Suggested Reading/Viewing: "The French Connection" (Book - 1969 & Movie - 1971)

The French Connection by Robin Moore



My rating: Book: 4 of 5 stars - Movie: Two Thumbs Up





This particular edition of "The French Connection," the Bantam Books mass market paperback edition, was the 17th printing of the book, published in mid-late 1972. I recently picked up a near-new condition copy for $1.00 at a used book store. Having seen the movie several times previously (I still own a copy on VHS, really gotta upgrade to a DVD copy!), I was glad to finally have a chance to read the book as well. On the front cover of the copy I picked up, above the title of the book, in red lettering are the words "Best Picture Of The Year! Winner of Five Academy Awards!" This refering to the fact that by this point the movie adaptation of "The French Connection" had been released and done very well indeed, winning all kinds of awards and critical acclaim, evenutally going on to become what is considered by many to be one of the finest movies about organized crime and the dope trade ever produced.



The book reads particularly well if you've seen the movie. If you haven't seen the movie, the book would still read well, but might turn off some readers as the plot revolves heavily around the seemingly never-ending descriptions of how the cops tailed their suspects around New York City - up and down north-south streets. Back and forth on the cross-town streets. Up and down and all around the town on streets that will be familiar to people who live in New York or who have spent time there but will have absolutely no meaning to those who do not know the city and these heavily detailed descriptions may seem a bit overdone to those unafmiliar with the streets of Manhattan.



Other than that one small consideration, this book is top notch reading as one would come to expect from the legend of the title...every one's heard of "The French Connection," right? But not everyone has read the book AND/OR seen the movie. I've done both now and can attest to the equal enjoyment of both experiences...great movie, great book...experiencing both at least once each is highly reccomended.



For those of you who could give a rats ass about the book, there's the movie, which does have the added bonus of the inclusion of the stunning visuals of the setting of the story - the New York City of the late 1960's: a much grittier, less sanitized looking place when the movie was filmed on location there in the late 1960's. With the movie, unlike with the book, you don't have to try to visualize what city of that time looked like, and where the story is taking you...it's served up to you in all it's ragged, ravaged glory and all you have to do is sit there, shovelling fistfulls of hot buttery popcorn into your yap, effortlessly watching it appear on the screen...but you still have to try to follow along!







A shorter, more action packed trailer...





The filming of one of the craziest car chase sequences in cinema history!





...and more random scenes from the movie.









...and no, Red Box does not have "The French Connection" available for rental this month. You'll have to find a copy someplace other than McDonalds.

Suggested Reading: "The Making Of A Cop" by Harvey Rachlin (1991)

The Making of a Cop by Harvey Rachlin



My rating: 3 of 5 stars





In the 1991 book "The Making of a Cop", author Harvey Rachlin follows the 1988 class of new recruits of the New York City Police Academy through their physically rigorous and mentally challenging training as they work their way up from entry-level rookies right up through the day, several moths later, when they finally their receive their shields (that's cop talk for "badge") and weapons - graduation day as it were - and join the elite ranks of the N.Y.P.D. as full fledged law enforcement officers.



Author Rachlin attended all the classes right along with the '88 NYPD recruits and this is his story of how, with very hard work and self discipline, an average citizen of a certain age group (and other, stringent qualifying characteristics) can become an important member on an specialized force in the never ending battle to keep the streets of New York City safe for citizens of the city and tourists alike.



An enjoyable book to be sure that will probably only take most readers a few day to one week at most to finish up depending on the ammount of free reading time you have available - I read it over the course of about 5 days. My only complaint, and I do understand that it was out of necessity, is that the book does not go in to a bit more detail of the training the recruits received, but there is, I guess, plenty enough here to keep the reader interested throughout the course of the 302 pages.



If you can pick up a used copy for a buck or even two, you can't go wrong...

Coming Soon From Ace Frehley: Cosmic Tales Of Intergalactic Debaunchery & Rock & Roll Excess

Title: "No Regrets: A Rock 'N' Roll Memoir"
Author: Ace Frehley with Joe Layden
Publication Date: 11/01/11
Publisher: Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster
Available for pre-order at: Amazon.com

Here's Ace briefly discussing the book during an appearance earlier this year on VH1's "That Metal Show."

