Tag Archives: Lester Bangs

“Here I was, stuck in the middle of a dying nation with all these funny looking children who didn’t even realize the world was coming to an end, and now on top of everything else they expected me to turn my room into a hippie crash pad!” — Lester Bangs

It’s his birthday today. A lot of ink has been spilled on Lester Bangs, including on this site. My feelings for him are as chaotic as his writing style. There are times I read him and I think, almost wildly, … Continue reading

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R.I.P. Village Voice

It’s a sad sad day. Not just for my friends who just got laid off, but for New York, for all of us. We are ALL the poorer when something like this happens. But to New Yorkers … to writers … Continue reading

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Dynamic Duo #15

Debbie Harry and Lester Bangs, Coney Island, 1976

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Bookshelf Tour #10

An extremely dog-eared section of my library. These books are rarely on the shelf since I dip into them so often. — The mighty Joan Acocella, dance critic for The New Yorker, but also so much more. Her dance writing … Continue reading

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Saying Good-Bye to Elvis

Graceland at sunset, 2013, on Elvis’ birthday. Taken by yours truly. Where Were You When Elvis Died? by Lester Bangs The Village Voice, 29 August 1977 Where were you when Elvis died? What were you doing and what did it … Continue reading

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Lester Bangs on Fear, Ghosts, and Nico

There are times when his writing absolutely floors me. Here is an excerpt from his essay “Your Shadow Is Scared of You: An Attempt Not to Be Frightened by Nico” (my essay ABOUT that essay here), included in the collection … Continue reading

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Year in Review: Shooting My Mouth Off in 2014

I may write some magnum opus in the next two days, you never know, but here are links to some of the things I’ve written in 2014, here and elsewhere. I have worked hard to keep my site an eclectic … Continue reading

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The Books: Mainlines, Blood Feasts, and Bad Taste: A Lester Bangs Reader; “Bring Your Mother to the Gas Chamber!”, by Lester Bangs

Next up on the essays shelf: Main Lines, Blood Feasts, and Bad Taste: A Lester Bangs Reader, by Lester Bangs In 1972, Lester Bangs went to a Black Sabbath show in Detroit, to soak up the vibe, observe the fans, … Continue reading

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The Books: Mainlines, Blood Feasts, and Bad Taste: A Lester Bangs Reader; “Your Shadow Is Scared of You: An Attempt Not to Be Frightened by Nico”, by Lester Bangs

Next up on the essays shelf: Main Lines, Blood Feasts, and Bad Taste: A Lester Bangs Reader, by Lester Bangs A gorgeous and crazy piece about Nico’s album The Marble Index. I am a huge Nico fan, and so is … Continue reading

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The Books: Mainlines, Blood Feasts, and Bad Taste: A Lester Bangs Reader; “Kind of Grim: Unraveling the Miles Perplex”, by Lester Bangs

Next up on the essays shelf: Main Lines, Blood Feasts, and Bad Taste: A Lester Bangs Reader, by Lester Bangs In high school, Lester Bangs wasn’t into rock ‘n’ roll. Or so he says. He was a jazz man, almost … Continue reading

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