Hollywood Eden: Rock ’n’ Roll and the Myth of the California Dream
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- Create Date：2021-06-02 10:54:37
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Joel Selvin
- ISBN：1487007213
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Summary
From the Beach Boys and Jan & Dean to the Byrds and the Mamas & the Papas， acclaimed music journalist Joel Selvin tells the story of a group of young artists and musicians who came together at the dawn of the 1960s to create the lasting myth of the California dream。
From surf music to hot-rod records to the sunny pop of the Beach Boys and the Mamas & the Papas， Hollywood Eden captures the fresh blossom of a young generation who came together in the epic spring of the 1960s to invent the myth of the California Paradise。 Central to the story is a group of sun-kissed teens from the University High School class of 1959 — a class that included Jan & Dean， Nancy Sinatra， and future members of the Beach Boys — who came of age in Los Angeles at the dawn of a new golden era when anything seemed possible。 These were the people who created the idea of modern California for the rest of the world。 From the Beach Boys’ “California Girls” to the Mamas & the Papas’ “California Dreamin’，” they crafted an image of the West Coast as the promised land — a sun-dappled vision of an idyllic life in the sand and surf。
But their own private struggles belied the paradise portrayed in their music。 What began as a light-hearted frolic under sunny skies ended up crashing down to earth just a few short but action-packed years later， as， one by one， each met their destinies head-on。 Compelling， evocative， and ultimately tragic， Hollywood Eden travels far beyond the music into the desires of the human heart and the price of living out a dream。 A rock ’n’ roll opera loaded with violence， deceit， intrigue， low comedy， and high drama， it tells the story of a group of young artists and musicians who bumped heads， crashed cars， and ultimately flew too close to the sun。
From surf music to hot-rod records to the sunny pop of the Beach Boys and the Mamas & the Papas， Hollywood Eden captures the fresh blossom of a young generation who came together in the epic spring of the 1960s to invent the myth of the California Paradise。 Central to the story is a group of sun-kissed teens from the University High School class of 1959 — a class that included Jan & Dean， Nancy Sinatra， and future members of the Beach Boys — who came of age in Los Angeles at the dawn of a new golden era when anything seemed possible。 These were the people who created the idea of modern California for the rest of the world。 From the Beach Boys’ “California Girls” to the Mamas & the Papas’ “California Dreamin’，” they crafted an image of the West Coast as the promised land — a sun-dappled vision of an idyllic life in the sand and surf。
But their own private struggles belied the paradise portrayed in their music。 What began as a light-hearted frolic under sunny skies ended up crashing down to earth just a few short but action-packed years later， as， one by one， each met their destinies head-on。 Compelling， evocative， and ultimately tragic， Hollywood Eden travels far beyond the music into the desires of the human heart and the price of living out a dream。 A rock ’n’ roll opera loaded with violence， deceit， intrigue， low comedy， and high drama， it tells the story of a group of young artists and musicians who bumped heads， crashed cars， and ultimately flew too close to the sun。
Reviews
Mike
，
The book focuses on early LA pop breakthroughs: Jan & Dean， Beach Boys， Nancy Sinatra， Mamas & Papas and the people behind the scenes， such as Lou Adler， Kim Fowley， Phil Spector and others。 It read like a Jan & Dean biography that at some point was expanded to take in more of the times。 I wondered why it didn't include the Turtles， Byrds， Jackie DeShannon and so many others， but the stories and connections Selvin unearths are fascinating。 The book focuses on early LA pop breakthroughs: Jan & Dean， Beach Boys， Nancy Sinatra， Mamas & Papas and the people behind the scenes， such as Lou Adler， Kim Fowley， Phil Spector and others。 It read like a Jan & Dean biography that at some point was expanded to take in more of the times。 I wondered why it didn't include the Turtles， Byrds， Jackie DeShannon and so many others， but the stories and connections Selvin unearths are fascinating。 。。。more
Cooper Renner
，
Lots of interesting information， competently written。
Annie
，
