Howling at the Moon: The Odyssey of a Monstrous Music Mogul in an Age of Excess

by Walter Yetnikoff, David Ritz

he music industry’s most outspoken, outrageous, and phenomenally successful executive delivers a rollicking memoir of pop music’s heyday.

During the 1970s and '80s the music business was dominated by a few major labels and artists such as Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, Paul Simon, Barbra Streisand and James Taylor. They were all under contract to CBS Records, making it the most successful label of the era. And, as the company’s president, Walter Yetnikoff was the ruling monarch. He was also the most flamboyant, volatile and controversial personality to emerge from an industry and era defined by sex, drugs and debauchery.
Having risen from working-class Brooklyn and the legal department of CBS, Yetnikoff, who freely admitted to being tone deaf, was an unlikely label head. But he had an uncanny knack for fostering talent and intimidating rivals with his appalling behavior—usually fueled by an explosive combination of cocaine and alcohol. His tantrums, appetite for mind-altering substances and sexual exploits were legendary. In Japan to meet the Sony executives who acquired CBS during his tenure, Walter was assigned a minder who confined him to a hotel room. True to form, Walter raided the minibar, got blasted and, seeing no other means of escape, opened a hotel window and vented his rage by literally howling at the moon.
In Howling at the Moon, Yetnikoff traces his journey as he climbed the corporate mountain, danced on its summit and crashed and burned. We see how Walter became the father-confessor to Michael Jackson as the King of Pop reconstructed his face and agonized over his image while constructing Thriller (and how, after it won seven Grammies, Jackson made the preposterous demand that Walter take producer Quincy Jones’s name off the album); we see Walter, in maniacal pursuit of a contract, chase the Rolling Stones around the world and nearly come to blows with Mick Jagger in the process; we get the tale of how Walter and Marvin Gaye—fresh from the success of “Sexual Healing”—share the same woman, and of how Walter bonds with Bob Dylan because of their mutual Jewishness. At the same time we witness Yetnikoff’s clashes with Barry Diller, David Geffen, Tommy Mottola, Allen Grubman and a host of others. Seemingly, the more Yetnikoff feeds his cravings for power, sex, liquor and cocaine, the more profitable CBS becomes—from $485 million to well over $2 billion—until he finally succumbs, ironically, not to substances, but to a corporate coup. Reflecting on the sinister cycle that left his career in tatters and CBS flush with cash, Yetnikoff emerges with a hunger for redemption and a new reverence for his working-class Brooklyn roots.
Ruthlessly candid, uproariously hilarious and compulsively readable, Howling at the Moon is a blistering You’ll Never Eat Lunch in this Town Again of the music industry.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Biography, Rock N Roll, Biography Memoir, Memoir, Autobiography

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Mixter Mank · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this for a dollar at a library book sale, though I'm sure I deliberated the value of its purchase. It turns out that everything I've ever read about Walter Yetnikoff is true — he's a drug-fueled, egomaniacal, misogynistic, immature, corporate jerk. Of course, that makes for some lurid entertainment, though I couldn't quite get past the idea that I was spending my precious free-time with a man that actually approved the cover of this book.

[Steven Pofcher · Rating 1 out of 5]

Like watching a train wreck. A pig of a man.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Howling good read. The story of a nice Jewish boy who grew up into a raging power-addicted "milk" monster, was called "Good Father" by Michael Jackson, was bested in an flash economics quiz by Mick Jagger, played a great practical joke with a bagel, and refused to bathe a festering wound for fear of "arm clap."

[Leeann · Rating 2 out of 5]

Filled with crass humor and a reference on every page to either a Jap, a Jew, or a skirt. Occasionally he throws in a story about Michael Jackson that makes Michael seem, if you can believe it, even creepier.

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this in 2 sittings. He takes you with him on a fast, sometimes slow ride that's always out of control despite how controlled he thinks he is. Loved it. Funnest book I've read in ages.

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rock fans need beach reading, too.

[Jussi Mäntysaari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jestas tuo suomennos on tylsä verrattuna orkkiksen nimeen. Löysin tämän lähikirppikseltä eurolla ja tartuin, koska Yetnikoffin elämän tiesin varsin raivoisasti eletyksi. Olen aiemmin käsitellyt samoista ajoista kertovia kirjoja muun muassa Hit Menin ja Clive Davisin elämäkerran kohdalla. Tämä Yetnikoffin toimittaja David Ritzin kanssa tekemä kirja on kuitenkin näistä kolmesta mielenkiintoisin, vaikka Hit Menissäkin keskitytään paljolti Yetnikoffin CBS:n.




Itse asiassa Fredric Dannen kirjoittamassaan Hit Menissä jakaa tuon ajan levypomot kategorioihin "personality" tai "record man", joista Yetnikoff on tietysti tuo "personality" – vimmainen bisnesmies joka ajaa johtamaansa firmaa menestykseen paitsi liikemiestaidoillaan, myös karismalla ja kokaiinin ylläpitämällä raivohulluuden liekillä. Naisia ei levy-yhtiöiden johdossa tuohon aikaan – eikä edelleenkään – juuri näy, mutta jätettäköön se myöhempien kirjoitusten aiheeksi.