Suggested Reading: "Anarchy, Protest & Rebellion & the Counterculture that Changed America" photos by Fred W. McDarrah (2003)

Anarchy, Protest, & Rebellion & the Counterculture That Changed America
Photography by: Fred W. McDarrah

My rating: 5 of 5 stars





*A book highly suggested for those readers interested in the cultural and political scenes in and around New York City during the mid-1960's through the early-1970's. Also highly suggested for readers who enjoy looking at old photos more than actually reading - this is after all, as the cover states, a photographic memoir. The majority of the hundreds of stunning black & white photographs contained in this amazing 375-page collection consist of images shot in and around New York City - the city, not so antiseptic in those days, providing the perfect backdrop of urban grit and grime to unforgettable scenes of political challenge and social change.

From the back cover of the book:

Culled from an archive of over 5,000 photographs, "Anarchy, Protest & Rebellion and the Counterculture that Changed America" presents America's most tumultuous decade through the eyes of renowned photojournalist Fred W. McDarrah. As staff photographer for the leading counterculture weekly the "Village Voice," McDarrah was everywhere - and he photographed everything and everybody. From the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago to the Newark riots; from the Beatles' first American press conference to Andy Warhol's Factory; from Woodstock to the closing of the Fillmore East; from Broadway to Stonewall to Harlem to City Hall, Fred's award winning pictures capture the struggle and promise of the sixties and define a generation.

Many of these photographs have never been published, or were seen only once in the "Village Voice," where for forty years McDarrah ran the photo desk. A number of his portraits, however, like those of Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, and Abbie Hoffman, have become some of the most celebrated icons of their subjects. These pictures represent a depth and breadth of public and private events and emotions, both political and startlingly intimate, that is rarely found in the work of one man - a powerful synthesis of American photojournalism, cultural and political documentary and, despite McDarrah's modest protestations, art.

*Click HERE to view a Village Voice photo archives slideshow of some of McDarrah's work, including several photos that appear in the book.

Suggested Reading: "Cop Hunter" by Vincent Murano with William Hoffer (1990)

Cop Hunter: The Shocking True Story of Corrupt Cops and the Man Who Went Undercover to Stop Them
by Vincent Murano with William Hoffer

My rating: 4 of 5 stars






From the back cover of the book:

Vincent Murano was an elite New York City detective when his superiors offered him a job he couldn't refuse: go undercover as a mobster to root out corruption in the N.Y.P.D. Taking on the persona of small-time Mafia hood Vinnie Muscio, Murano began setting up stings to catch suspect cops. What he found was beyond his worst fears and nightmares: cops who deal weapons; cops who deal drugs; cops who kill, maim and finger potential murder victims for the mob. Suddenly Murano was walking a life and death line between criminality and the law in a swirling underground of violence. And when it was over, and he had risked his life, his family, his health and his sanity to bring the corrupt cops to justice, Murano found out the hardest truth of all: unwiling to buck "the Blue Wall," top ranking police officials were ready to let it happen all over again...

Suggested Reading: "Marquee Moon" by Bryan Waterman (2011)

Television's Marquee Moon
by Bryan Waterman (2011)
Continuum 33 1/3 Series Vol. #83

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


When word circulated earlier this year that Television's 1977 debut LP "Marquee Moon" would be the subject of a new volume in the Continuum Books 33 1/3 series, fans of the band - and fans of the 70's era NYC downtown music scene in general - marked their calendars and held their breath, waiting impatiently for the book to be released. You can exhale, music lovers. The book is on store shelves now, and, as expected, it was well worth the wait.

Stitching together untold hours of exhaustive research through library archives, books, newspapers, magazines, internet websites and who knows what other obscure sources, author Bryan Waterman takes us back in time to the spring of 1974 and begins our journey through New York City's Lower East Side music scene - through the front doors of a dingy little dive bar called CBGBs - and details the story of one of the most celebrated and influential bands to emerge from the club: Television.

Beginning with the well circulated story of how Television founding members Tom Verlaine and Richard Hell talked CBGB owner Hilly Kristal into booking the group during a chance encounter outside the club on a spring day back in 1974, author Waterman details some of the earliest days of what will come to be known a few years later as the New York City punk rock scene. Television's story IS a CBGB's/punk rock story in some respects...up to a certain point. You can't tell the story of one without the other, they are too intricately tied together in history to seperate them. The same is true for many of the other artists who emerged from the same downtown scene as the members of Television. The New York Dolls, Suicide, Wayne/Jayne County, Patti Smith, the Ramones, Blondie...each of these groups and many others to a greater or lesser extent, share a part of Television's early story. They are all well represented in the pages of this book.

