The Zombies: Hung Up on a Dream : 1962-1967

by Claes Johansen

In 1964, an unknown band hit number 2 in the US charts with "She’s Not There". Surviving gruelling package tours, they were soon at the vanguard of the British invasion that stormed America. Novelist and musician Claes Johansen follows them from suburban beginnings on an adventure through a pop industry in its infancy. In 1967, before going their separate ways, the Zombies recorded their swansong, Odessey and Oracle. When Al Kooper championed its posthumous release in the States, this classic LP started to undergo a series of re-evaluations. (It recently featured amongst Mojo magazine’s best 100 LPs of all time). Here, this timeless masterpiece is fully explored.

Genres: Music

226 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Claes Johansen wrote this Zombies bio with the co-operation of the 5 original members of the band and they are interviewed extensively throughout the book. Unfortunately, guitarist Paul Atkinson has passed away since the book was first published circa 2001.

After enjoying 2 early hit singles, The Zombies disappeared from the charts until "Time of the Season" became a surprise American hit in 1969, a year after the Zombies had disbanded. This is one of the great tragedies of the pop music scene of the 1960's. The Zombies continued to release some of the most brilliant and creative singles of the era yet they were ignored by radio. Their second LP, Odessey and Oracle is now regarded as one of the finest LP's of that time.

While this book is not without it's faults, it is currently one of only 2 books written about the Zombies career. The second book is Greg Russo's rarely seen "Time of the Season: The Zombies Collector's Guide".

[Rob Branigin · Rating 2 out of 5]

if you're interested enough in the zombies to want to read a book about them, there's likely very little here you don't already know. the lack of any new information is made even more annoying by the considerable padding - i.e. extended theoretical analysis (always a real plus in rock biography, claes), nonsensical WTF ramblings about producer ken jones being at fault for the zombies' lack of sustained chart success, and a GLOSSARY (ever wonder what a "chord" is? claes has your back). waste of time.

[Teree · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Zombies have been one of my favorite bands since childhood.