From our CD collections to iPods bursting with MP3s to the hallowed vinyl of DJs, recordings are the most common way we experience music.

Perfecting Sound Forever tells the story of recorded music, introducing us to the innovators, musicians and producers who have affected the way we hear our favourite songs, from Thomas Edison to Phil Spector.

Exploring the balance that recordings strike between the real and the represented, Greg Milner asks the questions which have divided sound recorders for the past century: should a recording document reality as faithfully as possible, or should it improve upon or somehow transcend the music it records? What does the perfect record sound like? The answers he uncovers will change the way we think about music.

'[A] breathless, surprisingly thrilling rollercoaster ride through the history of recorded music ... a tour-de-force of fascinating anecdotes, lucidly expounded science, witty asides, stylistic verve, and page after page of "gosh, I never knew that" facts.' - Mail on Sunday