I wanted to read the book based on the title - thinking it was about movies since I am a big cinema buff。 Instead it was about "homegrown" California artists and producers and I frankly couldn't put it down！ I was familiar with most of the artists mentioned but not all。 Author Joel Selvin does a meticulous job of researching personal and professional lives of the many artists including their high school days。 Even though I have read a lot about the Beach Boys， I felt like I learned new informati I wanted to read the book based on the title - thinking it was about movies since I am a big cinema buff。 Instead it was about "homegrown" California artists and producers and I frankly couldn't put it down！ I was familiar with most of the artists mentioned but not all。 Author Joel Selvin does a meticulous job of researching personal and professional lives of the many artists including their high school days。 Even though I have read a lot about the Beach Boys， I felt like I learned new information here。 He expertly weaves in information about Jan and Dean， Nancy Sinatra， Tommy Sands， the Mama and the Papas， Phil Spector， Lou Adler， and many more！ The information he shared was so interesting to me， I actually highlighted many of his sources so I can read more！A very enjoyable read！ 。。。more
Tosh
，
I always found Southern California to be a fascinating landscape。 One can do pretty much what they want to do if they have the talent， or perhaps even more critical， the skill of a hustler。 Joel Selvin's "Hollywood Eden" is a collection of tales I know of。 Still， now they are clearly explained to the reader。 Being a citizen of Los Angeles， I knew the existence of Jan and Dean and aware of them as an essential presence in the California myth， which I think is true， by the way。 The weather is a hu I always found Southern California to be a fascinating landscape。 One can do pretty much what they want to do if they have the talent， or perhaps even more critical， the skill of a hustler。 Joel Selvin's "Hollywood Eden" is a collection of tales I know of。 Still， now they are clearly explained to the reader。 Being a citizen of Los Angeles， I knew the existence of Jan and Dean and aware of them as an essential presence in the California myth， which I think is true， by the way。 The weather is a huge aspect of living outdoors， and a car， especially in the 1950s and a touch of the 60s， fits perfectly well into the landscape。 Jan and Dean， especially the brains of the outfit， Jan Berry， had an instinct about the inside business of making music and records。 Jan， a Californian rich kid， used his family's garage as a recording studio where he experimented with sounds and singing。 His partner in crime， Dean Torrance， was symbolically a partner but fitted in the image of two guys sharing cars， the surf， and girls。 The book is a narrative that starts in 1958 and ends in 1966。 Besides Jan Berry， the other key figures in this tale of Californian hustle and art are Kim Fowley， Lou Adler， Nancy Sinatra， Terry Melcher （the son of Doris Day）， Bruce Johnson， The Mama and Papas， and of course， Brian Wilson。 Although Jan had the talent， good looks， and brains， he didn't have Brian's brilliance。 Jan inspired Brian， but the student （Brian） left the master （Jan） in the dust。 Kim Fowley had the talent to be in the right place and at the right time。 Beyond that， it was mostly luck that connected him to the outskirts of the music business。 Everyone knew him， but except Bruce Johnson， few admired or liked him。 Fowley， I think， fed on that resentment that led him to endless hours hustling people to make records or money。 For the pop fan， Fowley is famous mainly for managing and co-writing songs for The Runaways， but there is no mention of life after 1966 in this book。 I think the strength of "Hollywood Eden" in being focused on a specific time frame。 Everyone in this book can have a fascinating full biography。 Selvin is a skilled journalist and writer。 He knows how to tell the tale without losing himself or the reader with too much history or baggage。 It reads like a Southern California noir novel than anything else。 The details about the kidnapping of Frank Sinatra Jr are something that I never knew about。 Still， I had a faint impression that there was a Jan and Dean connection to the crime。 It seems Dean knew the kidnapper and was told about it， but he didn't believe it until it became apparent to him。 The Nancy Sinatra narrative is also of great interest in how she slowly emerges from being the daughter of Frank and becoming her own artist with the assistance of Lee Hazelwood。"Hollywood Eden" is very bittersweet because we know that some of these participants in the book did not have a happy future。 For example， there's no mention of the Manson Family problem that Melcher had， and like Fowley's Runaways， there is no need to bring it up in this book。 This is very much a page-turner for those who love the early Surf-Car-teenage pop of Southern California， but the characters themselves are solid and cinematic。 Not all of them are likable， but they did contribute something unique to Southern California's mix or cocktail。 A burst of bright sunshine with Noir's presence。 。。。more
Debra Pawlak
，
