As a walk down the memory lane of rock ‘n roll and daily life in 1971, this book proves that a blast from the past can be highly, if lightly, entertaining. Did you know that The Tonight Show was the last TV-program appearance of a commercial for cigarettes? (New Year’s Day, and it was Virginia Slims, according to journalist-author David Hepworth.) This book, proceeding through each month of the year 1971, also goes to show that household-name entertainers operate under tremendous stress — their own lives a rollercoaster of thrills, desperation, recognition, luxury, doubt, and hard times. Did I mention also technology problems and harrowing, life-threatening travel? The book has a lot of variety, and the narrative is a bit like the weather in Wales: if you don’t know or don’t care much about anyone he mentions, just wait a moment and he’ll offer you a riveting insight on someone else. A book to enjoy, forget in detail, and then enjoy some time later, all over again.
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