Comments on: Daily Dose for July 18, 2007

By: jeffhero

jeffhero — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 01:12:09 +0000

I neglected to include the very important author component in my list of fav books. Miles autobiography was enhanced for the better, without losing the essence of that formidable personality, by Quincy Troupe’s co-bill. The Real FZ book is undoubtedly almost all FZ. In fact, in Barry Miles recent bio of FZ, he imparts the impression that there is quite a bit of, shall we say, highly edited content in this book about FZ that is, like the man says, the REAL FZbook.

The book that has stayed with me the most, not surprisingly if you know me, is the Bill Milkowski bio of Jaco, “The World’s Greatest Bass Player”. I’ve enjoyed many of his articles in magazines, and he really takes you there without obscuring the story with the “enhancement” that might occur if the subject was doing the writing. I believe he is a great reporter of the progressive sides of music. And Jaco, well, Jaco is one of my very prime musical heroes. I certainly believe that he was, and is, as he strived to be, the Hendrix of the bass. He figures in one of my great all time live experiences, but that is for elsewhere.

Let me also mention that a great role for writing about music, especially when it comes to the glories of vinyl, is the Liner Note. The name that always comes to mind when I think of great liner note writers is Leonard Feather. He was instrumental in my expanding awareness into jazz and jazz fusion. So,again, I’m not sure if he belongs here, but he is important to me. And the Liner Note is certainly worthy of consideration here. Check the boards for this thread. If it’s not started yet, I will do so.

By: Lee O'Dea

Lee O'Dea — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 16:34:21 +0000

My most vivid musical moment was a Jimi Hendrix concert in March of 1968. It was held at the Arena in West Phila.; it was the first time an act from the “sixties underground” played a large hall in Phila. Prior to that, “underground” acts were solely at the original Electric Factory or The Trauma. It was beyond anything I could have imagined, and the show gave credence to the comment years later by Pete Townsend that “Hendrix changed the direction of rock n’ roll more than the Beatles”.
What is equally vivid about the evening was that as the crowd was leaving, an announcement came over that earlier that evening
Lyndon Johnson announced that he would not seek re-election. This gave an additional shot of euphoria to the already mesmerized crowd, as the announcement was construed as an admission by the chief architect of the Vietnam War that he had make a mistake and an end to our involvement might be near. As we know, this was not to be, as the most electable anti-war candidate (Robert Kennedy) was assasinated several months later ultimately leading to the despotic Richard Nixon gaining the White House and expanding the war even further. This should serve as a reminder that Bush’s poor approval ratings do not guarantee that our involvement in Iraq will soon end. We have to work to make that happen.

By: Cathy Heard

Cathy Heard — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 15:25:16 +0000

I have to imagine Bruce will do a separate day for fiction rock books. Besides High Fidelity, Great Jones Street by Don DeLillo springs to mind.

By: lahuitrefrite

lahuitrefrite — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 15:10:50 +0000

To the non-fiction, I’d add:
Rob Sheffield, Love is a Mix Tape
Barney Hoskyns, Across the Great Divide: The Band and America

But I’ve also discovered a lot of music through fiction. Sometimes rock’n’roll is the subject matter, like in Nick Hornby’s brilliant “High Fidelity” which makes this grown woman feel like a 14 year old boy making lists of favorite songs. Sometimes it’s the novel’s protagonist who is a fan. This seems to be the special provenance of mystery writers, and both Ian Rankin and Peter Robinson come to mind immediately, but I “discovered” Lou Reed’s “Berlin” through a novel by Martha Grimes. And sometimes, detectives and the music industry coalesce, like in Paul Charles’ mysteries whose titles are the names of pop songs (”I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass,” “Fountain of Sorrow”), whose chapter headings bear quotes from favorite songs, and whose detective, Inspector Christy Kennedy, is a music fan.

By: Jeff Hero

Jeff Hero — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 13:55:11 +0000

Some of my favorite music reads, although I’m not sure you can call any of them books about rock and roll, are:
Jaco: The Extraordinary and Tragic Life of Jaco Pastorius
Miles: The Autobiography
The Real Frank Zappa Book

Indeed, these are books that I return to over and over, at least in small chunks.

The Mansion on the Hill sounds like a future read for sure, and right now, in little chinks again, here’s a shout-out for Wisdom For A Young Musician.

By: Cathy Heard

Cathy Heard — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 04:07:34 +0000

My favorite non-fiction rock books (that you didn’t mention already)

Rock Snob Criticism
Last Night a DJ Saved My Life - Bill Brewster and Frank Broughton
Sex, Drugs & Carburetor Dung - Lester Bangs

History
We’ve Got the Neutron Bomb - Marc Spitz
Our Band Could Be Your Life - Michael Azerrad
Can’t Stop Won’t Stop - Jeff Chang
Rip It Up & Start Again: Postpunk 1978-1984 - Simon Reynolds

Juicier Than a Watermelon
Crazy from the Heat - David Lee Roth memoirs
The Dirt - Motley Crue autobiography
I’m with the Band - Pamela Des Barres
Faithfull - Marianne Faithfull
Heroes & Villains: The True Story of the Beach Boys - Steven Gaines

Just plain fun
Retro Hell - staff of zine Ben is Dead
Fargo Rock City - Chuck Klosterman
Bubblegum Is the Naked Truth - Kim Cooper & David Smay
Hollywood Rock - Marshall Crenshaw