I received an advance reading copy （arc） of this book from NetGalley。com in return for a fair review。 'Hollywood Eden' tells the unique story of the 'surf sound' that evolved out of California in the late fifties and early sixties。 Author Joel Selvin introduces us to a group of musically-inclined kids who attend University High School。 Names like Phil Spector， Jan （Berry） and Dean （Torrance）， as well as Nancy Sinatra were all part of that musical scene。 Selvin even tells us about Kathy Kohner wh I received an advance reading copy （arc） of this book from NetGalley。com in return for a fair review。 'Hollywood Eden' tells the unique story of the 'surf sound' that evolved out of California in the late fifties and early sixties。 Author Joel Selvin introduces us to a group of musically-inclined kids who attend University High School。 Names like Phil Spector， Jan （Berry） and Dean （Torrance）， as well as Nancy Sinatra were all part of that musical scene。 Selvin even tells us about Kathy Kohner who was the real 'Gidget'。 He also goes on to discuss The Beach Boys， The Mamas and The Papas， and many more。 It wasn't all fun in the sun， however。 The Beach Boys had a cantankerous father to contend with; Jan started out with a partner named Arnie and when Arnie left， Dean stepped in， but when asked to change his name to 'Arnie'， he refused。 The Mamas and The Papas were originally a threesome--John and Michelle Phillips and Denny Doherty。 They needed a ride to their audition with recording executive Nik Venet。 Cass Elliott had a car so she drove them there and Venet decided that the trio should be a quartet。 There were setbacks， struggles， and a lot of hard work， but the music we have all come to love was worth it。 Classics like 'Little Old Lady from Pasadena'， 'Fun， Fun， Fun'， and 'California Dreamin'' still resonate， but the stories behind the songs are even more fascinating。 Selvin covered a lot of people and sometimes it was hard to keep track of who was who。 He also ended the book quite abruptly。 I would have liked to have known what ultimately happened to the key players。 Nonetheless， this is a great read for baby boomers or anyone interested in music history。 Oh and one more thing， if you are anything like me， give yourself some extra time to get through the book。 I kept stopping so I could visit YouTube and listen to the music。 You just can't keep a good song down！ 。。。more
Heather
，
The roots of 60s California rock and roll and how they shaped the times。 Many of these bands are an influence on modern alternative， punk， emo and it’s rarely acknowledged。
Cat
，
I remember these days chiefly through it's music and the wonderful musicians who wrote and played it。 I can recall all the little drama's that played out in the music industry， but had forgotten quite a few and Mr。 Selvin writes about others I'd never heard of or have forgotten。 California was the land of dreams， Utopia to many of us growing up elsewhere。 We dreamed of getting to the coast！ Of course， we all grew up and realized a lot was hype。 There was an ugly underbelly to the PR。 Still it wa I remember these days chiefly through it's music and the wonderful musicians who wrote and played it。 I can recall all the little drama's that played out in the music industry， but had forgotten quite a few and Mr。 Selvin writes about others I'd never heard of or have forgotten。 California was the land of dreams， Utopia to many of us growing up elsewhere。 We dreamed of getting to the coast！ Of course， we all grew up and realized a lot was hype。 There was an ugly underbelly to the PR。 Still it was a fun time; good memories。 Well researched and entertaining read。 Pairs nicely with Rock Me On the Water by Ronald Brownstein and Epix two-part doc Laurel Canyon It's been a depressing， anxious year， so these three were wonderful distractions while staying at home。 Love this book！ Kudos Joel Selvin！ For fans of the era， these would make a really fine gift for the holidays！I received a Kindle arc from Netgalley in exchange for a fair review。 。。。more
Tom
，
If you grew up listening to the music of the early to mid-1960s -- the Beach Boys， Nancy Sinatra， the Byrds， the Mama's and the Papa's， Jan and Dean， etc。 -- this book will be impossible to put down。 Selvin weaves together the stories of these artists and others who created the musical mythology of teen life in southern California。 Behind the exuberance of the music lurks sadness and tragedy， which makes "Hollywood Eden" such an affecting read。 If you grew up listening to the music of the early to mid-1960s -- the Beach Boys， Nancy Sinatra， the Byrds， the Mama's and the Papa's， Jan and Dean， etc。 -- this book will be impossible to put down。 Selvin weaves together the stories of these artists and others who created the musical mythology of teen life in southern California。 Behind the exuberance of the music lurks sadness and tragedy， which makes "Hollywood Eden" such an affecting read。 。。。more
Andrew
，