A little rock, a little reggae and the return of Johnny Thunders. Three really is the magic number next week:
Johnny Thunders: In Cold Blood – The Official Biography, Revised & Updated
By Nina Antonia
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Johnny Thunders: In Cold Blood is the definitive portrait of the condemned man of rock ’n’ roll, from the baptism of fire and tragedy that was The New York Dolls, through the junkie punk years of The Heartbreakers, to his sudden and mysterious death in 1991. It is an unflinching account of a unique guitarist whose drug problems often overshadowed his considerable style and talent, but whose unquestionable influence on glam, punk, and more still resonates today. Nina Antonia discovered Johnny Thunders and The New York Dolls as a teenager and spent her formative years as a dedicated fan before starting work on this book in her 20s. Then, when Johnny and his manager read her early drafts, they decided she should make it an authorised biography and granted her unique access to Johnny’s life. As such, it begins by painting a historical portrait of Thunders and his early life and work before shifting into the present tense as Nina vividly describes her own experiences with the real-life Johnny and his associates. First published in 1987, Johnny Thunders: In Cold Blood has been kept alive over the years by an audience that isn’t always catered for. While The New York Dolls are now rightly acknowledged as having been as pivotal as the Velvet Underground, and you might catch the odd fashionista sporting a Dolls T-shirt, Johnny’s dark flame burns for those who have known adversity. He is the voice of the disenfranchised; he is every gifted son or daughter who went off the rails. Like Jesse James or James Dean, he couldn’t come in from the badlands of rock ’n’ roll; he wouldn’t appease or kowtow to the establishment. This new edition adds a new closing chapter, bringing Thunders’ legacy up to date, new photographs, and a foreword by Mike Scott of The Waterboys.”
This Is Reggae: My Life in Jamaican Music, From Zap POW to Bob Marley & The Wailers
By Glen Dacosta & Dave Peters
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “For more than six decades, reggae legend Glen DaCosta has worked as a musician, songwriter and producer. As a session player, his distinctive sax sound backed many international reggae stars at Joe Gibbs’ studio and Lee Scratch Perry’s Blackheart Studio. Some 22 years in the writing, his revealing memoir gives an insider’s view of the Jamaican popular music industry, and recounts his fascinating childhood and years on the road with Bob Marley And The Wailers and Zap Pow.”
MTV Famous
By Pete Evick & Steve Olivas
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “In 1982, MTV changed the way a generation of teenage boys and girls defined the word hero. Pete Evick was one of those kids. Now, his heroes shredded through songs like Cum on Feel the Noize and Panama. Pete donned a guitar and vowed to someday climb the ladder — to play alongside the inductees to his personal pantheon. His journey was winding and sometimes reckless, but he eventually played before packed houses around the world, sharing the bill with all the bands he used to watch on MTV. Thanks to his hard work and dedication — not to mention, his support for (and friendship with) one of his heroes, Bret Michaels — Evick lifted himself from the wrong side of the tracks in Manassass, Virginia, to achieve his dreams.”
