The Girl in the Back

By Laura Davis-Chanin
HL562B

$24.99
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The Girl in the Back
Product Details
A Female Drummer's Life with Bowie, Blondie, and the '70s Rock Scene 

Nineteen seventy-seven. New York City. Dark. Dangerous. Thrilling. Punk Rock. Blondie. David Bowie. Drinking. Drugs. Happening at the speed of light. Seventeen-year old Laura, quaking within her skin while the bursting punk rock revolution explodes around her, starts a band with her teenage friends called the Student Teachers. She's the drummer. They play legendary clubs CBGB, Max's Kansas City, Hurrah they rehearse madly, write songs, and tour the East Coast. All between final exams at school. In comes Jimmy Destri from Blondie. He thinks the Student Teachers are terrific! And then he falls in love with Laura. He pulls her into the glamorous life of Blondie and introduces her to David Bowie. Bowie takes an interest in Laura's band, attends their rehearsals, and sets them up to open for Iggy Pop at the Palladium on Halloween 1979. It's exhilarating! It's the beginning of amazing success in rock 'n' roll! Until it all comes to a stunning stop. After playing a show at Town Hall in 1980, Laura is diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Does it all fall apart? Later, at a dinner with Bowie, he whispers something to Laura. And it helps her save her life. In prose that flows like music, Laura Davis-Chanin presents a rich work of narrative nonfiction that is not only deeply personal but also revealing of the punk rock heyday in New York City. Infused with rare photographs, this book is a journey through a unique, ephemeral life experience.

Review

There have been several books published in the wake of his death in January 2016 about David Bowie. Some have been decade-spanning accounts of his musical career; others have been more personal memoirs focusing on Bowie at a particular place and time. None of these, however, have caught the human side of The Man Who Fell to Earth and Starman as well as Laura Davis-Chanin s new book, The Girl in the Back --Penny Black Music

About the Author

LAURA DAVIS-CHANIN (New York City) is a writer and lawyer. She is currently working on a novel and a series of short stories. She can be heard on the podcast Phi-Fic: Truth in Fiction on the philosophy site The Partially Examined Life and is working on a master s degree in philosophy at Edinburgh University. She is most thankful for her beautiful daughters, Zoe and Mara.

  • Paperback: 274 pages
  • Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.7 x 9 inches