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EXPERIENCED: Rock Music Tales of Fact & Fiction
EXPERIENCED is an anthology of compelling narratives giving new insight into the drama of the rock music world from every literary angle, and exploring rock’s profound effect on our culture and its divine influence over the devoted faithful.Cutting to the core truths of rock music culture, Experienced is among the first rock anthologies to explore rock music and culture from the inside-out. Featuring works by some of the premier performers, writers and chroniclers of rock James, Greer, Jim DeRogatis, David Menconi, Brad Kava, Fred de Vries and others. You’ll read about touring musicians and touring fans. Label signings gone awry. A late-night DJ and a serial killer. The evolution of life as a roadie. These are stories unique to each writer; yet, you’ll discover within them an experience that is universal. Some are fiction and some non-fiction, but they’re all true.Praise for EXPERIENCED“An entertaining compendium of rock ‘n’ roll tales, EXPERIENCED hits the mark as a rites of passage primer. They’re all here, the roadies, fans, dreamers, graveyard shift DJ’s, hapless journalists, vagabond bands, lonesome guitar-slingers, sell-outs and wannabes. Everyone’s chasing Highway 66 but most have lost the map.”~ Nina Antonia, author of The New York Dolls — Too Much Too Soon and Johnny Thunders - In Cold Blood“EXPERIENCED has got all the dirty details of behind-the-curtains gossip — written with zest and love. It rocks.”~ Stephen D. Gutierrez, author of the American Book Award winning Live from Fresno y Los“The stories in EXPERIENCED not only entertain, but offer insight into the lives of those in the music industry, from label executives to record producers to rock bands to fans at large. It’s not always a life of glamour, but no one ever said rock ‘n’ roll was pretty.”~ Steve Beck, founder of OnlineRock.com and editor of The Noise Room“The stories and essays in EXPERIENCED are beautifully written, wise, and absurdly energetic. An amazing jam session of a book.”~ Michael Kardos, author of One Last Good Time“The sobering economics of life on the road for a harmonica virtuoso, a journalist’s desperate pursuit of Elastica frontwoman Justine Frischmann, a down-and-out radio talk show host receives a live call from a recent murderess; the tangent is where the real story begins in this raucous, raw-edged compilation limning the seamy underside of rock ‘n’ roll storytelling.”~ Alina Simone, singer and author of You Must Go and Win
164 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 6, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 13, 2011
For reasons not worth going into right now, I spent the last 9 days in my hometown, a small town (population 3,000) atop a heavily wooded hill overlooking the Illinois River about ten minutes south of Peoria. The only thing I had to listen to music with was the cd/cassette player in my '97 Dodge Caravan. There's a drawerful of mixed tapes underneath the front passenger seat and 100 mixed cds in a case beside my driver's seat, but I mostly listened to a Donovan mixed cd, a Classic Rock mixed cd, a Devo mixed cd and two cds that a friend burnt for me: The Suburbs by Arcade Fire, in which I liked the first and third songs and Broken Bells in which I like the 6th, 9th and 10th songs. But wait a minute. Why am I referring to these songs by their track number and not their titles? The answer of course is that I dont know the song titles--I only know the track numbers because this is the digital age and who has time to remember song titles, album names, etc, right?
In high school when I listened to an album, after adjusting the levels on my equalizer, I would then visually scrub every inch of the front and back cover of an album, looking for the producer, the engineer, where the record was recorded, looking for insights in the cover art (I had been one of those geeks who needed to find every Paul is Dead clue on the Beatle albums). But today, like most corporate consumers, I dont seem to have time or interest for all of that. Nowadays knowing all those details just doesn't seem worth it. But maybe alot of people long for those days when it did seem worth it. I know I do.
I returned to my residence in a Chicago suburb on Monday and found a weeks worth of junk mail, overdue bills and a manilla envelope sent by Roland Goity. A few months ago Roland had read a book review I had posted on GoodReads.com and asked me if I would be interested in reading and reviewing a book of Rock-related stories that he was editing. I was flattered--so much so that I wondered what this guy's angle was. He told me he would send me a copy of the book in a few weeks. I thanked him, then sorta forgot about it until returning home and seeing this envelope.
Inside the envelope was Experienced, the book Roland had promised me, with a sticky on it from Roland, thanking me for giving it a look. The front cover didnt especially impress me (purple and orange design with some guy in black doing a guitar jump pose), but I'm not used to getting free things so I gave that detail a pass and checked out the back cover, which read:
"...Tales of Fact & Fiction..." "anthology of compelling narratives giving new insight into the drama of the rock music world from every literary angle, and exploring rock's profound efect on our culture and its devine influence over the devoted faithful."
