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Guitar

By: Earl Slick, Jeff Slate
Narrated by: Nathan Osgood, Earl Slick
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Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

A rollicking rock 'n' roll memoir of the last 50 years of rock history, from David Bowie's longest serving lead guitarist and legendary sideman, Earl Slick.

He's played with everyone from John Lennon to the New York Dolls - and he's got the stories to prove it.

Earl Slick was barely out of his teens when David Bowie hired him to play guitar on the ground-breaking 1974 Diamond Dogs tour. It marked the beginning of a relationship that would endure through thick and thin for the next forty years. Gracing classic albums like Young Americans, Station to Station and the 2013 comeback, The Next Day, Slick played on the tour that followed Bowie’s smash hit Let’s Dance album and was at his side for the epic Glastonbury show in 2000.

But it wasn’t just Bowie. The young guitarist was in John Lennon’s band at the time of the former Beatle’s tragic murder. Other collaborations read like a roll call of rock ‘n’ roll royalty including Mick Jagger, The Cure, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Joe Cocker, Buddy Guy, Ian Hunter, David Coverdale and Eric Clapton. And in the ‘80s he became an MTV star in his own right with the success of Phantom, Rocker and Slick.

Through it all he lived the rock ‘n’ roll life to the hilt. Until it nearly killed him.

One of rock’s great sidemen, Earl Slick was in the room when music history was made. Guitar takes us there, shining a light on superstars like Bowie and Lennon, while recounting the extraordinary story of the boy from New York City who became a real life Johnny B. Goode.

©2024 Earl Slick (P)2024 Penguin Audio
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Insights from someone who was there!

Loved the additional info on Bowies working processes and personalities one mild criticism re audio version TVC FIFTEEN !!Really ?

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    3 out of 5 stars
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‘Mary Poppins’ era Dick Van Dyke…

A great story, from a legendary ‘sidesman’
But did nobody think to tell Nathan Osgood, the narrator from chapter 2 onwards, (Earl read chapter 1 splendidly), that to attempt a Cockney accent was inadvisable? Invariably Yanks just can’t do it!
So forget Osgood’s accents, and you’re in for a treat.

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Cool and Loyal

One of the unsung greats of rock and the part he played in the ongoing success most notably of Bowie but also work with John Lennon amongst others.

Also serves as a lesson in selflessness and loyalty and an abandonment of ego in being arguably music's greater ever sideman, sacrificing solo and own projects into the bargain.

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