The new Long John Baldry book IT AIN’T EASY: Long John Baldry and the British Blues (Greystone Books), was launched on 9 November and contains interviews with Rod, Elton John and many of Britain’s rock-and-roll superstars who uncover the eccentric life of Long John.
Musician and journalist Paul Myers draws on intimate anecdotes from Baldry’s legendary friends, lovers, and professional acquaintances to reveal the man behind the mythic persona.
As SMILER readers will already know, Rod Stewart was discovered by Long John Baldry, playing harmonica on the platform of Twickenham Rail Station, and to this day claims to owe his entire career to him.
Rod tells Myers all about his mentor and how he came to be discovered, in It Ain’t Easy:
“It was a very great chance for me. It was like a 1964 American Idol come true. I didn’t have to go looking for a band, John had asked me to join a band, which was wonderfully accomplished… Well, the most important thing…is just how much I personally owe to John. I think you can have all the talent in the world, but you do need a little bit of luck. My luck just happened to be that he was on that railway station and he heard me playing the harmonica and he heard me singing and he believed in me. It’s a tremendous debt. I’m sitting here looking at my mansion, overlooking Palm Beach at the ocean. If it wouldn’t have been for him I may not have been here today…”
A driving force behind the British blues explosion in the 1960s, Baldry’s passion and support for American blues artists such as Muddy Waters, Lead Belly and Howlin’ Wolf influenced scores of UK musicians including Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, The Rolling Stones and the Beatles. While Baldry is credited for launching the careers of Rod Stewart and Elton John, he died in relative obscurity in Vancouver, Canada in July 2005. Myers invested two years of research into Baldry’s life and managed to secure exclusive interviews with family members including his 20-year partner Oz and his siblings Margaret and Roger; musical superstars such as Elton John, Paul McCartney, Mick Fleetwood and Rod Stewart; and other notable figures such as the Rolling Stones’ former manager Andrew Loog Oldham
“After a lot of string pulling and journalistic sleuthing,” says Myers from his home in Berkeley California, “I was thrilled by how many famous and integral names turned out to speak about their old friend John.”
Myers’ biography celebrates the wild life of Long John Baldry and, as a history of blues, it gives new insight into a cornerstone of rock-and-roll.
Paul Myers is a journalist, broadcaster, and musician whose work has appeared in a wide variety of publications. He is the author of Barenaked Ladies: Public Stunts, Private Stories. An accomplished songwriter, guitarist and music producer, he is also the former leader of the Gravelberrys.