Tell the Truth Until They Bleed: Coming Clean in the Dirty World of Blues and Rock 'n' Roll (Paperback)

~ Josh Alan Friedman (Author)
Key Phrases: colored girls, until they bleed, music biz, New York, New Orleans, Ray Charles (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

A wild insider's ride with one of music's most notorious journalists. Here are 15 music profiles, guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat. Leiber & Stoller, the white fathers of R&B and rock and roll, who possess what is perhaps the last great untold story of the music biz. They created the American songbook of the '50s and '60s, led by Elvis, the Coasters, and the Drifters. Doc Pomus, the only white blues singer in America making records in the 1940s. Half of the hit songwriting team of Pomus-Shuman during the Brill Building era, Doc had the biggest heart in the music business. A sad, comic-tragic romance with the Ronettes' Ronnie Spector, dubbed an "oldie" once she left her teens.

Product Details

• Paperback: 262 pages
• Publisher: Hal Leonard Corp (March 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879309326
• ISBN-13: 978-0879309329
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #732,195 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well written story of 60' Rock & Roll business, June 9, 2008

By	Vilis Stomers "vasto" (West Virginia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I learned of this book when listening to an interview with the author on the late night AM radio "Joey Reynolds Show" from WOR 710. As someone who came of age in the 60's and enjoyed a modicum of success in the music business, I found most of the book fascinating. The last few chapters cover more obscure artists which held little interest for me. Even though there is no reference to the cover, I assume it's a photo of Frankie Lymon. The title and cover picture gives no indication of the book's contents and I would have passed it by if I saw it in a bookstore. Overall, it's an interesting read and I recommend it to readers who are interested in learning about how the music business operated some 40 years ago. I'm glad I bought the book!