2009

Reading a biography, it’s easy to overlook all the behind the scenes work that goes into prepping the written material. If done well, these works read like a good flowing piece of narrative fiction, but there is far more upfront preparation required in the form of gathering articles, watching video footage, reading reviews, conducting interviews and – in the case of music biographies – becoming intimately familiar with the musical catalog. Hence, while the writing itself plays a huge role in the quality of a biography, the real masters of this craft are those who take the preparation to the next level.

In this installment of Writer’s Workshop, we had the chance to match wits with one of the true legends of the music writing landscape and particularly the music biography, Robert Greenfield. To put it in perspective, in Greenfield’s latest book, A Day in the Life: One Family, the Beautiful People, and the End of the Sixties – the story of Tommy Weber and Puss Coriat, a pair of London socialites who regularly rubbed elbows with the likes of the Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, and the Beatles – the section in back reserved to credit sources spans a jaw-dropping 40 pages. A rough estimate of twenty line items per page puts the total number of sources at around 800; not exactly lazy journalism.

Over the course of the interview, we discuss this arduous approach to the research process as well as other anecdotes detailing the ups, downs, ins and outs of Robert Greenfield’s life as a music writer.

Ryan Dembinsky: I understand you started your career as a sports writer. Could you explain the motivation and circumstances behind your move from sports to music, and ultimately to music biographer/historian?

Robert Greenfield: Because I grew up in Brooklyn when the Dodgers were still at Ebbets Field (and where I got to see Jackie Robinson play), I was like most kids in my neighborhood obsessed with sports, not just baseball but basketball as well. I was also obsessed with music and went to my first rock ‘n’ roll show, hosted by Murray The K, when I was 13 years old. When the world began changing in the late sixties, music seemed more interesting and important than sports on every level and so I began to write about it.

READ ON for more of Ryan’s chat with famed author Robert Greenfield…

[Originally Published: 06/02/2009] The Death of the American Dream has been laid out for quite some time. If anything, the definition has seemed to change from generation to generation and, ultimately, one is left to interpret the hallowed Dream as one see fits. As it should be, it is, I suppose.

However, some never really had that chance to pursue their ambitions, never really had an opportunity to find out what they could do if given the right passage to success. Yes, but many, if not all, see who they have become, and what they have done with their lives. It is those points on the road through existence that we see clearly demarcated in this week’s Hidden Flick, a tale of a destiny bound and buried, American Me.

Directed in his debut at the helm by Edward James Olmos, the film was inspired by a true story, but is essentially a heavily fictionalized characterization of life as a Mexican on the streets of Los Angeles in the 1950s-70s, detailing the racism of the dominating white populace, the early gang warfare in the city, and then, inevitably, life behind the walls of various California prisons where the Mexican Mafia solidified its formidable reputation.

READ ON for more on this week’s Hidden Flick – American Me and be sure to check HT in two weeks for the first edition of Hidden Flick’s Season 3…

Back in the wee hours of the first day of this year at BB King’s on 42nd Street, the Benevento Russo Duo just finished a show opening Echo Park when

Phish.com has just been updated with a graphic advising fans to save the dates of October 30, 31 and November 1 for what will be the first Phish-thrown festival since Coventry in August 2004. As of now, three states in the graphic representing the United States that appears when you visit Phish.com have been blacked out. Those states are Idaho, Oklahoma and West Virgina. Some fans have speculated that as time passes more states will be blacked out leaving only the state where the festival will be held.

Rumors are swirling that the quartet will perform at the Polo Fields in Indio, California where the Coachella and Stagecoach festivals are held each year near Palm Springs, but nothing is confirmed at this point except for the date and the fact that the band will indeed be hosting a festival. Starting on October 31, 1994, Phish concerts on Halloween were three set affairs in which the band would don a “musical costume” in the second set by performing a classic album by another artist. The group played The Beatles’ White Album in 1994, Quadrophenia by The Who in 1995, Remain In Light by the Talking Heads in 1996 and Loaded by the Velvet Underground in 1998.

This announcement leaves fans with a number of questions, so we want to hear from you. Where do you think they’ll play and what album do you think they’ll cover? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

UPDATE: All sorts of theories abound in our comments section. Be sure to read all of the insightful comments from our readers.

UPDATE [7/13 11:30AM]: The latest change to the animation on Phish’s Save The Date map shows California being lifted from the map by three hot air balloons. Is this some sort of trick or are all the people who swore it will be held at Indio wrong? Gotta love this band’s trickster hearts.

Where do you think Save The Date will take place? READ ON to place your vote and to leave a comment telling us where you think it will be…