Product Description

The guitarists' guitarist and the songwriters' songwriter, the legendary Bert Jansch has influenced stars as diverse as Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Paul Simon, Sandy Denny, Nick Drake, Donovan, Pete Townshend, Neil Young, Bernard Butler, Beth Orton and Devendra Banhart. Unassuming, enigmatic and completely focused on his music, he has remained singularly resilient to the vagaries of fashion, being rediscovered and revered by new generations of artists every few years. Born in Edinburgh in 1943, Jansch became an inspirational and pioneering figure during Britain's 'folk revival' of the 1960s. In 1967 he formed folk/jazz fusion band Pentangle with John Renbourn and enjoyed international success until they split in 1973, when he returned to a solo career. Surviving alcoholism and heart surgery, Jansch has recently enjoyed a career renaissance - delivering a series of albums from 1995 onwards which have secured his standing as one of the true originals of British music.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #74583 in Books
• Published on: 2006-08-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 416 pages

Review
'An excellent biography of one of folk's cult figures ... Harper's narrative is first-rate at putting the man and his influence in perspective. It is especially evocative when describing the folk underground which burgeoned in the UK in the 1960s and early 1970s' Independent on Sunday 'A work of considerable importance ... intuitive and informed' Q Magazine 'The legendary musical outsider described as "a dextrous guitar player, footloose and fancy-free" shines like a rare, uncut diamond in this biography, which captures his rise as a musician in the British folk and blues scene of the 1960s, from the coffee houses of Soho to friendship with The Who's Pete Townshend ... Past glories make Dazzling Stranger a feast for anyone interested in Jansch or the 1960s' Scotsman 'This is a book that needed to be written, and for folk, blues, and beyond enthusiasts, one that's required reading' Glasgow Herald

Folk Roots
`Compulsive reading'

Q Magazine
`A work of considerable importance ... intuitive and informed'

Customer Reviews

Highly recommended for fans of the sixties "folk-boom"
The previous review is so comprehensive that I won't repeat the content of the book, but I wanted to confirm the pleasure of reading a well written book about an underrated and underexposed artist. I had not appreciated the extent of his influence both on peers in the "folk-boom" and on thousands of steel-strung acoustic guitar players since. If like me you are a fan of acoustic music and the sixties musicians you will find yourself digging out old albums from Paul Simon, Al Stewart, Donovan, Martin Carthy, Pentangle and Bert himself to experience his influence in a new light!

The book is full of fascinating cross-references to the other artists of the time, and is constantly engaging. Highly recommended.

A must for anyone who enjoys the music of Bert Jansch
Anyone who was witness to the British folk scene of the 60s and 70s will find this a fascinating book and a very enjoyable read. Anyone younger who loves the guitar as an instrument will be interested to read about the life of the almost mystical singer, songwriter and musician who was such an important influence on many more recent performers like Bernard Butler and Jonny Marr. The book is excellently researched and is clearly a labour of love which should inspire you to go out and listen to some of Bert's wonderful music.

The only disappointment....
This is a fine book that uncovers a rich history of the folk revival and much more. Great anecdotes and tales are recounted. The influence of the Communist Party is dealt with well although this could have been analysed in greater detail. The CP really had quite a reactionary position in relation to music at the time. Folk was good because it was represented horny handed sons of toil, the new developments in jazz and rock'n'roll, mod culture etc were viewed with deep suspicion. In certain cities the CP had enough influence to be able to mobilise significant numbers and surely one of the organisation's many low points on the artistic front was the encouragement of the barracking of Bob Dylan's 1966 electric tour. Harper charts their declining influence as the young turks of the acoustic revival eschewed categorization, embracing jazz, blues, improvisation and 'world' music. Davy Graham, Robin Williamson, John Renbourn and Jansch were not interested in having their searching creativity confined by sterile cardboard cutout dogma.
I've always been puzzled by the lack of the widespread appreciation of John Renbourn. I saw them both within weeks of each other at the East Dulwich Tavern in South East London in about 2000. Renbourn was astonishing - easily Bert's equal and as the book acknowledges the superior technician. I think Mojo did a 50 greatest guitarists a few years ago and Renbourn didn't even figure whilst Jansch was number 9 or thereabouts. Maybe his life is not so romantic - a bit like John Martyn struggling to be recognised to the same extent as Nick Drake.

The only disappointment was the lack of detailed track-by-track analysis of his key albums - in a book of such length surely this is justified given that ultimately its the music that the man's reputation stands or falls on. For instance there is no mention of Nottamun Town from the Jack Orion album - a stunning, terrifying, vocal performance from a man whose voice is not always easy to love. A song which later appeared on Fairport Convention's second album and so signposted the folk/folk revolution and was in all probability first encountered through Jansch's version.