Breakfast in Nudie Suits [Paperback]

Ian Dunlop (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 30, 2012

"Part Kerouac, part Tom Robbins, it's a transcendental road trip down a lost highway that leads to the roots of the Americana music movement."—Jim White, musician, and writer.

Set between 1965 and 1968, Breakfast in Nudie Suits follows Gram Parsons as he travels across America trying to establish country music in the era of rock. This is a road trip in the great American tradition and the events of the mid-sixties crackle off the page.

Ian Dunlop, a close friend and fellow International Submarine Band member, in this book gives a glimpse into the Gram Parson's legend that has never been offered before.

Product Details

• Paperback: 312 pages
• Publisher: Clarksdale (October 30, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1905959400
• ISBN-13: 978-1905959402
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1.3 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #304,970 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Extrordinary Road Trip November 12, 2011

By Hannah Fowler

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I just finished the Kindle edition of Ian Dunlop's Breakfast In Nudie Suits. I first heard about the book on a Gram Parson's fan website, and bought it mainly to read more about Parsons. However, I got much more than I bargained for. Dunlop's journey from LA to Waldon Pond was as much spiritual/psychological as it was physical. The landscape in the late 1960's was dotted with unrest, much like it is today. Regional differences and similarities, whether New York, LA, or Florida are clearly described. Dunlop's writings, taken from journal entries, record the pulse of the times very well. Dunlop's adventures with Gram Parsons promoting country music during the Psychedellic era are hilarious! His literary heroes included the beat poets, and I found passages that reminded me Kerouac. This book was written during a happy period in Gram Parson's life, and the anecdotes about him are one of the highlights of the book. The International Submarine Band and it's members were out of time with the trends of the mid-sixties, but it didn't dim their love of life and the importance country music played in it. I didn't want the book to end. Dunlop eloquently affirmed the importance of being true to one's dreams, despite opposition. I'd give this book two thumbs up. The Kindle version is great, and the photos at the end of the book were fairly clear and enjoyable.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Book Review - Excellent January 15, 2012

By Thomas Podgoretsky

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Ian Dunlop's book is one of the best documentary music books I have read. It jumps back and forth through a course of time when he and the late Gram Parsons were on the road try to instill an alternative country style of music into the world of music. The book is concise and it's documentation of events is accurate. Excellent reading.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Trip that you that you just can't miss December 9, 2011

By Phisto Matuse

Format:Kindle Edition

Ian Dunlop's first book is a wonderful tale of escaping the LA music scene in the late sixties. It was a time when the war in Vietnam was escalating and every young man had this on his mind. You are transported back to the exact place you were when the assassination of Bobby Kennedy occured and how that moment changed us all forever. In the middle of all of this there was this band called the International Submarine Band, paddling upstream and trying to gain acceptance playing Country Music (of all things) during the psychedelic music craze. It is a travel log of a trip across America in a VW bus and a rediscovery of nature and one's soul. You are riding along on a fascinating journey from the West coast to East filled with record stores overflowing with old 45s and 78s, geodesic dome communes, campfires and hole in the wall diners, and old signs, brands and labels of a time you will remember clearly if you were even half awake. Along the way Ian reminds us of early music pioneers that we missed or have forgotten, like Mezz Mezzrow, Spike Jones, Johnnie Taylor and Mose Alison. And of course some intimate moments with Ian and Gram. This book is as close to hearing Ian himself telling stories in your living room as one can get. In fact when I was in the midst of the book, I swear I could see him sitting in the chair next to me rattling off one of the many great stories included in this great read. This book is a trip you will want to take for yourself. Enjoy !!!!!!!