Editorial Review
Jac Holzman witnessed a cultural transformation during the time he ran Elektra Records from 1950 to 1973. Follow the Music captures pivotal scenes of pop culture as Holzman saw them, from what happened backstage when Bob Dylan went electric to Jim Morrison's legendary shenanigans.
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Customer Reviews
A great read about the little record company that could 
2008-03-30
I bought this book for the CD. Most of the Elektra catalog is out of print and was never re-released on CD. The CD is great, though I would have liked more international folk music. There's only one foreign language song on the disc. The book itself turned out to be a very pleasant surprise. While I am only about one fifth of the way through it, I'm finding the story of Elektra Records fascinating. I didn't realize (or, more likely had forgotten - you know what they say about the 60s) how many big names in rock got their start there. A great read about the little record company that could.
great book 2008-01-21
Great book for those that enjoy the inner workings of a record label,its history and the people that made it happen.If you dig musicology this book is a must read.
Simply the best 2006-07-20
I have read my share of music industry books and this is by far the best one. And what is inspiring is that you do can make good business in this industry and still keep your integrity, just follow Jac Holzmann's example describe in this book. Awesome read!
Top Shelf 2006-06-27
One of the best books on the music industry I have ever read. When you read a book about a band or artist, or about an era in music or whatever, what you mostly want is to feel like you were there at the time these people were recording and gigging and just being bands. Follow the Music gives you a first-class seat in Elektra's offices, at its artists' concerts, in rehearsal spaces, in restaurants where biz wheeling and dealing is done . . . You come away knowing Jac Holzman underpaid his staffers and artists, but that he genuinely cared about the quality of music his label put out, and about artists' integrity. I wish there had been as much on Arthur Lee and Love as there is on the Doors, but then the Doors were Elektra's biggest-selling act, so I guess it makes sense that they get the most ink in the book. I also didn't like the way the sections on the MC5 and the Stooges - two of the most important bands in the history of rock - are so short, while the one on Carly Simon is so long. But that's because I like the MC5, love the Stooges and wish Carly Simon would go away. But these are quibbles. I loved the book. How much did I love the book? I don't even like the Doors, save for 5 or 6 of their songs, yet I drank in every word about them, and went back and listened to their debut and L.A. Woman because the chapters on those two albums were so moving.
Worth the price for the CD! 2006-05-08
This is a must read for music fans! There is something for nearly everyone here: The story of the founding and growth of Elektra Records (how an energetic young man, Jac Holzman, with a few hundred dollars, good musical taste and a ton of ideas could actually start a thriving record company). The history of many early folk music performers such as Theodore Bikel, Judy Collins, Jean Richie and many others. The story of the creation of Nonesuch Records (a low-cost Classical division). The history of many Rock performers (including Jim Morrison of the Doors). There is even enough technical info about early recording, studio design and Dolby units to satisfy a tech geek (such as myself)! The image conjured up of a young Holzman setting out with a Magnacord P-6 recorder strapped to his Vespa scooter, to record folk music performances in NYC really conveys the "shoestring" attributes of Elektra Records in the early days. At the other end of the scale, the design of studio "B" was perhaps representative of the "excesses " of the rock era.
The copy of this book that I got from Amazon included a "bonus" CD that contains many tracks of early Ekektra performers that have not been re-released on CD. To me, this CD was worth the price & the book was essentially "free"!
It is sad that only a few recordings from the early Elektra "folk period" have been re-issued on CD. This situation is starting to improve, (see my other reviews for some early Elektra folk "gems" that I have found on CD).
Lovely telling of Elektra and the '60s music industry 2005-04-29
Jac Holzman witnessed a cultural transformation during the time he ran Elektra Records from 1950 to 1973. Follow the Music captures pivotal scenes of pop culture as Holzman saw them, from what happened backstage when Bob Dylan went electric to Jim Morrison's legendary shenanigans.
Journey of 1000 miles begins with a step 2003-04-28
Once, in the MUSIC business, there were men and women in charge of labels who, with a combination of passion about great music,
and just the right amount of business acumen, were able to nurture the explosion of musical creativity in the 60s. Jac Holzman is just such a person.
The exciting and interesting story of Elektra records is told using an oral history approach; illuminating the story with a fascile balance of viewpoint.
I had never heard the full story of how Love and then, The Doors,
became labelmates at Elektra. There were moments in the telling of that particular story where I felt that I could almost reach out and touch the participants.
FOLLOW THE MUSIC is an entertaining, engrossing, sometimes funny-sometimes tragic account of one of the titans of American music and his lovechild; whose ability to follow his dream to it's fruition has enriched us all. Oh, if we could all be so blessed.
The recent failure of the modern music industry shows what happens when people who aren't committed to music and creativity are in positions of authority. Everything suffers; most of all, the music.
You must read this book 2001-05-06
Jac Holzman has given us a gift with this book, right down to the paper he chose himeself to print it on. If you have any interest in the history of recorded music, the music business, and why we listen to the music we enjoy today, you absolutely must read this book. It's not only a fascinating account of how a major record label came to be, it's a fantastic insight into what goes on behind the scenes in the very quirky world of music business. If you love music and cherish the sounds of the fifties and sixties, from folk to blues, rock to psychedelia, and you haven't read this music giant's first hand account of making so much of it happen for you, you're doing yourself a major disservice. Thank you Jac and Gavan!
Lovingly Crafted 2001-01-18
I won't natter on about how great this book is: it is. The reminiscences are superb and the edition I purchased offered up a bonus CD with Elektra's pre-rock music on it that was absolutely first-rate! If there is a complaint here, it's that Holzman's left music fans high and dry by reissuing very little of Elektra's lustrous past onto CDs. I, for one, would love to hear the albums on display in Follow The Music. Cynthia Gooding, Fred Neil, Judy Henske, The Holy Modal Rounders, Ed McCurdy, Josh White, Don Nix & The Alabama State Troupers...all lovingly recalled yet without any CD reissues to enthrall a new generation. Please Mr. Holzman, if you ever read this, consider reissuing the albums that made Elektra a first rate innovator... That said, this book is a superb read and a joy to "get lost in".
The Story of Elektra Records 2000-11-09
Legendary music business figure Jac Holzman's historical account "Follow The Music: The Life and High Times of Elektra Records In The Great Years Of American Pop Culture," is newly released in paperback to coincide with Elektra's 50th anniversary. The new edition contains a CD featuring 26 pre-rock Elektra recording artists. Part social history, part secret diary, 'Follow The Music' is a marvelous history that chornicles popular culture from the folk era to The Doors, Carly Simon and Queen. Holzman founded the acclaimed record company at age 19 on $600 and turned it into one of the most important labels of all time. The stories of it's development are often wild and sometimes poingnant with insider anecdotes that are heartwarming, shocking and funny. It chronicles the modern recording industry when times were good and people had fun.