This seemed right up my alley, so I read the foreward (by co-editor, John Ottey who obviously shared my enthusiasm for Rock) and then the contributor's notes (that gave quick blurbs about each of the writers, the editors and illustrator). After flipping through and checking out the illustrations that preceded each narative, I began reading. It didn't take long for me to realize what Roland Goity's angle had been in sending me this book. This was a book for kindred spirits, people for whom knowing the details of Rock mattered to. Roland Goity was simply wanting to share the joy!
The Rock music world never grows dull to me. There are so many different layers, so many different story lines, so much history, technology, innovation, adventure, culture, creative performances and moments that are as complex and beautiful as life itself. Experienced, as the back cover promises, delves into the world of Rock music from all those angles and more. Here's what's included:
"Hunting Accidents" by former Guided By Voices member James Greer tells the story of how major label Warner Brothers schmoozed the band in an effort to get GBV to sign with them back in the early 1990s.
"Little Leftovers" is about a Rock journalist pursuing a Brit pop heroine he has a crush on.
"Steal Your Face" is one of my favorite fictional narratives in the book as it captures the strangeness of phyiscal/emotional/mental reality in the confusing days of a teen who spends the summer of 1983 following the Greatful Dead. The understated, almost deadpan tone of the narrator made me want to read more.
"Road Life Wearies Harmonica Virtuoso", is as the subtitle suggests, the tale of a talented harmonica player who is touring relentlessly yet barely making ends meet.
"Madonna" is an experiemental, almost stream-of-conscious piece that deals with pop star Madonna having her application to live in a NYC high-rise declined (in part by selection committee members Paul Simon and Dustin Hoffman).
"Dead Air" is the story of a radio DJ who has a confessed killer call up on the air moments after she kills a date rapist.
"The Growth and Death of Buddy Gardner" tells the legend of the Memphis blues guitarist as he moves from studio sessions and live performances in the 1960s and 70s.
"Heavy Lifting Days" provides the anectdotal reflections of an experienced sound technician which reveal how sound equipment has changed over the years
"David Bowie Against the Enemy" is a day-in-the-life piece of a anxiety-riddled nowhere man.
"Tour Diary (excerpts)" is a day-by-day journal that coves 3 weeks of a rock musicians west coast tour.
"Bodies on the Moon" concerns the aura of junior high/high school dances.
"Deja Vu (All Over Again)" involves a defunct rock group discussing a reunion tour as they have drinks in a seedy bar.
"A little Worse than Moonbeam" is the melodrama of a group of Phish heads following the band around on their summer 2000 tour.
My favorite piece in Experienced, is written by Ed Hamilton (the author of Legends of the Chelsea Hotel and Outlaws of New York's Rebel Mecca). His contribution to Experienced, called "Dee Dee's Challenge", provides a snapshot of the life of Dee De Ramone during his time at the infamous Chesea Hotel.
"Songs in he key of E" eavesdrops on two young procrastinators having a conversation about getting a drummer for their band.
The last narrative, "If a Tree Falls", is about an aging troubadour whose converations with his sister-in-law (an environmental lobbyist) prompts him to face up to the possibility of the extinction of his kind.
Overall, I'm not a big fan of fiction, but as the back cover says: Some [of these stories] are fiction and some non-fiction, but they're all true." So for this reason and many more I give Experienced 3 out of 5 stars.
In high school when I listened to an album, after adjusting the levels on my equalizer, I would then visually scrub every inch of the front and back cover of an album, looking for the producer, the engineer, where the record was recorded, looking for insights in the cover art (I had been one of those geeks who needed to find every Paul is Dead clue on the Beatle albums). But today, like most corporate consumers, I dont seem to have time or interest for all of that. Nowadays knowing all those details just doesn't seem worth it. But maybe alot of people long for those days when it did seem worth it. I know I do.
I returned to my residence in a Chicago suburb on Monday and found a weeks worth of junk mail, overdue bills and a manilla envelope sent by Roland Goity. A few months ago Roland had read a book review I had posted on GoodReads.com and asked me if I would be interested in reading and reviewing a book of Rock-related stories that he was editing. I was flattered--so much so that I wondered what this guy's angle was. He told me he would send me a copy of the book in a few weeks. I thanked him, then sorta forgot about it until returning home and seeing this envelope.
