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Never a Dull Moment
- 1971 - the Year That Rock Exploded
- Narrated by: David Hepworth
- Length: 11 hrs and 38 mins
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Publisher's summary
A rollicking look at 1971 - the busiest, most innovative and resonant year of the '70s, defined by the musical arrival of such stars as David Bowie, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and Joni Mitchell.
On New Year's Eve, 1970, Paul McCartney told his lawyers to issue the writ at the High Court in London, effectively ending The Beatles. You might say this was the last day of the pop era.
The following day, which was a Friday, was 1971. You might say this was the first day of the rock era. And within the remaining 364 days of this monumental year, the world would hear Don McLean's "American Pie", The Rolling Stones' "Brown Sugar", The Who's "Baba O'Riley", Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven", Rod Stewart's "Maggie May", Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On", and more.
David Hepworth, an ardent music fan and a well-regarded critic, was 21 in '71, the same age as many of the legendary artists who arrived on the scene. Taking us on a tour of the major moments, the events and songs of this remarkable year, he shows how musicians came together to form the perfect storm of rock and roll greatness, starting a musical era that would last longer than anyone predicted. Those who joined bands to escape things that lasted found themselves in a new age, its colossal start being part of the genre's staying power.
Never a Dull Moment is more than a love song to the music of 1971. It's also an homage to the things that inspired art and artists alike. From Soul Train to The Godfather, hot pants to table tennis, Hepworth explores both the music and its landscapes, culminating in an epic story of rock and roll's best year.
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Thelonious Monk is the critically acclaimed, gripping saga of an artist's struggle to "make it" without compromising his musical vision. It is a story that, like its subject, reflects the tidal ebbs and flows of American history in the 20th century. To his fans, he was the ultimate hipster; to his detractors, he was temperamental, eccentric, taciturn, or childlike. His angular melodies and dissonant harmonies shook the jazz world to its foundations, ushering in the birth of "bebop" and establishing Monk as one of America's greatest composers.
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The definitive bio of Monk
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Everybody Wants Some
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How did a pair of little Dutch boys trained in classical music grow up to become the nucleus of the most popular heavy metal band of all time? What's the secret behind Eddie Van Halen's incredible fast and furious guitar solos? What makes David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar so wacky? And, are all those stories about groupies, booze bashes, and contract riders true? The naked truth is laid bare in Everybody Wants Some - the real-life story of a rock 'n' roll fantasy come true.
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Good details of albums and post-1984 career
- By IndyMATT on 12-30-18
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When Giants Walked the Earth
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Overall
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They were the last great band of the '60s and the first great band of the '70s. They rose, somewhat unpromisingly, from the ashes of the Yardbirds to become one of the biggest-selling rock bands of all time - and eventually paid the price for it, with disaster, drug addiction, and death.
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Very annoying but tolerable for serious fans.
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By: Mick Wall
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Being John Lennon
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Overall
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What was it like to be John Lennon? What was it like to be the castoff child, the clown at school, the middle-class suburban boy who pretended to be a working-class hero? How did it feel to have one of the most recognizable singing voices in the world but to dislike it so much he always wanted to disguise it? Being John Lennon is not about the whitewashed Prince of Peace of “Imagine” legend - because that was only a small part of him. The John Lennon depicted in this book is a much more kaleidoscopic figure, sometimes almost a collision of different characters.
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Stars taken off for inclusion of MDC’s story
- By rob on 12-09-22
By: Ray Connolly
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The Never-Ending Present
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From our talent-rich neighbor to the north comes this biography of one of the most successful Canadian rock bands, The Tragically Hip, which announced a year-long tour after sharing the news of lead singer Gord Downie’s inoperable cancer. Now available to US listeners, The Never-Ending Present details what led up to the memorable night when music fans all over the world watched Downie’s heroic final performance.
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Hometown Heroes
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Outlaw
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Waylon Jennings. Willie Nelson. Kris Kristofferson. Three renegade musicians. Three unexpected stars. Three men who changed Nashville and country music forever. Streissguth's new book brings to life an incredible chapter in musical history and reveals for the first time a surprising outlaw zeitgeist in Nashville. Based on extensive research and probing interviews with key players, what emerges is a fascinating glimpse into three of the most legendary artists of our times and the definitive story of how they changed music in Nashville and everywhere.
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Revealing little-known Details does Captivate!
- By Cody Meyer on 11-20-17
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Shining Star
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- Narrated by: Philip Bailey
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With more than 90 million records sold and eight Grammy Awards throughout its 40-year history, Earth, Wind & Fire has staked its claim as one of the most successful, influential, and beloved acts in music history. Now, for the first time, its dynamic lead singer, Philip Bailey, chronicles the group's meteoric rise to stardom and his own professional and spiritual journey. Never before had a musical act crossed multiple styles and genres with a quixotic blend of astrology, universalism, and Egyptology as Earth, Wind & Fire (EWF) did when it exploded into the public's conscience during the 1970s.
