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Music Books [Issue
#25]
:
By
Various Authors (Edit. By Sean Manning)
The Show I’ll Never Forget
(Book
Da Capo)
For some inexplicable
reason, attending concerts will always hold lingering memories for almost anyone.
The Show I’ll Never Forget finds 50 different writers giving personal
takes on memorable concerts.
What is fascinating about the book is that the narrators range in almost every
capacity: age, gender, taste, era, genre, and beyond. To list but a few of the
artists who were the subject of review: Bruce Springsteen, Public Image Ltd.,
Nina Simone, Bill Evans, Rush, Billy Joel, R.E.M., Miles Davis, and Kevin Spacey.
The tone of recollection ranges from rose-colored (and perhaps bong-watered) longing
for a bygone era. Surprisingly, some of the strolls down memory lane are done
with humorously embittered hues, with the band or artist playing a minor role
in what one would expect to be “their” tale. One interesting “two-part”
entry is Robert Burke Warren and Holly George-Warren’s separate accounts
of Van Morrison’s performance at New York’s Beacon Theater on November
30, 1989. Reading this work, I can still recall the excitement of going to concerts
as a teenager and returning home with new ideas. Though some entries within the
tome traipse the aisles of self-absorption a little too fervently, the book is
funny, touching, and a vicarious thrill for those who wish they could experience
many of the artists who left this world’s stage long ago.
The Show I’ll Never Forget
Da Capo
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