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Rage & Roll: Bill Graham and the Selling of Rock [Hardcover]

John Glatt (Author)
3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)


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Book Description

November 1993
Recounts the life of the late rock and roll promoter, from his childhood as a Holocaust refugee, to his nearly single-handed invention of modern concert promotion and his work with the Rolling Stones, Live Aid, and Amnesty International.


Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bill Graham, the flamboyant rock concert promoter whose life, as depicted here, was a quest for sex, drugs, megabucks and stardom, arrived in the U.S. as a penniless eight-year-old refugee in 1939. Born Wolodia Grajonca in Berlin, he lost his father to a construction accident when he was two days old and his mother to Auschwitz. In a fast-moving, colorful and well-researched portrait of the king of rock promotion, who died in a helicopter crash in 1991, freelance journalist Glatt limns an abrasive, hot-tempered impresario derailed by cocaine, sleeping pills, ego and self-doubt, who slept with a girlfriend while his wife Bonnie MacLean went into labor with their child. Filled with cameos of Janis Joplin, the Rolling Stones, the Grateful Dead and other stars, this ultimately depressing bio profiles Graham as a hip and versatile capitalist who ultimately became an anachronism, unable to mesh with the new age of MTV and video rock. Photos.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Graham came to the United States from Germany in 1941 in order to escape the Holocaust. At ten years of age he began a new life growing up in a foster home in the Bronx. From this tragic and modest beginning, Graham became the premier rock'n'roll concert promoter and a multimillionaire. In San Francisco, Graham founded the legendary Fillmore concert hall that was the proving ground for early 1960s bands like the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane. As a key figure in the glamorous concert scene through three decades, Graham suffered the attendant problems of drug addiction, failed relationships, and greed. He died in a helicopter crash in 1991. Based on extensive research and interviews, this book is a well-written and fascinating account of the life of one of rock music's enduring personalities. Recommended for public and academic libraries.
- Tim LaBorie, St. Joseph's Univ., Philadelphia
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 306 pages
  • Publisher: Birch Lane Pr (November 1993)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1559722053
  • ISBN-13: 978-1559722056
  • Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #773,613 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John Glatt is an investigative journalist with more than thirty years experience. In the last fourteen years he has written 12 true crime books and 4 biographies. With more than half a million books currently in print all over the world, Glatt is acknowledged to be one of the best true crime writers working today.

A native of London, England, Glatt left school at sixteen and worked in a variety of jobs - including tea boy and messenger - before joining a small weekly newspaper outside London, where he honed his keen news sense. Over the next few years he freelanced for many national English newspapers, including The Daily Express, The Sunday People, The Daily Mail and Woman Magazine.

In 1981 he moved to New York, working on staff for News Limited, as well as freelancing for Newsweek, Omni, the New York Post, the Australian, Modern Business and other newspapers and magazines worldwide.

His first book Rage & Roll: Bill Graham and the Selling of Rock, was published in 1993 to critical acclaim. Two years later he wrote Lost in Hollywood: The Fast Times and Short Life of River Phoenix, a well received biography on the tragic movie star. His next book, The Chieftains: An Authorized Biography, which was published in 1997, saw him nominated for a 2000 Grammy in the spoken word category. In 1998 wrote the well-received The Ruling House of Monaco: The Story of a Tragic Dynasty, uncovering many new revelations about the Grimaldis.

In 1998 he wrote his first true crime book, For I Have Sinned: True Stories of Clergy Who Kill. A year later he followed it up with Evil Twins, an anthology of twins that kill. And since then he has written a True Crime book a year for St. Martin's Press True Crime Library, establishing him as a master of the genre.

Over the years, Glatt has appeared on scores of television and radio programs all over the world, including Dateline NBC, Fox News, Current Affair, BBC World, and A&E Biography.

He and his jewelry designer wife Gail divide their time between New York City, the Catskill Mountains and London.

 

Customer Reviews

6 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
3.2 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Here's the flip-side, May 3, 2004
By 
Greekfreak (Pusan Korea (South)) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Rage & Roll: Bill Graham and the Selling of Rock (Hardcover)
Although I enjoyed (and still do) the 'authorized' Bill Graham bio "Bill Graham Presents", my biggest problem with the book is the lack of balance. Bill's missteps are barely touched on in that book, and while it's not essential to know EVERY salacious detail, how can you neglect his failures when you mention every single triumph?

A good example of this is the information Bill Wyman provides concerning some devastating reasons why Bill Graham was not even considered for the Stones' SteelWheels tour. There are some more anecdotes about his interpersonal behaviour, and his drug use (barely mentioned in "BGP") as well as his treatment of Janis Joplin in the early stages of her career. Commentary from Steve Wozniak about the 'U.S. Festival', as well as more sound bites from his previous spouses.

I wouldn't think much less of Bill had these incidents been in the Greenfield book, but it would have been a bit more even-handed. As it is, this book sheds a tad more light onto an already colourful life story, but lacks the insightfulness of the Greenfield bio. Worth getting to complete the picture, but not as essential.

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A rare glimpse at an influential man, December 22, 2001
This review is from: Rage & Roll: Bill Graham and the Selling of Rock (Hardcover)
John Glatt's story of Bill Graham's journey from a humble immigrant into a legendary promoter reads like a fiction novel. A well documented and enjoyable read. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the history of rock.
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6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars I learned a lot but need to tell you something....., January 16, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: Rage & Roll: Bill Graham and the Selling of Rock (Hardcover)
This unauthorized biography has quotes and comments from a lot of people that Bill did not like or respect. It is somewhat one-sided in that respect. People either loved or hated him, but a remarkable number of people respected him and appreciated what he did. Having worked with him for 12 years, I am one who respected him greatly. This is just one of the two bios on him and I suggest readers look for the authorized one by Robert Greenfield called BILL GRAHAM PRESENTS.
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