misfits Discography: Authorized Releases and
• Bootlegs, Including Recordings by Danzig, Samhain and the Undead (McFarland)
• Andrew L. Cope, Status Quo: Mighty Innovators of 70s Rock (Ashgate)
• Daniel Cook Johnson, Wilco-Pedia: A Comprehensive Guide To The Music Of America's Best Band (Jawbone)
• Darlene Lacy and Joe Lacey, The Musical Touch of Leonard Nimoy: His Fascinating Musical
• Career and Discography (Diner Mighty Graphics)
• Alan Lenhoff and David Robertson, Classic Keys: Keyboard Sounds That Launched Rock Music (University of North Texas Press)
• Benjamin Piekut, Henry Cow: The World is a Problem (Duke University Press)
• Kevin Womack, Solid State: The Story of “Abbey Road” and the End of the Beatles (Cornell University Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED JAZZ

• Bill Beuttler, Make It New: Reshaping Jazz in the 21st Century (Lever Press)
• George Burrows, The Recordings of Andy Kirk and his Clouds of Joy (Oxford University Press)
• Con Chapman, Rabbit's Blues: The Life and Music of Johnny Hodges (Oxford University Press)
• Stephan A. Crist, Dave Brubeck's Time Out (Oxford University Press)
• Bruce Johnson, Jazz Diaspora: Music and Globalization (Routledge)
• Mark Stryker, Jazz from Detroit (University of Michigan Press)
• Ate van Delden, Adrian Rollini: The Life and Music of a Jazz Rambler (University Press of Mississippi)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED COUNTRY OR ROOTS MUSIC

• Scott B. Bomar, The Bakersfield Sound (Bear Family Records)
• John Broven, South to Louisiana: The Music of the Cajun Bayous (Pelican Publishing)
• Heath Carpenter, The Philosopher King: T Bone Burnett and the Ethic of a Southern Cultural Renaissance (University of Georgia Press)
• Dayton Duncan and Ken Burns, Country Music: An Illustrated History (Knopf)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED BLUES, R&B, GOSPEL OR SOUL MUSIC

• Todd R. Baptista, The Flamingos: A Complete History of the Doo-Wop Legends (McFarland)
• Mark Buford, Mahalia Jackson and the Black Gospel Field (Oxford University Press)
• Bruce Conforth and Gayle Dean Wardlow, Up Jumped the Devil: The Real Life of Robert Johnson (Chicago Review Press)
• Nina Sun Eidsheim, The Race of Sound: Listening, Timbre, and Vocality in African American Music (Duke University Press)
• Alan B. Govenar and Kip Lornell, The Blues Come to Texas: Paul Oliver and Mack McCormack's Unfinished Book (Texas A&M University Press)
• Robert Markovich, The Gospel According to Malaco (Malaco Music Group)
• Sarah Raine, Tim Wall and Nicola Watchman Smith, The Northern Soul Scene (Equinox)
• Tammy L. Turner, Dick Waterman: A Life in Blues (University Press of Mississippi)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED CLASSICAL MUSIC

• Keith Alldritt, England Resounding: Elgar, Vaughan Williams, Britten and the English Musical Renaissance (Crowood Press)
• Sebastiano De Filippi and Daniel Varacalli Costas, The Other Toscanini: The Life and Works of Héctor Panizza (University of North Texas Press)
• Maria Maddelena Novati, Laura Pronestì, and Marina Vaccarini, eds., Alberto Savinio. The Island Man (Die Schachtel)
• H. Colin Slim, Stravinsky in the Americas: Transatlantic Tours and Domestic Excursions from Wartime Los Angeles (1925-1945) (University of California Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH ON RECORD LABELS OR GENERAL RECORDING TOPICS

• Tim Brooks, The Blackface Minstrel Show in Mass Media: 20th Century Performances in Radio, Records, Movies and Television (McFarland)
• Jason Camlot, Phonopoetics: The Making of Early Literary Recordings (Stanford University Press)
• Michael Kinnear, The Gramophone Company’s Persian Recordings, 1899-1934 (Bajakhana)
• Rainer Lotz, Michael Gunrem and Stephan Puille, Das Bilderlexikon der Deutschen SchellackSchallplatten: Geschichte der Historischen Tonträger in Deutschland (Bear Family Records)
• Edmund Morris, Edison (Random House)
• James Steinrager, Sound Objects (Duke University Press)
• Johnny Trunk, Wobbly Sounds: A Collection of British Flexi Discs (Four Corners Books)

2019 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED ROCK AND POPULAR MUSIC

• Paul V. Allen, The Hopefuls: Chasing a Rock ’n’ Roll Dream in the Minnesota Music Scene (McFarland)
• Marc Cushman, Long Distance Voyagers: The Story of the Moody Blues 1965-1979 (unabridged version) (Jacobs Brown Press)
• Gary Giddens, Bing Crosby: Swinging on a Star: The War Years, 1940-1946 (Little, Brown, & Co.)
• Jerry Hammack, The Beatles Recording Reference Manual: Volume 3: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band through Magical Mystery Tour (late 1966-1967) (CreateSpace)
• John Howells, Skipping Reels of Rhyme: A Guide to Rare and Unreleased Bob Dylan Recordings (Tangible Press)
• Jim McCarty, with Dave Thompson, Nobody Told Me: My Life with The Yardbirds, Renaissance, and Other Stories (self-published)
• Marisol Berrios-Miranda, American Sabor: Latinos and Latinas in US Popular Music / Latinos y latinas en la musica popular estadounidense (University of Washington Press)
• Richard Orlando, A Love that Burns: The Definitive Guide to the Recordings of Peter Green, The Founder of Fleetwood Mac: Live and in Studio 1966-1971 (Smiling Corgi Press)
• Gary Parker, Jethro Tull: The Glory Years 1968-1980 (McFarland)
• Gregory Thornbury, Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music? Larry Norman and the Perils of Christian Rock (Convergent)
• Charles Ulrich, The Big Note: A Guide to the Recordings of Frank Zappa (New Star Books)
• Kevin Womak, Sound Pictures The Life of Beatles Producer George Martin, The Later Years, 1966-2016 (Chicago Review Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED JAZZ

• Maxine Gordon, Sophisticated Giant The Life and Legacy of Dexter Gordon (University of California Press)
• Maurice Jackson and Blair A. Rolde, eds., DC Jazz: Stories of Jazz Music in Washington D.C. (Georgetown University Press)
• Peter Jones, This is Hip: The Life of Mark Murphy (Equinox)
• Stephen Loza, The Jazz Pilgrimage of Gerald Wilson (University Press of Mississippi)
• Ray Smith and Mike Pointon, Bill Russell and the New Orleans Jazz Revival (Equinox)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED COUNTRY, FOLK, ROOTS, AND WORLD MUSIC

• Craig Harris, Bluegrass, Newgrass, Old-Time, and Americana Music (Pelican)
• Terry Wait Klefstad, Crooked River City: The Musical Life of Nashville's William Pursell Robert E. Price, The Bakersfield Sound: How a Generation of Displaced Okies Revolutionized American Music (Heyday)
• Dick Spottswood, The Blue Sky Boys (University Press of Mississippi)
• Ivan Tribe, Folk Music in Overdrive: A Primer on Traditional Country and Bluegrass Artists (University of Tennessee Press)
• Billy Edd Wheeler, Hotter Than a Pepper Sprout: A Hillbilly Poet's Journey From Appalachia to Yale to Writing Hits for Elvis, Johnny Cash & More (BMG Books)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED ROOTS OR WORLD MUSIC

• Tina Bucuvalas, Greek Music in America (University Press of Mississippi)
• Harold F. Eggers and L. E. McCullough, My Years with Townes Van Zandt: Music, Genius, and Rage (Backbeat)
• Craig Martin Gibbs, Field Recordings of Black Singers and Musicians: An Annotated Discography of Artists from West Africa, the Caribbean and the Eastern and Southern United States, 1901–1943 (McFarland)
• Kevin LeGendre, Don't Stop the Carnival: Black British Music (Peepal Tree Press Ltd)
• Hugh Tracey, Listen All Around: The Golden Age of Central and East African Music (Dust-to-Digital)
• Brian Ward and Patrick Huber, A&R Pioneers Architects of American Roots Music on Record (Vanderbilt University Press)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED BLUES OR SOUL MUSIC

• Steve Cosgrove, Memphis 68: The Tragedy of Southern Soul (Birlin Ltd.)
• Kevin D. Greene, The Invention and Reinvention of Big Bill Broonzy (University of North Carolina Press)
• Damon Wood and Phil Carson, Working for the Man, Playing in the Band: My Years with James Brown (ECW)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN RECORDED CLASSICAL MUSIC

• Martin Elste and Carsten Schmidt, eds., 2000 Jahre Musik auf der Schallplatte – Two Thousand Years of Music. Alte Musik anno 1930. Eine diskologische Dokumentation zur Interpretationsgeschichte (Gesellschaft für Historische Tonträger)
• Susan Hankshaw, Aldo Parisot, the Cellist: The Importance of the Circle (Pendragon Press)
• Paul Kildea, Chopin's Piano: In Search of the Instrument that Transformed Music (W. W. Norton)
• Lisa Jaleski, Lutosławski's Worlds (Boydell Press)
• Maria Maddalena Novati, Marino Zuccheri & Friends: Milan Rai Studio de Fonologia Musicale, 1955-1983 (Die Schachtel)

