Clinton Heylin

Bob Dylan has always regarded himself as a songwriter: 'I am my words', he wrote in 1964. This book charts Dylan's rise as a writer, where he gained his inspiration, the burst of energy which produced some of his most famous songs as well as the lesser known stories behind the more iconic verses.

This is the second volume in Clinton Heylin's magisterial survey of the songs of Bob Dylan. The first volume - "Revolution in the Air" which is now available in paperback - charted the rise of Bob Dylan from his first jottings to the full expression of genius in songs such as "Hard Rain Gonna Fall" and "The Times They Are a Changin". "Still on the Road" begins in 1974 with "Blood on the Tracks", the album filled with masterworks such as "Tangled Up in Blue" and "Simple Twist of Fate" that heralded a watershed in Dylan's creative journey, and continues to chart his never-ending fascination with music and the art of song up to 2006's "Modern Times". Praise for "Revolution in the Air": 'Beg, steal, borrow ...a compelling history of Dylan's mercurial song writing' - Mojo, 5-star review. 'Better than any biography could ever be, and a crucial Dylan book' - Jonathan Letham. 'Valuable resource' - "Observer." 'A gripping new book by Dylan scholar Clinton Heylin so is so far in the deep end that its borderline insane . . [yet] has been devoured with a ravenous, insatiable appetite, and I have even made notes in the margin' - Mark Ellen, "Word." 'Terrifically interesting for Dylan nuts' - "Sunday Herald." 'Manna for completists' - "Metro." 'True to form, Heylin digs deepoway deepointo the songs, mixing cold hard facts with illuminating anecdotes' - Mark Smith, managing editor, Acoustic Guitar.

En junio de 2007 se cumplió el cuadragésimo aniversario del álbum Sgt. Pepper`s Lonely Hearts Club Band, para muchos la obra cumbre de los Beatles y, de acuerdo con buena parte de la crítica especializada, el disco de rock-pop más influyente de todos los tiempos. Su audaz combinación de estilos y tonos, su sorprendente estructura unitaria, sus innovaciones instrumentales, orquestales e incluso técnicas, la extraña mezcla de lirismo melódico y energía rítmica aliñada con elementos psicodélicos o sinfónicos y la estudiada ambigüedad de las letras produjeron en el mundo de la música popular una conmoción que no se ha apagado del todo hasta nuestros días. En muchos sentidos y con muy sólidas razones puede afirmarse que Sgt. Pepper ?s abrió caminos todavía transitados cuyo destino final apenas podemos adivinar. Clinton Heylin narra la gestación del álbum desvelando sus fuentes de inspiración y analizando el contexto cultural que lo hizo posible, aclara sus alusiones y despeja muchos mitos o equívocos alimentados desde el primer momento por sus numerosos exégetas, analiza su poderosa influencia en grupos y cantantes de muy variado pelaje (Bob Dylan, los Beach Boys, Pink Floyd, los Rolling Stones, etc.) y describe su fulminante impacto en una sociedad ávida de cambios y quimeras. Heylin, en definitiva, explica todas las claves de Sgt. Pepper`s como clásico del rock y como fenómeno sociocultural.

In this enthralling history of punk and grunge, Clinton Heylin describes how the word 'punk' was coined by revered rock journalist Lester Bangs, and charts the rise and fall of the movement, from the explosion of the Sex Pistols to the death of Kurt Cobain. Tracing punk's origins on three continents - from the pubs of England to the clubs of New York and Cleveland, Sydney and Brisbane - as well as looking at individual bands, Heylin explores the groups who were the scenemakers, along with the underground networks established to assault the mainstream. Eloquent, enthralling, endlessly informative, Babylon's Burning will find a home in every music fan's library.

A definitive history of American punk rock.Exhaustively researched and packed with unique insights, this history journeys from the punk scene''s roots in the mid-1960s to the arrival of "new wave" in the early 1980s. With a cast that includes Patti Smith, Pere Ubu, Television, Blondie, the Ramones, the MC5, the Stooges, Talking Heads, and the Dead Boys, this account is the definitive story of early American punk rock. Extraordinarily balanced, it tells the story of the music''s development largely through the artists'' own words, while thoroughly analyzing and evaluating the music in a lucid and cogent manner.First published in 1993, this was the first book to tell the stories of these then-little-known bands; now, this edition has been updated with a new discography, including imports and bootlegs, and an afterword detailing the post-1970s history of these bands. Filled with insights from interviews with artists such as Lou Reed, Debbie Harry, David Byrne, Patti Smith, and Richard Hell, this book has long been considered one of the essential reads on rock rebellion.

