The Magic Years
Scenes from a Rock-and-Roll Life
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Narrated by:
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Roger Wayne
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By:
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Jonathan Taplin
About this listen
Jonathan Taplin’s extraordinary journey has put him at the crest of every major cultural wave in the past half century: He was tour manager for Bob Dylan and The Band in the '60s, producer of major films in the '70s, an executive at Merrill Lynch in the '80s, creator of the internet’s first video-on-demand service in the '90s, and a cultural critic and author writing about technology in the new millennium. His is a lifetime marked not only by good timing but by impeccable instincts - from the folk scene of Woodstock, to Hollywood’s rebellious film movement and beyond, Taplin is not just a witness but a lifelong producer, the right-hand man to some of the greatest talents of both pop culture and the underground.
With cameos by Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Martin Scorsese, and countless other icons, The Magic Years is both a rock memoir and a work of cultural criticism from a key player who watched a nation turn from idealism to nihilism. Taplin offers a clear-eyed road map of how we got here and makes a convincing case for art’s power to deliver us from “passionless detachment” and rekindle our humanism.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2021 Jonathan Taplin (P)2021 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Acclaimed journalist Peter Doggett recounts the previously untold story of the dramatic final chapter in the lives, loves, and legal battles of John, Paul, George, and Ringo - a.k.a. The Beatles - from their breakup in 1969 to the present day. Called "refreshingly straightforward and highly readable" by the Daily Telegraph (London), You Never Give Me Your Money is the dramatic and intimate story of the breakup and aftermath of The Fab Four as it's never been told before.
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Four human beings
- By Tad Davis on 10-02-20
By: Peter Doggett
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Never a Dull Moment
- 1971 - the Year That Rock Exploded
- By: David Hepworth
- Narrated by: David Hepworth
- Length: 11 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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On New Year's Eve, 1970, Paul McCartney told his lawyers to issue the writ at the High Court in London, effectively ending The Beatles. You might say this was the last day of the pop era. The following day, which was a Friday, was 1971. You might say this was the first day of the rock era. And within the remaining 364 days of this monumental year, the world would hear Don McLean's "American Pie", The Rolling Stones' "Brown Sugar", The Who's "Baba O'Riley", Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven", and more.
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A blast from the past
- By Amazon Customer on 07-30-16
By: David Hepworth
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The History of Rock & Roll
- Volume 1: 1920-1963
- By: Ed Ward
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 15 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Ed Ward covers the first half of the history of rock & roll in this sweeping and definitive narrative - from the 1920s, when the music of rambling medicine shows mingled with the songs of vaudeville and minstrel acts to create the very early sounds of country and rhythm and blues, to the rise of the first independent record labels post-World War II, and concluding in December 1963, just as an immense change in the airwaves took hold and the Beatles prepared for their first American tour.
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Author's blindspots mar this book
- By Mark Clark on 03-28-17
By: Ed Ward
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We Had a Little Real Estate Problem
- The Unheralded Story of Native Americans & Comedy
- By: Kliph Nesteroff
- Narrated by: Kliph Nesteroff
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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It was one of the most reliable jokes in Charlie Hill’s stand-up routine: “My people are from Wisconsin. We used to be from New York. We had a little real estate problem.” In We Had a Little Real Estate Problem, acclaimed comedy historian Kliph Nesteroff focuses on one of comedy’s most significant and little-known stories: how, despite having been denied representation in the entertainment industry, Native Americans have influenced and advanced the art form.
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Amazing book!
- By Gregg Anderson on 03-22-21
By: Kliph Nesteroff
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Uncommon People
- The Rise and Fall of The Rock Stars
- By: David Hepworth
- Narrated by: Matthew Lloyd Davies
- Length: 10 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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The age of the rock star, like the age of the cowboy, has passed. Like the cowboy, the idea of the rock star lives on in our imaginations. What did we see in them? Swagger. Recklessness. Sexual charisma. Damn-the-torpedoes self-belief. A certain way of carrying themselves. Good hair. Interesting shoes. Talent we wished we had. What did we want of them? To be larger than life but also like us. To live out their songs. To stay young forever. No wonder many didn't stay the course.
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INSIGHTFULL!