BEST HISTORICAL RESEARCH ON RECORD LABELS OR GENERAL RECORDING TOPICS

• Peter Anderson, "Real or Fake? The 1918 Gas Shell Bombardment Recording," For the Record: Journal of the City of London Phonograph and Gramophone Society 67 (Autumn 2018): 137-146.
• Samantha Bennett, Modern Records, Maverick Methods: Technology and Process in Popular Music Record Production 1978-2000 (Bloomsbury Academic)
• James P. Leary, Alpine Dreaming: The Helvetia Records Story, 1920-1924 (Archeophone)
• Allan Sutton, American Record Companies & Producers, 1888-1950 (Mainspring)
• Christian Zwarg, Speeds and Keys (Truesounds)

2018 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED ROCK MUSIC

• Harold Bronson, My British Invasion (Rare Bird Books)
• Paul Hanley, Leave the Capital: A History of Manchester Music in 13 Recordings (Route Publishing)
• Kent Hartman, Goodnight, L.A.: The Rise and Fall of Classic Rock - the Untold Stories from Inside the Legendary Recording Studios (Da Capo)
• Jas Obrecht, Talking guitar: Conversations with Musicians who Shaped Twentieth-Century American Music (University of North Carolina Press)
• Putnam Norbert, Music Lessons: A Musical Memoir, Volume 1 (Thimbleton House Media)
• Martin Popoff, Led Zeppelin: All the Albums, All the Songs (Voyageur)
• Paul Tudahl, Prince and the Purple Rain Era Studio Sessions: 1983 and 1984 (Rowman & Littlefield)
• Mick Woodmansey and Joel McIver, Spider from Mars: My Life with Bowie (St. Martin’s Press)

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED POPULAR MUSIC

• Michael A. Amundson, Talking Machine West: A History and Catalogue of Tin Pan Alley's Western Recordings, 1902–1918 (University of Oklahoma Press)
• William Echard, Psychedelic Popular Music: A History Through Musical Topic Theory (Indiana University Press)
• John Oates and Chris Epting, Change of Seasons: A Memoir (St. Martin’s Press)
• Michael Owen, Go Slow: The Life of Julie London (Chicago Review Press)
• Carl Magnus Palm, Abba: The Complete Recording Sessions: Revised and Expanded Edition (Carl Magnus Palm)

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED JAZZ

• Bob Dietsche, Tatum's Town: The Story of Jazz in Toledo, Ohio (1915-1985) (Bobson Press)
• Cary Ginell, The Herbie Mann Picto-Discography (1952-2003) (lulu.com)
• Elaine M. Hayes, Queen of Bebop: The Musical Lives of Sarah Vaughan (Ecco)
• Fred Hersch, Good Things Happen Slowly: A Life In and Out of Jazz (Crown Archetype)
• Dave Lisik and Eric Allen, 50 Years at the Village Vanguard: Thad Jones, Mel Lewis, and the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra (SkyDeck Music)
• Clark Tracey, The Godfather of British Jazz: The Life and Music of Stan Tracey (Equinox)

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED COUNTRY, FOLK, WORLD, AND ROOTS MUSIC

• Alapatt, Eothen, Wecome to Zamrock!: How Zambia's Liberation Led to a Rock Revolution (NowAgain Records)
• Ronald D. Cohen and David Bonner, Selling Folk Music: An Illustrated History (University Press of Mississippi)
• Nick Leigh, Cajun Records 1946-1989 (self-published)
• Charlie McCoy, with Travis Stimeling, Fifty Cents and a Box Top: The Creative Life of Nashville Session Musician Charlie McCoy (West Virginia University Press)
• Mohsen Mohammadi, Modal Modernities: Formations of Persian Classical Music and the Recording of a National Tradition (CreateSpace)
• Nancy Yunhwa Rao, Chinatown Opera Theatre in North America (University of Illinois Press)
• Roger Steffans, So Much Things to Say: The Oral History of Bob Marley (W. W. Norton)
• David Yaffe, Reckless Daughter (Sara Crichton Books)

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED BLUES, SOUL, OR R&B MUSIC

• Lynn Abbott and Doug Seroff, The Original Blues: The Emergence of the Blues in African American Vaudeville (University Press of Mississippi)
• John Capouya, Florida Soul: From Ray Charles to KC and the Sunshine Band (University Press of Florida)
• Tony Fletcher, In The Midnight Hour: The Life & Soul of Wilson Pickett (Oxford University Press)
• Jonathan Gould, Otis Redding: An Unfinished Life (Crown Archetype)
• Jimmy McDonough, Soul Survivor: A Biography of Al Green (Da Capo)
• Andrea Swensson, Got to Be Something Here: The Rise of the Minneapolis Sound (University of Minnesota Press)
• Alex van der Tuuk, New Paramount Book of the Blues (Agram)

BEST RESEARCH IN RECORDED CLASSICAL MUSIC

• John W. Barker, The Pro Arte Quartet: A Century of Musical Adventure on Two Continents (University of Rochester Press)
• Gabrielle Kaufman, Gaspar Cassadó: Cellist, Composer, and Transcriber (Routledge)
• Meredith Kirkpatrick, Reflections of an American Harpsichordist: Unpublished Memoirs, Essays, and Lectures of Ralph Kirkpatrick (Boydell & Brewer)
• Harvey Sachs, Toscanini: Musician of Conscience (Liveright)
• Pierre Schaeffer, Christine North, and John Dack, Treatise on Musical Objects: An Essay Across Disciplines (University of California Press)
• Jerome F. Weber, “Cantigas de Santa Maria” Discography (Plainsong and Medieval Music Society)
• Patrick Zuk and Marina Frolova-Walker, Russian Music since 1917: New Understandings (Oxford University Press)

BEST RESEARCH ON GENERAL RECORDING TOPICS

• Frank Andrews, Vocalion Records (City of London Phonograph and Gramophone Society)
• Margie Borschke, This is Not a Remix: Piracy, Authenticity, and Popular Music (Bloomsbury Academic)
• Alex Sayf Cummings, Democracy of Sound: Music Piracy and the Remaking of American Copyright in the Twentieth Century (Oxford University Press)
• David Giovannoni, Patrick Feaster, and Anne Thiollier, Edouard-Léon Scott de Martinville, Inventor of Sound Recording: A Bicentennial Tribute (Archeophone)
• Hendrik Storstein Spilker, Digital Music Distribution: The Sociology of Online Musical Streams (Routledge)
• Robert Strachan, Sonic Technologies: Popular music, Digital culture and the Creative Process (Bloomsbury Academic)
• Jack Sullivan, New Orleans Remix (University Press of Mississippi) 

2017 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

[To be posted]

2013 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded Rock Music

• Marc Dolan, Bruce Springsteen and the Promise of Rock 'n' Roll (W. W. Norton)
• Michael Drewett, Sarah Hill and Kimi Karki, Peter Gabriel, from Genesis to Growing Up (Ashgate)
• Andrew Jackson Grant, Still the Greatest: The Essential Songs of The Beatles' Solo Careers (Scarecrow)
• Mike Markesich, Teen Beat Mayhem! (www.priceless.com)
• Robert Rodriguez, Revolver: How the Beatles Reimagined Rock 'n ' Roll (Backbeat Books)
• Ken Scott and Bobby Owsinski, Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust: Off-the-record with The Beatles, Bowie, Elton and so much more (Alfred Music Publishing)

Best Research in Recorded Popular Music

• Gregg Akkerman, The Last Balladeer: the Johnny Hartman Story (Scarecrow)
• David Horn and John Shepherd, eds, The Continuum Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World Volume 8: Genres: North America (Continuum Press)
• Carole King, A Natural Woman: A Memoir (Grand Central Publishing)
• Hank Reineke, Arlo Guthrie: The Warner/Reprise Years (Scarecrow)

Best Historical Research in Blues/Gospel/Hip-hop/R&B

• Buddy Guy and David Ritz, When I Left Home: My Story (Da Capo)
• Matt Miller, Bounce: Rap Music and Local Identity in New Orleans (University of Massachusetts Press)

Best Research in Record Labels

• William R. Bryant, The American Zonophone Discography, Volume I: Ten- and Twelve-Inch Popular Series (1904–1912) (Mainspring Press)
• Jack Mirtle, The Capitol Records Childrens' Series: 1944 to 1956, The Complete Discography (Jack Mirtle)
• Jason Weiss, Always in Trouble: An Oral History of ESP-Disc, the Most Outrageous Record Label in America (Wesleyan University Press)
• Sean Wiletz, 360 Sound: The Columbia Records Story (Chronicle)

