Geezer Butler does it, Cidny Bullens goes through changes, Alvin Lee flies high — and more new additions to your summer reading list:
Into the Void: From Birth to Black Sabbath ― And Beyond
By Geezer Butler
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “With over 70 million records sold, Black Sabbath, dubbed “The Beatles of heavy metal,” helped create the genre itself, with their distinctive heavy riffs, tuned down guitars, and apocalyptic lyrics. Bassist and primary lyricist Geezer Butler played a gigantic part in the band’s renown, from suggesting the band name to using his fascination with horror, religion, and the occult to compose the lyrics and build the foundation of heavy metal as we know it. In Into the Void, Butler tells his side of the story, from the band’s beginnings as a scrappy blues quartet in Birmingham through the struggles leading to the many well-documented lineup changes while touring around London’s gritty clubs (Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa and The Who makes notable appearances!), and the band’s important later years. He writes honestly of his childhood in a working-class family of seven in Luftwaffe-battered Birmingham, his almost-life as an accountant, and how his disillusionment with organized religion and class systems would spawn the lyrics and artistic themes that would resonate so powerfully with fans around the world. Into the Void reveals the softer side of the heavy metal legend and the formation of one of rock’s most exciting bands, while holding nothing back. Like Geezer’s basslines, it is both original, dramatic, and forever surprising.”
Before you read Geezer’s book, check out my 2010 interview with him HERE.
TransElectric: My Life As A Cosmic Rock Star
By Cidny Bullens
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “An androgynous gender-bending musician from the get-go, Bullens toured extensively with Sir Elton John and performed with Bob Dylan, undergoing a complete immersion in the drug-fuelled excesses of 1970s rock ‘n’ roll. Despite getting sober, climbing the charts with the Grammy-nominated Survivor, as well as another nomination for their lead vocals in the soundtrack for the movie Grease, Bullens was unable to break out as a solo star in a world that allowed its artists to cross the gender line, but had much more narrow expectations about how women could behave and perform. Retreating into the conventional lifestyle of a suburban mom, Bullens felt like she was living in an alternate universe. Then whatever world she had was shattered by the tragic death of her younger daughter from cancer. Out of the ashes of despair, Bullens brought forth an award-winning album, Somewhere Between Heaven and Earth, that relaunched the musician’s career. Finally, nine years ago, Cidny claimed his own healing and transitioned from female to male — finding unexpected love, becoming a new stepfather and a grandfather.”
Magical Highs: Alvin Lee & Me
By Loraine Burgon
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Loraine Burgon and Alvin Lee were childhood sweethearts, sharing the thrills and spills as Alvin and Ten Years After enjoyed major international success between 1967 and 1974. Loraine had a ringside seat as Alvin’s group The Jaybirds became local heroes in their home town of Nottingham. Together they moved to London, where the group became TYA and Alvin was recognized as a leading rock guitarist, alongside Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page. Loraine was alongside Alvin as Ten Years After enjoyed success of the U.K., Europe and, finally, the U.S.A., where the group toured 28 times. In 1969 she watched from the side of the stage as TYA played a starring role in the legendary Woodstock Festival. In the meantime, Loraine oversaw the lifestyle changes as she and Alvin moved from a tiny London flat to a vast country mansion, befriending other rock stars and enjoying mind-expanding drugs. When it all became too much, the relationship fell apart. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s really like to be the partner of a rock superstar, Magical Highs is the book for you.”
The Inner Ear of Don Zientara: A Half Century of Recording in One of America’s Most Innovative Studios, through the Voices of Musicians
By Antonia Tricarico
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “In the late 1970s, Don Zientara — a conscientious objector to the Vietnam War — founded Inner Ear Studio in the basement of his home in Arlington, VA, using the electronics training he received from the Army. Inner Ear remained in Don’s basement until its 1990 relocation to a larger space on South Oakland Street. Along the way, it became best known for recording iconic D.C. punk musicians, including Bad Brains, Minor Threat, Bikini Kill, Rites of Spring, Mary Timony and Fugazi. Composed by photographer Antonia Tricarico, The Inner Ear of Don Zientara is an oral history of not just Inner Ear’s recordings, but the role that Don played in creating one of the most welcoming and nurturing recording studios the world over. Alongside 250 photographs, this volume includes testimonials from members of Fugazi, Scream, Fire Party, Shudder to Think, Jawbox, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Dismemberment Plan, as well as musicians like Kathleen Hanna and Henry Rollins, among other notables. In addition to D.C. punk bands, Don also recorded many other styles and genres, including Celtic folk tunes, harp music, Russian balalaika groups, political advertisers, and choral singers. The studio was also featured on Dave Grohl’s Sonic Highways mini-series. The Inner Ear of Don Zientara pays tribute to this iconic studio, celebrating the man at the heart of this remarkable space.”
Where Are Your Boys Tonight?: The Oral History of Emo’s Mainstream Explosion 1999-2008
By Chris Payne
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “If Meet Me In The Bathroom traced New York City’s early 2000’s rock scene, Where Are Your Boys Tonight? gives the inside story of the turn-of-the-millennium emo subculture that became bigger than anyone thought possible. There was Pete Wentz, the Fall Out Boy leader who launched a litany of scene-stealing bands and preposterous side-hustles, and Gerard Way, the wizard behind My Chemical Romance and The Black Parade. Panic! At the Disco and Paramore emerged soon after — a pair of intrepid outsiders who got massive playing by their own rules. As they ascended, MySpace took over the internet and the age of influencers dawned, with emo its choice aesthetic. Music journalist Chris Payne experienced emo’s mainstream takeover from sweaty crowds and mosh pits growing up in New Jersey. In Where Are Your Boys Tonight? he offers an authoritative, impassioned, and occasionally absurd account told through interviews with more than 150 people, from the scene’s biggest bands, producers, and managers to the teenage fans who helped redefine American music culture.”
The Gerry Mulligan 1950s Quartets
By Research Fellow Alyn Shipton
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The Gerry Mulligan Quartet, founded in Los Angeles in 1952, was widely acclaimed as the first small ensemble in jazz that did not include a chordal instrument such as a piano or guitar. Using original scores and detailed transcriptions of Mulligan’s work, The Gerry Mulligan 1950s Quartets offers an intimate look at Mulligan’s musical development from the initial quartet with Chet Baker to its successors with Bob Brookmeyer, Jon Eardley and Art Farmer. The backdrop is an unparalleled account of his musical life from his teenage years to adulthood, analyzing the ways in which his compositions and arrangements evolved through collaborations with Elliot Lawrence, Gene Krupa and Claude Thornhill, culminating with Miles Davis’s Birth of the Cool nonet. Featuring original interviews with many of Mulligan’s associates, author Alyn Shipton presents a fresh take on Mulligan’s harmonic creativity, in the process tracing the ups and downs of Mulligan’s heroin addiction, imprisonment, sobriety, and eventual musical triumph.”
