Outlaw Blues: A Book of Rock Music

by Paul Williams, Michael Lydon

Like NEW. Slight shelf wear to cover.

Genres: Music

212 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1969

About the author

Librarian note: There is more than one author on goodreads by this name.

Reviews

[Dylan Kiewel · Rating 3 out of 5]

read only certain parts, in particular the dylan and brian wilson sections. the (italics) rock critic of his day responding in real time to two of my favorite albums (blonde on blonde and smile) and touching somewhat underwhelmingly on a third (john wesley harding) was the juice for me. detailing how both these guys were viewed incredulously and somewhat unfairly (on a pedestal) as their biggest albums come out interesting. a lot of the writing at large taps into that somewhat zeitgeisty hip merchant language of rock and roll coming to its sell out breaking point , so i smiled at the crying of lot 49 reference .

[Neal Umphred · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paul Williams' OUTLAW BLUES collects articles, interviews, and reviews from Williams' CRAWDADDY magazine, where he was publisher, editor, and contributor. This paperback edition—one of the first serious books on rock music—helped Williams reach a larger audience in a semi-permanent form.

Unlike many rock-writers, Williams wrote about the music he loved rather than knock the stuff he didn't listen to. Consequently, OUTLAW BLUES is good vibrations from cover to cover as he shares and explains why the music matters to him.

Highlights include his wondrous review of THE BYRDS' GREATEST HITS—a format usually ignored by 'serious' critics—and an interview with producer Paul Rothchild on recording the Doors' first album.

The centerpiece of the book is his lengthy interview with David Anderle, former head of the Beach Boys' aborted Brother Records. This interview is more than fifty pages long and was essential to building the mystique surrounding Brian Wilson's unfinished masterpiece, SMILE.

My favorite line in the book is Paul's description of Dylan's single I WANT YOU: "Dylan has a remarkably healthy attitude towards sex, and he makes our society look sick by comparison (it is)."

Reading this book forty-five years ago expanded my musical horizons; rereading it periodically since then has helped me maintain focus in my own writing. I consider this the best book available on what Sixties rock music was about THEN.

If you have a 16-year old family member or friend who is fascinated by the Sixties, give him/her a copy of OUTLAW BLUES as a primer to the music of that era . . .

[David Allen · Rating 2 out of 5]

How a segment of hippie rock intellectuals (in this case, the man who might have been the first rock critic) viewed the scene in 1967-68, when each release seemed to be advancing the youth movement: Loved the Byrds, Dylan, Jefferson Airplane, Beach Boys and the Doors, had no use for the Beatles. Idealistic, woolly-headed, charming.

[Michael · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring as hell.