Robert Hilburn

Johnny Cash es todo un icono de la música, cuya singular carrera abarca desde los orígenes del rock and roll junto a Elvis y Jerry Lee Lewis en Sun Records hasta sus últimos discos producidos por Rick Rubin, pasando por una fructifera etapa a mediados de los años sesenta y primeros setenta, cuando convertido en primera figura del country paso a ser el artista mas vendido de Estados Unidos sin dejar de ser uno de los mas relevantes y comprometidos. Pero, hasta ahora, nadie habia revelado toda su historia, separando los incontables mitos de la verdad. Partiendo de numerosas experiencias personales vividas junto a Cash, asi como de una verdadera pletora de entrevistas y materiales ineditos (cartas, fotos, letras de canciones?) aportados por la familia y amigos del cantante, Robert Hilburn ha creado un retrato sumamente absorbente, complejo y humano de un hombre con una vida personal muchisimo mas turbulenta y un talento artistico muchisimo mas profundo de lo que incluso sus fans mas devotos habian llegado a imaginar.

[A] penetrating biography . . . While the book posits Newman as a writer of sociopolitical import, its emotional narrative is driven by the more personal aspects of his story: a complex family legacy, childhood struggles with strabismus (crossed eyes) and a lifelong tendency toward sadness and isolation Bob Mehr, New York TimesAn illuminating and masterful achievementBooklistRandy Newman is our great master of American song and storytelling Bruce SpringsteenAt last, the biography that Randy Newman has long deserved. The emotional precision, the humour and sweep, the truths and secrets behind his remarkable body of work . . . its all here in Robert Hilburns heartfelt and indispensable account of Americas finest songwriter. Leave it to Hilburn to pull back the curtain on the incredible life of Newman, a shy genius who clearly trusted him enough to point him in all the right directions. Its more than a great read, its an invitation to re-visit Randy Newmans work with renewed appreciation for the man who uniquely defined the American Experience just when we needed it most Cameron CroweRandy Newman is widely hailed as one of Americas all-time greatest songwriters, equally skilled in the sophisticated melodies and lyrics of the Gershwin-Porter era and the cultural commentary of his own generation, with Bob Dylan and Paul Simon among his most ardent admirers. While tens of millions around the world can hum Youve Got a Friend in Me, his disarming centrepiece for Toy Story, most of them would be astonished to learn that the heart of Newmans legacy is in the dozens of brilliant songs that detail the injustices, from racism to class inequality, that have contributed to the division of our nation. Rolling Stone declared that a single Newman song, Sail Away, tells us more about America than The Star-Spangled Banner. And yet, his legacy remains largely undocumented in book form - until now.In A FEW WORDS IN DEFENSE OF OUR COUNTRY, veteran music journalist Robert Hilburn presents the definitive portrait of an American legend. Hilburn has known Newman since his club debut at the Troubadour in 1970, and the two have maintained a connection in the decades since, conversing over the course of times good and bad. Though Newman has long refused to talk with potential biographers, he now gives Hilburn unprecedented access not only to himself but also to his archives, as well as his family, friends, and collaborators. Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, John Williams, Linda Ronstadt, Don Henley, Bonnie Raitt, Chuck D, James Taylor, and New York Times Pulitzer-winning columnists, Thomas Friedman and Wesley Morris, among others, contributed to the book. In addition to exploring Newmans prolific career and the evolution of his songwriting, A FEW WORDS IN DEFENSE OF OUR COUNTRY also dives into his childhood and early influences, his musical family that ruled Hollywood movie scores for decades, the relationships that have provided inspiration for his songs, and so much more.As thought-provoking and thorough as it is tender, this book is an overdue tribute to the legendary songwriter whose music has long reflected and challenged the America we know today.

The Times Book of the YearTheres no tougher a mind, no more tender a voice than Paul Simon, and theres no better man than Robert Hilburn to decipher the hardwiring of this hyperintellect...great songs can never be fully explained, but the great man on his way to find those songs surely can.Bono Through such hits as The Sound of Silence, Bridge Over Troubled Water, Still Crazy After All These Years, and Graceland, Paul Simon has spoken to us in songs for a half-century about alienation, doubt, survival, and faith in ways that have established him as one of the most honoured and beloved songwriters in American pop music history. Yet Simon has refused to talk to potential biographers and urged those close to him to also remain silent. But Simon not only agreed to talk to biographer Robert Hilburn for what has amounted to more than sixty hours, he also encouraged his family and friends to sit down for in-depth interviews. Paul Simon is a revealing account of the challenges and sacrifices of artistry at the highest level. He has also lived a roller-coaster life of extreme ups and downs. We not only learn Pauls unrelenting drive to achieve artistry, but also the subsequent struggles to protect that artistry against distractions fame, wealth, marriage, divorce, drugs, complacency, public rejection, self-doubt that have frequently derailed pop stars and each of which he encountered. From dominating the charts with Art Garfunkel and a successful reinvention as a solo artist, to his multiple marriages and highly publicized second divorce from Carrie Fisher, this book covers all aspects of this American icon.When it comes to writing songs, no one does it better than Paul Simon. Robert Hilburns is a wise and winning account of our most nimble, nuanced, and numinous poet-musician. Paul MuldoonA tantalizing look into the mind and writing process of the man who is arguably the finest craftsman of the American popular song since the Gershwin brothers, this book will delight any Paul Simon fan or student of popular culture. Linda Ronstadt