Best Historical Research in Recorded Folk, Ethnic, or Country Music

• Josh Graves, Bluegrass Bluesman: A Memoir (University of Illinois Press)
• Agustin Gurza, The Arhoolie Foundation's Strachwitz Frontera Collection of Mexican and Mexican American Recordings (Chicano Archives) (UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center Press)
• Rich Kinsley, Tall Dark Stranger: The Buck Owens & The Buckaroos Recordings 1969-1975 (Bear Family Records)
• Charlie Louvin, Satan is Real: The Ballad of the Louvin Brothers (ItBooks)
• Christopher Scales, Recording Culture: Powwow Music and the Aboriginal Recording Industry on the Northern Plains (Duke University Press)
• Therese Smith, Ancestral Imprints: Histories of Irish Traditional Music and Dance (Cork University Press)
• Jill Terry and Neil A. Wynn, eds, Transatlantic Roots Music: Folk, Blues, and National Identities (University Press of Mississippi)
• Stephen Wade, The Beautiful Music All Around Us: Field Recordings and the American Experience (University of Illinois Press)

Best Historical Research in Recorded Jazz

• Derrick Bang, Vince Guaraldi at the Piano (McFarland) Gary Carner, Pepper Adams' Joy Road: An Annotated Discography (Scarecrow)
• Bob Gluck, You'll Know When You Get There: Herbie Hancock and the Mwandishi Band (University of Chicago Press)
• Thomas Hustad, Born to Play: The Ruby Braff Discography and Directory of Performances (Scarecrow)
• Rob Palmer, Mr. P.C.: The Life and Music of Paul Chambers (Equinox Publishing)
• Don Rayno, Paul Whiteman: Pioneer in American Music, 1930-1967, vol. 2 (Scarecrow)
• Catherine Tackley, Benny Goodman's Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert (Oxford University Press)
• Richard Vacca, The Boston Jazz Chronicles: Faces, Places and Nightlife 1937-1962 (Troy Street Press)
• Christopher Wilkinson, Big Band Jazz in Black West Virginia (University Press of Mississippi)

Best Historical Research in Classical Music

• Jonathan Brown, Great Wagner Conductors: A Listener's Companion (Parrot Press)
• Roger Flury, Giacomo Puccini: A Discography (Scarecrow)
• Stephen Hastings, The Bjorling Sound: A Recorded Legacy (University of Rochester Press)
• D. Kern Holoman, Charles Munch (Oxford University Press)
• John Hunt, Frosch Critical discography of the Strauss Opera Die Frau Ohne Schatten (John Hunt)

Best Historical Research on General Recording Topics

• Patrick Feaster, Pictures of Sound: One Thousand Years of Educed Audio: 980-1980 (Dust-to-Digital)
• Mark Fonder, Patrick Conway and his Famous Band (Meredith Music)
• Peter Martland, Recording History: The British Record Industry, 1888-1931 (Scarecrow)
• Richard Osbourne, Vinyl: A History of the Analogue Record (Ashgate)
• Jonathan Sterne, MP3: The Meaning of a Format (Duke University Press)
• Timothy D. Taylor, Mark Katz, and Tony Grajeda, eds, Music, Sound, and Technology in America: A Documentary History of Early Phonograph, Cinema, and Radio (Duke University Press)

2012 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded Rock Music

• Marc Dolan, Bruce Springsteen and the Promise of Rock 'n' Roll (W. W. Norton)
• Michael Drewett, Sarah Hill and Kimi Karki, Peter Gabriel, from Genesis to Growing Up (Ashgate)
• Andrew Jackson Grant, Still the Greatest: The Essential Songs of The Beatles' Solo Careers (Scarecrow)
• Mike Markesich, Teen Beat Mayhem! (www.priceless.com)
• Robert Rodriguez, Revolver: How the Beatles Reimagined Rock 'n ' Roll (Backbeat Books)
• Ken Scott and Bobby Owsinski, Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust: Off-the-record with The Beatles, Bowie, Elton and so much more (Alfred Music Publishing)

Best Research in Recorded Popular Music

• Gregg Akkerman, The Last Balladeer: the Johnny Hartman Story (Scarecrow)
• David Horn and John Shepherd, eds, The Continuum Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World Volume 8: Genres: North America (Continuum Press)
• Carole King, A Natural Woman: A Memoir (Grand Central Publishing)
• Hank Reineke, Arlo Guthrie: The Warner/Reprise Years (Scarecrow)

Best Historical Research in Blues/Gospel/Hip-hop/R&B

• Buddy Guy and David Ritz, When I Left Home: My Story (Da Capo)
• Matt Miller, Bounce: Rap Music and Local Identity in New Orleans (University of Massachusetts Press)

Best Research in Record Labels

• William R. Bryant, The American Zonophone Discography, Volume I: Ten- and Twelve-Inch Popular Series (1904–1912) (Mainspring Press)
• Jack Mirtle, The Capitol Records Childrens' Series: 1944 to 1956, The Complete Discography (Jack Mirtle)
• Jason Weiss, Always in Trouble: An Oral History of ESP-Disc, the Most Outrageous Record Label in America (Wesleyan University Press)
• Sean Wiletz, 360 Sound: The Columbia Records Story (Chronicle)

Best Historical Research in Recorded Folk, Ethnic, or Country Music

• Josh Graves, Bluegrass Bluesman: A Memoir (University of Illinois Press)
• Agustin Gurza, The Arhoolie Foundation's Strachwitz Frontera Collection of Mexican and Mexican American Recordings (Chicano Archives) (UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center Press)
• Rich Kinsley, Tall Dark Stranger: The Buck Owens & The Buckaroos Recordings 1969-1975 (Bear Family Records)
• Charlie Louvin, Satan is Real: The Ballad of the Louvin Brothers (ItBooks)
• Christopher Scales, Recording Culture: Powwow Music and the Aboriginal Recording Industry on the Northern Plains (Duke University Press)
• Therese Smith, Ancestral Imprints: Histories of Irish Traditional Music and Dance (Cork University Press)
• Jill Terry and Neil A. Wynn, eds, Transatlantic Roots Music: Folk, Blues, and National Identities (University Press of Mississippi)
• Stephen Wade, The Beautiful Music All Around Us: Field Recordings and the American Experience (University of Illinois Press)

Best Historical Research in Recorded Jazz

• Derrick Bang, Vince Guaraldi at the Piano (McFarland) Gary Carner, Pepper Adams' Joy Road: An Annotated Discography (Scarecrow)
• Bob Gluck, You'll Know When You Get There: Herbie Hancock and the Mwandishi Band (University of Chicago Press)
• Thomas Hustad, Born to Play: The Ruby Braff Discography and Directory of Performances (Scarecrow)
• Rob Palmer, Mr. P.C.: The Life and Music of Paul Chambers (Equinox Publishing)
• Don Rayno, Paul Whiteman: Pioneer in American Music, 1930-1967, vol. 2 (Scarecrow)
• Catherine Tackley, Benny Goodman's Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert (Oxford University Press)
• Richard Vacca, The Boston Jazz Chronicles: Faces, Places and Nightlife 1937-1962 (Troy Street Press)
• Christopher Wilkinson, Big Band Jazz in Black West Virginia (University Press of Mississippi)

Best Historical Research in Classical Music

• Jonathan Brown, Great Wagner Conductors: A Listener's Companion (Parrot Press)
• Roger Flury, Giacomo Puccini: A Discography (Scarecrow)
• Stephen Hastings, The Bjorling Sound: A Recorded Legacy (University of Rochester Press)
• D. Kern Holoman, Charles Munch (Oxford University Press)
• John Hunt, Frosch Critical discography of the Strauss Opera Die Frau Ohne Schatten (John Hunt)

Best Historical Research on General Recording Topics

• Patrick Feaster, Pictures of Sound: One Thousand Years of Educed Audio: 980-1980 (Dust-to-Digital)
• Mark Fonder, Patrick Conway and his Famous Band (Meredith Music)
• Peter Martland, Recording History: The British Record Industry, 1888-1931 (Scarecrow)
• Richard Osbourne, Vinyl: A History of the Analogue Record (Ashgate)
• Jonathan Sterne, MP3: The Meaning of a Format (Duke University Press)
• Timothy D. Taylor, Mark Katz, and Tony Grajeda, eds, Music, Sound, and Technology in America: A Documentary History of Early Phonograph, Cinema, and Radio (Duke University Press)

2011 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded Rock or Popular Music

• Roberto Avant-Mier. Rock the Nation: Latin/o Identities and the Latin Rock Diaspora (Continuum Press)
• Bar Biszick-Lockwood. Restless Giant: The Life and Times of Jean Aberback and Hill and Range Songs (University of Illinois Press)
• Will Friedwald. A Biographical Guide to the Great Jazz and Pop Singers (Pantheon Books)
• Sheree Homer. Catch that Rockabilly Fever: Personal Stories of Life on the Road and in the Studio (McFarland Publishing)
• George Plasketes, ed. Play it Again: Cover Songs in Popular Music (Ashgate Publishing)
• Will Romano. Mountains Come Out of the Sky: An Illustrated History of Prog Rock (Backbeat Books)
• Albin J. Zak. I Don’t Sound Like Nobody: Remaking Music in 1950s America (University of Michigan Press)

Best Historical Research in Recorded Blues, Gospel, Hip-hop, or R&B Music

• Alan Govenar. Lightnin’ Hopkins: His Life and Blues (A Capella Press)
• Macel Ely. Ain’t No Grave: The Life and Legacy of Brother Claude Ely (Dust-to-Digital)
• Roger House. Blue Smoke: The Recorded Journey of Big Bill Broonzy (Louisiana State University Press)
• Peter C. Muir. Long Lost Blues (University of Illinois Press)
• Doug Seroff. There Breathed a Hope: The Legacy of John Work II and His Fisk Jubilee Quartet (Archeophone)
• Mary Lou Sullivan and Johnny Winter. Raisin’ Cain: The Wild and Raucous Story of Johnny Winter (Backbeat Books)

Best Research in Record Labels

• Andy Bradley and Charles Roger Wood. House of Hits: The Story of Houston’s Gold Star/Sugar Hill Recording Studios (University of Texas Press)
• Rémy Lewis, Thierry Soveaux, Olivier Borouchowitch, and Yannick Coupannec. Deutsche Grammophon: State of the Art: Celebrating Over a Century of Musical Experience (Rizzoli)
• Roben Jones. Memphis Boys: The Story of American Studios (University Press of Mississippi)
• Chris Salewicz and Suzette Newman. The Story of Island Records: Keep on Running (Universe)

Best Historical Research in Recorded Folk, Ethnic, or Country Music

• Ray Allen. Gone to the Country: The New Lost City Ramblers and the Folk Music Revival (University of Illinois Press)
• Heather Augustyn. Ska: An Oral History (McFarland Publishing)
• Alan Bern, Heiko Lehmann, and Bertram Nickolay. Jiddische Musik (Bear Family Records)
• Kevin Coffey, Cary Ginell, Jeremy Wakefield, and David Sager. Bob Dunn: Master of the Electric Steel Guitar (1935-1950) (Origin Jazz Library)
• Joe Conzo Sr. and David A. Perez. Mambo Diablo: My Journey with Tito Puente (AuthorHouse)
• David Dunaway and Molly Beer. Singing Out: An Oral History of America’s Folk Music Revivals (Oxford University Press)
• Vikram Sampath. My Name is Gauhar Jaan! The Life and Times of a Musician (Rupa Publications)
• Richard Spottswood and Stephen Wade. Banjo on the Mountain: Wade Mainer’s First Hundred Years (University Press of Mississippi)

Best Historical Research in Recorded Jazz Music

• Mark Berresford. That’s Got ‘Em! The Life and Music of Wilbur C. Sweatman (University Press of Mississippi)
• Cary Ginell. Hot Jazz for Sale: Hollywood’s Jazz Man Record Shop (Lulu.com)
• David Jessup. Benny Goodman: A Supplemental Discography (Scarecrow Press)
• Barry Martyn and Nick Gagliano. The Fabulous George Lewis Band (Burgundy Street Press)
• David Sager. Cabaret Echoes: New Orleans Jazzers at Work, 1918-1927 (Off the Record)
• Alyn Shipton. Hi-De-Ho: The Life of Cab Calloway (Oxford University Press)
• Randy Weston. African Rhythms: The Autobiography of Randy Weston (Duke University Press)

Best Historical Research in Classical Music

• Péter Fülöp. Mahler Discography (Doremi)
• Terry King. Gregor Piatigorsky: The Life and Career of the Virtuoso Cellist (McFarland Publishing)
• Tully Potter. Adolph Busch: The Life of an Honest Musician (Toccatta Press)

Best Historical Research on General Recording Topics

• Arved Mark Ashby. Absolute Music, Mechanical Reproduction (University of California Press)
• Amanda Bayley. Recorded Music: Performance, Culture, and Technology (Cambridge University Press)
• Pekka Gronow and Christiane Hofer. The Lindström Project: Contributions to the History of the Record Industry/Beiträge zur Geschichte der Schallplattenindustrie, Vol. 2(Gesellshaft für Historische Tonträger)
• Jay Hodgson. Understanding Records: A Field Guide to Recording Practice (Continuum)
• Gustavus Stadler. The Politics of Recorded Sound (Duke University Press)

2007 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded Blues, Rhythm & Blues, or Soul Music

• Big Boss Man: The Life and Music of Bluesman Jimmy Reed, by Will Romano (Backbeat) (H)
• Blues Discography, 1943-1970, by Les Fancourt and Bob McGrath (Eyeball Productions) (D)
• Chicago Blues: Portraits and Storiesm, by David G. Whiteis (University of Illinois Press) (H)
• Encyclopedia of the Blues, by Edward M. Komara (Routledge) (H)
• Presence and Pleasure: The Funk Grooves of James Brown and Parliament, by Anne Danielsen (Wesleyan University Press) (H)
• Sam Myers: The Blues Is My Story, by Sam Myers and Jeff Horton (University of Mississippi Press) (H)

Best Research in Recorded Classical Music

• A Discography of Concert Band Recordings on Compact Disc: Promoting the Artistry of Band Composition, by Lawrence Stoffel (Edwin Mellen Press ) (D)
• The Flute on Record: The 78 rpm Era, A Discography, by Susan Nelson (Scarecrow Press) (D)
• Guide to the Tuba Repertoire: The New Tuba Source Book, ed. by R. Winston Morris and Daniel Perantoni (Indiana University Press) (D)
• The Incredible Band of John Philip Sousa, by Paul Bierley (University of Illinois Press) (H/D)
• Lionel Tertis: The First Great Virtuoso of the Viola, by John White (Boydell Press) (H)
• New York Philharmonic: The Authorized Recordings, 1917-2005, A Discography, by James H. North (Scarecrow Press) (D)
• Wagner im Festspielhaus: Discography of the Bayreuth Recordings, by John Hunt (J. Hunt) (D)
• Women Composers and Music Technology in the United States: Crossing the Line, by Elizabeth Hinkle-Turner (Ashgate) (H)

Best Research in Recorded Country Music

• Country Music: The People, Places, and Moments That Shaped the Country Sound, by Richard Carlin (Black Dog & Leventhal) (H)
• The Grand Ole Opry: The Making of an American Icon, by Colin Escott (Center Street) (H)
• How Nashville Became Music City USA: 50 Years of Music Row, by Michael Kosser (Hal Leonard) (H)
• Johnny Cash: The Biography, by Michael Streissguth (Da Capo Press) (H)
• No One To Cry To: A Long, Hard Ride Into the Sunset With Foy Willing of the Riders of the Purple Sage, by Sharon Lee Willing (Wheatmark) (H/D)
• Old Shep: The Red Foley Recordings, 1933-1950, liner notes by Cary Ginnell (Bear Family) (H)
• Will the Circle Be Unbroken: Country Music in America, by Paul Kingsbury and Alanna Nash (DK) (H)
• Bob Luman: Let's Think About Living, His Recordings 1955-1967, liner notes by Hank Davis (Bear Family) (H)

Best Research in Recorded Folk, Ethnic, or World Music

• America's Polka King: The Real Story of Frankie Yankovic and His Music, by Bob Dolgan (Gray & Co.) (H/D)
• Arsenio Rodríguez and the Transnational Flows of Latin Popular Music, by David F. García (Temple University Press) (H/D)
• The Dawn of Indian Music in the West, by Peter Lavezzoli (Continuum) (H)
• The Life and Music of the American Folk Artist Doc Watson, by Fred Metting (Edwin Mellen Press) (H)
• Palestinian Arab Music: A Maqam Tradition in Practice, by Dalia Cohen and Ruth Katz (University of Chicago Press) (H)
• Performing Democracy: Bulgarian Music and Musicians in Transition, by Donna Anne Buchanan (University of Chicago Press) (H)
• Polkabilly: How the Goose Island Ramblers Redefined American Folk Music, by James P. Leary (Oxford University Press) (H)
• Texas Zydeco, by Charles Roger Wood and James Fraher (University of Texas Press) (H)
• Die Wachszylinder des Berliner Phonogramm-Archivs, by Susanne Ziegler (Berlin Ethnologisches Museum) (D)
• West Indian Rhythm, liner notes by John Cowley (Bear Family) (H/D)

Best Research in General History of Recorded Sound

• If These Halls Could Talk: A Historical Tour Through San Francisco Recording Studios, by Heather Johnson (Thomson Course Technology) (H)
• Making Easy Listening: Material Culture and Postwar American Recording, by Tim J. Anderson (University of Minnesota Press) (H)
• A Shot in the Dark: Making Records in Nashville, 1945-1955, by Martin Hawkins (Vanderbilt University Press/Country Music Foundation) (H/D)

Best Research in Record Labels

• The House That Trane Built: The Story of Impulse Records, by Ashley Kahn (W.W. Norton) (H)
• The Plaza-ARC Discography, vol. 1 (1922-1931), by Billie W. Thomas and Allan Sutton (Mainspring) (D)
• Rough Trade, by Rob Young (Black Dog) (H/D)

