Hotel California

By: Barney Hoskyns

Narrated by: Nick Landrum

The classic account of the LA Canyons scene between 1967 and 1976, featuring Joni Mitchell; Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young; The Eagles; James Taylor; and Jackson Browne. Ambition, betrayal, drugs and genius all combine with great music making.

©2005 Barney Hoskyns (P)2012 Talking Music

Excellent

If you grew up in 60s 70s music then this will be a great nostalgic ride. The reader’s voice is superb, just really enjoyed listening to his voice nearly as much as the music I heard as a kid

I wished it was longer

It was great listening to all of the stories about the artists in the 60s and 70s.

What a time it was

Grew up listening to most of these guys and women. Great behind the scene stories. Well done.

Picks up steam as it goes.

I'm 62 so The Eagles and Linda Ronstat are of more interest to me than David Crosby. Poco and even the Burritos are not given enough time. in all honesty it would take several volumes to give credit where credit is due. The only one's who seem to have more humanity than greed are Linda Ronstat and at times Jackson Brown. David Crosby comes across as a self absorbed drug addicted jerk and Stephen Stills as a major asshat. Don Henley as Hypocritical and Glen Frey as a butthole. Jonie Mitchell as a little insecure and full of herself and Neil Young a feeling, serious, yet ruthless butt. Gene Clark as out of place and self destructive but a very real person. Graham Nash somewhere in the middle. David Geffen as ruthless and really smart. One other thing I noticed that reminds me of today's politically correct young people was that even though Jonie Mitchell and Crosby and others sang and talked about changing the world. I never hear of any black friends or any real personal contact with anybody that was different from their little groups.

A real tour de force

This was my generation and Hotel California has it all covered. Nick Landrum does an outstanding job. Absolutely recommended!

A really wonderful book.....

For anyone who grew up during this period of time, and was into music, this book a for you. If you're a fan of Linda Ronstadt, Gram Parsons, The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, Eagles, etc., you'll find it very interesting to see how all these people interacted to become who they are.... and for some still are.

Born in the wrong decade

This is a great overview of the prevailing artistic genre of the late 60's and early 70's--a wistful listen. However, the downside is that it covers a great deal of information, so there's not the space to really dig deep in the gritty details.

Solid Hollywood Music History.

Would you consider the audio edition of Hotel California to be better than the print version?

I haven't read the print version of this book. I suspect though that I would have been tempted to gloss over certain aspects of the book itself, and thus run the risk of missing out on some interesting observations and insights. There are some really nice nuggets of insight in this book that are more interesting than the, overall, thrust of the story.

What other book might you compare Hotel California to and why?

"Weird Scenes Inside the Canyon" should be the required companion piece for this book, though "Weird Scenes" is more tabloid and conspiracy driven in nature than "Hotel California." "Weird Scenes" also deals more with all of the happenings leading up to the late sixties and, ultimately, culminates with the Manson Family; while "Hotel California" documents the gradual take over of the music business by Corporate entities and Cocaine Cowboys, which goes well into the '70s.

What does Nick Landrum bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Nick Landrum does an amazing job of reading Hotel California. It seems like he really brings out the nuances of the book and the various characters involved that might otherwise be missed by a casual read of the written text.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The book does an effective job of documenting how drugs (Cocaine mostly) and the bottom line driven Corporate landscape began to suffocate and thus kill all that was creative about the early music scene in Hollywood. It also illuminates a number of interesting musical casaulties of that time that prompted me to go back and listen to their works.

Any additional comments?

This is a very serious and important look at the not particularly positive growth of the music industry in Hollywood, and how the bottom line first managers, agents, and distributors controlled what American and, to some degree, what the rest of the world would listen to. It also documents how drugs (mostly cocaine) eroded away many of the artists ability to effectively express themselves musically. Be warned that the book really slams the likes of David Geffen, David Crosby, and the "Eagles."

Very very very OK

After making my way thru this thing I felt more educated about this period and place in music history but less impassioned with the characters. The writing didn’t inspire me to care more. It made me want to care less. It dragged from the mid-point onward. Hoskyn’s Woodstock book was much more interesting because he uncovered the deeper motives, character, pain and underlying passions of the that time and place. Maybe his heart and connections for interviews rested on the East Coast. One other point, Nick’s female affected voice was... not very attractive. Sorry Joni

New Meaning...

Behind the scenes of my favorite era of music. This book gives new meaning to the songs, concerts, and artists who served as the backdrop to my life.