My Name Is Love
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4.3 • 12 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Featured in the film Twenty Feet From Stardom, the woman whose voice the New York Times said "is as embedded in the history of rock 'n' roll as Eric Clapton's guitar and Bob Dylan's lyrics" tells her story
Right out of high school, Darlene Love began singing lead vocals for legendary producer Phil Spector, cutting such classic hits as the number one "He's a Rebel," "Da Doo Ron Ron," and "He's Sure the Boy I Love." As part of the girl group the Blossoms, she held a regular spot on television's Shindig!, and with Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans she toured the country.
Later, she sang backup—and collected numerous scintillating backstage stories—with, among others, Dionne Warwick, the Mamas and the Papas, and Sonny and Cher. Now in My Name Is Love, Darlene is ready to tell her tales about Elvis coming on to her backstage during his famous '68 Comeback Special, about wild parties she witnessed at Tom Jones's house, and about her love affair with Bill Medley of the Righteous Brothers. She also recalls how she found herself cleaning houses in Beverly Hills, heard herself on the radio, and vowed to make a comeback. That comeback has included roles in all of the Lethal Weapon movies, starring roles on Broadway, and headlining concert appearances worldwide.
A dishy, behind-the-scenes showbiz memoir, My Name Is Love is also the inspiring story of a woman who refused to give up.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
After singing lead vocal on the number one single "He's a Rebel," in 1962 (recorded under the name the Crystals), 21-year-old Love hoped that her producer, Phil Spector, would nurse her talent into stardom. Unfortunately for Love, Spector believed vocals were just one more cog in his musical Wall of Sound. Although she sang classics like "Today I Met the Boy I'm Going to Marry" and "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)," by 1964 Love was well on her way to becoming "the most overqualified backup singer in the business." Hers is a sassy tale of a revered industry survivor who has watched contemporaries such as Tina, Aretha and Cher score comebacks while she sings backup for them. After 30 lucrative years literally singing in the background, she hoped for a revival of her own. Considered a relic in her 40s, she had to resort to cleaning houses to pay the rent. Cruise-ship gigs and a couple of failed musicals (Leader of the Pack and Carrie) brought her attention but no recording contract. While a comeback still eludes the singer, her story has a happy ending: in 1997, a New York jury awarded her $263,000 in back royalties from Spector. Years of touring with Dionne Warwick ("always a patsy for the tea-leaf readers of the world") and Tom Jones ("the conveyor belt to his room) offer her a cavalcade of stars to dissect, dote on or skewer in illuminating, entertaining portraits. Her sardonic observations border on the hilarious. Love is not afraid to speak her mind, and co-author Rob Hoerburger has polished those anecdotes to perfection. Photos not seen by PW.
Customer Reviews
A Fascinating, Insider's View of Rock'n Roll
I have Darlene Love's single "He's a Rebel" on my Favorites Playlist on my iPod, my copy purchased from iTunes. How ironic that the man who cheated Darlene and ruined her chances for stardom in the '60s and '70s appears on the virtual cover of that downloaded song: Phil Specter. He denied her the right to have her name on that song and 50 years later he sits in prison a convicted murderer but his ugly mug is still taking credit for Darlene's beautiful voice.
This is an eye-opening story of the greed in the music industry and how Darlene persevered and has earned the recognition denied her so many years ago.
You have to love Darlene love
Great book by one music most under rated artist I loved reading this book