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Great book, but needed pro narrator
- By Wayne on 03-23-16
By: Philip Bailey, and others
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Michael Jackson, Inc.
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Michael Jackson, Inc. reveals the incredible rise, fall, and rise again of Michael Jackson's fortune - driven by the unmatched perfectionism of the King of Pop. Forbes senior editor Zack O'Malley Greenburg uncovers never-before-told stories from interviews with more than 100 people, including music industry veterans Berry Gordy, John Branca, and Walter Yetnikoff; artists 50 Cent, Sheryl Crow, and Jon Bon Jovi; and members of the Jackson family.
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The King Lives...Life,Legacy and Love
- By Amazon Customer on 06-22-17
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Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music?
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In 1969, in Capitol Records' Hollywood studio, a blonde-haired troubadour named Larry Norman laid track for an album that would launch a new genre of music and one of the strangest, most interesting careers in modern rock. Having spent the bulk of the 1960s playing on bills with acts like The Who, Janis Joplin, and The Doors, Norman decided that he wanted to sing about the most countercultural subject of all: Jesus.
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Hagiography not Biography
- By Keith Howard on 10-29-18
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Unchained
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From the moment their hugely influential 1978 debut landed, Van Halen set a high bar for the rock 'n' roll lifestyle, creating an entirely new style of post-'60s hard rock and becoming the quintessential rock band of the 1980s. But the high-flying success was fraught with difficulty, as Eddie struggled with alcohol and drug addiction while simultaneously battling David Lee Roth over the musical direction of the band, eventually taking the band in an entirely new direction with Sammy Hagar and scaling new heights, before that iteration of Van Halen disintegrated.
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Please don't read other audible books
- By Mike on 02-01-22
By: Paul Brannigan
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Fire and Rain
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- By: David Browne
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
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January 1970: the Beatles assemble one more time to put the finishing touches on Let It Be; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young are wrapping up Déjà Vu; Simon and Garfunkel are unveiling Bridge Over Troubled Water; James Taylor is an upstart singer-songwriter who's just completed Sweet Baby James. Over the course of the next twelve months, their lives---and the world around them---will change irrevocably.
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Fascinating information, easy to listen
- By NCKitkat on 07-28-11
By: David Browne
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The smooth veneer of the duo's songs made Steely Dan popular and famous in the 1970s, but the polish glossed over the underlying layers of anger, disappointment, sleaze, and often downright weirdness lurking just beneath the surface. The elliptical lyrics—were—and continue to be-an endless source of fascination. What kind of person was capable of writing such songs? Donald Fagen has always kept his true self hidden behind walls of irony, confounding most journalistic enquiries. Nightfly cracks open the door to reveal the life behind the lyrics.
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Didn’t want it to end
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The best-selling author of the definitive biography of former Beach Boy Brian Wilson offers new insight into the life and music of Paul McCartney, one of the world's most popular and influential musicians. Informed by new, exclusive interviews with friends, bandmates, and collaborators, the book describes McCartney's many triumphs as well as his failures, from the Beatles era through his decade with Wings and his subsequent solo career.
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Great...But
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Jennifer Juniper
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Jenny Boyd's extraordinary life is the stuff of movies and novels, a story of incredible people and places experienced at a pivotal time in the 20th century. As an up-and-coming young model, Jenny found herself at the heart of Carnaby Street in London, immersed in the fashion and pop culture of the Swinging 60s. With boyfriend Mick Fleetwood, sister Pattie, George Harrison and the rest of the Beatles, she lived the London scene. But as a natural Flower Child, Jenny soon became part of the counter-culture in San Francisco during the Flower Power era.
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What listeners say about Never a Dull Moment
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Amazon Customer
- 07-30-16
A blast from the past
Very enjoyable for someone like me who was there in 1971. I especially like all the political and cultural context filled in. The author is a bit cynical, but then I suppose some of it is justified. But very enjoyable and interesting, and well read by the author.
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- DSR WALK
- 02-20-19
Very Entertaining
I never ealized how much music there was in1971 . It was so much fun remembering all of the great music groups that were making great albums when I was a child. I reaaly enjoyed the great passion of great rock and roll that the author has in this book. At times hes hard to follow but I still enjoy all of the research he shares on the greatest year of music in American history
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- Nowlill
- 04-10-24
Waiting for 1972
Perfectly read, delightfully written, I’m glad I was alive then. I’m sharing this with my daughters so they can be jealous of me.
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- Amazon Customer
- 02-24-17
I was born in 1971
So this is like a backstage pass to the soundtrack to my life. Thanks David.
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- Amazon Customer
- 05-05-22
Fun listening!
If you experienced that time or are a fan of that era's music you will enjoy this audiobook!
