The Fine Wisdom and Perfect Teachings of the Kings of Rock and Roll: A Memoir - Hardcover

Edmundson, Mark

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0061713473 ISBN 13: 9780061713477

Publisher: HarperCollins, 2010

Synopsis

The author recounts his post-college search for what truly matters to him, a journey that took him from the streets of New York to the arena shows of some of the biggest rock bands and finally to a country day school in Vermont, where with the help of the headmaster and the student body, her finally realized his true calling. 25,000 first printing.

About this title

Review:

"Edmundson doesn't just chronicle, he channels, the epoch of rock.... He makes us feel its hopes; its confusions; its genuine revelations.... Concert security dude, cabbie, bouncer: these jobs provide him critical lenses on a succession of cultural moments, and on the never-ending task of becoming an adult."--Matthew Crawford, author of Shop Class as Soulcraft

"A compelling and accomplished memoir recounting the dissolution of the sixties and the beginning of the modern, more cynical era that followed. . . Candidly describes Mark Edmundson's journey as a lost twenty-something seeking meaning through sex, drugs, Marxism, rock & roll, and ultimately, teaching."--Philipp Meyer, author of American Rust

"A near-perfect memoir.... In this erudite, coming-of-age riot, the author deftly navigates the purgatorial rites of passage between university and professional life, developing insightful social critiques and candid self-evaluations along the way.... [Edmundson is] an honest, poetic and hilariously entertaining narrator."--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Everything you want a coming-of-age book to be: hilarious, harrowing, and ultimately inspiring. . . . Brims with sparkling observations about everything from drugs, sex and rock and roll to movies, career, and friendship. Truly, there is something arresting and wonderful on every page."--Michael Pollan, author of Food Rules: An Eater's Manual and The Omnivore's Dilemma

Not your typical rock tell-all. . . . An entertaining coming-of-age story that cloaks a social critique of post-Sixties USA. --Rolling Stone (3 ? stars)"

A near-perfect memoir.... In this erudite, coming-of-age riot, the author deftly navigates the purgatorial rites of passage between university and professional life, developing insightful social critiques and candid self-evaluations along the way.... [Edmundson is] an honest, poetic and hilariously entertaining narrator. --Kirkus Reviews (starred review)"

Everything you want a coming-of-age book to be: hilarious, harrowing, and ultimately inspiring. . . . Brims with sparkling observations about everything from drugs, sex and rock and roll to movies, career, and friendship. Truly, there is something arresting and wonderful on every page. --Michael Pollan, author of Food Rules: An Eater's Manual and The Omnivore's Dilemma"

A compelling and accomplished memoir recounting the dissolution of the sixties and the beginning of the modern, more cynical era that followed. . . Candidly describes Mark Edmundson s journey as a lost twenty-something seeking meaning through sex, drugs, Marxism, rock & roll, and ultimately, teaching. --Philipp Meyer, author of American Rust"

Edmundson doesn t just chronicle, he channels, the epoch of rock.... He makes us feel its hopes; its confusions; its genuine revelations . Concert security dude, cabbie, bouncer: these jobs provide him critical lenses on a succession of cultural moments, and on the never-ending task of becoming an adult. --Matthew Crawford, author of Shop Class as Soulcraft"

"Not your typical rock tell-all. . . . An entertaining coming-of-age story that cloaks a social critique of post-Sixties USA."--Rolling Stone (3 1/2 stars)

From the Back Cover:

After graduating from college in 1974, Mark Edmundson leaves Vermont to seek his destiny--a quest he knows involves rock and roll and America's high court of mischief and ambition, New York City. Shepherded by a carousing, Marx-quoting friend, he moves into a grungy apartment and embarks on a dream career lugging amps for rock's biggest stars: the Grateful Dead, Pink Floyd, and the Allman Brothers.

But as time wears on, Edmundson finds himself at odds with life in his adopted city and drifts through a regimen of late-night cab driving and radical politics, increasingly detached from the hopes he nursed back in school. Prodded and enlightened along the way by a cast of rogue mentors--his "Kings (and Queens) of Rock and Roll"--Edmundson checks out of New York and careens across the country in search of the elusive "it": the perfect vocation, his slightly crazy, ideal way of life.

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0061713473
• ISBN 13: 9780061713477
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 223