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Books
Queen: The Ultimate Illustrated
History of the Crown Kings of Rock
To tell the Queen story Sutcliffe, a renowned
UK rock journalist since the ‘70s, uses every
visual aid possible. From captivating live photographs and candid offstage shots—many
rare and never before published—to handbills,
backstage passes, concert posters, LP artwork
and other Queen artifacts, he reveals a lot
more about a band beloved by many than
their overindulgence. In addition to the abundance of visual goodies, the book features a
descriptive narrative by Sutcliffe, who covered
the band extensively in its hey-day. Other
contributors like Slash, Tommy Lee, and Billy
Squier provide personal stories of their relationships with Queen, and former crew chief
Peter Hince and producer Reinhold Mack talk
about their first-hand experiences working and
traveling with the band.
Not just musically brilliant, Queen also understood the importance of spectacle and the
power of theater. This book showcases that
brilliantly with its intense focus on presentation, recognizing that half of the Queen experience was viewing it firsthand. The attention
paid to the band’s media and showmanship
hoists this book head and shoulders above
other Queen titles. Those wanting to learn
more about the musical core of rock’s epic
princes should find this hardback immensely
informative and entertaining, as it covers an
illustrative timeline from pre-Queen to their
work with Paul Rodgers. —JW
List $40
voyageurpress.com
Let It Bleed: The Rolling
Stones, Altamont, and the
End of the Sixties
It was suppose to
be grandiose. It
was billed as the
Rolling Stones’
biggest and most
important US
tour, capped with
a headlining slot
at the Altamont
Speedway Free
Festival—a west-coast counterculture answer to Woodstock.
But as we all know, plans rarely go off without
a hitch. Thanks to author and photographer
Ethan A. Russell and his introspective lens,
Let It Bleed: The Rolling Stones, Altamont,
and the End of the Sixties, gives the best
second-hand all-access pass and captures
every memorable moment—planned or not
planned, good or not good.
Including the Stones, Russell was one of
only sixteen traveling on the ’ 69 tour, and
the only photographer. His photographs
provide a fly-on-the-wall vantage point on
what was witnessed only by a select group
and Russell’s lens. He was waiting in the
hotels, sitting on stages, observing rehearsals, partying backstage and watching The
Ed Sullivan Show performance (where Mick
is introduced as “Mike”). He snapped shots
during all of it. Providing contextual layers beneath the provocative photography,
Russell includes recollections (then and now)
from band members, security, crew and the
stars who crossed his path in ’ 69.
If Woodstock symbolized the counter-
culture’s hope, Altamont was the tide of
reality that washed away their castle made
of sand. In the final 50 pages Russell effec-
tively tells the Altamont story (the build-up,
the concert and the repercussions of its
violent conclusion) with exclusive photos
and disturbing first-hand accounts. Through
all these rare, uncensored quotes and dra-
matic photos, Russell provides an all-access
pass to the tour that started full of promise
and ended in despair. —CK
List $35
springboardpress.net
Jimi Hendrix Gear: The
Guitars, Amps & Effects That
Revolutionized Rock ‘N’ Roll
It’s a known fact
that Jimi used and
abused Strats and
Plexis with his magical hands. All the
variables and the
exact formula of his
signal chain, however, is much like
Bigfoot: speculative
and elusive. Michael
Heatley’s book Jimi Hendrix Gear: The
Guitars, Amps & Effects That Revolutionized
Rock ‘N’ Roll debunks the mysticism behind
his gear and tone page after page.
Hendrix’s gear is on full display with spec-heavy captions and text that decodes and
breaks down each of the tools (as Hendrix
calls gear in the book) with mentions of his
alterations, preferences and settings. The
book is crammed with memorable Hendrix
gear porn, including the first Strat that he
set a blaze in 1967 at London’s Finsbury Park
Astoria (also featured on the book’s cover).
Other visual golden nuggets include the actual Octavia used on Are You Experienced, the
Super Lead used at Woodstock and a slew
of smashed guitar bodies. Some smashed
bodies feature Hendrix poems or paintings—
including the psychedelically painted ’ 67
Gibson Flying V that later was recreated by
Gibson for the “Inspired By Series.”
With the help of effects guru Roger Mayer
and biographer Harry Shapiro (Jimi Hendrix:
Electric Gypsy), Heatley navigates through all
Hendrix’s historic guitars, amps and effects
with descriptions that place each piece of gear
into the given album or live situation where he
was known to use it. This book is a must-have
