Peter Guralnick

Peter Guralnick (born December 15, 1943, in Boston, Massachusetts) is an American music critic, writer on music, and historian of US American popular music, who is also active as an author and screenwriter.

Guralnick's first two books, Almost Grown (1964) and Mister Downchild (1967), were short story collections published by Larry Stark, whose small press in Cambridge, Larry Stark Press, was devoted to stories and poems. Mona Dickson, writing in MIT's The Tech (May 13, 1964) gave Almost Grown a favorable review.

After Guralnick graduated from Boston University in 1971 with a master's degree in creative writing, he began writing books chronicling the history of blues, country, rock and roll and soul.

His two-volume biography of Elvis Presley, Last Train to Memphis in 1994, followed by Careless Love in 1999, placed the story of Presley's career into a rise and fall arc. Encompassing more than 1,300 pages (including 1,150 pages of text), the work was preceded by Presley's first biography by Jerry Hopkins in two important volumes,"Elvis" in 1971 and "Elvis: The Final Years" in 1980 and countered earlier biographies such as Albert Goldman's Elvis from 1981, with an in-depth, scholarly examination of Presley's life and music. Guralnick had previously written on Presley in the The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock & Roll, starting with the first edition in 1976, said article having been reprinted for each subsequent edition. He also contributed the complete text for the 240-page hardcover book featured in the 2010 30-disc CD boxed set, The Complete Elvis Presley Masters.

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Larry Stark Press published Peter Guralnick's second book in 1967. A first edition is currently valued at $200.

In contrast to contemporaries such as Lester Bangs, Ian Penman and Nick Tosches, whose music writings are marked by idiosyncratic, self-referential and highly personal styles, Guralnick's writing is characterized by a colloquial approach that is clean and understated by comparison. In his best passages, he has an ability to simultaneously empathize and remain objective. Writing as a music fan, his enthusiasm powers his writing but doesn't overpower it.

Guralnick wrote the script for A&E's documentary, Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock 'n' Roll, narrated by Billy Bob Thornton, and he also scripted Sam Cooke - Legend, narrated by Jeffrey Wright.

He has also written liner notes for albums. Notable ones are Charlie Rich's last album Pictures and Paintings and the last three Jerry Lee Lewis albums Last Man Standing, Mean Old Man and Rock and Roll Time.

Personal life

In 1971, he succeeded his grandfather as director of an athletic camp for boys, Camp Alton. It was located on Lake Winnipesaukee in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire. The camp closed in 1992. He has been married for over 45 years to Alexandra. He has a son and daughter, Jacob and Nina.

Books

• Peter Guralnick (1964). Almost Grown. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Larry Stark Press.
• Peter Guralnick (1967). Mister Downchild. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Larry Stark Press.
• Reprinted 1999. ISBN 0-316-33272-0
• Peter Guralnick (1982). The Listener's Guide to The Blues. New York: Facts on File, Inc.

Interviews

• "An Interview with Peter Guralnick" by Griffin Ondaatje and Craig Proctor, Brick: A Literary Journal, Issue 62, Spring 1999.
• "Caught in a Trap" at the Wayback Machine (archived May 28, 2001). Peter S. Sholtes interviews Peter Guralnick. City Pages Media, January 13, 1999. Archived from the original, 2001-05-26.
• Music Historian Peter Guralnick — Serious Jibber Jabber with Conan O'Brien (May'13?) discuss PG's 1994 book Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley [2]

External links

• For Guralnick, birthday bash starts the Elvis bandwagon rolling By Clarissa Sansone, March 2002. Country Standard Time. Guralnick at SXSW.
• Authors: Peter Guralnick at the Wayback Machine (archived February 12, 2002). Time Warner Bookmark. Archived from the original 2002-02-12.
• "Elvis Presley: Baby What You Want Me To Do". By Robert Baird, May 2000. Stereophile (magazine).
• Camp Alton - Official website
• Peter Guralnick Collection, Southern Folklife Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill