Long Island Sounds Friday at the Library: Pop, Rock, Rap

From Vanilla Fudge to Billy Joel to Twisted Sister to Public Enemy, Long Island has been the birthplace of many and varied rock, pop and rap acts.

The quintessentially Long Island among them — and how their sounds reflect their origins — is the subject of the Library’s dialogue on Friday, Aug. 20, featuring “Rolling Stone and ESPN: The Magazine writers,” David Browne and Tom Junod, respectively. The program, which will be on Zoom, begins at 7 p.m.

Authors Browne and Junod will discuss, dissect and debate what songs captured Nassau and Suffolk sounds and what the Island brought to rock and roll as they explore its recent musical history.

Currently a senior writer at Rolling Stone, where he’s been a contributor since 2008, David Browne has a long distinguished career as a writer, editor as well as music critic, with Entertainment Weekly and the New York Daily News. He was an editor at Music & Sound Output magazine and has written for a variety of publications, including Spin, The New York Times, The New Republic and Time. He’s the author of six books, including a dual father/son biography of musicians Jeff Buckley and Tim Buckley, and “Fire and Rain: The Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, James Taylor, CSNY and the Lost Story of 1970,” and “Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: The Wild, Definitive Saga of Rock’s Greatest Supergroup.”

Tom Junod is an award-winning magazine journalist. He worked as a writer for Esquire, GQ, Atlanta, Life and Sports Illustrated. He is the recipient of two National Magazine Awards from The American Society of Magazine Editors and the James Beard Award for his Esquire essay, “My Mom Couldn’t Cook.” Among his notable works is an Esquire profile of Fred Rogers, the premise of the film, “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” and a satirical piece on R.E.M. lead singer Michael Stipe.

Like all Library programs, “Long Island Sound” is free while donations are gratefully accepted. Visit silibrary.org to register for the program, at least 30 minutes in advance, or contact the library, 631-749-0042.

Next Up: An anniversary celebration of Goat Hill. George Lewis: “Everything I Learned in Life, I Learned at the Shelter Island Country Club.”

Friday, September 17, 7 p.m. on Zoom.