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'This is the book we've been waiting for . . . It is a biography to be treasured' Joe Boyd 'The Drake completist could ask for nothing else' Daily Telegraph 'Illuminating. The definitive word on Drake' Observer In 1968 Nick Drake had everything to live for. The product of a loving, creative family and a privileged background, he was not only a handsome and popular Cambridge undergraduate, but also a new signing to the UK's hippest record label, Island. Three years later, however - having made three well-reviewed but low-selling albums - Nick had been overwhelmed by a mysterious mental illness. He returned to live in his family home in rural Warwickshire in 1971, and died in obscurity in 1974...
'Galactic Ramble' is a study of the 60s and 70s UK music scene. It covers thousands of albums, from pop, rock, psych and prog to jazz, folk, blues and beyond.
'Endless Trip' is the fullest study of the 60s and 70s music scene ever published. It reviews over 3000 albums, from pop, rock, psych and prog to jazz, folk, blues and beyond.
It wasn't just clothes and hair that changed as the 1960s progressed - social awareness crept into youth culture and music ceased to be simply about dancing. A counter-culture gradually emerged, and rock 'n' roll was its defining feature. Pop music broadened beyond the traditional guitar-bass-drum format and started to experiment with new sounds. Musicianship reached unsurpassable levels, and for a brief, glorious time, genuinely experimental music coincided with the popular taste. The explosion of imagination and ambition that characterised the psychedelic movement of the late 1960s stretched the possibilities of the pop song to their limits. Never before or since were so many classic albums made in such a short time. Psychedelia is the most colourful, detailed and authoritative guide to these albums ever published. One hundred of them are evaluated here, using contemporary reviews, rare photographs and interviews, accompanied by a plethora of iconic images and reproductions of cover artwork.
'An exquisite portrait' MOJO 'A riveting account of the golden-boy genius' EVENING STANDARD Nick Drake was barely twenty-six years old when he died in 1974, but in his short lifetime he recorded three albums that are now recognised as classics: Five Leaves Left, Bryter Later and Pink Moon. Several decades after his death, he has amassed a huge following; his haunting songs cast a pervasive influence over the contemporary music scene, and many of today's most successful songwriters cite him as a major inspiration. In this unrivalled biography, Patrick Humphries offers real insight into the man behind the legend, through extensive interviews with family, friends and the musicians who knew and worked alongside him. This portrait of Nick Drake is an essential and uniquely personal account of his life and career. 'A rich, moving account of a troubled spirit, a mature biography of a briefly flickering talent unable to come to terms with the adult world ... The writing is zestful and intelligent and the text illuminating ... A literary memorial fit to stand alongside the songs' UNCUT
A vivid portrait of the English singer-songwriter and musician Nick Drake Nicholas Rodney "Nick" Drake was an English singer-songwriter and musician, known for his acoustic guitar-based songs. Drake released only three complete albums -- Five Leaves Left (1969), Bryter Layter (1970), Pink Moon (1972) -- and was not well known before his death in 1974. Yet he gained a massive posthumous following, inspiring leading musicians such as R.E.M.'s Peter Buck and Robert Smith of The Cure and bands such as Coldplay and The Black Crowes. Forty years after Nick's death, Remembered for a While peels back some of the mystery surrounding his life. The book will feature gorgeous color photographs, as well as original letters and interviews with family and friends. As Nick's sister writes in the introduction, Remembered for a While will reveal "the poet, the musician, the friend, the son, the brother, who was also more than all of these together, and as indefinable as the morning mist." At long last, Remembered for a While paints a portrait of a visionary musician who inspired a fanatical following and whose legacy continues to inspire future generations of musicians -- and the lives of his fans.
From a legendary music journalist with four decades of unprecedented access, an insider's behind-the-scenes look at the major personalities of rock and roll. Lisa Robinson has interviewed the biggest names in music--including Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones, John Lennon, Patti Smith, U2, Eminem, Lady Gaga, Jay Z and Kanye West. She visited the teenage Michael Jackson many times at his Encino home. She spent hours talking to John Lennon at his Dakota apartment--and in recording studios just weeks before his murder. She introduced David Bowie to Lou Reed at a private dinner in a Manhattan restaurant, helped the Clash and Elvis Costello get their record deals, was with the Rolling Stones on th...
Michael Bradley joined his school friend's group in Derry, Northern Ireland in the summer of 1974. They had two guitars and no singer. Four years later the Undertones recorded 'Teenage Kicks', John Peel's favourite record, and became one of the most fondly remembered UK bands of the post punk era. Sticking to their punk rock principles, they signed terrible deals, made great records and had a wonderful time. They broke up in 1983 when they realised there was no pot of gold at the end of the rock and roll rainbow. His story is a bitter-sweet, heart-warming and occasionally droll tale of unlikely success, petty feuding and playful mischief during five years of growing up in the music industry. Wiser but not much richer, Michael became a bicycle courier in Soho after the Undertones split. "Sixty miles a day, fresh air, no responsibilities," he writes. "Sometimes I think it was the best job I ever had. It wasn't, of course."
A cloth bag containing ten copies of the title.
By the time Jimi Hendrix died in 1970, the idea of a black man playing lead guitar in a rock band seemed exotic. Yet a mere ten years earlier, Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley had stood among the most influential rock and roll performers. Why did rock and roll become “white”? Just around Midnight reveals the interplay of popular music and racial thought that was responsible for this shift within the music industry and in the minds of fans. Rooted in rhythm-and-blues pioneered by black musicians, 1950s rock and roll was racially inclusive and attracted listeners and performers across the color line. In the 1960s, however, rock and roll gave way to rock: a new musical ideal regarded as more seri...