Product Details
Hickory Wind: The Life and Times of Graham Parsons

Hickory Wind: The Life and Times of Graham Parsons
By Ben Fong-Torres

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Product Description

Gram Parons lived hard and died young, and left behind a musical legacy that has influenced generations of rock and country legends. Ben Fong-Torres's moving account of his story--from his poor-little-rich-kid childhood; through his seminal time with the Byrds and his own bands, the Flying Burrito Brothers and the Fallen Angels; to days and nights spent with the likes of Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Emmylou Harris--is a classic of rock biography. This newly expanded edition updates the text and discograph, adds rare new photographs, and concludes with an intriguing epilogue that answers some lingering questions about Gram's untimely death--and raised a few more.

Product Details

  • Amazon Sales Rank: #318995 in Books
  • Published on: 1998-09-15
  • Original language: English
  • Dimensions: .75 pounds
  • Binding: Paperback
  • 264 pages

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
An entertaining biography of singer/songwriter/guitarist Gram Parsons, a key figure linking country music to rock until his 1973 drug-related death at age 26. Photos.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Parsons must receive the lion's share of the credit (or blame) for defining California "country rock." Before his early death in 1973, he recorded with the Byrds, the Flying Burrito Brothers, and as a solo. Although he was not appreciated during his lifetime, his work is now seen as influential. As important as he may have been as an artist, Parsons personally was little more interesting than most other late-1960s burnouts, and his life proves thin stuff for a book-length biography. Fong-Torres, a respected rock music journalist and Rolling Stone alumnus, does his best to fashion a sensational narrative out of Parsons's 27 years, but falls short. His efforts to depict Parsons's early life in the South as a Tennessee Williams-style family drama, for example, is forced at best. Fans will love this book, but it holds little appeal for others. For larger music collections.
- James Stephenson, Soc. of the Cincinnati Lib., Washington, D.C.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"The cream of the crop [of rock books]...Fong-Torres writes a fan's appreciation of Parsons that does not skimp on the harsh truth."--Steve Morse, The Boston Globe

"A saddening piece of reading, but one which members of Parsons' large cult will find essential."--Musician Magazine

"The first clear picture of a musical genius."--South Bend Tribune (Indiana)