Everybody Had an Ocean, William McKeen
Everybody Had an Ocean, William McKeen
List: $24.99 | Sale: $17.50
Club: $12.49

Everybody Had an Ocean
Music and Mayhem in 1960s Los Angeles

Author: William McKeen

Narrator: Johnny Heller

Unabridged: 13 hr 13 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 01/25/2022


Synopsis

Los Angeles in the 1960s gave the world some of the greatest music in rock 'n' roll history: "California Dreamin'" by the Mamas and the Papas, "Mr. Tambourine Man" by the Byrds, and "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys, a song that magnificently summarized the joy and beauty of the era.

But there was a dark flip side to the fun fun fun of the music, a nexus between naïve young musicians and the hangers-on who exploited the decade's peace, love, and flowers ethos, all fueled by sex, drugs, and overnight success. One surf music superstar unwittingly subsidized the kidnapping of Frank Sinatra Jr. The transplanted Texas singer Bobby Fuller might have been murdered by the Mob in what is still an unsolved case. And after hearing Charlie Manson sing, Neil Young recommended him to the president of Warner Bros. Records.

Everybody Had an Ocean chronicles the migration of the rock 'n' roll business to Southern California and how the artists flourished there. The cast of characters is astonishing—Brian and Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys, Jan and Dean, eccentric producer Phil Spector, Cass Elliot, Sam Cooke, Ike and Tina Turner, Joni Mitchell, and scores of others—and their stories form a modern epic of the battles between innocence and cynicism, joy and terror. You'll never hear that beautiful music in quite the same way.

About William McKeen

William McKeen is an author and editor whose books include Mile Marker Zero, Highway 61, and Rock and Roll Is Here to Stay. He is chair of the Department of Journalism at Boston University.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Kathryn

Sometimes I feel like Agent Irena Spalko, Cate Blanchett’s character in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull when, towards the end of the movie she reveals what has motivated her evil actions throughout the entire film by screaming at the demon heads “I vant to know!” Now I don’t norma......more

Goodreads review by Mark

This book details the music industry during the decade of the 1960’s in connection to southern California. Jan & Dean, the Beach Boys and other local groups started a movement. Once Capital Records and its recording studio were formed within the L.A. community, top recording artists across America g......more