David de Sola's Blog, page 8
July 24, 2015
Journalism, Sources and Access
A frequent critique of myself or the book I’ve read online in recent days – usually by people who haven’t read it – is that the book wasn’t authorized by the band, or that I didn’t interview the band members. My lack of access wasn’t for my lack of trying over the course of three years I was working on the book.
There is a long and illustrious tradition in journalism and history – regardless of medium – of writing a story without the participation or authorization of its subject. David McCullough didn’t interview John Adams. Ian Kershaw didn’t have access to Adolf Hitler. Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein didn’t sit around waiting for permission from Richard Nixon to do their reporting on Watergate. Does lack of access or approval from the subject demean the quality of their work? Absolutely not. It can make the job more difficult, but not impossible. In some cases, lack of access might even make the work better.
Case in point: Gay Talese’s 1966 masterpiece “Frank Sinatra Has a Cold.”
Beyond the issue of access to the band and reliance on other sources, I should also point out that the band members have been public figures for more than twenty-five years. There is a long historical record of comments that they have made in the media going back to their earliest days as a band. I went through many interviews over the course of the band’s career and cited several in the course of my work – many times in the actual words of the band members themselves. In short, they have ample opportunity to speak for themselves in my book.
Having said all of that, I will let the book speak for itself.
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Possible Alice in Chains book by Duff McKagan?
A few people have asked me in recent days about a story that was in the news a few months ago. I have no knowledge of or involvement with a possible Alice in Chains book by Duff McKagan. Beyond that, I won’t comment on it until I’ve had an opportunity to read it, if it should come to pass. I would also refer you to this tweet from Duff himself:
"@KSHE95: @DuffMcKagan to pen @AliceInChains biography http://t.co/2w4EtBKSKb" Actually, all I said was that it'd be cool to one day do it.
— Duff McKagan (@DuffMcKagan) May 14, 2015
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July 23, 2015
The First Time Jerry Cantrell Heard Layne Staley Sing
Image courtesy of Christine Kells-Frederick, published here with her permission.
On May 1, 1987, Alice ‘N Chains was the first act of a three-band bill at the Tacoma Little Theatre, a local community theatre in the neighboring city of Tacoma approximately thirty-five miles south of Seattle. Though they are sometimes confused with Alice in Chains, they were two entirely different bands who had the same lead singer and different variations of the same name. (The story behind this is covered in my book) In addition to Layne, this version of the band included future Second Coming members Johnny Bacolas (bass) and James Bergstrom (drums), as well as future My Sister’s Machine singer/guitarist Nick Pollock (guitar).
Thanks to the wonders of the Internet, a complete audio recording has emerged of this performance. (I have no idea who is in the photo for all of these clips, or who owns the original recording. I have confirmed the authenticity of the recording with the three surviving band members.) Here’s the setlist in order, with each song linking to a different clip:
Intro (Theme from The Stripper )
Hey Hey Everybody
Fat Girls
Don’t Be Satisfied
Sealed With A Kiss
Lip Lock Rock
Queen of the Rodeo
Hush Hush
Glamorous Girls
Outro (Don’t Be Satisfied)
The whole thing is well worth listening to. The significance of this recording – aside from the fact that it even exists – is that one of the people in the audience that night was a local guitar player named Jerry Cantrell. Years later, he told Greg Prato, “I have to also say about Layne, the very first time I heard him sing — at the Tacoma Little Theater — it was one of those ‘lightning bolt moments.’ I just knew, ‘I’ve got to be in a band with this guy.'”
In short, this recording is what Jerry was hearing on the night of that lightning bolt moment.
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July 21, 2015
The Metropolis Remembered
Photo from the author’s collection
The “For Lease” signs in the windows don’t offer any hint of the historical significance of the property at 207 Second Avenue South, just a short walk from Seattle’s Pioneer Square and CenturyLink Field. In May of 1983, it opened its doors as the Metropolis, the short-lived but highly influential all ages club.
Among the Seattle music scene’s heavy hitters who cut their teeth running or performing at the Metropolis during its brief run were Susan Silver (Alice in Chains and Soundgarden manager), Steve Turner and Mark Arm (Mudhoney), Duff McKagan (Guns n’ Roses), Bruce Pavitt (co-founder of Sub Pop Records). Charles Peterson took photographs of the bands and audiences at the Metropolis, years before grunge became a household word.
Greg Prato interviewed many of those who were involved with the Metropolis for his book Grunge Is Dead: The Oral History of Seattle Rock Music. The whole book is worth a read, but this quote from Mark Arm captures the importance of the Metropolis for the people who were there: “It was a place for touring bands and local bands alike. Mr. Epp played there — Hugo paid us $100 the first time. We were like, ‘Oh my God, I can’t believe we made $100!’ The Metropolis was a musical incubator for the kids who were on the cusp of becoming twenty-one. Several of those kids would end up in Soundgarden, Green River, Girl Trouble, Skin Yard, Feast, the Melvins, and Nirvana.”
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July 20, 2015
The $30 Million Marijuana Operation Next Door
Today is the twenty-seventh anniversary of the Seattle Police Department raiding the Music Bank as part of its investigation into the massive marijuana growing operation taking place next door. (NOTE: The $30 million figure in the title of this post is from an estimate Seattle PD gave to at least one reporter after the raid.) The story of how and why Seattle PD discovered the operation is covered in my book.
The following photo shows then-Seattle Police Department chief Patrick Fitzsimons looking at the marijuana his officers seized during the raid which took place on July 20, 1988. The photo originally ran in the July 22, 1988 edition of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and is now part of the Seattle P-I Collection at the Museum of History and Industry. It is posted on this site with MOHAI’s permission.
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July 18, 2015
Alice in Chains Book Excerpts
My book isn’t scheduled for release until August 4, but for those of you that want a sneak peek, there are now two excerpts of the book out there for your reading pleasure:
My publisher, Thomas Dunne Books, has posted Chapter 1 online in its entirety.
Guitar World magazine optioned a chapter of the book, which is excerpted in their new issue, which is not available online. You have to go to bookstore, news stand, or online store to buy the magazine to read it.
Hope you all enjoy these excerpts and I look forward to everyone getting an opportunity to read the rest of it!
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July 14, 2015
Back To Seattle
I’ll be in the Seattle area the first week of August in the days leading up to the release of my book. If you’re in town that week and want to say hello, I will be signing books at Feedback Lounge in West Seattle starting at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 5. Hope to see you there!
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June 1, 2015
Billboard
Alice in Chains: The Untold Story was included in the “Summer’s Music Must-Reads” list in the new issue of Billboard magazine which came out last week. The article is behind a paywall, but here’s a scan:
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May 4, 2015
Welcome to my new digs!
With the upcoming publication of my book, this site will become my permanent official online presence. My old blog will remain in a state of suspended animation for the time being. This blog will be the place for my works going forward – books, articles, and the occasional posting where I say what’s on my mind.
Keep an eye on this space in the days, weeks and months ahead in the runup to the August 4 release date of Alice in Chains: The Untold Story. A lot of things will be happening over the next few months. I will be posting news and content related to the book when the time is right. The wait will be worth your while, I assure you!
After working on it for nearly three years, I am eagerly looking forward to people having the opportunity to read the book.
Regards,
David
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