Acclaimed music writer Robert Hilburns epic and definitive (Rolling Stone) biography of music icon Paul Simon, written with Simons full participationbut without his editorial controlthat reminds us how titanic this musician is (The Washington Post).For more than fifty years, Paul Simon has spoken to us in songs about alienation, doubt, resilience, and empathy in ways that have established him as one of the most beloved artists in American pop music history. Songs like The Sound of Silence, Bridge Over Troubled Water, Still Crazy After All These Years, and Graceland have moved beyond the sales charts and into our cultural consciousness. But Simon is a deeply private person who has said he will not write an autobiography or talk to biographers. Finally, however, he has opened up for Robert Hilburnfor more than one hundred hours of interviewsin this brilliant and entertaining portrait of Simon that will likely be the definitive biography (Publishers Weekly, starred review).Over the course of three years, Hilburn conducted in-depth interviews with scores of Paul Simons friends, family, colleagues, and othersincluding ex-wives Carrie Fisher and Peggy Harper, who spoke for the first timeand even penetrated the inner circle of Simons long-reclusive muse, Kathy Chitty. The result is a deeply human account of the challenges and sacrifices of a life in music at the highest level. In the process, Hilburn documents Simons search for artistry and his constant struggle to protect that artistry against distractionsfame, marriage, divorce, drugs, record company interference, rejection, and insecuritythat have derailed so many great pop figures.As engaging as a lively American tune (People), Paul Simon is a straight-shooting tour de forcethat does thorough justice to this American prophet and pop star (USA TODAY, four out of four stars). Read it if you like Simon; read it if you want to discover how talent unfolds itself (Stephen King).

Johnny Cash ... Every man could relate to him, no man could be him, and only one man could get inside his head - Robert Hilburn BONOPeople dont just listen to Johnny Cash: they believe in him. But no one has told the Man in Blacks full story, until now.In Johnny Cash: The Life, Robert Hilburn conveys the unvarnished truth about a musical icon, whose colourful career stretched from his days at Sun Records with Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis to his remarkable, brave and deeply moving Hurt video, aged sixty-nine. As music critic for the Los Angeles Times, Hilburn knew Cash well throughout his life: he was the only music journalist at the legendary Folsom Prison concert in 1968, and he interviewed Cash and his wife June Carter for the final time just months before their deaths in 2003. Hilburns rich reporting shows the remarkable highs and deep lows that followed and haunted Cash in equal measure. A man of great faith and humbling addiction, Cash aimed for more than another hit for the jukebox; he wanted his music to lift peoples spirits.Drawing upon his personal experience with Cash and a trove of never-before-seen material from the singers inner circle, Hilburn creates an utterly compelling, deeply human portrait of one of the most iconic figures in modern popular culture - not only a towering figure in country music, but also a seminal influence in rock, whose personal life was far more troubled, and whose musical and lyrical artistry much more profound, than even his most devoted fans ever realised.

Desayuno con John Lennon invita al lector a descubrir el mundo del rock entre bastidores de la mano de uno de los críticos de rock más prestigiosos del mundo. Hilburn fue el único periodista que entro en la carcel de Folsom con Johnny Cash, ceno (y desayuno) con John Lennon durante su etapa del fin de semana perdido en Los Angeles, vio dibujos animados con Michael Jackson, se tomo un cafe con un Bob Dylan agotado por la carretera, le sugirio a Bruce Springsteen cambiar el orden de sus canciones cuando sus conciertos no le convencian, consiguio darle esquinazo al representante de Elvis Presley para charlar con El Rey a solas, y escribio un perfil intimo de Kurt Cobain que le evito perder la custodia de su hija por sus adicciones y su depresion. Este libro no es solo un recuento de aventuras personales: es toda una historia del rock and roll como fuerza cultural. Y de sus grandes estrellas como hombres y mujeres fragiles, geniales y muy humanos.