Author Talk: 'The Rolling Stones: The Biography' by Award-Winning Biographer Bob Spitz

Event Details

The world's greatest rock 'n' roll band. One of music's definitive biographers. One unforgettable conversation.

Embark on a rock 'n' roll journey with award-winning author Bob Spitz as he presents his highly anticipated book, The Rolling Stones: The Biography, deep-diving into one of the most influential bands in music history. Joined in conversation by former Rolling Stone writer Alec Foege, the two will explore music, fame, and the enduring power of one of pop culture's most fascinating partnerships.

Books will be available for purchase and signing at the event.

Why You Should Come

Bob Spitz has brought his indefatigable energy and five decades of experience in the fields and hollows of rock ‘n’ roll to bear on his five-year journey to reexamine one of popular music’s greatest stories. From sold-out stadiums and cultural revolutions to creative triumphs and personal turmoil, The Rolling Stones: The Biography offers a fresh look at a story many thought they already knew.

If you've ever wondered how legends are made — and what keeps them from fading — this is a conversation you won't want to miss.

About The Rolling Stones: The Biography

All great music is a threat.

What left is there to say about The Rolling Stones? A hell of a lot, it turns out.

There are myriad revisions to the conventional narrative which underscore just how in control of that narrative the band has been up to now—small example: no, Muddy Waters was not mopping the floors at Chess Records when the Stones showed up. But in a larger sense, as with the Beatles and Led Zeppelin, Spitz’s greatest gift is for the big picture. He knows where the magic is, and why it is. He is as clear-eyed a connoisseur of the show business, the spectacle and the collateral damage of this whirlwind as anyone alive, and that lucid gaze pierces a lot of incrusted bullshit, but the ultimate goal is to connect with a creative force whose power shows no signs of fading, over sixty years on.

At its heart the story is about two boys, Mick and Keith, and their unique, fraught, alchemical bond, often tested, never sundered. The Glimmer Twins. The bandmates, like Charlie Watts, who found their groove in relation to this double star made the trip intact, while those who struggled, like Brian Jones and Mick Taylor, were chewed up and spit out. This is a story with many dark corners, including a surprising number of deaths. But whether Jagger and Richards sold their souls to the devil is at the crossroads for blues greatness or just squeezed their heroes for every drop of inspiration, in the end their connection to their music and to each other put them in a category of one, where they very much remain.

About the Speakers

Bob Spitz is the award-winning author of the biographies Dearie: The Remarkable Life of Julia Child and The Beatles, both New York Times bestsellers, as well as seven other nonfiction books and a screenplay. He helped manage Bruce Springsteen and Elton John at crucial points in their careers. He’s written hundreds of major profiles of figures, ranging from Keith Richards to Jane Fonda, from Paul McCartney to Paul Bowles.

Alec Foege is a former writer and editor for Rolling Stone, Spin, and People. He is the author of four books, including Confusion Is Next: The Sonic Youth Story. A longtime resident of Westport, he is currently working on a novel.