In Marquee Moon, Waterman digs back even a bit further, examining the various and numerous early musical, literary and artistic influences that would later be reflected back in Television's music and in their live performances. The fact that the group was based in New York City and the influence the city itself had on their development is explored. The formation and earliest days of the band are outlined and we tag along as the group slowly and methodically build themselves up from just another buch of kids with a practice space making some noise and trying to write some songs. The story progresses on through their early shows at CBGB's, Max's Kansas City, the Hotel Diplomat and other fabled 70's era NYC music venues that have now all passed into history. Only the stories of those hallowed venues remain now and Television's story is a part of the legend of each of them.

The book also details Television's early demo recording sessions and the groups seemingly never ending quest to secure a recording deal. Being one of the earliest of the CBGB bands, it must have been with some slight sense of chagrin that the members of Television watched as bands such as the Ramones and Blondie came up on the scene just behind them but were soon signed to recording deals and already releasing albums while Television continued to court the ever-elusive deal.

Finally, in July 1976, Television signed with Elektra Records. That November, after a few months of intense rehearsals, the band convened with legendary Led Zeppelin engineer Andy Johns at A&R studios in New York to begin work on capturing their sound on vinyl. In February 1977, the bands long-delayed and highly anticipated debut album, "Marquee Moon," featuring a color-stressed group photo (by famed photographer and friend of the band Robert Mapplethorpe) gracing it's cover, was finally released to a mostly positive critical reception and nearly universal fan acclaim. In the 30-plus years since the album was released it has greatly influenced the music of untold numbers of musicians the world over and is still being discovered by new listeners all these many years later in 2011.

Chapter 6 of "Marquee Moon" goes into a detailed song-by-song lyrical and musical analysis of the album. The author does a fine job deconstructing and examining the musical and lyrical content of the songs appearing on the album. I know lots of people love to read this kind of geeked-out, overly analytical stuff, but for me, I've never really been too interested in what other people perceive as "the meaning" of song lyrics. To me, each song (by any group) is interpreted best by the individual listener. As a reader, I usually have a pretty difficult time retaining my interest when an author gets too deep into the "true meaning" behind any given song - after all, it is his interpretation only. So as I read chapter 6, I must admit to skipping around a bit in order to keep my eyes from glazing over. Be certain, this is no slam on the author - it's just how it is in general when I read this kind of critique on any group and their recorded musical output...I love the history of a band and the details of the creation of an album, but I'm just not the lyrical analysis guy - it's just not my thing. The chapter certainly takes nothing away from the fact that the rest of the book is a real page-turner, and I'm sure there are those readers who will find it to be the most interesting chapter in the entire book.

Being that the release of the album culminates the Television story as far as this particular book is concerned, Waterman wraps things up in chapter 7, devoting a few pages to discussing the events surrounding the release of Marque Moon and what happened to Television after the album was finally released.

Obviously, fans of the band should consider "Marquee Moon" as required reading. The book will also be a welcome addition to the bookshelves of anyone who is seriously interested in the history of the CBGB scene and the early-mid 70's era musical and artistic landscape of New York City as a whole. With the amazingly accurate detail of attention paid to the early history of the band, there is no doubt in my mind that Bryan Waterman, had he chosen to do so, could have written the authoritative and complete history of the group. Considering that the band split up in 1978 shortly after releasing a second album ("Adventure") for Elektra Records and have only regrouped a few times in the past couple of decades to perform and record on an infrequent basis, he has basically accomplished this task anyway and has done an entertaining and well organized, informative and chronological job in doing so.

-NYCDreamin


*As part of the promotion for the book, author Bryan Waterman along with "Some Girls" (Continuum's 33 1/3 series Vol. #81) author Cyrus Patell were interviewed on WFMU's "This Is The Modern World with Trouble" show on June 28th. The interview segment runs nearly an hour and features some great music including a rare live recording of a Television performance of "Satisfaction" from 1978. Click HERE to listen to the archived audio.

*You can keep up with the latest events surrounding the release of both books and also read more from both authors on their blog Patell & Waterman's History of New York.

Suggested Reading: "Mafia Cop: The Story of an Honest Cop Whose Family Was The Mob" by Lou Eppolito & Bob Drury (1993)

Mafia Cop by Lou Eppolito & Bob Drury (1993)

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


"Mafia Cop: The Story of an Honest Cop Whose Family was the Mob" tells (part of) the tale of (retired) NYPD Detective Lou Eppolito, who is currently serving out a "life plus 100 years" sentence in a federal corrections facility near Tucson, Arizona. But that's getting ahead of the story, lets back up a bit.