- By CLAUDIA R KENNEDY on 02-18-18
By: David Hepworth
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Talking to Canadians
- A Memoir
- By: Rick Mercer
- Narrated by: Rick Mercer
- Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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What is Rick Mercer going to do now? That was the question on everyone's lips when the beloved comedian retired his hugely successful TV show after 15 seasons - and at the peak of its popularity. The answer came not long after, when he roared back in a new role as stand-up-comedian, playing to sold-out houses wherever he appeared. And then COVID-19 struck. And his legions of fans began asking again: What is Rick Mercer going to do now? Well, for one thing, he's been writing a comic masterpiece.
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Mercer Killed and He Will Kill Again
- By Quinn M on 11-28-22
By: Rick Mercer
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Beatles '66
- The Revolutionary Year
- By: Steve Turner
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 12 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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The year that changed everything for the Beatles was 1966 - the year of their last concert and of Revolver, their first album created to be listened to rather than performed. This was the year the Beatles risked their popularity by retiring from live performances, recording songs that explored alternative states of consciousness, experimenting with avant-garde ideas, and speaking their minds on issues of politics, war, and religion. Music journalist and Beatles expert Steve Turner investigates the enormous changes that took place in the Beatles' lives and work during 1966.
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Great listen
- By Tad Davis on 07-28-18
By: Steve Turner
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1965
- The Most Revolutionary Year in Music
- By: Andrew Grant Jackson
- Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
- Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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During 12 unforgettable months in the middle of the turbulent '60s, America saw the rise of innovative new sounds that would change popular music as we knew it. In 1965: The Most Revolutionary Year in Music, music historian Andrew Grant Jackson (Still the Greatest: The Essential Songs of The Beatles' Solo Careers) chronicles a groundbreaking year of creativity fueled by rivalries between musicians and continents, sweeping social changes, and technological breakthroughs.
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Seems like a good overview
- By wylie smith on 01-12-23
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Singular Sensation
- The Triumph of Broadway
- By: Michael Riedel
- Narrated by: Shaun Taylor-Corbett
- Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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The 1990s was a decade of profound change on Broadway. At the dawn of the '90s, the British invasion of Broadway was in full swing, as musical spectacles like Les Miserables, Cats, and The Phantom of the Opera dominated the box office. But Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Boulevard soon spelled the end of this era and ushered in a new wave of American musicals, beginning with the ascendance of an unlikely show by a struggling writer who reimagined Puccini’s opera La Bohème as the smash Broadway show Rent
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Why Didn’t Michael Riedel Read This Himself?
- By Tallulah on 01-17-22
By: Michael Riedel
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Here Comes the Sun
- The Spiritual and Musical Journey of George Harrison
- By: Joshua M. Greene
- Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
- Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Joshua Greene, who studied meditation with the legendary Beatle George Harrison, draws on personal remembrances, recorded conversations, and firsthand accounts to create a moving portrait of Harrison's spiritual life, his profound contribution to the Beatles' music, and previously unpublished anecdotes about his time with music legends Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, and others.
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A great read
- By Joshua Deal on 12-14-20
By: Joshua M. Greene
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Chasing the Light
- Writing, Directing, and Surviving Platoon, Midnight Express, Scarface, Salvador, and the Movie Game
- By: Oliver Stone
- Narrated by: Oliver Stone
- Length: 14 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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An intimate memoir by the controversial, Oscar-winning director and screenwriter about his rarefied New York childhood, volunteering for combat, and his struggles and triumphs making such films as Platoon, Midnight Express, and Scarface.
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Impressive
- By Merle O. Tanner on 10-07-20
By: Oliver Stone
What listeners say about The Magic Years
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- John
- 09-08-23
Still looking the other way..
Taplin appears oblivious to the diversion of the sixties anti war movement into sex, drugs mass music performances. This is difficult to grasp given Taplin's family, education and apparent intelligence. With such role cultural role models he does make it more easy to understand the 'behaviors' of the generation after these boomers. Taplin is on a meme now of the digiatl oligarch's power in the US and their split from the populace. He lived in and describes the appropriation of folk and mountain music by some of his icons. Even though present he doesn't get it after all these years.
