It really holds up well. I’m a huge fan of Palmer’s. Just picked up his anthology that Anthony DeCurtis put together a few years back. https://www.amazon.com/dp/141659975...aod=1&colid=O2P4OEQV0TGC&coliid=IH0F040IWYPOB
It depends on the subject. Is it a biography? Is it about concerts, recording, a general theme in music? I like a good picture of the subject for a bio. Whatever it is, it should not be a picture that is likely to turn people off. For example, I generally won't pick up a book with someone giving the middle finger salute. That's just me, and maybe I'm missing out on a good read, but there are already more books to read than I will get to in my life. Something eye-catching, something that makes people smile, that is more likely to get them to pick it up off a shelf or click on the title on an online book seller. I'm a librarian, not a book seller or publisher, so take my opinions for the 2 cents they are worth.
I was really disappointed with the Richard Thompson book, a dull read that finished far too soon in my opinion. Just finished the John Cooper Clarke biography - give it a name? Genius!
I've just brought a cheap used copy of The True Adventures of the Rolling Stones by Stanley Booth. I was looking to read about the Stones 60's material and judging by the reviews it seems like the perfect book for that time period.
Beatles 66: The Revolutionary Year, by Steve Turner. This one came out in 2016 but somehow slipped under my radar. It really slows down the Beatles story to examine this pivotal year. I'm halfway through and it's a good read. I already learned that McCartney's first acid trip happened in December 65 (not in 1966 as Paul remembers it), which means it happened before Revolver was recorded. Turner claims that "Got to Get You Into My Life" was not written about pot, but about that first acid trip. The book does a nifty job of putting the band's work in the context of the times.
Yesterday The Beatles "Get Back" book arrived. Today Dave Grohl's "Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music" arrives
Graeme Thompson, who wrote the excellent Kate Bush biography Under The Ivy, most recently published a book on John Martyn. His next is on Simple Minds.
After reading your excellent review I've got this book on order. Cuban music doesn't get a lot of attention here but, that island has produced some phenomenal musicians and music. Anyone interested should pick up Havana Cafe by Barbarito Torres. Beautiful music and cheap from Amazon.
If you are a fan of crime thrillers and music (particularly jazz), you might like to try the Vinyl Detective series by Andrew Cartmel. There are now about half a dozen books in the series (one a year) and they invariably involve the so-called Vinyl Detective being asked to track down the original pressing of a rare or obscure record, which inevitably leads to murder or other trouble. They are largely set in London, and the author is unsurprisingly a big vinyl collector. He is also a TV scriptwriter, and fans of the UK series Midsomer Murders will see the parallel, with its corny humour. Music fans will also note the parallels with various artists or bands. They are page turning, easy reads, if you want something to pass a few relaxed reading hours.
Got the Wendy Carlos biography from the library today. Should be an interesting read, to say the least.
Just finished Dave Grohl book. Fast, fun, joyful read. I imagine he has darker tales from his career but you won't find them here. Definitely a great father and it did make me sad when reflecting on my own father who preferred being a drunk to spending time with his family.
I pre-ordered this several months before the announced release date of spring 2020. Needless to say, it was delayed until the fall. Of course, Amanda Sewell had no cooperation from Carlos when she was putting together the book. It is well researched and fairly well balanced. She talks about Carlos' hurt feelings in regards to interviews and articles published about her over the years. Naturally, Carlos slagged off the book and author after it was published. There was no way this was not going to happen. The book is a worthwhile read if you are interested in her work. Here is what I wrote about it: Wendy Carlos: A Biography by Amanda Sewell
Complicated Shadows: The Life and Music of Elvis Costello by Graeme Thomson. Got it cheap and it's a great, well-researched page-turner. Came out in 2004 but so far the best book I've seen on Declan MacManus.
Simultaneously enjoying West Coast Jazz: Modern Jazz in California 1945-1960 by Ted Gioia. The paperback edition that I have has a different cover with a photo of Chet Baker and Gerry Mulligan playing, but I couldn't find a good image online so here's the hardcover:
I'm just finishing Steven Tyler's "Does The Noise In My Head Bother You?" and, much like the band's career/output, I liked the beginning a lot but then it got old and repetitive and annoying and I can't wait to be done with it! Learning about his childhood and teenhood and early bands and then the coming together of Aerosmith and the making of their great '70s albums - all good. Listening to him whine about his fellow bandmates (especially Joe Perry, but all of them, really), and manager(s), and wives/girlfriends, and all the "woe is me" finger-pointing and shifting of blame about all his problems, and his rehabs, and medical problems, not to mention treating garbage songs with garbage lyrics on garbage albums like Get A Grip, Nine Lives and Just Push Play as somehow artistically equivalent to Get Your Wings and Rocks and even the underrated Night In The Ruts just gets old, especially his constant juvenile sexual innuendos (I know, I know, am I really surprised?), drug tales, bitching, whining, etc. As a huge Aerosmith fan at one time, and one who still enjoys their '73-'85 albums on a regular basis (and even enjoys a few songs on the next two), I'm glad I read it and it definitely was informative in many ways. But compared to many others I've really enjoyed (by Keith, Neil, Anthony Keidis, David Lee Roth and others), this one has ultimately become quite tedious. Usually I'm bummed when these books end, but as mentioned, I'll be glad to finish and move on to something else.
