Hickory Wind - the Life And Times Of Gram Parsons - Ben Fong-Torres

Published 10/12/20

This compelling portrait of Gram Parsons superbly evokes the tumultuous musical era that he worked in, his personal mystique and, above all, the magic of his music – and is the only Gram biography to adequately explain why the legend lives on. This is a new edition – including a new epilogue from the author – of a work that is rightly regarded as a classic of its kind.

Blessed with fabulous riches, charisma, good looks, a wealth of music business contacts and a unique songwriting gift, Gram Parsons still somehow ended his life overdosing in a motel, his charred remains scattered in the desert and his music virtually unknown. However, nearly 50 years on from his untimely demise, the man, the myth and the music endure. Ben Fong-Torres’s Hickory Wind is the landmark biography of perhaps the greatest enigma in American music, combining meticulous research, perceptive criticism and key testimony from Gram’s contemporaries – including Chris Hillman, Emmylou Harris and Keith Richards.

‘Gram redefined the possibilities of country music for me. If he had lived he probably would have redefined it for everybody.’ – Keith Richards

‘Of all the unsung heroes of rock ‘n’ roll, few are more fascinating than Gram Parsons. Hickory Wind is an unforgettable tale.’ – Timothy White, Billboard

‘Hickory Wind is one of the most compelling tales ever about popular music and culture.’ – Chet Flippo

About the author:

Ben Fong-Torres himself is one of the defining figures in rock journalism, writing, editing and running Rolling Stone‘s music section in its golden age during the 60s and 70s. Still a major force in rock writing, Ben Fong-Torres lives and works in San Francisco. His own life and times are to be celebrated in the epic documentary, Like A Rolling Stone, which is due out next year. In Hickory Wind he has created a fitting memorial to a mercurial talent whom we lost too soon.

251 pages

Softback