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- Steven Gilb
- 01-01-22
A life well-lived, to say the least
The years between between Newport and the Last Waltz were what initially attracted me to this book, not to mention the interesting sidebar that Lesley and I are descended from the same great-grandfather.
The second half of the book was equally compelling, and the advice at the end concerning the importance of art and humanity is something that I am eager to pass on to my children and grandchildren.
Wonderful story, from beginning to end.
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2 people found this helpful
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- DOCKNOF
- 08-25-22
Fantastic book!
Loved every minute of this book! Taplin has lead a wonderful life. The stories are fantastic.
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- Martin Anderson
- 10-10-21
Fascinating tale; poorly prepared reader.
Taplin’s saga is interesting and well told. He’s almost a Zelig-like character for being at so many cultural flashpoints through the years (I say almost because he’s not without agency). Roger Wayne’ narration would otherwise warrant high marks were it not for his mispronunciation of so many names. He gets right the ones everybody knows (Dylan, Beatles, Stones) but trips up on the less familiar. Ex. Leica camera becomes Lee-ca; the Eagles’ Glenn Frey he sounds out to rhyme with they rather than fry. And at least a dozen more. Kind of distracting. Blame for this must also rest with the careless production team.
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- Eric K.
- 05-15-21
Some interesting stories but a disappointment
As a long-time admirer of The Band, I have been aware of Jonathan Taplin for more than 40 years, and I was delighted to discover that he has published his memoirs. While Taplin has some great stories to tell about having a front-row seat to some historic events in American cultural history—his descriptions of his encounters with Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Eric Clapton, Janis Joplin, Bill Graham, Jackson Browne, Keith Richards, Bruce Springsteen, David Geffen and other music industry icons are almost worth the price of the book---my overall reaction to this book is disappointment. Taplin worked as road manager for The Band for only about 2 ½ years, and he was not deeply involved in most aspects of The Band’s creative process in the recording studio, i.e., he was not present during most of the recording sessions nor did he play much of a role in the post-production elements of the recording process which seems to limit just how much insight he can provide about the making of the music. Furthermore, I presume that most road mangers take an oath of secrecy---while Taplin does discuss how 3 of The Band’s members began their sad, downward spiral into the abyss of alcohol, drugs, and depression that ultimately led to the group’s demise my gut reaction is that Taplin must have withheld some of the more sordid aspects of what he witnessed during the course of his career because (to his credit) he did not want to write a sensationalistic book about life on the road with a bunch of brilliant but often self-destructive musicians. The Band never reached the level of sex, drugs, and rock and roll debauchery that (for example) Led Zeppelin achieved but my overall impression from this book makes me think that Robbie Robertson was not exaggerating when he famously said in “The Last Waltz” film that “The road is a God-damn impossible life” for a musician, i.e., it makes it extremely difficult to develop and sustain healthy human relationships.
The final section of the book is mostly about Taplin’s adventures as an investment banker and Hollywood deal-maker, it is mostly a familiar lamentation about how the entertainment business has been taken over by soul-deadening mega-corporations that have a paucity of creative vision. In this part of the book Taplin describes the late investment banker Richard Rainwater as the savior of Walt Disney Inc. in the 1980s, as Rainwater and Taplin collaborated to help Disney avoid a proposed takeover of the company by Michael Milken et al. which likely would have resulted in the breaking up of an iconic American company. While Rainwater may have been a somewhat more enlightened capitalist than Milken, I would argue that like Milken he was fundamentally (as Nicholas Lemann would characterize) a “transaction man” who reaped huge profits from financial enginerring and arbitrage schemes, not from building a great enterprise from scratch.
On a final positive note, the narrator of this book is excellent.
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- Joseph M. Oddo
- 02-28-22
Fascinating read!
I usually don’t take the time to review audiobooks. However, I was so pleasantly surprised by this one that I wanted to go on record. I really enjoyed Jonathan Taplin’s interview on a podcast about The Band and wanted to know more about him, so I bought his audiobook. It was even better than I expected. I’m going to listen again from the beginning.
(Sorry, I had to dock a couple of stars from the performance, because of several mispronounced names. [Scorsese, Iovine, Metheny, at least one or two others.] I’m kinda picky about that.)
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