Book Review: Corn Flakes with John Lennon and Other Tales from a Rock N' Roll Life
@U2,
December 27, 2009
By: Tassoula E. Kokkoris
 Robert Hilburn doesn't seem like the type of man who would write about music for a living. The former Los Angeles Times music critic and editor has both the wonder of a genuine fan and the skill of a contemporary author. Unlike other music journalists, he doesn't appear to have ever wanted the spotlight for himself, nor does he seek out scandal for the sake of a good story. He simply has an inherent gift for choosing subjects who will write their own story, then cultivates meaningful connections with them until his assignments are complete.
That gift led him to pay special attention to a band who played the LA Country Club in March of 1981. They were a little-known Irish foursome with a passionate lead singer: U2. Hilburn talks about this first encounter with the band in his new book Corn Flakes with John Lennon and Other Tales from a Rock N' Roll Life, which features an introduction by Bono.
A few days after seeing that 1981 show, Hilburn made friends with Bono by taking him to his first American drive-in restaurant -- Bob's Big Boy -- where the writer struggled to keep the front man talking about U2. Really, Bono was more interested in hearing about the journalist's experiences with other musicians and American pop culture than waxing poetic about his own band. My, how times have changed.
But Bono (as usual) was on to something: letting this man do the talking. In this career-spanning book, Hilburn shares 35 years of memories, occasions and conversations with the most notable music figures of our time. Bob Dylan fans will love the book for his relentless pursuit of straight answers about songwriting; Beatles fans will be envious of his famliy-like ties to John Lennon and Yoko Ono. And of course, anyone who favors Johnny Cash will marvel at the risk Hilburn took, both personally and professionally, to accompany the singer to his landmark Folsom Prison concert. This man was everywhere, and this book helps us realize how profound his effect was on the music industry. After all, he is credited with helping launch Elton John's career in the U.S. and putting an end to Bono's dangerous scaffold-climbing at early U2 shows.
But the first years of U2 aren't his only references to the band in Corn Flakes. He also speaks about their amazing Live Aid performance, his time spent with them during The Joshua Tree tour and a lunch he shared with Bono after How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb was released. He always had faith in their talent, but from the perspective in which he writes, you get the sense that he took on the role of a cautious older brother in addition to journalist. He wasn't afraid to verbalize his worries about Bono spreading himself too thin or politics playing too prominent of a role in U2, and the band seemed to respect him all the more for it.
Perhaps his gentle demeanor helped him succeed all those years. Though at times in the book he regrettably admits to choosing job over family, Hillburn's hard work at establishing trust with musicians made him a better journalist. He approached his subjects with a calm persistence that paid off time and time again, though he never sugar-coated his reviews. He seamlessly progressed from old-fashioned Elvis rock 'n' roll to the punk of the Sex Pistols, and was right at home in Kurt Cobain's Seattle grunge scene. Now he's left his job at the newspaper to write books, and Corn Flakes is the first.
If they're all this sincerely transparent and alive with music history, we can only hope there will be many more to follow.
© @U2/Kokkoris, 2009.
Corn Flakes with John Lennon and Other tales from a Rock N' Roll Life is published by Rodale, Inc. and available in stores now ($24.99 list price).
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