Inside the envelope was Experienced, the book Roland had promised me, with a sticky on it from Roland, thanking me for giving it a look. The front cover didnt especially impress me (purple and orange design with some guy in black doing a guitar jump pose), but I'm not used to getting free things so I gave that detail a pass and checked out the back cover, which read:
"...Tales of Fact & Fiction..." "anthology of compelling narratives giving new insight into the drama of the rock music world from every literary angle, and exploring rock's profound efect on our culture and its devine influence over the devoted faithful."
This seemed right up my alley, so I read the foreward (by co-editor, John Ottey who obviously shared my enthusiasm for Rock) and then the contributor's notes (that gave quick blurbs about each of the writers, the editors and illustrator). After flipping through and checking out the illustrations that preceded each narative, I began reading. It didn't take long for me to realize what Roland Goity's angle had been in sending me this book. This was a book for kindred spirits, people for whom knowing the details of Rock mattered to. Roland Goity was simply wanting to share the joy!
The Rock music world never grows dull to me. There are so many different layers, so many different story lines, so much history, technology, innovation, adventure, culture, creative performances and moments that are as complex and beautiful as life itself. Experienced, as the back cover promises, delves into the world of Rock music from all those angles and more. Here's what's included:
"Hunting Accidents" by former Guided By Voices member James Greer tells the story of how major label Warner Brothers schmoozed the band in an effort to get GBV to sign with them back in the early 1990s.
"Little Leftovers" is about a Rock journalist pursuing a Brit pop heroine he has a crush on.
"Steal Your Face" is one of my favorite fictional narratives in the book as it captures the strangeness of phyiscal/emotional/mental reality in the confusing days of a teen who spends the summer of 1983 following the Greatful Dead. The understated, almost deadpan tone of the narrator made me want to read more.
"Road Life Wearies Harmonica Virtuoso", is as the subtitle suggests, the tale of a talented harmonica player who is touring relentlessly yet barely making ends meet.
"Madonna" is an experiemental, almost stream-of-conscious piece that deals with pop star Madonna having her application to live in a NYC high-rise declined (in part by selection committee members Paul Simon and Dustin Hoffman).
"Dead Air" is the story of a radio DJ who has a confessed killer call up on the air moments after she kills a date rapist.
"The Growth and Death of Buddy Gardner" tells the legend of the Memphis blues guitarist as he moves from studio sessions and live performances in the 1960s and 70s.
"Heavy Lifting Days" provides the anectdotal reflections of an experienced sound technician which reveal how sound equipment has changed over the years
"David Bowie Against the Enemy" is a day-in-the-life piece of a anxiety-riddled nowhere man.
"Tour Diary (excerpts)" is a day-by-day journal that coves 3 weeks of a rock musicians west coast tour.
"Bodies on the Moon" concerns the aura of junior high/high school dances.
"Deja Vu (All Over Again)" involves a defunct rock group discussing a reunion tour as they have drinks in a seedy bar.
"A little Worse than Moonbeam" is the melodrama of a group of Phish heads following the band around on their summer 2000 tour.
My favorite piece in Experienced, is written by Ed Hamilton (the author of Legends of the Chelsea Hotel and Outlaws of New York's Rebel Mecca). His contribution to Experienced, called "Dee Dee's Challenge", provides a snapshot of the life of Dee De Ramone during his time at the infamous Chesea Hotel.
"Songs in he key of E" eavesdrops on two young procrastinators having a conversation about getting a drummer for their band.
The last narrative, "If a Tree Falls", is about an aging troubadour whose converations with his sister-in-law (an environmental lobbyist) prompts him to face up to the possibility of the extinction of his kind.
Overall, I'm not a big fan of fiction, but as the back cover says: Some [of these stories] are fiction and some non-fiction, but they're all true." So for this reason and many more I give Experienced 3 out of 5 stars.
August 28, 2011
Experienced: Rock Music Tales of Fact & Fiction is a kickass and surprisingly heartfelt anthology that covers the brightly lit front rooms, the shady back rooms, and all the in-between-hard-to-classify rooms of the rock music world from the last few decades to today. It’s a greasy, well worn road map of music and culture, decorated with drawings of memorable groupies and sweaty venues (there are actual drawings in the book, too, and they’re awesome) and smeared with enough resin and LSD to keep you grinning and giggling for hours.
Tim Weed’s Steal Your Face recounts the misadventures of a young man as he follows the Grateful Dead, during which time he must contend with drug fueled crowds, exploding VW buses, and his own fuzzy expectations about romantic relationships.