Back in 1993, in his own words, Eppolito (along with co-author Bob Drury) recounted, in his book "Mafia Cop," of growing up as the son of Ralph "Fat The Gangster" Eppolito. His uncle was Jimmy "The Clam." And there were more family mambers with funny sounding nicknames. And friends of family members with the same strange nicknames. Young Louie's family, you see, were well connected New York City underworld Organized Crime members. And he was born, innocently enough on his own part, right into the middle of it all. It seemed to be his destiny. His father raised him, through a combination of violence and tough love, to be a man... very tough but always respectful...always very respectful. And young Lou grew into just that sort of man...eventually. Or so he says in the book.

His father passed away when Lou was a young man just really getting out into the world on his own, and, like so many others of his generation, he was casting about, looking for his way in the world, not really wanting to follow his father into "the family business." He eventually, through a path of circumstances he describes in the book, finds himself joining up with the NYPD, effectively "going over to the other side" in light of his "family background."

But Lou is, despite the fact that he now wears a Blue Uniform, his father's son. He manages to disconnect his private family life from his police career. He remains respectful to his family, but goes out of his way to avoid them. He becomes a real cop's cop. Over the course of a dozen years during the 1970's and early 1980's, Eppolito becomes one of the more highly respected policemen on the force in the city, becoming, at the time, the eleventh most decorated cop in the city, appearing frequently in newspaper stories that detailed his heroic police actions. But his controversial, gruff and tough style with perps who got him in more than just abit of hot water of the course of his career, and his mobbed-up family background would see him develop natural enemies within the police department as well. There were those on the force who were not so certain that Fat the Gangster's son was keeping the seperation between his job and his family as clean as he claimed he was. After nearly fifteen years on the job, Eppolito is finally caught up in an investigation into Organized Crime, accused of passing sensitive documents to members of a well known organzied crime family. He swears he is innocent...just a good cop with a bad family name...not guilty and, after a months-long process is, indeed, found not guilty. He returns to his job, exhonerated...for a time.

But there were too many feelings of broken trust and a strong sense of betrayal and disrespect felt on Eppolito's part against the department in which he'd so heroically serverd for a decade and a half. Eppolito eventually filed suit against the NYPD for $5 million, a suit which he lost nearly immediately. As the final sentence in the book says, "...on December 14, 1989, Detective Second Grade Louis John Eppolito retired with full honors. The New York City Police Department had finally managed to rid itself of one of it's worthiest cops."

End of story, right? After all, that's the last line in the book. Louie Eppolito, a son of the mafia by birth, 70's era super-cop by choice, leaves the force, his name in the clear for any wrongdoings. That's how he would have you believe the story. But that's certainly not the end of it.

There were many more details to the story, apparently, that Mr. Eppolito was not so forthcoming in disclosing. But the truth has a way of coming out over time.

Of course he co-authored the book we're reviewing here...and that came out in 1993. In 1989, Eppolito had been introduced to filmmaker Martin Scorsese, who hired Louie "on the spot" to portray a Gambino Family capo in his upcoming movie "Goodfellas."

Then the story, the part that's not in the book, continues to develop...and it gets bad for our "hero," officer Eppolito. As I mentioned at the beginning, he is serving a life sentence in prison in Arizona. How did the man wind up in prison? Could it be he wasn't telling the full truth in the book? What led to his eventual incarceration? You can read all about the jailed retired DetectiveLouis Eppolito, who is now famously known as one of the most corrupt cops in the history of the NYPD, and how he himself wound up in the joint. Details over at Wikipedia: Louis Eppolito.



As far as the book? Eppolito tells a great story to be sure. But considering the source, it is a story to be taken with a bit of caution. Did things really happen as they are portrayed to have happened in the book? Who can say? Maybe the FBI could tell you. I wouldn't call the book "Fiction" by any means, but, obviously, due to the subject matter and Eppolito's eventual incarceration, he definately had much to hide and distort as he was co-authoring the book. It's kinda crazy that he chose to write a book at all...

Suggested Reading: "On The Pad: The Underworld And Its Corrupt Police, Confessions of a Cop on the Take" by Leonard Shecter & William Phillips (1973)

On the Pad: The Underworld and its Corrupt Police, Confessions of a Cop on the Take by Leonard Shecter & William Phillips

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


"On the Pad: The Underworld and its Corrupt Police, the Confessions of A Cop On The Take" may be one of the finest "Cop Books" you'll ever read. I've read a few myself and this one rose immediately to near the top of my list.

