Did not know a thing about Django before I read this, except the fact that I heard he was a groundbreaking jazz guitarist, and my ex-girlfriend named Did not know a thing about Django before I read this, except the fact that I heard he was a groundbreaking jazz guitarist, and my ex-girlfriend named her cat after him.
So while reading this book, a lovingly constructed and very detailed examination of his life, I listened to his music as an accompanying soundtrack. Some thoughts: Django more or less invented jazz guitar, or at least had a big hand in it. Guitar was a minor instrument at best until Django took off with his all-hell-breaks loose steel picking.
Although the American jazz guys loved him, he only came over here once, quite briefly.
Django played by his own rules. Very divaesque, but like Prince, he was so brilliant, they put up with him. He is loved and revered by both the traditional jazz guys and the bebop guys. He never forgot his Gypsy roots.
This book succeeded in driving me into a total jazz kick not seen since my college years. Author Dregni writes objectively and with great detail, almost too much. Django plafyed at a ton of places with a ton of different musicians and it is hard for the reader, or at this one, to keep up. Some of the musical terms used by the author may also be hard for non musicians to keep up.
To anyone with independent musical aspirations, Jeff Tweedy is a God. He has had a 40 year musical career with Uncle Tupelo, basically the Velvet UndeTo anyone with independent musical aspirations, Jeff Tweedy is a God. He has had a 40 year musical career with Uncle Tupelo, basically the Velvet Underground of indie country rock, than with Wilco, who has blown up and redefined themselves on every release. From stoner country punk to beatlesque avant pop to noise and everything in between, he's done it and continues to do it. He flipped the bird to the big record companies, making the music he likes and has a pretty damned good career out of it.
I did not know what to expect out of this biography. The last rock star biography I read, Surrender by Bono, on one hand was revealing and riveting, but I emerged feeling like I still didn't know who he was. I've always looked at Tweedy as a control freak genius behind a laid back midwestern exterior. I saw I'm Just Trying to Break Your Heart and the dramas with the record company and Jay Bennett and that backed up my point of view. Wilco has some brilliant records, but has gone through it share of band members in the process, though I will say the current version has been together about a decade.
Let's Go (So We Can Get Back) is disarming in it's warmth, humor and candor. It doesn't necessarily dispel my point of view about him, but it certainly humanizes him. At different points, he brings up his childhood, the rise and fall of Uncle Tupelo, the formation of Wilco, his family and his painkiller addiction. He talks about his shock about Tupelo breaking up, he digs in deep about the record company and band dramas surrounding Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, his wife's scary battle with cancer and the joy of raising his sons. It comes off as true and genuine and not as a sleazy tell-all or long-winded apology. My favorite parts was where he breaks down his writing process, which for my own weird reasons I found fascinating.
He has a very conversational writing style that doesn't overwhelm you but leaves you wanting to read more, like a good thriller. As we speak, I'm digging back into my Wilco and Tupelo records to find the connections with the book. Like their records, you probably have to at least be a casual fan to pick this up, but you'll me more than rewarded for your time....more
A couple of thoughts on a book that is certainly a must-read on anyone that is intersted in Revolution-era USA and the various charcters that populateA couple of thoughts on a book that is certainly a must-read on anyone that is intersted in Revolution-era USA and the various charcters that populated it. First, we think that Trump-era dirty politics and heavily biased media outlets were invented by this generation. Wrong. Both the Federalists behind Hamilton and Adams and the Republicans headed by Jefferson were ruthless in creating scandal and other forms of mudslinging in order to bring each other down. They even hired the same guy. Second, Jefferson was the original liberterian. He distrusted the Northern-dominated Federalists and neo-monarchists and was against any kind of strong government. He beleived in a "state of nature" society where you didn't need much government. It was not a political ploy, he was tru...more
To me, Brian Wilson is more than the quirky Beach Boys dude who lost his mind due to drugs in 60s and 7o's I think he is one of the pre-eminent pop comTo me, Brian Wilson is more than the quirky Beach Boys dude who lost his mind due to drugs in 60s and 7o's I think he is one of the pre-eminent pop composers of modern times who took classic 20th century pop, folk music and doo-wop and created something entirely new with it. His best work in the mid-60's created a musical standard we still struggle to hit. Pet Sounds is a masterpiece of sound production and songcraft and Smile threatened to one-up it, but helped lead to his personal and creative demise. I am Brian Wilson is a refreshing biography. While there is a co-writer, it is obviously in Brian's voice. His words are stuck in a mid-60's Socal dialect, and it almost sounds like the book was dictated as much as it was written. Anyone expecting an extended gossip fest or a mad roller coaster plunge into the heart of 60's rock star celebrity darkness will be disappointed. Brian keeps it real, speaking almost dispassionately about his rises, falls and rebirths. He talks about him and his brothers early love of music leading them to form the Beach Boys. He talked of his early struggles with fame and also the creative process behind him and his band's music. He gets into detail about his drifting into mental illness and drugs, leading to big problems with his band and personal life. His Eugene Landy period plays a big role in the book, and eventually we're brought in to his relationship with Melinda and his creative and personal rebirth. It's not a typical three act play. There are ups and downs all along the way and he talks of how he still deals with all the demons he dealt with in the past, but now he is armed with a strong support system and perspective. Mental illness is a recurring theme in this book. Wilson believes it runs in the family. Brian was a wunderkind, but felt the pressure to succeed and top his best efforts was too much. Smile was an attempt to to top Pet Sounds and his inability to succeed was a key to his downfall. He blames taking acid for setting free the voices in his head that taunt him for his failures and threaten to kill him. His father, both supportive and abusive at the same time, played a role. His period with Eugene Landy helped some things but drastically hurt others. In the 1990's, he began to understand, and slowly built a strong support system around himself. It has led to resuming his musical career, even touring quite frequently, which he could not do with The Beach Boys. He also digs deeply into his relationship with his father. His father was a gifted, if frustrated songwriter and producer, and while he passed his talents and drive on to his son, he was also mentally and physically abusive. His drive to succeed was in many ways an attempt to prove his dad wrong, and it seems many of the voices in his head are the same as his father. His ability to accept the fact that mental illness and his fraught relationship with. his father plays a constant role in his life and his ability to transcend it is one of the great rewards here. I Am Brian Wilson gives us the ability to look inside the mind, heart and soul of a genius and legend and see the very vulnerable human being underneath. It puts us with him and further sets us apart all at the same time. ...more
Reading Acid with the Children is like having a conversation with Flea-
His energy shines through his story that at different times is funny, sad, hearReading Acid with the Children is like having a conversation with Flea-
His energy shines through his story that at different times is funny, sad, heartbreaking, scary and exciting. It is often unfocused, but your happy to go down his little tangents with him. Each chapter is a little story or vignette about his life and adventures.
He breaks it down about his unconventional upbringing, his running around Hollywood as a teenager, and his early start as a professional musician. It ends with the formation of the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
I've been a Peppers fan since 1983, and am only two years younger, so it was easy to relate to his growing up. My upbringing was much more stable, but I related to his rebellion, his search mor meaningful human connections and his obsession with music.
If Catcher in the Rye took place in Hollywood in the late 1970's and Holden Caulfield shot up cocaine and was music obsessed, it might come out a little like this.
Flea has always been my favorite member of the Peppers, and I like him even more now....more
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