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Loading... The autobiography of Donovan (2005)by Donovan
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Since Donovan's music formed a big part of the background music of my adolescence, I really enjoyed his story of his life and music. Yes, he takes credit for lots that he probably wasn't responsible for, and yes, he seems pretty chauvinistic in his approach to some women. But he's one of the seminal figures of that era and is still making music that defies categorization. Story of Donovan's beginnings and rise in the music world through the 1960's. The book basically ends in 1970 when he more or less vanished from the pop culture radar, though I'd like to have heard more about his life since. He's not a deep thinker or a very good prose writer, and his publisher did him no favors with their poor editing job. Still, some interesting points do shine through the muck, and reading the book got me to immerse myself in his timeless music again. no reviews | add a review
Donovan's autobiography charts his life from a post-war, Glaswegian childhood to the height of an international career as one of the leading figures of the 1960's music scene. Always feeling like an outsider he found relief through music and poetry. The book reveals how he came to be influenced by Buddhist teachings and the music of Woody Guthrie and Joan Baez. The book explores the significance of falling deeply in love with the women who was to become his muse, and the profound sense of loss he felt when their relationship came to an end, and how the loss affected him both personally and creatively. A leader of the folk revival in both Britain and America, the book recounts how he rose to be an international star, releasing songs such as Mellow Yellow and Catch the Wind, and his most successful album, Sunshine Superman. Donovan is acknowledged as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 1960's. The book provides a frank account of his early experiments with drugs and his search for self. He reveals the story of how he developed friendships with Baez, Dylan and the Beatles, with whom he a shared spiritual sojourn to meditate with the Maharishi in India. recollects his rise to fame and the way in which destiny was to play a hand by re-uniting him with the lost love of his life through a chance meeting. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)782.42164The arts Music Vocal music Secular Forms of vocal music Secular songs General principles and musical forms Song genres Western popular songsLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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But I was extremely disappointed in this book; as a long time fan of Donovan, I got no perspective into his journey into the creative process nor a new understanding of his relationship to music, writing or the people around him. Much of the book seems to be a listing of names ('we were at ... with- followed by a list of famous persons' names) with no substance as to why the friends were together. I had the feeling that someone was talking about a party with the admonition 'you had to be there to understand.'
I will continue to eagerly wait for his new music as I think has a real grasp of the poetry of romance. I did not find his genius to this autobiography.
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