This is the story of one-time New York City cop/Detective named William "Bill" Phillips (co-author of the book) and how, after over a decade on the New York City police force, when he was caught accepting bribe money from a well-known Midtown brothel owner in 1968, Phillips became entangled in circumstances that soon found him, under threat of life in prison - or worse, chipping away at the "Blue Wall of Silence," wearing a wire as an instrument of the Knapp Comission on Police Corruption, taking down the careers of many of the men he'd worked with on the force over the years. Some of the cops he took down were men Phillips himself, years earlier, had trained in on the complexities of "going on the pad," that is, taking bribe money for protection or the guarantee that police would not interfere with a known criminal's daily activities. As long as the cash kept coming, greasing the wheels at all levels of the NYPD (and, some suggested, even members of the New York District Attorney's Office and even certain Judges) - the criminal was mostly free to do his business with impunity.

The son of a hard drinking, diciplinarian father who was himself a New York City cop, William Phillips, at that time in his life estranged almost completely from his father, flounders around for the first few years of his young adult life, eventually choosing to follow in his fathers footsteps and "joining the cops." He figured it was a good, solid job with good benefits and an early retirement. And, he reasoned, he'd really be doing something. He had no way of knowing, when he joined the force, just how good some of those "benefits" would be.

Almost from the time he started working the streets as an officer on foot patrol, Phillips was indoctrinated into a then-prevalent Police culture of pay-offs and back-room deals. A "numbers guy" would pay him $10 a week to stay off his back and out of his business. There was a $10 in it for his partner as well. And maybe $25 for the Captain at the Precinct house. And there were lots of numbers men and they all knew the score: Want the cops to leave you alone? Pay up. And they did. As did pimps, madams, dope dealers, street users, "mobbed up guys" and just about any criminal with a mind to make money in New York City during the 1960's. Many guilty (and innocent) civilians paid as well, just to get out of potential legal entanglements that had the propensity to ruin a man's reputation or career. Pay...and it all goes away. Don't pay? Get tossed in "the can." They all seemed to pay. And a great many, according to Phillips, maybe most, but not all...of his fellow NYPD brothers were in on this arrangement. It was hard not to be. There was money all around. It was offered freely in many instances. And it was a system that had been going on for many, many years. Decades even. In the book, Phillips, with priamry author Leonard Shecter, details how he worked his way up and through the NYPD and worked his way through the pocket-books of a great many of the city's criminal entrepreneurs, working his way up from $5 payoffs to protection deals that made him sometimes up to thousands of dollars each. And over the years there were hunderds and hunderds of these deals that Phillips was either directly involved in or knew of firsthand from those he worked with.

One small, weasely guy with a wiretap and the Knapp Comissions investigations into police corruption would prove to be Phillips' downfall. Phillips, not relishing the thought of spending most, if not all of the rest of his life behind bars, was brought under the umbrella of the Knapp Comission and, after being "turned" was soon loosed upon the NYPD's corrupt cops as the ultimate traitor to the badge and "the code." Bill Phillips, once thought of by most of his fellow cops as one of the "good guys," turned snitch and informant. It was a move that sealed his fate within the ranks of the Department. After cooperating with the Knapp Comission, taking down numerous corrupt cops in the process, Phillips' cover was eventually blown and he was removed from the department and placed into hiding with a paid security force to keep him safe - from the criminals he'd arrested - and those he'd set up for protection then let blow in the wind - and from the members of the NYPD who didn't see his cooperation with the whole Knapp Comission thing as something any respectable policeman would take part in. Phillips was a marked man.

This is the story of how a young, eager police rookie became a product of his environment - Phillips was just doing what so many others on the force were doing and had been doing for decades - making a bit of extra cash. As his skills for deception and persuasion increased over time, "a bit" would eventually become "a lot" of extra cash. It seemed innocent enough to begin with, but his increasingly bold and criminal actions would eventually lead him down a path that would see him arrested and forced from the Police force in disgrace. There was also rumored to be a $200,000 contract on his life. Then there was all the time he spent in court trials as a devastating star witness for the Knapp Comission. And ultimately, Phillips would find himself fighting off charges of double-murder that seemd to come from nowhere once his cover in the Knapp Comission was blown. The fact that he co-authored a book gives away the fact that the contract on him was never carried out - he lived to tell his tale - and an amazing tale it is.

After many years of law enforcement reform in New York City and in the country as a whole, and the very differnt styles of policing used on the streets in US cities today, this book sometimes reads like a fictional "True Crime" novel or the script for a B-grade, made-for-TV cop movie. Only here, the stories are all too real. And you'll probably be all too eager to continue reading this book straight through until 3:00am, long after you should be asleep and your eyes have become blury from reading. "On the Pad" is a real page-turner in the truest sense of the word...you can hardly wait too see what happens on the following page.


*"On The Pad," published in 1973, is an excellent companion piece and great follow-up reading to the book "The Savage City: Race, Murder, and a Generation on the Edge" by T.J. English, published earlier this year. In fact, the pages of "The Savage City" are where I first became aware of "On The Pad." You can read our review of "The Savage City" HERE.

Suggested Reading: "Cop!" by L.H. Whittemore (1970)

Cop! by L.H. Whittemore

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Take an exciting and dangerous trip back in time to 1968/1969 with author L.H. Whittemore as he tags along with policemen from three of the most crime-riddled and violent cities in the United States at the time: Patrolman Joseph Minelli in New York City, Detective Ernie Cox in Chicago, and Patrolmen Colin Barker and his partner Gary Cummings in San Francisco.

It was a time of protest, social reorganization, population shift, rising urban crime rates, "White Flight," and "Black Power." It was a time that seemed like almost anything could...and would...and did...happen. And it was a dangerous time time to be a Cop in the big cities of America. Law enforcement had always been a dangerous career choice, but now the police in American cities were seen by a large segment of the younger generation not as a protective force but instead as an occupying force. They were seen as "The Pigs," enforcing the imposement of unjust laws enacted by "The Man" upon those who sought greater personal and social freedoms and liberties.

Cop! is the story of four vry different policemen in three very different cities and how each officer was doing the best job that he could do at the time to keep the peace and uphold the law, often amid circumstances that bordered on insanity and/or near-anarchy. Come along as the officers go on patrol out on the crumbling city streets, sit on long stake-outs, investigate various criminal activies, make arrests, and try to keep the streets from exploding in violence...all while trying to make it home alive at the end of the day.

Part one of the book, the first 109 pages, are given to police stories that can only come from the streets of New York City. A summer heat-wave, high youth unemployment and simmering racial tensions threaten to make the streets erupt with action and violence at any time, day or night. An in-home burglary and a shaken eldery victim. A domestic situation. Rowdy kids on the streets opening fire-hydrants to cool off, not realizing that the fire department needs the water pressure to douse the fires of the burning tenement buildings up the street. Small, unattended children aimlessly wandering the streets at all hours amid the junkies and pimps and whores who shot up, conducted business and settled scores on the same streets. Part one of this book educates you to the fact that there is not a dull moment in the life of a New York City cop.

In part two, follow the twists and turns of a routine-turned-complex investigation of a late-night Chicago street fight in a seedy section of the city that led to one man's death. Or did it? Did the victim's boxing match under the El really lead to his death or were there other unknown circumstances? Sometimes it seems this story will just keep going on forever with a cast of interesting street characters who each have their own motivation to be less than completely truthful with the police investigating the crime. BUt through persistent investigative work, the story finally becomes clear and justic is eventually served.

Then, come along in part three, as a pair of San Francisco cops navigate their way through the post-Summer of Love wreckage of Haight-Ashbury populating the streets in the summer of '68 or '69: hungry, poor, drugged-out runaways from all over America who came expecting to live out the hippie dream but had arrived too late and now clogged the streets of the Haight, peddling drugs and begging for spare change, making life a miserable and sometimes dangerous daily obsticle course for many of those who called the area home. To make things even more interesting, the young Patrolmen, Barker and Cummings, have several personal and idealogical differences; one being much more liberal in his politics than the other. This in turn would lead to many interesting and sometimes heated discussions between the partners concerning the application of law and race relations and how justice and policing seemed to be applied differently to people of color.

Cop! is a real page-turner of a book that takes you back to a time when the future of city dwelling in America was in question as violence, unemployment, poverty and drug use spiraled out of control and as the winds of great social change whirled throughout this country, altering forever, among other things, the way policing of the populations of big cities in the United States was to change during the coming, troubled decade of the 1970's.

(Not Really) Suggested Reading: "Understanding September 11: Answering Questions About The Attacks On America" by Mitch Frank (2002)

Understanding September 11th: Answering Questions about the Attacks on America by Mitch Frank

My rating: 0 of 5 stars


This little piece of trash should have been titled "An Preliminary Indoctrination Into the Politics of Apology For Acts of Terrorism Commited Against The United States On 09/11/01 and Why We Got What We Had Coming to Us."

I'm not even going to get into any type of real review of this garbage other than to say that if you're looking for answers to questions you might have about the attacks on America on 09/11/01, you'd be much better off reading just about any other of the numerous books that have been published on the subject in the past ten years. The back cover states "This edition is only available for distribution through the school market." I managed to pick up a copy at a local Church Garage Sale about a week ago for .25 cents. It's not even worth that. If I were the parent of a child whose school was teaching this material I'd be less than thrilled to say the least.

