On the 50th anniversary of their ‘Mott’ album, we’ve unearthed a rare 1998 interview with lead singer Ian Hunter.
Author: Harvey Kubernik
Harvey Kubernik
Harvey Kubernik is the author of 19 books, including 'Canyon Of Dreams: The Magic And The Music Of Laurel Canyon' and 'Turn Up The Radio! Rock, Pop and Roll In Los Angeles 1956-1972.' Sterling/Barnes and Noble in 2018 published Harvey and Kenneth Kubernik’s 'The Story Of The Band: From Big Pink To The Last Waltz.' For October 2021 the duo has written a multi-narrative volume on Jimi Hendrix for the publisher. In 2015 Palazzo Editions published Harvey’s 'Leonard Cohen: Everybody Knows,' and 'Neil Young, Heart of Gold,' published in 2016. Otherworld Cottage Industries in 2020 published Harvey’s book, 'Docs That Rock, Music That Matters,' featuring interviews with D.A. Pennebaker, Chris Hegedus, Albert Maysles, Murray Lerner, Michael Lindsay-Hogg, Andrew Loog Oldham, Eddie Kramer, Dick Clark, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Robby Krieger, Allan Arkush, and David Leaf, among others. In 2015, the University Press of Mississippi published a Harvey Kubernik Dylan-centric interview with Oscar-winning director and photographer D.A. Pennebaker in their book series, 'Conversations with Filmmakers, edited by Dr. Keith Beattie.' This century Kubernik has lectured and conducted courses on the music business and music documentary films in Southern California at UCLA and USC. In 2017 Harvey appeared at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, in their Library & Archives Author Series. Kubernik’s writings are housed in book anthologies, most notably 'The Rolling Stone Book Of The Beats' and 'Drinking With Bukowski.' Harvey wrote the liner note booklets to the CD re-releases of Carole King’s 'Tapestry,' Allen Ginsberg’s 'Kaddish,' Elvis Presley 'The ’68 Comeback Special' and the Ramones’ 'End of the Century.' During 2020 Harvey Kubernik served as a consultant on the two-part documentary television series 'Laurel Canyon: A Place in Time,' directed by Alison Ellwood. Harvey is working on a documentary about Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member singer/songwriter Del Shannon.
“They were at the height of their powers as far as rock ’n’ roll goes. ‘Exile’ turned out to be a great collection of music.”–Engineer Andy Johns
The book focuses on the band’s tour behind ‘Exile on Main Street,’ still considered by many to be their greatest album.
His third studio album cemented his reputation as “the grocer of despair”
Asked if he wanted to come to the show and watch his heroes perform, Lennon asked instead “Is it OK to play?”
“We used to call it Beauty and the Beast!” says Nancy Sinatra on her unlikely, but hugely successful, pairing with the producer, songwriter and arranger.
“They had a rule: Whoever writes the song gets final say. And that served them well.”–Bill Halverson, engineer
For young rock ‘n’ roll fans, the deaths of the three stars was a huge shock. What was it like to actually see them?
“The album was unexpected. You are dealing with regular TNT explosions and all of a sudden, you’ve got an atomic bomb.”—Johnny Echols
“When we sat down listening to what we had, we realized every track was written about someone in the band.”–Mick Fleetwood