Wild Thing: The Backstage- on the Road- in the Studio- Off the Charts: Memoirs of Ian Copeland

The promoter who worked with Squeeze, R.E.M., and other bands recounts his youth in Syria as the son of a CIA agent, his experiences in the music business, and his relationship with Sting and other performers. 25,000 first printing.

Full of harrowing adventures and wild misadventures, this extraordinary autobiographical memoir by one of the most influential rock music agents is an inspirational tale for success-seekers in any field. Copeland was born in 1949 in Syria, where his Alabama-born father was the CIA station chief in Damascus and his Scottish ex-spy mother a noted archeologist. Growing up in Cairo, Beirut and London, he rebelled against his largely absent father (who helped orchestrate coups that brought Egypt's Gamal Adbel Nasser and Iran's Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi to power) and against an insular world of privilege. He joined a motorcycle gang, ran away from home and returned. In 1967, he joined the U.S. Army. A sergeant at 19, he tripped once on LSD while fighting the Vietcong. Moving to the U.S. in 1970, he became a hippie and joined antiwar protests with other Vietnam veterans. Influenced by his younger brother Stewart, a songwriter/drummer/agent who formed The Police with Sting, and older brother Miles, owner of IRS Records, Copeland eventually formed his own agency, Frontier Booking International (FBI), signing on tour a stellar array of clients that included R.E.M., Joan Jett, The Police, XTC, the B-52s, the Ramones, the Cure, the Sex Pistols and the Go-Go's, among other bands. Copeland helped launch reggae by booking UB40, Peter Tosh and Black Uhuru, and he signed on Christian rockers such as Amy Grant. Offering a front-row seat to the birth of new wave and punk, his savvy, deadpan narrative is also a moving record of self-discovery. Author tour.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Copeland, music agent extraordinaire, provides a lively account of his childhood and circuitous path into the music industry. Growing up in Beirut with brothers Miles (of IRS record label fame) and Stewart (drummer for the Police), Copeland lived a life few of us could dream up. His CIA-operative father and archaeologist mother were busy, busy people, and he mostly blew off school, hung out with the wrong crowd, and committed various and numerous crimes. He ran away to London, but ended up joining the U.S. Army, where he volunteered for Vietnam, earned a few medals, and in the end protested the war on the steps of the Capitol. From there, Copeland hung on, drifted, hung out, and played hippie, until brother Miles offered the opportunity that sent Copeland on to discover such bands as the B52s, the Clash, REM, XTC, and Squeeze. This page-turning tale will be of interest to MTV addicts and anyone even remotely interested in the alternative music industry. Kathy Broderick

The author, a well-known booking agent for rock acts, presents an engaging memoir. Born in Syria amid a coup engineered by his father, a CIA agent, Copeland recounts his exotic childhood in the Middle East and his rebellious teens. After a decorated stint in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, he became a struggling booking agent in England and the United States. In the last half of the book, the author recounts his steady rise as a punk/new wave/reggae agent, detailing his initial major success with the first U.S. tour of the Police, which included his brother, Stewart, on drums and which was managed by his brother, Miles, who later founded I.R.S. Records; his work with such groups as R.E.M., the Go-Gos, and the Ramones; and the establishment of his Frontier Booking International. In addition to providing an interesting perspective on rock'n'roll, Copeland offers a compelling account of his colorful life at midpoint. Recommended to general readers and rock aficionados.?David Szatmary, Univ. of Washington, Seattle
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.