Best Research in Recorded Jazz

• All of Me: The Complete Discography of Louis Armstrong, by Jos Willems (Scarecrow Press) (D)
• Bags’ Groove: A Discography of Milt Jackson, by Chris Sheridan (Names & Numbers) (D))
• City of Gabriels: the History of Jazz in St.Louis, 1895-1973, by Dennis Owsley (Reedy Press) (H)
• The Dark Tree: Jazz and the Community Arts in Los Angeles, by Steven Louis Isoardi (University of California Press) (H)
• Deutsche Hot-Discographie: Cakewalk, Ragtime, Hot Dance & Jazz, ein Handbuch, by Rainer E. Lotz (Birgit Lotz) (D)
• Fats Waller on the Air: The Radio Broadcasts and Discography, by Stephen Taylor (Scarecrow Press) (H/D)
• Harlem of the West: The San Francisco Fillmore Jazz Era, by Elizabeth Pepin and Lewis Watts (Chronicle Books) (H)
• One O'Clock Jump: The Unforgettable History of the Oklahoma City Blue Devils, by Douglas Henry Daniels (Beacon Press) (H)
• Power, Passion and Beauty: The Story of the Legendary Mahavishnu Orchestra: the Greatest Band That Ever Was, by Walter Kolosky (Abstract Logix Books) (H)
• Rhythm Is Our Business: Jimmie Lunceford and the Harlem Express, by Eddy Determeyer (University of Michigan Press) (H/D)
• Someone to Watch Over Me: The Life and Music of Ben Webster, by Frank Büchmann-Møller (University of Michigan Press) (H)

Best Research in Recorded Popular Music

• Fire in the Water, Earth in the Air: Legends of West Texas Music, by Christopher J. Oglesby (University of Texas Press) (H)
• George Gershwin: His Life and Work, by Howard Pollack (University of California Press) (H)
• The Resisting Muse: Popular Music and Social Protest, ed. by Ian Peddie (Ashgate) (H)
• The Songs That Fought the War: Popular Music and the Home Front, by John Bush Jones (Brandeis University Press/University Press of New England) (H)
• Unlocking the Groove: Rhythm, Meter and Musical Design in Electronic Dance Music, by Mark J. Butler (Indiana University Press) (H)

Best Research in Recorded Rock Music

• Blue Monday: Fats Domino and the Lost Dawn of Rock 'n' Roll, by Rick Coleman (Da Capo Press) (H)
• The Blue Moon Boys: The Story of Elvis Presley's Band, by Ken Burke and Dan Griffin (Chicago Review Press) (H)
• Cat Stevens: The Complete Illustrated Biography & Discography, by George Brown (George Brown) (H/D)
• Endless Enigma: A Musical Biography of Emerson, Lake and Palmer, by Edward Macan (Open Court) (H)
• Here, There and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles, by Geoff Emerick and Howard Massey (Gotham Books) (H)
• Pet Shop Boys: Catalogue, by Philip Hoare and Chris Heath (Thames & Hudson) (H/D)
• Sky Dog: The Duane Allman Story, by Randy Poe (Backbeat Books) (H)
• The Unreleased Beatles: Music & Film, by Ritchie Unterberger (Backbeat Books) (H)
• The Words and Music of Frank Zappa, by Kelly Fisher Lowe (Praeger) (H)

2006 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded Blues, Rhythm & Blues, or Soul Music

• Dewey and Elvis: The Life and Times of a Rock 'n' Roll Deejay by Louis Cantor (University of Illinois)
• Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke by Peter Guralnick (Little Brown)
• A Bad Woman Feeling Good: Blues and the Women Who Sing Them by Buzzy Jackson (W. W. Norton)
• Lost Delta Found: Rediscovering the Fisk University-Library of Congress Coahoma County Folklore Study by John W. Work, Lewis Wade Jones, Samuel Adams; Robert Gordon and Bruce Nemerov, editors (Vanderbilt)

Best Research in Recorded Classical Music

• Michael Rabin: America's Virtuoso Violinist by Anthony Feinstein (Amadeus)
• Rachmaninoff: Life, Works, Recordings by Max Harrison (Continuum)
• While Spring and Summer Sang: Thomas Beecham and the Music of Frederick Delius by Lyndon Jenkins (Ashgate)
• Yevgeny Mravinsky: The Noble Conductor by Gregor Tassie (Scarecrow Press)
• Prince of Virtuosos: A Life of Walter Rummel, American Pianist by Charles Timbrell (Scarecrow Press)

Best Research in Recorded Country Music

• Bob Wills: Faded Love, 1947-1973 by Rich Kienzle (Bear Family)
• The Rose and the Briar: Death, Love, and Liberty in the American Ballad by Sean Wilentz and Greil Marcus, editors (W. W. Norton)
• King of the Cowboys, Queen of the West: Roy Rogers and Dale Evans by Ray White (University of Wisconsin)
• Country Music Goes to War by Charles K. Wolfe (University of Kentucky)

Best Research in Recorded Folk, Ethnic, or World Music

• America Over the Water by Shirley Collins (SAF)
• Bob Marley and the Wailers: The Definitive Discography by Roger Steffens and Leroy Jodie Pierson (Rounder)
• Electric Folk: The Changing Face of English Traditional Music by Britta Sweers (Oxford)
• The Mayor of Macdougal Street: A Memoir by Dave Van Ronk and Elijah Wald; forward by Lawrence Bloch (Da Capo)
• The Encyclopedia of Native Music: More Than a Century of Recordings from Wax Cylinder to the Internet by Brian Wright-McLeod (University of Arizona)

Best Research in Recorded Rap or Hip Hop Music

• Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation by Jeff Chang (St. Martins)
• Country Fried Soul: Adventures in Dirty South Hip-Hop by Tamara Palmer (Backbeat)

Best Research in Recorded Rock Music

• Soft Machine: Out-bloody-rageous by Graham Bennett (SAF)
• Grit, Noise, and Revolution: The Birth of Detroit Rock 'n' Roll by David Carson (University of Michigan)
• Mr. Tambourine Man: The Life and Legacy of the Byrds's Gene Clark by John Einarson (Backbeat)
• Dream a Little Dream of Me: The Life of "Mama" Cass Elliot by Eddi Fiegel (Sidgwick & Jackson)
• Speak to Me: The Legacy of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon by Russell Reising, editor (Ashgate)
• Van Morrison: No Surrender by Johnny Rogan (Secker & Warburg)
• Conversations with Tom Petty by Paul Zollo and Tom Petty (Omnibus)

Best Research in Recorded Jazz Music

• Stan Getz: An Annotated Bibliography and Filmography with Song and Session Information for Albums by Nicholas Churchill (McFarland)
• The Last Miles: The Music of Miles Davis 1980-1991 by George Cole (University of Michigan)
• Pioneers of Jazz: The Story of the Creole Band by Lawrence Gushee (Oxford)
• Bix: The Definitive Biography of a Jazz Legend: Leon "Bix" Beiderbecke (1903-1931) by Jean Pierre Lion (Continuum)
• The Uncrowned King of Swing: Fletcher Henderson and Big Band Jazz by Jeffrey Magee (Oxford)
• Head Hunters: The Making of Jazz's First Platinum Album by Steven F. Pond (University of Michigan)
• Chasin' the Bird: The Life and Legacy of Charlie Parker by Brian Priestley (Oxford)
• Take Five: The Public and Private Lives of Paul Desmond by Doug Ramsey and Paul Caulfield (discography) (Parkside Publications, Seattle)

Best Research in Labels or General History

• Echo and Reverb: Fabricating Space in Popular Music Recording, 1900-1960 by Peter Doyle (Wesleyan University Press)
• Sixty Years in the Music Business, by Nathaniel Shilkret with Niel Shell and Barbara Shilkret, editors (Scarecrow Press)
• Edison Blue Amberol Cylinders by Allan Sutton (Mainspring Press)

2005 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded Blues

• Escaping the Delta: Robert Johnson and the Invention of the Blues Elijah Wald (Harper Collins)
• Moanin’ At Midnight: The Life and Times of Howlin’ Wolf by James Segrest and Mark Hoffman (Pantheon)
• Robert Johnson: Mythmaking and Contemporary American Culture by Patricia R. Schroeder (University of Illinois Press)

Best Research in Recorded Classical Music

• Adrian Willaert: A Guide to Research by David Kidger (Routledge)
• Alan Rawsthorne: A Bio-Bibliography by John Dressler (Praeger)
• Dmitri Shostakovich, Pianist by Sofia Moshevich (McGill-Queens University Press)
• Leroy Anderson: A Bio-Bibliography by Burgess Speed (Praeger)
• Performing Music in the Age of Recording by Robert Philip (Yale University Press)

Best Research in Recorded Folk or Country Music

• Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921-1942 by Tony Russell (Oxford University Press)
• Ramblin’ Man: The Life and Times of Woody Guthrie by Ed Cray (Norton)

Best Research in Recorded World Music

• Albanian Urban Lyric Song in the 1930s by Eno Koco (Scarecrow Press)
• Arrest The Music! : Fela and his Rebel Art and Politics by Tejumola Olaniyan (Indiana University Press)
• Git Zaman Gel Zaman by Cernal Unlu (Fonograf Gramofon Tab Plak)
• Soweto Blues: Jazz, Popular Music and Politics in South Africa by Gwen Ansell (Continuum Books)

Best Research in General History of Recorded Sound

• Capturing Sound: How Technology Has Changed Music by Mark Katz (University of California Press)
• Lost Sounds: Blacks and the Birth of the Recording Industry 1890-1919 by Tim Brooks (University of Illinois Press)

Best Research in Recorded Jazz

• Albert Ayler: Holy Ghost by Ben Young, ed. (Revenant Records)
• The Complete Columbia Recordings of Woody Herman, 1945-1947 by Loren Schoenberg (Mosaic Records)
• Django: The Life and Music of a Gypsy Legend by Michael Dregni (Oxford University Press)
• Queen: The Life and Music of Dinah Washington by Nadine Cohodas (Pantheon)
• Satchmo: The Louis Armstrong Encyclopedia by Michael Meckna (Greenwood Press)
• Tom Talbert: His Life and Times by Bruce Talbot (Scarecrow Press)

Best Research in Record Labels

• Fonotipia Recordings: A Centennial Survey by Michael E. Henstock (pub. by author)
• Discography of OKeh Records, 1918-1934 by Ross Laird and Brian Rust. (Praeger)
• Syrena Record: Poland’s First Recording Company, 1904-1939 by Tomasz Lerski (Editions Karin)
• Victor Red Seal Discography: Vol. I: Single-Sided Series (1903-1925) by John R. Bolig (Mainspring Press)

Best Research in Recorded Popular Music

• Andrews Sisters: A Biography and Career by H. Arlo Nimmo (McFarland)
• Celia: My Life, an Autobiography by Celia Cruz and Ana Cristina Reymundo (Harper Collins)
• That Moaning Saxophone: The Six Brown Brothers and the Dawning of a Musical Craze by Bruce Vermazen (Oxford University Press)

Best Research in Recorded Rhythm & Blues, Soul, or Gospel Music

• Higher Ground: Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Curtis Mayfield and the Rise and Fall of American Soul by Craig Hansen Werner (Crown)
• House On Fire: The Rise and Fall of Philadelphia Soul by John A. Jackson (Oxford University Press)
• I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You: Aretha Franklin, Respect and the Making of a Soul Music Masterpiece by Matt Dobkin (St. Martins Press)
• Luther: The Life and Longing of Luther Vandross by Craig Seymour (Harper Collins)
• Original Marvelettes: Motown’s Mystery Girl Group by Marc Taylor (Aloiv)
• People Get Ready!: A New History of Black Gospel Music by Robert Darden (Continuum Books)

Best Research in Recorded Rock or Rap Music

• Del Shannon: Home and Away: The Complete Recordings, 1960-1970 by Brian Young (Bear Family)
• Freddy Fresh Presents the Rap Records by Freddy Fresh (Nerby Publishing)
• Never Break the Chain: Fleetwood Mac and the Making of Rumours by Cath Carroll (Chicago Review Press)
• Nirvana: The Complete Recording Sessions by Rob Jovanovic (Firefly)
• Smoke On The Water: The Deep Purple Story by Dave Thompson (ECW Press)
• Steve Marriott: All Too Beautiful by Paolo Hewitt and John Hellier (Helter Skelter)

2004 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded Popular Music

• Cakewalks, Rags and Novelties: The International Ragtime Discography 1894-1930 by Allan Sutton (Mainspring Press)
• Tin Pan Alley: An Encyclopedia of the Golden Age of American Song by David A. Jasen (Routledge)
• Paul Whiteman: Pioneer in American Music, 1890-1930 by Don Rayno (Scarecrow Press)
• Sondheim on Music: Minor Details and Major Decisions by Mark Eden Horowitz and Stephen Sondheim (Scarecrow Press)
• Skylark: The Life and Times of Johnny Mercer by Philip Furia (St. Martin’s Press)
• God Bless America: Tin Pan Alley Goes to War by Kathleen E. R. Smith (University Press of Kentucky)
• Sound of Africa: Making Music Zulu in a South African Studio by Louise Meintjes (Duke University Press)
• Wizard of Oz [CD liner notes] by David Maxine

Best Research in Recorded Country Music

• Southwest Shuffle: Pioneers of Honkey Tonk, Western Swing and Country Jazz by Richard Kienzle (Routledge)
• Women of Country Music: A Reader by Charles K. Wolfe (ed.) and James E. Akenson (University Press of Kentucky)

Best Research in Recorded Classical Music

• Bach Performance Practice, 1945-1975: A Comprehensive Review of Sound Recordings and Literature by Dorottya Fabian (Ashgate)
• Performing Brahms: Early Evidence of Performance Style by Michael Musgrave (ed.) and Bernard D. Sherman (ed.) (Cambridge University Press)
• Theory and Practice in Late Nineteenth Century Violin Performance: An Examination of Style in Performance, 1850-1900 by David Milsom (Ashgate)
• Cambridge Companion to Stravinsky by Jonathan Cross (Cambridge University Press)
• Pierre Monteux, Maitre by John Canarina (Amadeus Press)
• Rudolf Serkin: A Life by Stephen Lehmann (Oxford University Press)

Best Research in Recorded Rock, Rhythm & Blues, or Soul

• At the Apple's Core: The Beatles from the Inside by Denis O'Dell and Bob Neaverson (Peter Owen, Ltd.)
• The Bootleg Guide: Classic Bootlegs of the 1960s and 1970s, an Annotated Discography by Garry Freeman (Scarecrow Press)
• Holy Profane: Religion in Black Popular Music by Teresa L. Reed (University Press of Kentucky)
• Swinging the Machine: Modernity, Technology and African-American Culture Between the World Wars by Joel Dinerstein (University of Massachusetts Press)
• Bad Boy of Gospel Music: The Calvin Newton Story by Russ Cheatham (University Press of Mississippi)
• Music and Technoculture by Rene T. A. Lysloff (ed.) and Lesley C. Gay, Jr. (ed.) (Wesleyan University Press)

Best Research in Recorded Jazz

• Jazz on Record: The First Sixty Years by Scott Yanow (Backbeat Books)
• Making Jazz French: Music and Modern Life in Interwar Paris by Jeffrey H. Jackson (Duke University Press)
• Good Vibes: A Life in Jazz by Terry Gibbs with Cary Ginell (Scarecrow Press)
• Jean “Django” Reinhardt: A Contextual Bio-Discography, 1910-1953 by Paul Vernon (Ashgate)
• Charlie Christian: Solo Flight: The Story of the Seminal Electric Guitarist by Peter Broadbent (Ashley Mark) (2nd edition)
• Jelly’s Blues: The Life, Music and Redemption of Jelly Roll Morton by Howard Reich and William Gaines (DaCapo Press)
• African-American Jazz Musicians in the Diaspora by Larry Ross (Edwin Mellen Press)
• The Cat on a Hot Thin Groove by Gene Deitch (Fantagraphics Books)
• Freedom Is, Freedom Ain't: Jazz and the Making of the Sixties by Scott Saul (Harvard University Press)

Best Research Recorded Blues and Gospel Music

• Stagolee Shot Billy by Cecil Brown (Harvard University Press)
• Great God a’Mighty! The Dixie Hummingbirds: Celebrating the Rise of Soul Gospel Music by J. Jerome Zolten (Oxford University Press)
• Robert Johnson: Lost and Found by Barry Lee Pearson and Bill McCulloch (University of Illinois Press)
• Out of Sight: The Rise of African American Popular Music, 1889–1895 by Lynn Abbott and Doug Seroff (University Press of Mississippi)

Best Research in Record Labels or Manufacturers

• Paramount’s Rise and Fall: A History of the Wisconsin Chair Company and its Recording Activities by Alex van der Tuuk (Mainspring Press)
• Folkways Records: Moses Asch and his Encyclopedia of Sound by Anthony Olmstead (Routledge)
• His Master’s Voice: The Perfect Portable Gramophone by Dave Cooper (New Cavendish Books)

2003 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded Popular Music

• Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music, by Mark Allan Powell (Hendrickson Publishers)
• Stardust Melody: the Life and Music of Hoagy Carmichael, by Richard M. Sudhalter (Oxford University Press)
• Stardust Melodies: the Biography of Twelve of America's Most Popular Songs, by Will Friedwald (Pantheon Books)
• Roadkill on the Three-Chord Highway: Art and Trash in American Popular Music, by Colin Escott (Routledge)

Best Research in Recorded Folk or Ethnic Music

• Lalo: My Life and Music, by Lalo Guerrero and Sherilyn Mentes (University of Arizona Press)
• Reggae & Caribbean Music, Dave Thompson (Backbeat Books)
• Tejano Proud: Tex-Mex Music in the Twentieth Century, by Guadalupe San Miguel, Jr. (Texas A & M University Press)
• The City of Musical Memory: Salsa, Record Grooves, and Popular Culture in Cali, Colombia, by Lise Waxer (Wesleyan University Press)
• Harry Choates: Devil in the Bayou, Andy Brown (notes to Bear Family CD set)
• Sam Manning: the Complete Output, 1924-1930, vols. 1 & 2, by John Cowley and Steve Shapiro (notes to Jazz Oracle CD set)

Best Research in Recorded Country Music

• Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone?: the Carter Family and Their Legacy in American Music, Mark Zwonitzer and Charles Hirshberg (Simon & Schuster)
• Country Music Sources: A Biblio-Discography of Commercially Recorded Traditional Music, by Guthrie T. Meade, Richard K. Spottswood, and Douglas S. Meade (Southern Folklife Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries in Association with the John Edwards Memorial Forum)
• Singing in the Saddle: the History of the Singing Cowboy, by Douglas B. Green (Country Music Foundation Press and Vanderbilt University Press)
• Blue Moon of Kentucky: Bill Monroe, 1936-1949, by Charles Wolfe (notes to Bear Family CD set)

