![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/hunky_dory.jpg\")
When you get right down to it, everybody has a story to tell. Some tales have almost universal appeal, while others are possessed of niche quality. And there\u2019s not really a direct correlation between how compelling or engrossing a story might be and the likelihood that one can score a book deal to write it.<\/p>\n
Take me for example: I\u2019ve been working with a friend who\u2019s almost a Zelig figure in rock \u2018n\u2019 roll history — well, quite much more than a Zelig, because he was an active participant \u2013 and we\u2019ve so far not been able to land a publisher. But we shall persist, because — trust me on this \u2013 you\u2019ll want to read it.<\/em><\/p>\n And even if one does have a story to tell and manages to convince a publisher, that doesn\u2019t mean one can, y\u2019know, write<\/i>. Against that backdrop, you perhaps wouldn’t expect an accountant to pen a lively account (as it were) of working closely with some of the biggest names in music.<\/p>\n Alas, as history teaches us again and again (see: March and April 2020) the world is full of surprises. Laurence Myers\u2019 book, Hunky Dory: Who Knew?<\/i> is just such a revelation. Subtitled \u201cThe best I can remember from twenty years at the heart of \u201860s and \u201870s rock and pop,\u201d his book is a true page-turner. The shortish chapters move through his life and career, and while you almost certainly don\u2019t know his name, you know most every other character discussed in his book.<\/p>\n Myers has a keen, sharp memory, an eye for detail, and a well-developed wit. That means that Hunky Dory: Who Knew?<\/i> is reliably funny \u2013 sometimes laugh-out-loud funny \u2013 and endlessly fascinating. Read it and you\u2019ll learn things you never knew (but may well have expected!) about the likes of Jeff Beck, David Bowie, Mickie Most, the Rolling Stones and scores of others. You\u2019ll also get a window into the machinations of the music business, equal parts opportunism, cynicism and creativity.<\/p>\n Most interesting of all perhaps is Myers\u2019 perspective \u2013 hard-won at that \u2013 on a few figures who, shall we say, aren\u2019t held up as exemplars of good behavior. Bowie\u2019s Mainman manager Tony Defries is one.\u00a0 But the big one here is Allen Klein, he of the careers of Sam Cooke, the Stones, the Beatles and other giants. Myers\u2019 characterization is at once unflinching and even-handed. And it serves to make the point that no one* is all<\/em> bad.<\/p>\n (Well, come to think of it, Don Arden doesn’t come off too well. But then he wouldn’t, would he?)<\/p>\n Laurence Myers resists any temptation he might have had to paint himself as above reproach and blame-free: he readily admits that we have him to thank for low-budget (and often lower-quality) albums hawked on late night television; with rakish wit, he acknowledges that the whole scheme was little more than a cash grab.<\/p>\n His near-misses are a running highlight of Hunky Dory: Who Knew?<\/i> as well: the times in which he passed up on an opportunity, allowed an artist to get away right before they made it big, and similar tales are recounted in vivid and entertaining detail. And he\u2019s a masterful storyteller. The words fly off the page, and the reader can all but hear his voice. Put another way, Myers\u2019 writing style is delightfully conversational; these stories sound not unlike they would if told to you over a fine dinner and expensive, carefully-chosen wine, told by an articulate, erudite and just damn funny friend. Highly recommended, even if one isn\u2019t into reading about the behind-the-scenes stories of popular music.<\/p>\n * current resident of the White House most emphatically excepted<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When you get right down to it, everybody has a story to tell. Some tales have almost universal appeal, while others are possessed of niche quality. 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