When The Band Played On, Michael G. Lee
When The Band Played On, Michael G. Lee
List: $19.99 | Sale: $13.99
Club: $9.99

When The Band Played On
The Life of Randy Shilts, America’s Trailblazing Gay Journalist

Author: Michael G. Lee

Narrator: Daniel Henning

Unabridged: 9 hr 57 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 10/15/2024


Synopsis

Randy Shilts was the preeminent LGBTQ+ reporter of his generation.

He was the first openly gay reporter assigned to a gay beat at a mainstream paper and one of the nation's most influential chroniclers of gay history, politics, and culture. Shilts wrote three seminal works on the community: The Mayor of Castro Street, on the life, assassination, and legacy of Harvey Milk; And the Band Played On, detailing the failure of politics as usual during the early AIDS epidemic; and Conduct Unbecoming, a history of the US military's mistreatment of LGBTQ service members.

Yet the intimate life story of Randy Shilts has been left unwritten. When the Band Played On tells that story, recognizing his legacy as a trailblazing figure in gay activism, journalism, and public policy.

The resulting narrative tells the tale of a singularly gifted voice, a talented yet insecure young man whose coming of age became intricately linked to the historic peaks and devastating perils of modern gay liberation.

When the Band Played On is the authoritative account of Randy Shilts's trailblazing life, as well as his legacy of shaping the history-making events he covered.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Sandy on October 07, 2024

The comprehensive biography of journalists Randy Shilts. The author did not pull any punches presenting Randy warts and all. Reading this book brought back memories of the AIDs crisis, homophobia that existed and the governments failure to deal.with the AIDS crisis. I did not realize how much hate R......more

Goodreads review by Bill on December 27, 2024

Michael Lee does an excellent job painting a portrait while providing key biographical information. This book provides various contexts for the start of the HIV epidemic, the failed governmental response, and Randy’s other work. Overall, it was a very enjoyable read!......more

Goodreads review by Jeanne on October 19, 2024

I was a little confused by the fact this was first published in 1975. By my calculations Randy Shilts was only 24 years old. In the 1980s Rolling Stone did a series of articles about HIV/AIDS and it was enlightening. When I finally got around to reading And The Band Played On in 2019 I was riveted a......more

Goodreads review by Katy on October 08, 2024

"When the Band Played On" tells the story of the journalist behind one of the most influential non-fiction works of modern times. Randy Shilts "And the Band Played On" became one of the first fact based source that exposed the masses to the AIDS crisis. He deftly personalized the science and the poli......more

Goodreads review by Holly on April 02, 2025

What a great book. I met the author several years ago when he was only planning to write it, and I'm so glad it's now in the world. I've read all of Shilts' work but Conduct Unbecoming, but I knew nothing about Shilts. This biography is short and sweet - short because Randy's life was short - and giv......more