Pg. 24: “Later that day, I walk down to the 7-Eleven to try her again, but no one answers. In the VW on the way to Red Rocks that night, I sit in the far back and watch the foothills of the Rockies pass by, rolling yellow-green ridges hung with mist from afternoon thundershowers. Maybe I’ve died without knowing it. Maybe that would explain why I can’t quite seem to get in touch with Otter.”
There’s a very real and touching nostalgia seeping through these pages, a steady drip that induces bittersweet twinges in the stomach. It’s being old enough to witness the evolution, to recognize landmarks representing a different era.
From Corey Mesler’s The Growth and Death of Buddy Gardner, pg. 57: “The abandoned gas station stood on corner in midtown Memphis like a sepulcher, but it was soon transmogrified into a holy place, a place where anything could happen. A place as bright as the Sun, as holy as Stax. It is where Black Lung was born. Today it is a Taco Bell.”
Experienced is the elders brushing shoulders with the young pups as they adjust with the times, or as they pass the respective torch and step aside. In Brian Goetz’s Heavy Lifting Days, we’re shown the old school DJs who carry actual pianos to their gigs, and then we’re shown the slick and efficient DJs of the digital age who carry little more than a laptop and an iPod.
The book as a whole is a pure pleasure to read. Blending and bursting with fact and fiction, it delves into the hardships of being a gay harmonica player (Brad Kava’s Road Life Wearies Harmonica Virtuoso) the pressure and enjoyment of doing a late night radio show where the most popular caller is a potential murderer (Scott Nicholson’s Dead Air) and the juxtaposed anxiousness and calm that comes with Bowie daydreams (Adam Moorad’s David Bowie against the Enemy) to name just a few.
Experienced is also a road map of hopes and dreams, and of days gone by. It’s a call to reminisce, to shine the spotlight on the young men and women still kicking beneath our sagging skins. In this way it doesn’t matter whether or not there are holes in our rock history because the recurring message is universal: This whole life business ain’t easy, but that’s what makes it great.
Experienced is an honest and wild ride through the thumping bass and scorching guitar dreams of our youth and beyond that’s well worth the price of admission. Flash your breasts or forge a ticket, but make sure you get through the gate.
Tim Weed’s Steal Your Face recounts the misadventures of a young man as he follows the Grateful Dead, during which time he must contend with drug fueled crowds, exploding VW buses, and his own fuzzy expectations about romantic relationships.
Pg. 24: “Later that day, I walk down to the 7-Eleven to try her again, but no one answers. In the VW on the way to Red Rocks that night, I sit in the far back and watch the foothills of the Rockies pass by, rolling yellow-green ridges hung with mist from afternoon thundershowers. Maybe I’ve died without knowing it. Maybe that would explain why I can’t quite seem to get in touch with Otter.”
There’s a very real and touching nostalgia seeping through these pages, a steady drip that induces bittersweet twinges in the stomach. It’s being old enough to witness the evolution, to recognize landmarks representing a different era.
From Corey Mesler’s The Growth and Death of Buddy Gardner, pg. 57: “The abandoned gas station stood on corner in midtown Memphis like a sepulcher, but it was soon transmogrified into a holy place, a place where anything could happen. A place as bright as the Sun, as holy as Stax. It is where Black Lung was born. Today it is a Taco Bell.”
Experienced is the elders brushing shoulders with the young pups as they adjust with the times, or as they pass the respective torch and step aside. In Brian Goetz’s Heavy Lifting Days, we’re shown the old school DJs who carry actual pianos to their gigs, and then we’re shown the slick and efficient DJs of the digital age who carry little more than a laptop and an iPod.
The book as a whole is a pure pleasure to read. Blending and bursting with fact and fiction, it delves into the hardships of being a gay harmonica player (Brad Kava’s Road Life Wearies Harmonica Virtuoso) the pressure and enjoyment of doing a late night radio show where the most popular caller is a potential murderer (Scott Nicholson’s Dead Air) and the juxtaposed anxiousness and calm that comes with Bowie daydreams (Adam Moorad’s David Bowie against the Enemy) to name just a few.
Experienced is also a road map of hopes and dreams, and of days gone by. It’s a call to reminisce, to shine the spotlight on the young men and women still kicking beneath our sagging skins. In this way it doesn’t matter whether or not there are holes in our rock history because the recurring message is universal: This whole life business ain’t easy, but that’s what makes it great.
Experienced is an honest and wild ride through the thumping bass and scorching guitar dreams of our youth and beyond that’s well worth the price of admission. Flash your breasts or forge a ticket, but make sure you get through the gate.
August 2, 2011
I liked it so much I slapped my name on the cover.
August 2, 2011
Loved it so much I slapped my name on the cover.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews