The Hurdy Gurdy Man

Leitch Donovan

ISBN 10: 0099487039 / ISBN 13: 9780099487036

Published by Random House, 2006

About this Item

Seller Inventory # 4212795

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Hurdy Gurdy Man
• Publisher: Random House
• Publication Date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0099487039
• ISBN 13: 9780099487036
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

Donovan''s autobiography charts his life from a post-war, Glaswegian childhood to the height of an international career as one of the leading figures of the 1960''s music scene.

Always feeling like an outsider he found relief through music and poetry. The book reveals how he came to be influenced by Buddhist teachings and the music of Woody Guthrie and Joan Baez. The book explores the significance of falling deeply in love with the woman who was to become his muse, and the profound sense of loss he felt when their relationship came to an end, and how the loss affected him both personally and creatively.

A leader of the folk revival in both Britain and America, the book recounts how he rose to be an international star, releasing songs such as Mellow Yellow and Catch the Wind, and his most successful album, Sunshine Superman. Donovan is acknowledged as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 1960''s.

The book provides a frank account of his early experiments with drugs and his search for self. He reveals the story of how he developed friendships with Baez, Dylan and the Beatles, with whom he a shared spiritual sojourn to meditate with the Maharishi in India. Donovan''s autobiography offers first-hand insights into his music and poetry, recollects his rise to fame and the way in which destiny was to play a hand by re-uniting him with the lost love of his life through a chance meeting.

About the Author

Born in Glasgow in 1946, Donovan Leitch is recognised as one of the most influential musicians to have emerged from the twentieth century. During the height of his career in the 1960's he wrote some of that generation's most memorable songs, with nine top ten records including Catch the Wind and Mellow Yellow. He is widely recognised as a founder of 'Flower Power' and travelled to India with The Beatles to meditate under the guidance of the Maharishi. He currently lives in Ireland with his wife Linda and continues to write poetry and music.