Musiikkibisnes on ihmisbisnestä. Suomessa, ja kaikkialla muuallakin. Sen olen oppinut tällä alalla tai sen liepeillä kohta 15 vuotta työskennelleenä. Artistit ovat toki fiksuja eivätkä anna itsensä tulla huijatuiksi, mutta hyvä ja toimiva luottamussuhde vaikka promoottoriin tai kehen tahansa ratkaisee lopulta paljon enemmän kuin muualta saatava potentiaalisesti suurempi rahamäärä. Tai näin olen kokenut. Eikä tämä koske vain artisteja tai musiikkialaa, FIILIKSELLÄ on väliä. Isoja ratkaisuja tehdään joka tapauksessa tunnepohjaisesti ja musiikki on aina ja iankaikkisesti subjektiivista vaikka kuinka tilaisimme tutkimusexcelejä, joten ilman oikeaa tunnetta tällä alalla on vaikea työskennellä.

Tämä sivuhuomiona jonka Yetnikoffin kirja osoitti taas kerran toteen. Hän ei ole Clive Davisin tai Geffenin kaltainen "record man" joka kuulee hitin raakileartistin demonauhalla, mutta hän osaa puhua Michael Jacksonille, Barbra Streisandille tai Bruce Springsteenille niin, että he haluavat jäädä CBS:n talliin.

Clive Davisin kirja oli todella ulkokultainen muistelo siitä miten hän onnistui kaikessa eikä epäonnistunut juuri missään. Päihteet vuonna 1990 jättänyt ja sen jälkeen 12 askeleen ohjelmasta itseään etsinyt Yetnikoff sen sijaan kirjoittaa tyystin erilaisen tarinan. Hän onnistuu kaikessa mutta polttaa itsensä loppuun. Hän taistelee ankaran isänsä haamua vastaan, tuhoaa ihmissuhteita ja avittaa CBS:n nykymittapuulla käsittämättömiin katteisiin (tai no, en minä tiedä major-levy-yhtiöiden kirjanpidosta streaming-aikakaudella, mutta lienee turvallista olettaa että cd:n kultakaudella painettiin rahaa nykymeininkiin verrattuna). Mutta sitten hänen korttitalonsa romahtaa, hän menee katkaisuhoitoon sydämen alkaessa pettää ja onnistuu jättämään päihteet. Mutta ylpeys ja vittumainen luonne jäävät. Ironisesti selväpäinen mutta ilkeä Walter saa potkut CBS:n johdosta. Sitten hän yrittää tuottaa elokuvan ja perustaa uuden levy-yhtiön johon syytää miljoonia. Lopulta vasta kirkon päihdetyössä auttaminen antaa hänelle jonkinlaisen huteran rauhan, jonka huteruudesta hän on itsekin kivuliaan tietoinen.

Tätä kirjoitettaessa mies on Wikipedian mukaan edelleen hengissä.

Kirjan suomennos oli minusta ihan ok, vaikka etenkin repliikit tuntuivat välillä palikoilta. Suosittelen kuitenkin kirjaa lämpimästi ihan millä kielellä tahansa, saatat vaikka oppia jotain musiikkibisneksestä, tai todennäköisemmin elämästä yleensä.

[Carole Tyrrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Howling at the Moon

This is the no holds barred story of how a Jewish boy from Brooklyn made it to the top of CBS Records. Along the way he became Velvel and became addicted to drugs, booze and sex. In fact you could almost have titled this book ‘Sex and Drugs and Rock n Roll’.
It was the world of music’s greatest age. Money flowed like water and he became the confidante of big stars such as Mick Jagger and Michael Jackson during his imperial phase (and just as he began to dabble with plastic surgery). I’ve just read an online article on the BBC news website about the fate of the ten 30 ft tall statues of Michael Jackson that were created and sent round the world to promote a Greatest Hits album, ‘HIS tory’ in 1995, one of which was floated down the Thames. Can you imagine anyone doing that now?
This was a time when only a few labels dominated the business and music made millions. Velvel was in the thick of it and was not afraid to clash with other label owners such as David Geffen. On Velvel’s watch CBS’s profits grew from $485 million to $2 billion.
The tile comes from an episode in which a minder confined him to a hotel room. Velvel had other ideas so he raided the minibar, got wrecked and, being unable to escape, he opened a window and vented his rage by howling at the moon.
After a corporate coup Velvel signed up for Alcoholics Anonymous, rebuilt his life and looked back, knowing that it will never happen again.
It’s a tough read at times, the destruction of his marriage and the death of his wife, corporate life at the top, and he holds nothing back. But it is a record of the times in the music business.

[Matt Boak · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a hard book to like, being the autobiography of someone whose shallow nature and monstrous ego create a fundamentally unlikeable character. In fact it’s hard to think of a single anecdote in this story that isn’t about some form of power play or self pleasure that leaves you grimacing at the excess and prioritisation of the author over others.

