{"product_id":"van-dyke-parks-song-cycle-by-richard-henderson-9780826429179","title":"Van Dyke Parks' Song Cycle","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePosing more riddles than the average sphinx, with its decipherable answers pointing somewhere dark, \u003cem\u003eSong Cycle\u003c\/em\u003e was anything but passive. I had already witnessed hippie bands playing with their backs to the hall, so the thought of late ‘60s musicians being interested in their audience struck me as a concept bordering on revolutionary.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe debut album from songwriter and pianist Van Dyke Parks, \u003cem\u003eSong Cycle\u003c\/em\u003e first appeared in 1968 on Warner Brothers Records. Its twelve songs led listeners through Joycean wordplay and sound collages to reveal messages of dissent and personal loss, at odds with Parks' buoyant, riotously eclectic music.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMonumentally ambitious and equally expensive, \u003cem\u003eSong Cycle\u003c\/em\u003e resembled a film - possibly \u003cem\u003eCitizen Kane\u003c\/em\u003e - more than the pop music of its day; like \u003cem\u003eKane\u003c\/em\u003e, Parks' masterwork was adored by critics yet all but ignored by paying customers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn his efforts to plumb the mysteries of this quixotic record and its subsequent fate, Richard Henderson interviews several of the key figures involved with \u003cem\u003eSong Cycle\u003c\/em\u003e, notably Parks himself and producer Lenny Waronker.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47461763809516,"sku":"9780826429179","price":21.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780826429179-van-dyke-parks-song-cycle.jpg?v=1774976591","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/products\/van-dyke-parks-song-cycle-by-richard-henderson-9780826429179","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}