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- Anonymous User
- 06-10-24
These Are the Good Old Days
This is a fabulous listen. It captures a defining period in the history of popular music. The book invokes numerous memories of the countless aural sensations I experienced as a 7 year old in 1971, sensations that gave me my first thrills at being alive on Earth. As the author indicates, so much was happening at the time, which we just thought was a natural part of society's creative process, that we had no idea how the songs, albums, and groups we heard were constructing a canon that still dominates in the 21st century. (I listened as I read a news story picturing 80-year-old Mick Jagger and announcing yet another Rolling Stones tour in 2024 - let's forget about that 1981 "Farewell Tour" - oops...)
David Hepworth is equally compelling as author and narrator, and the interplay of facts and storytelling ended up capturing my attention from start to finish. I was so entertained that I stopped caring about a few minor disagreements, and I enjoyed the 1971 time stoppage and the format of breaking up by months, including a favorite playlist at the end of each month (though maybe J.C. Superstar should have been included in the year's top 100?...). Bravo and looking forward to more with Anticipation!
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- Dubi
- 03-28-22
Recalling a Great Year in My Musical Life
David Hepworth turned 21 in 1971 and recalls this as the best year in the history of rock and roll in Never a Dull Moment, a month by month reminiscence that focuses on the Rolling Stones, Carole King, Stevie Wonder, The Who, Rod Stewart, David Bowie, Led Zep, the former Beatles, and many many others. He places these in the context of current and pop culture events, as well as other aspects of the music business -- record company execs, the music press, technological advances, and the like.
I turned 15 in 1971, a watershed year for me, including my own pivot that Hepworth describes -- switching from 45s and AM radio to LPs and FM (from singles to albums). I got my first album (Blind Faith), got my first real guitar and used it at my first live performance (Nantucket Sleighride), formed my first band, The Summer Snowflake (lasted three days), and saw my first live concerts -- Procol Harum at the Capitol in Passaic, Grateful Dead at the Felt Forum. Lots of other indelible moments.
Hard to give Hepworth more praise than by conjuring up these memories in one place over a half century later -- to put them all together in the context of his evaluation of this year in rock music is mildly epiphianic for me.
One can criticize this book for being a bit scattershot. Each month is devoted to at least one major artist, plus a few secondary, often related artists. But to be so all encompassing means that some get barely a mention. But who am I to complain when my all-time guitar hero, my mentor-instructor, is mentioned in such a positive way (even though Hepworth mistakes his gospel blues for fiddle tunes). And in the penultimate mention before the epilogue -- Nantucket Sleighride!
Give Hepworth credit for not only focusing on big names and major releases. He includes quite a bit about what artists who hit in later years were doing in 1971, like Springsteen, Jonathan Richman, Talking Heads, and the New York Dolls, among others. And artists like Nick Drake who recorded in 1971 but didn't gain recognition for many years.
Great stuff for classic rock fans, possibly good stuff for younger fans who may have heard their parents or grandparents listening to this music, or their own music heroes covering or sampling these songs or naming them as influences. You may not agree with everything, but at the very least, food for thought.
Kudos to Hepworth for his narration. He is not perhaps the most polished of voices, being a writer, not a voice actor, but no one else could have captured his mildly sardonic tone and totally apropos English accent.
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- Dave Holak
- 05-24-21
Great recap of an amazing year of music
Enjoyed every minute of this 1971 recap. Mind blowing how much happened in music is 1971, there was truly never a dull moment.
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- Robert
- 03-04-18
1971 Great year in Rock History!
He presents a compelling case for 1971 being the most substantive year in the rock era. A lot of interesting information and behind the scenes intrigue of many rock ledgands. If you love classic rock and roll, I highly recommend this one!
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- wylie smith
- 11-30-23
Interesting, but Hepworth's book differs from my m
I di enjoy this book as Hepworth put 1971 in an order (his order) while my memories of 1971 are day to day rather than organized in a whole. While I appreciate seeing how things fit together, both in the moment and in the future, I would not chosen a lot of Hepworth's topics. But Hepworth reminds me that studio technology was improving and making records sound better, and that rock was starting to remember its past rather than focusing on raising its artistic content. While the rock press wrote later about Pete Townsend's missing opera Lifehouse, Hepworth (in my opinion) is definitely correct in stating that "Who's Next" is far superior to an opera. And that Glyn Johns was correct to make Townsend focus on the songs, not the content. As an album purchaser, I was distressed that "Sergeant Pepper" was dubbed 'art,' and that 'serious' musicians had to keep progressing album by album. (Conversely, I found the soloing by Cream to be boring at times, but not nearly as boring as the legions of guitarists that followed who felt obliged to take long, aka boring, solos.) I say this. in part, because Hepworth claims that the next movement in pop/rock/soul was hiphop. Not to denigrate hiphop, but the nerxt step in rock was punk as it sent musicians and their audiences back to three chords, danceable music, and the basic emotions of rock.
So while I like a lot of the stories that Hepworth writes about, I find some of his conclusions arguable as he omits the facts that don't fit his ideas. But I do love the observations of the times like smaller venues and the availability of tickets. So I guess that I am asking why can't his memories be more like mine.
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