Best Research in Recorded Classical Music

• The Extraordinary Operatic Adventures of Blanche Arral, by Blanche Arral; trans. by Ira Glackens; ed. by William R. Moran (Amadeus Press)
• The Composer-Pianists: Hamelin and The Eight, by Robert Rimm (Amadeus Press)
• George Crumb: a Bio-Bibliography, by David Cohen (Greenwood Press)
• Vladimir de Pachmann: a Piano Virtuoso's Life and Art, by Mark Mitchell (Indiana University Press)\
• Caruso Records: a History and Discography, by John Richard Bolig (Mainspring Press)
• Emanuel Feuermann, by Annette Morreau (Yale University Press)

Best Research Recorded Rock, Rhythm & Blues, or Soul

• Jimi Hendrix and the Making of Are You Experienced, by Sean Egan (A Cappella)
• Every Sound There Is: the Beatles' Revolver and the Transformation of Rock and Roll, by Russell Reising (Ashgate)
• Rock 'n' Roll and the Cleveland Connection, Deanna R. Adams (Kent State University Press)
• Jethro Tull: A History of the Band, 1968-2001, by Scott Allen Nollen (McFarland)
• Brown-Eyed Handsome Man: The Life of Chuck Berry, by Bruce Pegg (Routledge)
• The 'Hood Comes First: Race, Space, and Place in Rap and Hip-Hop, by Murray Forman (Wesleyan University Press)

Best Research in Recorded Jazz

• Gil Evans: Out of the Cool: His Life and Music, by Stephanie Stein Crease (A Cappella)
• Bill Evans: Everything Happens To Me: A Musical Biography, by Keith Shadwick (Backbeat Books)
• Rat Race Blues: the Musical Life of Gigi Gryce, by Noal Cohen and Michael Fitzgerald (Berkeley Hills Books)
• A Jazz Odyssey: the Life of Oscar Peterson, by Oscar Peterson; ed. by Richard Palmer (Continuum)
• Roy Eldridge, Little Jazz Giant, by John Chilton (Continuum)
• Castles Made of Sound: the Story of Gil Evans, by Larry Hicock (Da Capo Press)
• Charlie Barnet: An Illustrated Biography and Discography of the Swing Era Big Band Leader, by Dan Mather (McFarland)
• Something to Live For: the Music of Billy Strayhorn, by Walter van de Leur (Oxford University Press)
• A Love Supreme: the Story of John Coltrane s Signature Album, by Ashley Kahn (Viking)
• Latin Jazz: the Perfect Combination/La Combinacion Perfecta, by Raul Fernandez (Chronicle Books)

Best Research in Recorded Blues and Gospel Music

• Can't be Satisfied: the Life and Times of Muddy Waters, by Robert Gordon (Little Brown)
• Blues with a Feeling: the Little Walter Story, by Tony Glover, Scott Dirks, and Ward Gaines (Routledge)
• The Pilgrim Jubilees, by Alan Young (University Press of Mississippi)
• Best Research General Discography and History of Recorded Sound
• Music Inspired By Art: A Guide to Recordings, by Gary Evans (Scarecrow Press and the Music Library Association)

Best Research in Record Labels or Manufacturers

• Exploding: the Highs, Hits, Hype, Heroes, and Hustlers of the Warner Music Group by Stan Cornyn and Paul Scanlon (Harper Entertainment)
• Motown: Music, Money, Sex, and Power, by Gerald L. Posner (Random House)

2002 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded General Popular Music

• Bing Crosby: A Pocketful of Dreams: The Early Years,1903-1940, by Gary Giddins (Little, Brown & Company, 2001) [H]
• Peter Dawson: The Worlds Most Popular Baritone, by Russell Smith and Pete Burgis (Currency Press, 2001) [H]
• September in the Rain: The Life of Nelson Riddle, by Peter J. Levinson (Billboard Books, 2001) [H]

Best Research in Recorded Classical Music

• Bruno Walter: A World Elsewhere, by Erik Ryding and Rebecca Pechefsky (Yale University Press, 2001) [H]
• Pietro Mascagni: A Bio-Bibliography, by Roger Flury (Greenwood Press, 2001) [D]
• Sviatoslav Richter: Notebooks and Conversations, by Bruno Monsaingeon, translated by Stewart Spencer (Princeton University Press, 2001) [H]
• Witold Lutoslawski: A Bio-Bibliography, by Stanislaw Bedkowski and Stinislaw Hrabia (Greenwood Press, 2001) [D]

Best Research in Recorded Rock, Rhythm & Blues, or Soul

• The Beat: Go-Go-s Fusion of Funk and Hip-Hop, by Kip Lornell and Charles C. Stephenson, Jr. (Billboard Books, 2001) [H]
• Funk, by Dave Thompson (Backbeat Books, 2001) [H]
• Orbison, by Colin Escott; discography by Richard Weize, notes to Bear Family CDs (2001) [H, D]
• Ricky Nelson: The American Dream, by Todd Everett, discography by Russ Wapensky, Richard Weize and Bob Jones, notes to Bear Family CDs (2001) [H,D]

Best Research in Recorded Jazz Music

• Before Motown: A History of Jazz in Detroit, 1920-1960, by Lars Bjorn and Jim Gallert (University of Michigan Press, 2001) [H]
• Blue Nippon: Authenticating Jazz in Japan, by E. Taylor Atkins (Duke University Press, 2001) [H]
• Brilliant Corners: A Bio-Discography of Thelonious Monk, compiled by Chris Sheridan (Greenwood Press, 2001) [D]
• Ella Fitzgerald: An Annotated Discography; Including a Complete Discography of Chick Webb, by J. Wilfred Johnson (McFarland & Company, Inc., 2001) [D]
• In a Silent Way: A Portrait of Joe Zawinul, Brian Glasser (Sanctuary Publishing Limited, 2001) [H]
• Jazz on the Road: Don Alberts Musical Life, by Christopher Wilkinson (University of California Press, 2001) [H]
• The Miller Companion to Jazz in Canada: And Canadians in Jazz, by Mark Miller (Mercury Press, 2001) [H]
• Songs of the Unsung: The Musical and Social Journey of Horace Tapscott, ed. by Steven Isoardi (Duke University Press, 2001) [H]

Best Research in Recorded Blues Music

• Blues Mandolin Man: The Life and Music of Yank Rachell, by Richard Congress (University Press of Mississippi, 2001) [H, D]
• Earl Hooker: Blues Master, by Sebastian Danchin (University Press of Mississippi, 2001) [H, D]
• Screamin and Hollerin the Blues: The Worlds of Charley Patton, by David Evans, John Fahey, Edward Komara, Dick Spottswood notes to Revenant CDs (2001) [H, D]

Best Research in Recorded Country Music

• Bill Clifton: Around the World to Poor Valley, by Rienk Janssen, discography by Richard Weize, (Bear Family Records, 2001) [H, D]
• Classic Country: Legends of Country Music, by Charles K. Wolfe (Routledge, 2001) [H]
• Discography of Western Swing and Hot String Bands, 1928-1942, by Cary Ginell and Kevin Coffey (Greenwood Press, 2001) [D]

Best Research in Recorded Folk and Ethnic Music

• The Formative Dylan: Transmission and Stylistic Influences, 1961-1963, by Todd Harvey (Scarecrow Press, 2001) [H, D]
• Music From Cuba, by Charley Gerard (Greenwood Press, 2001) [H]
• Yellow Music: Media Culture and Colonial Modernity in Chinese Jazz Age, by Andrew F. Jones (Duke University Press, 2001) [H]

Best Research in Recorded Music

• Aural History: Essays on Recorded Sound, ed. by Andy Linehan (British Library, National Sound Archives, 2001) [H]
• Beyond Recall: A Record of Jewish Musical Life in Nazi Berlin, 1933-1938, by Rainer E. Lotz, Horst J. P. Bergmeier, and Ejal Jakob Eisler, notes to Bear Family CDs (2001) [H, D]
• Musical Works and Performances: A Philosophical Exploration, by Stephen Davies (Oxford University Press, 2001) [H]

Best Research in Record Labels or Manufacturers

• Brunswick Records: A Discography of Recordings, 1916-1931 [in 4 volumes], by Ross Laird (Greenwood Press, 2001) [D]
• Nicole Records: A Discography of Recordings Issued on the "Nicole Record" and Other Labels; With a History of Nicole Freres, Limited, and The Nicole Record Company, Limited, and Associated Companies, by Michael Kinnear (Self-published, 2001) [D]
• Okeh Race Records: The 8000 "Race" Series, by Laurie Wright (Self-published, 2001) [D]
• Seventy Years of Issues: Historical Vocal 78rpm Pressings from Original Masters 1931-2001, compiled by Tom Peel and John Stratton (Dundurn Press, 2001) [D]
• The Zon-O-Phone Record: A Discography of Recordings Produced by the International Zonophone Company and Associated Companies in Europe and the Americas, 1901-1903, compiled by Ernie Bayly and Michael Kinnear (Self-published, 2001) [D]

