For All the Writer's Complexity, He Does a Wonderful Job Providing
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did Isolation”: “When translating the biting humor of Warren Zevon’s the- oretical anthropophobia into a literal construct …” He then explains the BOOK genesis of the term “splendid isola- tion” in a historical sense, with a few intensely detail-heavy paragraphs about mid-late 1800’s European pol- itics, concluding with this humding- REVIEW er: “If Britain were a man, it might be an anachronistic figure swallowed up by the times that threaten to leave him obsolete.” Thankfully, the entire ACCIDENTALLY LIKE A MARTYR: THE book isn’t quite so cumbersome, but TORTURED ART OF WARREN ZEVON there are enough scholarly side roads BY JAMES CAMPION and dense writing to make even the (BACKBEAT BOOKS) most sophisticated reader stop, re- wind, and re-read numerous pages, paragraphs and even entire chapters to unpack the erudite word-salad here have been a handful of books already Campion throws at us repeatedly. written documenting the life and career For all the writer’s complexity, he of late singer-songwriter Warren Zevon. does a wonderful job providing illu- This one is different. minating background information on TRather than just running down his life from Zevon such as the impact of William either a chronological or personal standpoint, Ford Gibson’s “Neuromancer” on the author James Campion chooses 10 songs and Transverse City album, one of the art- three albums — divided by a chapter each The popularity that peaked early with 1978’s ist’s most misunderstood and unsuc- — he feels best encompass the mindset and Excitable Boy, his second major label release, cessful discs, and discussing Zevon’s love of “tortured art” that make Zevon’s work so ex- enabled those impulses. And even though classical music. Zevon was classically trained ceptional. It’s a unique and somewhat unusu- there were plenty of superb albums that fol- and friends thought his goal was to someday al approach. Campion uses that structure to lowed, unpredictable live shows, unscrupulous write a symphony, something only hinted examine not only each of Zevon’s 13 albums, record deals and Zevon’s own inconsistency at in short interludes included on Bad Luck but the personal, political and business cir- resulted in a downward commercial spiral he Streak In Dancing School. Campion enlightens cumstances that impacted and instigated their never broke out of. Zevon’s lung cancer was us on Zevon’s appreciation of writers such as creation. diagnosed in the fall of 2002, and took its toll Norman Mailer, Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Over three years Campion interviewed 22 a year later, but not before the completion of Hammett and F. Scott Fitzgerald, and how individuals close to the artist — everyone his final statement, The Wind, which appeared their words, characters and vistas influenced from his grown children and a month before his death. It ulti- his lyrics. ex-wife Crystal (who has her mately nabbed him two posthu- One of the most provocative chapters dis- own narrative about Zevon’s For all the mous Grammy awards. cusses and dissects “Studebaker,” a raw ballad life, 2008’s I’ll Sleep When For Zevon newcomers, it Zevon never even put on an album (it appears I’m Dead: The Dirty Life And writer’s won’t take long to grasp his in rough demo form on the posthumous Pre- Times Of Warren Zevon), complexity, he pitch-black sense of humor. ludes: Rare And Unreleased Recordings). This band members Waddy Wach- It’s evident in “Werewolves Of allows Campion to explore the artist’s child- tel and David Landau, along does a wonderful London,” incorrectly pegged as hood, his affection for piano and the fractious with collaborators Jackson job providing a novelty, when he sings, “I saw relationship with his dysfunctional parents. Browne, J.D. Souther and a werewolf drinkin’ a piña cola- Occasionally, the author gets overly mud- Jorge Calderon — to provide illuminating da at Trader Vic’s/ His hair was dled with his references and wanders too far a vivid, warts-and-all-portrait perfect,” or in “Excitable Boy”’s chasing down oblique symbolism in the songs. of a multifaceted individual background serial killer protagonist who But overall, this is a fascinating methodolo- other legendary artists such information on “rubbed the pot roast all over his gy to understanding and explaining Warren Guitars From as Dylan and Springsteen chest.” In that way he shared a Zevon’s considerable mystique and generally considered a peer. Zevon. wry lyrical sensibility with Ran- underappreciated talent. The book not only As with many gifted in- dy Newman, also known for his sends readers back to the music, but will make dividuals, Zevon’s darker sly, supple way with words and them appreciate specifics, creative qualities the True South demons — alcoholism, excessive drug use, a irony. and lyrical complexities they might not have sexual appetite some called an addiction, a It’s only 241 pages, but Campion’s tome noticed. predilection for firearms and an inability to is not a fast or breezy read. On the contrary, Like its challenging subject, Accidentally show affection to loved ones, among other is- he digs deep into both his subject and the Like A Martyr is an elaborate, sometimes diffi- sues — combined to create a self-destructive songs/albums, taking detours and spitting out cult yet always rewarding work, well worth the streak that negatively affected his friends, fam- head-scratching sentences such as the begin- time and effort it takes to absorb all its intrica- ily, fellow musicians and ultimately his career. ning of this one in the chapter about “Splen- cies. — HAL HOROWITZ JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2019 AMERICAN SONGWRITER 23 .