Suggested alternative uses for this book:

1. Toilet paper.
2. Confetti.
3. Kindling.

Suggested Reading: "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die" - Various Authors (2006)

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die edited by Robert Dimery

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book does indeed cover 1001 albums. Whether or not you need to hear most of them before you die is a question that struck me immediately as I thumbed through it for the first time a few weeks ago when I picked it up at a Library book sale for a cool $1.00.

Starting with the 1950's era and moving forward through the 2000's, 1001 albums are reviewd by a large ensemble of nearly 100 "leading international critics," according to the cover. There is a brief blurb about each contributor to the book so you know who wrote this stuff.

Some of the albums, a good number really, ARE indeed essential listening for any fan of modern music. Modern here meaning stuff from the "rock and roll era" of the 1950's and forward. But you have your Elvises and Ray Charleses Johnny Cashes and Beatles and Rolling Stones and Bob Dylans...all the biggies are here. Deep Purple. Kiss. Black Sabbath. Led Zeppelin. The Metal Gods are well represented. Queen and Abba. Disco divas. The folk rockers, the acid droppin' dope smokin' San Francisco rockers of the late 1960's. The smooth R&B guys and gals. 70's era Punks and gods of funk. Rappers and Alt rockers and several of the one-hit wonders from each generation that have somehow endured through the years.

Then are are a few surprises - for me anyway - I didn't figure the New York Dolls made the list - but they did. And The Dictators too! Suicide? Yep, they're here. The Cramps...here. Motorhead? When did critics start paying attention to Motorhead? Sepultura. Napalm Death. It gets a bit strange when a band like Naplam Death or Venom(!) appears on a list like this - and it's a really good thing. It means this list really is broad in scope and very inclusive to all generes of rock and roll. So many projects like this are not nearly so inclusive and unbiased.

But then there are quite a few albums included that just may be the thing that actually kills you if you dare listen to them...in my opinion.

Britney Spears' 1999 "Baby One More Time" is on on page, turn the page and it's Metallica's "S&M". You can keep 'em both. Justin Timberlake. Madonna. Kid Rock. System Of A Down. Wu-Tang Clan. Michael and Janet Jackson. Pet Shop Boys. George Michael. George Jones. Buck Ownes. Lynyrd Skynyrd. The list is long and bad. Simply fucking Red? C'mon...who listens to that shit?

But this is a great book for when you have 5 minutes to kill and need something to read. Not a book you sit down and read cover to cover - but if you do, hey, more power to you pal. One of those books you might keep handy in...say...your bathroom. Or on the coffee table in your living room so you look cultured when the guests arrive. Each album gets a nice description of from 1/3 page to a full page. Track listings are included for many, and nearly all listings feature the cover art from the album as well.

"1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die" is entertaining and informative reading for the obsessive music lover who can never know enough about the world of music. Filled with thousands and thousands of little factoids and statistics to amuse and amaze your friends with. Definately a book to keep an eye open for when you're out at garage sales or browsing in thrift shops or used book stores - if you can find a copy for a few bucks (like maybe $5 or less) it's worth it.

Suggested Reading: "The Savage City: Race, Murder And A Generation On The Edge" by T.J. English (2011)

I usually wait until I am finished with a book to suggest it to anyone, but I'll make an exception in this case. For no particular reason, I popped into my local library last week and spotted this on the new releases shelf. I spotted the NYC photo on the cover from half-way across the room, took a 30 second glance at the book to see what it was about and then took it from the shelf and headed to the checkout counter. I started reading it the following day on my lunch break and I am now about 145 pages in and I can assure any of you who are interested in the social/racial history of New York City, especially during the 1960's and 70's, you will enjoy this book.

But don't just take my word for it, after all, I haven't even finished the damn thing yet. Here's author T.J. English, describing what the book is about in his own words. I'm sure his description of his work will be more likely to persuade you to pick up a copy than any review I could write...




Yeah, that's a lot cooler than what I could tell you about it....I know you want to read it now! Order up your very own copy at Amazon.com.

Suggested Reading: "The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York" by Robert A. Caro (1974)

The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York by Robert A. Caro

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Every summer, my local library holds a book sale where you can usually find several good bargain books to keep you busy until the following summer. Last summer as I was browsing the tables, one of the librarians, who happens to be a friend of mine, and he knows my penchant for New York City history, comes up to me and says something along the lines of "Dude, here's one for you," as he hands me this MONSTER book. I take it and read the cover - "The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York." I recognize it immediately as I've read about it elsewhere, what an amazing and inclusive book it is. I thank my friend and finish shopping, making a few more selections in the process, pay for my literary finds ("The Power Broker" setting back a cool $1.00) and proceed home, putting "The Power Broker" on the shelf to read "later."

