Many more gays have been active at the forefront of the music business in the 20th century than official histories, critical works (and sometimes the individuals themselves) have been willing to acknowledge. Furthermore, much lesbian and gay criticism has also paid scant attention to the impact of homosexuality on key areas - blues, jazz, classical, avant garde, folk, ethnic music - due partly to the inaccessibility of information on key players and partly to the perceived unfashionability of some of those genres to the gay media. This study redresses these imbalances and presents an insightful and colourful history of gay themes, influences, figures and icons of this century.