Bob Dylan has always regarded himself as a songwriter: I am my words, he wrote in 1964.Distilling a lifetimes passion and study, leading Dylan author, Clinton Heylin charts the development and first moments of genius of this unique artist whose songs changed the world.From his first attempts at writing, Song to Bridget, in 1957, (apparently for Brigitte Bardot) Bob Dylan always aspired to poetry, yet his role as a writer rather than a performer of his own songs is often overlooked. In over fifty years of creativity he had penned some of the most iconic, and perfect, songs in popular history. Arriving in New York in 1961, the city had an enormous impact on the young artist and, as he established himself amongst the folk clubs and artists, he would produce songs that spoke for a whole generation: Blowing in the Wind, A Hard Rains Gonna Fall, The Times They Are a Changin, Like a Rolling Stone, and Forever Young.In Revolution in the Air Clinton Heylin recounts the story of each song as it is written, giving a full appreciation of the songs themselves as well as Dylan the emerging artist. Unlike any other book on Dylan, it charts his rise as a writer, where he gained his inspiration, the burst of energy which produced some of his most famous songs as well as the lesser known stories behind the more iconic verses.This is an essential book for anyone interested in Dylan and his place in literature. Informative, opinionated, packed with new insights and revelations, this is an instant classic.

Song publishing is the one constant in the carousel of recorded music now spanning the past century, and has been the way that song-credits and publishing revenue have caused ructions and recriminations, and inspired writers by making them poor and lawyers rich. Whether it be Procul Harum going to court to decide who really wrote Whiter Shade of Pale or the Moody Blues wanting their fair share of Nights of White Satin, when the song-credits get divvied up, a parting of the ways citing musical differences is almost inevitable. So here are some choice examples of poplore held up to the light,some familiar to music fans others not, designed to prove that Dylan knew of what he wrote when he suggested, Money doesnt talk, it swears. Between them, they provide the unvarnished story of popular song from the days jukeboxes and radio replaced wax cylinders and piano rolls to the era of digital downloads, legal and illegal...

From the worlds leading authority on Bob Dylan comes the definitive biography that promises to transform our understanding of the man and musicianthanks to early access to Dylans never-before-studied archives.In 2016 Bob Dylan sold his personal archive to the George Kaiser Foundation in Tulsa, Oklahoma, reportedly for $22 million. As the boxes started to arrive, the Foundation asked Clinton Heylinauthor of the acclaimed Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades and perhaps the worlds authority on all things Dylan (Rolling Stone)to assess the material they had been given. What he found in Tulsaas well as what he gleaned from other papers he had recently been given access to by Sony and the Dylan officeso changed his understanding of the artist, especially of his creative process, that he became convinced that a whole new biography was needed. It turns out that much of what previous biographersDylan himself includedhave said is wrong.With fresh and revealing information on every page A Restless, Hungry Feeling tells the story of Dylans meteoric rise to fame: his arrival in early 1961 in New York, where he is embraced by the folk scene; his elevation to spokesman of a generation whose protest songs provide the soundtrack for the burgeoning Civil Rights movement; his alleged betrayal when he goes electric at Newport in 1965; his subsequent controversial world tour with a rock n roll band; and the recording of his three undisputed electric masterpieces: Bringing it All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde. At the peak of his fame in July 1966 he reportedly crashes his motorbike in Woodstock, upstate New York, and disappears from public view. When he re-emerges, he looks different, his voice sounds different, his songs are different.Clinton Heylins meticulously researched, all-encompassing and consistently revelatory account of these fascinating early years is the closest we will ever get to a definitive life of an artist who has been the lodestar of popular culture for six decades.

In 2016 it was announced that Bob Dylan had sold his personal archive to the George Kaiser Foundation in Tulsa, Oklahoma, reportedly for $22 million. As the boxes started to arrive, the Foundation asked Clinton Heylin - author of the acclaimed Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades and perhaps the worlds authority on all things Dylan (Rolling Stone) - to assess the material they had been given. What he found in Tulsa - as well as what he gleaned from other papers he had recently been given access to by Sony and the Dylan office - so changed his understanding of the artist, especially of his creative process, that he became convinced that a whole new biography was needed. It turns out that much of what previous biographers - Dylan himself included - have said is wrong; often as not, a case of, Print the Legend.This is the second instalment of the definitive biography (following A Restless Hungry Feeling) of one contemporary cultures most iconic and mysterious figures - musical revolutionary, Nobel Prize-winner, chart-topping recording artist.Clinton Heylins meticulously researched, all-encompassing and consistently revelatory account of these fascinating early years is the closest we will ever get to a definitive life of an artist who has been the lodestar of popular culture for six decades.

