As you know, it’s been a very active week with all the PJ20 news. I thought it might be a good time to revisit Cameron’s Rolling Stone cover story on the band from October, 1993 entitled “Five Against The World. The article focuses on the band’s turbulent year dealing with sudden fame, the recording of their 2nd album Vs. and much more.
We’ve got a new Rolling Stone article to share with you today. Cameron visited the set of the 1978 film, American Hot Wax, a film that chronicles Alan Freed (an influential DJ) and the early days of rock ‘n roll. What’s interesting is that he was asked to portray a delivery boy and he shares the process with the readers. Ultimately his lines and most of his scene was cut from the film, but you can kind of see him (wearing the paper hat) during the “Come and Go With Me” studio sequence (34:00 minute mark).
Incidentally, American Hot Wax has never been released on DVD and is extremely collectable on VHS. However, you can watch the film over on Myspace.
Today’s May 1974 Rolling Stone profile of the Guess Who marks the 175th Journalism entry for the site. That’s a big number, but we have plenty more Cameron Crowe penned articles in the coming months. This includes interviews and reviews from the San Diego Door, L.A. Times, Rolling Stone, Musician magazine, Interview magazine and much, much more. We’ll continue to add these pieces between entries about Pearl Jam Twenty, We Bought a Zoo and The Union.
OK, back to the Guess Who article. It focuses on the split between Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman with some interesting (and juicy quotes) on both sides. Over the years, the band (with Cummings and Bachman) has reunited multiple times, but are unable to use the Guess Who name due to legal issues.
I’m really excited about today’s new Journalism addition. A 1976 Rolling Stone cover story that Cameron did on Linda Ronstadt. At the time, there was no bigger name on the planet. She had three consecutive platinum albums and a greatest hits album looming (which has gone on to sell nearly 20 million copies). Cameron visits her home and takes a peek behind the curtain as Linda deals with fortune and fame. I think Linda is vastly underrated and is one of the best vocalists on the planet. Her run of albums with Prisoner in Disguise, Hasten Down the Wind and Simple Dreams are still three of my favorite records from that period. Check it out!
That’s right. Today is Bob Dylan’s 70th Birthday. Cameron has covered Dylan over the years including this 1978 Rolling Stone piece on his Universal Amphitheatre concerts and his massive liner notes for the box set, Biograph (sorry, I still haven’t transcribed that yet..it’s a beast!).
You don’t want to miss the recent Rolling Stone issue dedicated to Bawb. It covers “The 70 Greatest Dylan Songs”, “20 Overlooked Classics”, “My Favorite Dylan Song”, Photos, Bootlegs, his first Rolling Stone interview and much more. Cameron participated by talking about #60 on the list of Greatest Dylan songs, “Buckets of Rain”. A fitting choice as I heard that song was played quite a bit on the set of We Bought a Zoo. Here’s what he wrote:
#60 – “Buckets of Rain” – Blood on the Tracks (1975)
ONE OF THE GREAT GIFTS BOB DYLAN HAS IS TO slip a grace note into an album, something that doesn’t cry out to be noticed, but is unforgettable. To me, that’s “Buckets of Rain,” the perfect grace note for Blood on the Tracks: melancholy, loping and bittersweet. It’s sly and unpretentious, but has huge power. Any room I’ve ever played it in has changed as a result.
The one little thing in the corner of an album, a movie or any piece of writing can be the most important element of all. The quiet little song makes Blood on the Tracks complete, and one of his greatest albums.
Dylan was in a middle period when he wrote it. I heard he went back to Minnesota and was living on a farm. He had a notebook, and the lyrics of Blood on the Tracks were honed in that period. He was going to get personal. It was going to hurt to hear, but it was going to be revelatory. It turned out to be the confessional Dylan album that people had been craving for a long time, and he hasn’t really gone back there since. He put up a lot of roadblocks and disinformation about it, but Blood on the Tracks is his Blue – his confessional album about relationships. I can’t think of it without “Buckets of Rain.” Dylan’s stuff continues to inform every generation – it just lives and lives, and a song like “Buckets of Rain” breathes with a simple truth about real life. After a blistering heartache comes a soothing rain.
Cameron Crowe
May, 2011
I’m pleased to share two new Eric Clapton pieces with you today. Both were published in late 1975 and were most likely culled from the same period of time that Cameron spent on the road with “slowhand”. First up, is a more of a career overview done for the L.A.Times entitled “E.C.’s Been Here, There and Everywhere”. Cameron chronicles his early days with The Yardbirds, Cream, Blind Faith and Derek and the Dominoes. This dovetails nicely into his solo career, along with his trails and tribulations.
The 2nd article is a more comprehensive Q & A with Clapton that Cameron conducted for Rolling Stone entitled “E.C.’s Here Again: ‘There’s Always Someone Faster'” and goes in-depth about his heroin problems, stage fright, rumors about joining the Rolling Stones and the music. While a few quotes overlap the L.A. Times, it’s a much more exhaustive and informative talk with Clapton. I thoroughly enjoyed transcribing both articles and hope you like them too!
I thought today would be a great day to share some Led Zeppelin. First up is a piece entitled I Love Led Zeppelin that Cameron did for UK’s The Telegraph back in 2007 to honor the Zeppelin reunion. The article surrounds a 1972 encounter that the band had with The King and is new to the Journalism section. Enjoy!
It might also be a good time to point out the Rolling Stone cover story that Cameron did in 1975, along with the small piece on Presence and the mysterious object on the cover of the LP from summer 1976. There’s also the 1973 Circus magazine article that focuses on the band’s non-stop touring.
Oh yeah, and don’t forget his liner notes for the Zeppelin box set and his introduction on the Led Zeppelin Portraits book by longtime friend Neal Preston. Whew! That should keep you busy for awhile getting your fix, but more Zeppelin articles/interviews are coming.
A new addition today as Cameron visits Carole King and her new band (at the time) Navarro in mid-1977 for a Rolling Stone. Carole rarely did press, but Cameron is able to grab a few quotes. The article focuses on Boulder, CO based band Navarro, their history and how they hooked up with Carole. Enjoy!