Best Research in Preservation and Reproduction of Recorded Sound

• Broadcast Transcription Discs, by James R. Powell, Jr.(Gramophone Adventures, 2001) [H]
• Phonographs With Flair: A Century of Style in Sound Reproduction, by Timothy C. Fabrizio and George F. Paul (Schiffer Publishing Ltd., 2001) [H]

2001 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded General Popular Music

• Mel Torme: A Chronicle of His Recordings, Books and Films by George Hulme (McFarland & Co., 2000) [D]
• Paul Simon: A Bio-Bibliography by James Perone, (Greenwood Press, 2000) [H, D]
• Popular American Recording Pioneers: 1895-1925 by Tim Gracyk and Frank Hoffmann (Haworth Press, 2000) [H]

Best Research in Recorded Classical Music

• A Century of Recorded Music: Listening to Musical History by Timothy Day (Yale University Press, 2000) [H]
• Discography in Leonard Warren: American Baritone by Barrett Crawford (Amadeus Press, 2000) [D]
• Meilensteine der Bach-Interpretation 1750-2000: Eine Werkgeschichte im Wandel by Martin Elste (Meltzer/Barenreiter, 2000) [H]
• Schubert's Great C Major Symphony, d 944: A Discography, by Jerome F. Weber (Self-published, 2000) [D]
• Tristan und Isolde on Record: A Comprehensive Discography of Wagner's Music Drama with a Critical Introduction to the Recordings by Jonathan Brown (Greenwood Press, 2000) [D]

Best Research in Recorded Rock, Rhythm & Blues, or Soul

• The Beatles Story on Capitol Records, Parts One and Two, by Bruce Spizer (498 Productions, 2000) [H]
• Boogie Man: The Adventures of John Lee Hooker in the American Twentieth Century, by Charles Shaar Murray (St. Martin’s Press, 2000) [H]
• Cream: Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker -- The Legendary Sixties Supergroup, by Chris Welch (Backbeat Books, 2000) [H]
• Encyclopedia of Rhythm and Blues and Doo-Wop Vocal Groups, by Mitch Rosalsky (Scarecrow Press, 2000) [H]
• Girl Groups: Fabulous Females That Rocked the World, by John Clemente (Krause Publications, 2000) [H]
• Race, Rock, and Elvis, by Michael T. Bertrand (University of Illinois Press, 2000) [H]
• The Who on Record: A Critical History, 1963-1998, by John Atkins (McFarland & Company, 2000) [H]

Best Research in Recorded Jazz or Blues

• Artie Shaw: A Biography and Discography, by Vladimir Simosko (Scarecrow Press, 2000) [H,D]
• Dis Here: A Bio-Discography of Julian 'Cannonball' Adderley, by Chris Sheridan (Greenwood Press, 2000) [D]
• The Half Ain't Been Told: An Otis Spann Career Discography, by Bill Rowe (revised and updated by Chris Smith and Howard Rye) (Micrography, 2000) [D]
• The Half Ain't Been Told: An Otis Spann Career Discography, by Bill Rowe (revised and updated by Chris Smith and Howard Rye) (Micrography, 2000) [D]
• Kind of Blue: The Making of the Miles Davis Masterpiece, by Ashley Kahn (DaCapo Press, 2000) [H]
• Morning Glory: A Biography of Mary Lou Williams, by Linda Dahl (Pantheon Books, 1999 - but not available until 2000) [H]
• An Unsung Cat: The Life and Music of Warne Marsh, by Safford Chamberlain (Scarecrow Press, 2000) [H, D]

Best Research in Recorded Folk and Ethnic Music

• Can't You Hear Me Callin': The Life of Bill Monroe, Father of Bluegrass, by Richard D. Smith (Little Brown & Company, 2000) [H]
• Romancing the Folk: Public Memory and American Roots Music, by Benjamin Filene (University of North Carolina Press, 2000) [H]
• Wake the Town and Tell the People: Dancehall Culture in Jamaica, by Norman C. Stolzoff ( Duke University Press, 2000) [H]
• Best Research in the General History of Recorded Sound
• "Centenary of Indian Gramophone Records," by Suresh Chandvankar in The Record News: The Journal of the Society of Indian Record Collectors, Annual, TRN-2000 (2000) [H]
• Off the Record: The Technology and Culture of Sound Recording in America, by David Morton (Rutgers University Press, 2000) [H]

Best Research in Record Labels or Manufacturers

• American Record Labels and Companies: An Encyclopedia (1891-1943), by Allan Sutton and Kurt Nauck (Mainspring Press, 2000) [D]
• Dancing in the Streets: Motown and Cultural Politics of Detroit, by Suzanne E. Smith (Harvard University Press, 2000) [H]
• The R&B Indies, by Bob McGrath (Eyeball Music, 2000) [D]
• Spinning the Blues into Gold: The Chess Brothers, by Nadine Cohodas (St. Martins Press, 2000) [H]
• Suomalaisten Aanilevyjen Luettelo 1901-1945 (Catalog of Finnish Records 1901-1945), by Rainer Strommer (Suomen Aanitearkistory. Yleisradio-Aanilevysto, 2000) [D]

Best Research in Phonographs

• Discovering Antique Phonographs, by Timothy C. Fabrizio and George F. Paul (Schiffer, 2000) [H] (Schiffer Publishing Ltd., 2001) [H]

2000 ARSC Awards for Excellence Finalists

Best Research in Recorded General Popular Music

• Trumpet Blues: the Life of Harry James, by Peter J. Levinson (Oxford University Press)
• Marigold: The Music of Billy Mayerl, by Peter Dickinson (Oxford University Press)
• Phil Ochs: A Bio-Bibliography, by David Cohen (Greenwood Press)
• Sessions with Sinatra: Frank Sinatra and the Art of Recording, by Charles L. Granata (A Capella Books)

Best Research in Recorded Classical Music

• More EJS: A Discography of the Edward J. Smith Recordings, by William Shaman and William J. Collins (Greenwood Press)
• "Josef Herrmann: Biographische Daten und Tondokumente," by Günther Walter in Stimmen die um die Welt gingen . . . No. 66 (December 1999), pp. 1-64.
• "Miliza Korjus" by John Rosonakis in Record Collector 44/1 (March 1999)
• "Clara Butt" by Dennis Foreman in Record Collector 44/2 (June 1999)

Best Research in Recorded Rock, Rhythm & Blues, or Soul

• The Great Alternative Rock and Indie Discography, by Martin Strong (Canongate Press)
• Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley, by Peter Guralnick (Little Brown)

Best Research in Recorded Jazz, Blues, or Gospel

• Black Gypsy: The Recordings of Eddie South, by Anthony Barnett (Allardyce Barnett)
• A Blues Life, by Henry Townsend as told to Bill Greensmith (University of Illinois Press)
• Giant Strides: The Legacy of Dick Wellstood, by Edward N. Meyer (Scarecrow Press)
• Groovin' High: the Life of Dizzy Gillespie, by Alyn Shipton (Oxford University Press)
• Jazz By Mail: Record Clubs and Record Labels 1936-1958, by Geoffrey Wheeler (Hillbrook Press)
• Jimmy Dorsey: A Study in Contrasts, by Robert L. Stockdale (Scarecrow Press)
• Lost Chords: White Musicians and Their Contribution to Jazz, 1915-1945, by Richard M. Sudhalter (Oxford University Press)
• The Musical World of J. J. Johnson, by Joshua Berrett and Louis G. Bourgois III (Scarecrow Press)
• Ride Red Ride: The Life of Henry "Red" Allen, by John Chilton (Cassell).
• Stride! Fats, Jimmy, Lion, Lamb, and All the Other Ticklers, by John L. Fell and Terkid Vinding (Scarecrow Press)

Best Research in Recorded Folk and Ethnic Music

• Hard Travelin': The Life and Legacy of Woody Guthrie, ed. by Robert Santelli and Emily Davidson (Wesleyan University Press)
• Klezmer: Jewish Music from the Old World to the New World, by Henry Sapoznik (Schirmer)
• Klezmer-Musik, by Rita Ottens and Joel Rubin (Barenreiter-Verlag Kassel)
• Tito Puente and the Making of Latin Music, by Steven Loza (University of Illinois Press)
• Best Research in the General History of Recorded Sound
• Recorded Music in American Life: The Phonograph and Popular Memory, 1890-1945, by William Howland Kenney (Oxford University Press)
• A Spiral Way: How the Phonograph Changed Ethnography, by Erika Brady (University Press of Mississippi)
• Sound Beginnings: The Early Recording Industry in Australia, by Ross Laird (Currency Press)

Best Research in Record Labels or Manufacturers

• Little Labels, Big Sound: Small Record Companies and the Rise of American Music, by Rick Kennedy and Randy McNutt (Indiana University Press)
• The Columbia Master Book Discography (4 vols.), by Tim Brooks and Brian Rust (Greenwood Press)
• Little Wonders Records: A History and Discography, ed. by Tim Brooks (New Amberola)

Best Research in Phonographs

• Antique Phonograph Gadgets, Gizmos, and Gimmicks, by Timothy Fabrizio and George Paul (Schiffer Publishing Ltd.)