Around the 'Punk Era' in the UK, we had someone shoving a copy of their fanzine up our nose, either at ever gig we attended, or sometimes, during the Saturday High Street shopping rush in town. Usually written on an enthusiasm driven by the band's they had been to see at local venues, then printed, as cheaply as possible, and tacked together with a staple; they were sold for ten or twenty pence each to (with luck) enable another one to be created.
And created they were, yet by accident moreso than design, one fanzine-ist had a key missing from the typewriter, so this became his trademark; as his work had the letter 'K' (for example) missing. Other's creating fanzines thought this was 'cool,' so they ripped a key out of theirs as well. Today, British fanzines like 'Sniffin Glue' are famous and have been reprinted in book form.
So, too, 'Bomp!' except Greg Shaw was doing his thing in the 60's, and he was interviewing the likes of Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison when their bands were still playing support on the circuit, and a far cry from the legends they became; and he didn't have a missing typewriter key, either, that was a 'British peculiarity.'
So this book presents those long-ago-and-precious-interviews with these and many more stars besides, and on occasion, even the original 'paste-up' pages of those now legendary fanzines are reproduced here. It's one of those books, well, if you're like me, anyway, who appreciates things like this, which takes your breath away. It's a knockout book, and an amazing tribute to Greg whom, little did he know at the time, was carving his name out in Rock History.