In virtually all areas of Dylans life - his immigrant antecedents, his business dealings, his various addictions and his romantic attachments - Heylin is able to provide a fascinating picture of a man who changed the whole course of popular music in the sixties and, over thirty years later, won three Grammys. Heylin has given full weight to Dylans own words and those of his closest associates, with over 250 people quoted in the book, helping to provide a portrait of a complex figure. Including 60,000 words of brand new material - dealing with Dylans four twenty-first century albums; his archival audio-visual projects; his third film; his series of paintings and exhibitions; his autobiography, Chronicles; and his ongoing romantic liaisons and missing marriages - this fully updated story of Dylan provides a monumental overview of the Man and his Music.

Bruce Springsteen is one of the most important and controversial rock stars of our times: this is the story of the man - a complex, poetic loner whose albums went on to sell 18 million copies - and the band that gave his inner vision a punch and a swagger. Clinton Heylin has written the most factually accurate, informative book on Springsteen to date. As in Heylins definitive Bob Dylan title Revolution in the Air, E Street Shuffle will focus on Bruce Springsteen and his work: the songs hes written, the way they were recorded, how they sounded live. Heylin also has unparalleled access to the people around Springsteen: current and former members of the E Street Band; CBS A&R personnel; Springsteens New Dylan contemporaries, as well as fellow Asbury Park musicians and scenesters, and rock critics. This is the essential book for any fan of the Boss.Praise for Clinton Heylin:"Arguably the worlds greatest rock biographer." - The Irish Independent."The only Dylanologist worth reading." - The New York Times.

This is the second volume in Clinton Heylins magisterial survey of the songs of Bob Dylan. The first volume - Revolution in the Air which is now available in paperback - charted the rise of Bob Dylan from his first jottings to the full expression of genius in songs such as Hard Rain Gonna Fall and The Times They Are a Changin. Still on the Road begins in 1974 with "Blood on the Tracks", the album filled with masterworks such as Tangled Up in Blue and Simple Twist of Fate that heralded a watershed in Dylans creative journey, and continues to chart his never-ending fascination with music and the art of song up to 2006s "Modern Times". Praise for Revolution in the Air:Beg, steal, borrow ... a compelling history of Dylans mercurial song writing.Mojo, 5-star reviewBetter than any biography could ever be, and a crucial Dylan book Jonathan LethamValuable resourceObserverA gripping new book by Dylan scholar Clinton Heylin so is so far in the deep end that its borderline insane . . [yet] has been devoured with a ravenous, insatiable appetite, and I have even made notes in the margin. Mark Ellen, Word.Terrifically interesting for Dylan nutsSunday HeraldManna for completistsMetroTrue to form, Heylin digs deep-way deep-into the songs, mixing cold hard facts with illuminating anecdotes. - Mark Smith, managing editor, Acoustic Guitar

The definitive, scrupulously researched biography of a life steeped in mysteryObserverThe definitive biography of one contemporary cultures most iconic and mysterious figures - musical revolutionary, Nobel Prize-winner, chart-topping recording artistIn 2016 it was announced that Bob Dylan had sold his personal archive to the George Kaiser Foundation in Tulsa, Oklahoma, reportedly for $22 million. As the boxes started to arrive, the Foundation asked Clinton Heylin - author of the acclaimed Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades and perhaps the worlds authority on all things Dylan (Rolling Stone) - to assess the material they had been given. What he found in Tulsa - as well as what he gleaned from other papers he had recently been given access to by Sony and the Dylan office - so changed his understanding of the artist, especially of his creative process, that he became convinced that a whole new biography was needed. It turns out that much of what previous biographers - Dylan himself included - have said is wrong; often as not, a case of, Print the Legend.With fresh and revealing information on every page A Restless, Hungry Feeling tells the story of Dylans meteoric rise to fame: his arrival in early 1961 in New York, where he is embraced by the folk scene; his elevation to spokesman of a generation whose protest songs provide the soundtrack for the burgeoning Civil Rights movement; his alleged betrayal when he goes electric at Newport in 1965; his subsequent controversial world tour with a rock n roll band; and the recording of his three undisputed electric masterpieces: Bringing it All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde. At the peak of his fame in July 1966 he reportedly crashes his motorbike in Woodstock, upstate New York, and disappears from public view. When he re-emerges, he looks different, his voice sounds different, his songs are different. That other story will be told in Volume 2, to be published in autumn 2022.Clinton Heylins meticulously researched, all-encompassing and consistently revelatory account of these fascinating early years is the closest we will ever get to a definitive life of an artist who has been the lodestar of popular culture for six decades.

Acclaimed music writer Clinton Heylins revelatory biography E Street Shuffle charts the rise of Bruce Springsteen and his legendary E Street Band in intimate detail, from their blue-collar New Jersey roots to the heights of rock stardom. Now, in Springsteen Song by Song, Heylin culls studio data, demo tracks, and his own extensive knowledge to offer insights, history, and critical commentary on 300 songs recorded by the Boss between 1972 and 1984. These concise yet insightful notes are essential reading for Springsteen true believers as well as fans just beginning to discover the early work of this living American legend.