To his credit, the author goes in hard on himself, but did he REALLY dislike or regret his actions? I’m not 100% sure I believe he dislikes himself as much as he wants us to believe. Did he stop his womanising in the 17 years between the publication and his death a couple of months ago? I very much doubt it.

Yetnikoff talks of the catharsis he got from writing this book. He’s does indeed seem to be trying to oust his demons but in my view clearly still carried a lot with him throughout his later life.

That’s one of the problems I have with the book. He was a hugely influential figure in music for decades, but the details are scarce, going into much more detail on the decadence that the business side of his life. It’s a personal memoir of his decadent lifestyle that soon becomes tiresome and repetitive, and lacks the real juicy detail that might have made this book a must-read.

All in all, 2/5 for a work that, based on the source material could have gone double platinum, and instead barely makes the charts at all.

[James Doughty · Rating 5 out of 5]

A most unusual autobiography

Walter Yetnikoff headed up the biggest major label in the world when the major labels were at the peak of their power, and he does not spare anyone, even himself, in this gripping account of his life. If you discovered this book after reading Hit Men you'll be glad to know that the characterization of Yetnikoff is exactly the same, which is to say totally unhinged and at the same time absolutely fascinating. Yetnikoff owns his faults in a most extraordinary way, taking accountability for everything, no matter how reprehensible, while simultaneously making you root for him.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

In your face autobiography dealing with the record industry. Sometimes a little too in your face but the chapters on his girlfriend Boom Boom are priceless. Don't make an enemy of this guy he names names and gives all the details. This makes a good vacation read.

[Greg · Rating 2 out of 5]

A thin biography of record business excess. The Audible version is read by the author, which makes it a bit of a rough ride. The man built Columbia Records into a powerhouse in the last 70's and early 80's. It should have been more than what it was.

[Jason Keiles · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was addicting...providing interesting insights into the music biz. I enjoyed the anecdotes (and even dirt) about some of the world's most famous artists. If you have an interest in the music business, celebrity, hollywood and just plain gossip, you'll most likely enjoy this book.

[Colin · Rating 3 out of 5]

[SPOILER ALERT]
Ego maniac turned partially reformed ego maniac.

Entertaining and interesting read, especially for music fans of a certain age.

Springsteen, Michael Jackson, Paul Simon, Billy Joel.

If Yetnikoff calls and offers you a record deal, seek legal advice.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read it because I'm a huge fan of Billy Joel. I enjoyed the Billy Joel stories and all the rest. I was happy for Mr. Yetnikoff's repentance and second chances.

[Juan Romero · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like the genre you´ll like the book.

[Sonny Dyon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Down in the depths on the 90th floor

[Matt Ringler · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you've read anything about the music industry from the 70's-90's, you've no doubt had Walter Yetnikoff's name come up. But to hear these legendary tales told straight from the source puts a whole other spin on them. Major industry shifts and huge decisions were made heavily under the influence of drugs and alcohol, spite, revenge, and just because he could. The author playfully speaks of these times as if they are the everyday occurrences we all encounter. His fall from the top was mighty and it is quite a ride to hear how powerful an addiction egotism can be.

[Tom Elliott · Rating 2 out of 5]

Velvel has a certain bombastic charm, and the behind the scenes music biz anecdotes make this worth reading. In the end, though, it's just a prolonged sobriety story from a guy who is self-important even in his humility. The account of his growing up is an interesting snapshot of 1940's Brooklyn, but as he moves into the years of moguldom, the narrative loses focus and only really regains it at the end when he shares his sobriety message. But I guess that in itself is a reflection of his life.

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. It's a laugh out loud romp of a read of a subversive child, grown up. It also is that rare memoir by a person who actually has power and control over lots of things, (rather than by a person who was a victim) and remains likable. If you like music and insider music industry gossip (eighties and nineties) you will like this a lot. It reminded me of "You'll never eat lunch in this town again" only with music rather than film.

[Andrew]

The opening chapter of this book reminds me of the paranoid sequence where the feds take down Henry Hill in GOODFELLAS. Yetnikoff is a crazy egomaniac with a pretty amazing rise/fall story. I devoured this in about a day and a half.

[Heather Rudulph · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy, fun read; good rock 'n' roll dish from one of the industry's top enablers.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is equivalent to the hair of the dog the morning after when you're still technically drunk

[Sergio GRANDE · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Don Simpson of the music business. One of those original assholes who gave the human race a bad name, Yetnikoff on drugs was just a monster. And he was on drugs almost full-time.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow! What a life. Sad but wonderful all at the same time. This was a much better read than the Clive Davis book.

[Aaron Segal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this book.

[Garry Wheeler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn't put it down

Refreshing account of the 70's and 80's music scene. I thoroughly enjoyed the characters and the behind the scenes insights.

[Marianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written in an entertaining way, but the author really doesn't say anything. Drugs, sex, music, sex, drugs, rock and roll. Should be sensational but it's not.

[Bob Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

wish it was longer with all the stuff the lawyers told him to take out included