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We are not of the age that came of age with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, (we aren't that old), but anyone alive knows classic rock and music of excellence. We write on music rarely because we only publish positive reviews. The Rolling Stones have outlasted nine Prime Ministers and nine American Presidents-there is excellence without longevity, however, it is rare to find longevity without excellence. Mick Jagger has both.
HBO Documentaries last year celebrated 50 years of the Rolling Stones with Crossfire Hurricane, which we loved so we were so curious to read Philip Norman's biography of Mick Jagger, who surprisingly grew up with a fairly "normal" background. This biography represents a huge amount of work we can see, and tipping the scale of pages at 600 exactly, we have vast respect for the attention to detail, dedication and time devoted to this work as well.
What we find most incredible about Mick Jagger aside from his obvious musical talents is his clearcut intelligence into having his finger on what has been hot in music and pop culture beyond for the last half century. Few can compare to that, and his interest in innovation and the cutting edge puts him in a class by himself, separate from the other Rolling Stones. We found this biography highly interesting and packed with anecdotes that must have required beaucoup de research! Mick Jagger the biography is extraordinarily well-written and a totally fascinating story from beginning to end; it is of course about Mick Jagger and we bet Barbara Walters would agree it does not get more intriguing than him.
Norman first interviewed Jagger in 1965 for a small north of England evening newspaper. It's clear he has a desire to get things right in telling this tale from his wording and background, but we wish he and Mick were pals so we would know more of the inside story. Norman probably wishes the same.
So how did it all begin? Many beginnings and endings occur over the life of Mick Jagger. A big one was on the Wentworth playground one day when two boys aged eight met: One told the other when he grew up, he wanted to be like Roy Rogers, the self-styled "King of Cowboys" and play a guitar. (p. 19). The boy that said that was named Keith Richards and he told that to a Michael Jagger. The Mick came much later. Thank goodness for Radio Luxembourg for filtering in the pop rock to England in the early days. Who would have imagined the internet back then!
We do wish we knew what Mick thought of this biography, but so far we don't know that he's commented on it. Having recently read Rod Stewart's autobiography, who is about the same age from England as well, we found contrasts and comparisons interesting however since Sir Mick himself has not verified the content and it's not an authorized biography, we're not sure they can be compared. You will hear about Rod's fairy godmother Long John Baldry again, as well as Ronnie Wood bien sur, and you'll learn Mick streaked his hair early on (p.78) so the hair-conscious aspect of it all is alike.
What we know-Start Me Up is the best warm-up song ever. We feel like we heard it every single warm-up in Hartford that commenced at 6:50 pm prior to face-off. That's probably our first Mick Jagger memory along with the "Dancing in the Street" video, which marked Jagger's inventiveness early on.
What did we learn?
*The first rock concert Mick Jagger attended was by Buddy Holly on his one and only British tour in 1958.
*The intelligence of Mick Jagger is not as well-known as it should be. He took advanced English, French and History. Who knew he studied at the London School of Economics when the Rolling Stones were in their early days? He was in the top 2 percent of students that went on to University.
*Don't listen to people that put down real talent. Decca told the Rolling Stones in responding to their first demo album: "A great band, but you'll never get anywhere with that singer." (p. 68)
*On their first trip to New York, The Rolling Stones stayed at Hotel Astor in Times Square.
*You'll find out how Mick became like Fitzgerald's Dick Diver from Tender is the Night.
*Mick rented Andy Warhol's summer home in Montauk.
*Twenty-five-year-old Annie Leibovitz worked with Mick as his personal photographer.
Dark times are included as well, and anyone that is successful at something knows that there will be those that will try to get you down...hence Reagan's well-known phrase - Don't Let the Turkey's Get You Down! We see that though the Rolling Stones may not have been angels, they certainly weren't devils either and it seems as though they were framed some of the times they got in trouble. They also met some of the wrong people and Acid King David would be among those they wish the did not know in the end.
It's of note that Mick is one of us-he purchased a brownstone on West 86th Street in 1976.
The impact Mick Jagger has had on pop culture and music speaks for itself. There's a reason why Adam Levine had a hit titled "Moves Like Jagger." What else can we say Mick, we're all just dying to meet you...(Miss You).
Mick Jagger by Philip Norman is recommended by Whom You Know! Jumping Jack Flash, it's a gas, gas, gas! Mick, we are waiting for your autobiographical response.
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Now in paperback from the bestselling author of John Lennon: The Life, an
extraordinarily detailed, vibrantly written, in-depth account of the life of Mick Jagger – the most deeply researched and comprehensive
biography to date of the famously enigmatic icon.
In October 2008, Philip Norman’s New York Times bestselling John Lennon: The Life was published to much acclaim. Nellie McKay at The New York Times Book Review hailed the book as a “haunting, mammoth, terrific piece of work,” and Jeff Giles of Entertainment Weekly praised it as a “clear-eyed and compassionate study of a man.” Glenn Frankel at the Washington Post Book World called it “powerful and heartfelt.” Norman has long towered above other rock biographers, known for his definitive studies of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Elton John and Buddy Holly, which draw on meticulous research, his broad cultural knowledge and brilliant writing—sharpening, as Anthony DeCurtis of Rolling Stone wrote, “what we know…at just about every turn.”
Now, in MICK JAGGER (Publication date: October 15, 2013; $17.99), Norman turns his attention to a rock icon that is both inimitable and paradoxical—a supreme extrovert who prefers discretion, a supreme egotist who dislikes talking about himself, and a supreme achiever to whom his own achievements seem to mean nothing. Through five decades as the Rolling Stones’ front man, Mick Jagger has become the ultimate survivor of rock ‘n’ roll, while still holding firm to his status as a sexual icon comparable to the legendary Rudolph Valentino. Nearing seventy, a grandfather and a British knight of the realm, Jagger still creates excitement at the mere mention of his name and is the bar that front men measure themselves against as performers.
Drawing on interviews to all major characters, from the Stones themselves to crucial figures like Marianne Faithfull, Anita Pallenberg, Andrew Oldham, Robert Fraser and the ‘sixth Stone’, Ian Stewart, as well as his characteristic exhaustive research, Norman paints a Jagger far more complex and compelling then the decadent, rebellious, and self-interested man that most fans are familiar with. Raised in a surprisingly suburban and ordinary family—two parents and one brother—it was his conservative childhood that shaped his bohemian adulthood. His early love of the blues would continue to resonate throughout his career and influence the Stones’ music. Norman reveals a deeply serious musician and songwriter, giving him long overdue credit for his abilities. As Norman shows, his “Sympathy for the Devil” is one of the few truly epic pop singles.
“Only the Stones, once seemingly the most unstable of all,” writes Norman, “have kept rolling continuously from decade to decade, then century to century.” From the great rabble-rousing hits like “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” or “Street Fighting Man” to obscure early tracks like “Off the Hook” or “Play with Fire,” Norman reveals the story behind the songs and the front man who would lead the way.
Now, for the first time, Philip Norman in his intimately written and elegantly told MICK JAGGER unveils the human, vulnerable, often impressive and sometimes endearing man behind the myth.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Philip Norman is a novelist, biographer, journalist, and playwright. He is the author of the bestselling biography John Lennon: The Life, as well as the history of The Beatles Shout!: The Beatles in Their Generation. Norman has also published biographies of Buddy Holly, Rolling Stones and Elton John as well as six works of fiction and two plays, The Man That Got Away and Words of Love. He lives in London, England.
MICK JAGGER
By Phillip Norman
Ecco
Publication Date: October 15, 2013
Price: $17.99; 576 Pages; ISBN: 978-0-06-194486-4