About a month or two later as September is about to become October, I decide the time is right to begin reading "The Power Broker," so one day I take it off the shelf and begin, with some hesitation due to it's overwhelming size, to read. As I am doing so, I'm thinking to myself that it will take several months to read this 1162 page monster. There are an additional 100 pages of notes, index, further reading(!) lists, etc. I do NOT know, however, that it will take me nearly 8 months to read this thing. If you choose to tackle the legacy of Robert Moses contained in this book, be prepared, for it is not light reading in any sense of the word. It is at times mind-numbingly dull. At other times it is a page turner in its amazing revelations of "How New York City Works." Most of all it is an education - an education as to how New York was built and shaped and became, at least from a physical standpoint, the envy of the world throughout most of the late 20th Century as THE model for urban planning - a city of structural efficiency - and beauty.

This might be one of the most well researched books ever written on the history of one man. Author Robert A. Caro's exhaustive 7-year effort to document and expose the life of the "Master Builder" of 20th Century New York City infrastructure, housing and parks, the legendary and controversial Robert Moses, won him a Pulitzer prize for his efforts shortly after the books publication back in 1974. Moses was still alive to see the book published and no doubt read it himself, his sharp old mind devouring it much more quickly, no doubt, than I. One wonders what he thought of it after reading it - for it paints a two-sided picture of the man: One side as genius - driven to build and better a city. The other side: Greedy and manipulative - and racist to boot. And not really greedy so much for money, as for personal wealth, as an almost all-consuming greed for POWER...the ability to control men and policy. The ability to manuever men to do his bidding through the use of connections - who he knew and what he could get from them or for them.

This is the story of a man with a vision: A vision of New York City as HE saw it - covered with parks. And grand Parkways and bridges to move the ever-increasing quantity of automobile traffic coming into and out of New York City. Robert Moses envisioned amazing parks and Parkways all over Long Island and during the course of decades, he built them. As the years progressed from the 1930's through the 1950's, Robert Moses' power within New York City grew to the point he was one of the most powerful men in the city. The only problem was - he was not an ELECTED official - he had been appointed to his positions of power, and was free to step down at any time - a move he threated to several New York City Mayors during those decades whenever he thought it was a good power play to do so. Of course he never stepped down until much later in his career. After he helped shape and re-shape the entire city.

The grand builder of parks and bridges might have gone to his grave a well respected man of influence and power and accomplishment (and actually, he did, it was just "tarnished" a bit) had he not overreached and pushed his way into another area of urban development - the Title I programs of the 1950's and 60's. These were the great "Urban Renewal" programs - or "Slum Clearance" programs as they were more commonly known. Moses found himself (more accurately WORKED himeslf) into a position as to be in charge of these programs, and thus their power and dollars as well, in New York City. He was holding up to 12 positions simultaneously in the city's power base elite - he was a mover and shaker - and a man who got things done. And people in New York knew this and loved him for it. But Title 1 and slum clearance programs and all that went wrong with these projects in New York during the 50's and 60's would, coupled with other public revalations of how he conducted his business affairs and his seemingly rascist but hidden from public views and considerations towards urban development, would eventually, along with a few other catestrophic career mis-steps, help to undermine Robert Moses' power base, eventually stripping him of all the power he'd assumed through a decades-long rise to it's upper eschelon. The New York City Press, the powerful newspapers in the city who helped make his legend publicly, would also have an equal hand in his eventual demise in public popularity.

This book is not light reading by any means and may be a bit overwhelming for some readers. But for anyone seriously interested in the history of New York City, especially early-mid 20th century happenings, this is essential reading. It is not a stretch to say that Robert Moses helped shape the physical body of New York City during his decades in power. This book details how that happened: His slow, consistent and often ruthless rise to power through his dealings with government officials at all levels. Reading this book you will learn details of local New York City government, New York State government and U.S. government, as all three entities combined help to run the city, and Moses manuevered through all three levels, often at will, through the use of his connections and power, to accomplish his goals, making political allies and not a few political enemies along the way. These were often times complicated dealings and author Caro's detailing of them is exhaustive. By the time you finish this book you will have a much greater understanding of "how things got done" in 20th-century New York City. Things often times got done...or didn't get done...because Robert Moses said they would...or would not. It was, for many, many years, as simple...and as complicated...as that. The book, one of the best I've ever read, details why and how that came to be. "The Power Borker" is not for everybody, but a for those who crave an ever-more complete understanding of New York City history, this is one of the key pieces of that history that you will ever read. Highly, highly recomended reading.