Cerphe's Up: A Musical Life with Bruce Springsteen, Little Feat, Frank Zappa, Tom Waits, CSNY, and Many More

by Cerphe Colwell, Stephen Moore

Overview

Cerphe’s Up is an incisive musical memoir by Cerphe Colwell, a renowned rock radio broadcaster for more than forty-five years in Washington, DC. Cerphe shares his life as a rock radio insider in rich detail and previously unpublished photographs. His story includes promotion and friendship with a young unknown Bruce Springsteen; his years at radio station WHFS 102.3 as it blossomed in a new freeform format; candid interviews with Little Feat’s Lowell George, Tom Waits, Nils Lofgren, Stevie Nicks, Crosby, Stills&Nash, Steven Van Zandt, Robert Plant, Danny Kortchmar, Seldom Scene’s John Duffey, and many others; hanging out with George Harrison, the Rolling Stones, Van Morrison, John Entwistle, Jackson Browne, and many more; testifying on Capitol Hill with friend Frank Zappa during the “Porn Rock” hearings; and managing the radio syndication of both G. Gordon Liddy and Howard Stern. Player listings and selected performances at legendary DC music clubs Childe Harold and Cellar Door are also chronicled.

Cerphe’s Up is both historically significant and a fun, revealing ride with some of the greatest rock-and-roll highfliers of the twentieth century. Cerphe’s Up belongs on the reading list of every rock fan, musician, and serious music scholar.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781631440533
Publisher:	Carrel Books
Publication date:	11/15/2016
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	NOOK Book
Pages:	296
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Cerphe Colwell began his career on WHFS 102.3 radio, one of the first freeform stations in the United States. Cerphe (pronounced “Surf”) helped promote the early careers of Bruce Springsteen, Lowell George, Tom Waits, Frank Zappa, and many other rock luminaries. Cerphe’s radio resume includes WAVA, DC101, WJFK, and current station Music Planet Radio. Cerphe lives in Leesburg, Virginia.

Stephen Moore has coauthored three books, Johnny Holliday: From Rock to Jock, Helen Hayes: A Bio-Bibliography, and Hoop Tales: Maryland Terrapins Men’s Basketball. A research technologist at Georgetown University, he plays in the Bethesda, Maryland, rock cover band The Razors.
Stephen Moore, a University of Maryland grad and Terrapins fan, is the director of advanced research computing with the Office of Information Services at Georgetown University. A member of the Writers Guild and a veteran rock musician with 30 years' experience on the Washington, DC music scene, he has written over 100 articles for various publications.

Table of Contents

Introduction vii

Chapter 1 Growing Up 1

Chapter 2 Graduation Day 13

Chapter 3 Childe Harold: Wild Billy's Circus 22

Chapter 4 Springsteen: Spirit in the Night 33

Chapter 5 Van Morrison: Astral Weeks 49

Chapter 6 Tea with George Harrison 55

Chapter 7 WHFS 102.3-Side One 65

Chapter 8 WHFS 102.3-Side Two 82

Chapter 9 Stevie Nicks: Silver Springs 98

Chapter 10 Lowell George: FEAT! 105

Chapter 11 Frank Zappa: Them or Us? 119

Chapter 12 Tom Waits: Glitter and Doom 136

Chapter 13 CSNY & Richie Furay 143

Chapter 14 Nils Lofgren: Believe 166

Chapter 15 Litde Steven: Wicked Cool 180

Chapter 16 Cellar Door Acts 189

Chapter 17 Jackson Browne and Kootch 212

Chapter 18 Life After WHFS 222

Chapter 19 Hall of Famers 236

Chapter 20 Our House 248

Chapter 21 Music Planet Radio 256

Acknowledgments 269

Appendix: Childe Harold Players 271

Index 274

Editorial Reviews

09/12/2016
Colwell’s memoir provides the distinctive perspective of a rock personality, but it ultimately fails to provide a full portrait of its author. Colwell focuses on the influence of rock music on his life, sharing his viewpoint of major events such as testifying along with Frank Zappa at the Parents Music Resource Center Senate hearings on obscenity in music. The book profiles several artists, including Bruce Springsteen, whom Colwell met after Springsteen’s first show in Washington, D.C., in 1973, and George Harrison, whom he met at a press party in 1976. It also contains interesting factoids gleaned from Colwell’s proximity to the D.C. press world. However, the memoir too often focuses on telling stories the reader probably already knows, and though Colwell interjects personal anecdotes in the midst of these straightforward profiles, he often relies on quotes from reviews or articles written at the time instead of his own voice. When he puts himself into the story, as when he discusses the introductions he used to do for Bruce Springsteen at live shows or his time at D.C., radio station WHFS 102.3, the narrative comes alive. The rest of the time, the overall arc of the memoir fails to emerge. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

Colwell’s memoir is pure fun and, for many, a joyful trip down musical memory lane.” –Booklist

“Colwell’s memoir provides the distinctive perspective of a rock personality. . . . When he puts himself into the story, as when he discusses the introductions he used to do for Bruce Springsteen at live shows or his time at D.C. radio station WHFS 102.3, the narrative comes alive.” —Publishers Weekly

"Like his voice, Cerphe’s book, written with Stephen Moore, is smooth and inviting." —John Kelly, Washington Post

“Somewhere in the 1960s, someone said ‘Let’s put some rock and roll music on FM.’ So there weren’t that many people listening, so not much pressure. The FM stations became very creative. You could play what you wanted and you could create an art form out of your own broadcast. Cerphe was involved in this.” –Frank Zappa

“I've been a fan of Cerphe for decades, as a friend and a musician. He's always searched for and shared great music with his radio listeners. I always appreciated Cerphe’s sharing my own music, too. I've enjoyed many colorful discussions with Cerphe through the years about the wonders of all types of inspired music, and believe we share a common belief that music is truly our planet's sacred weapon. I recommend his book to all music fans.” —Nils Lofgren, solo musician, member of the Rock Hall of Fame with the E Street Band

“Colwell’s memoir is pure fun and, for many, a joyful trip down musical memory lane.” –Booklist

“Colwell’s memoir provides the distinctive perspective of a rock personality. . . . When he puts himself into the story, as when he discusses the introductions he used to do for Bruce Springsteen at live shows or his time at D.C. radio station WHFS 102.3, the narrative comes alive.” —Publishers Weekly

"Like his voice, Cerphe’s book, written with Stephen Moore, is smooth and inviting." —John Kelly, Washington Post

“Somewhere in the 1960s, someone said ‘Let’s put some rock and roll music on FM.’ So there weren’t that many people listening, so not much pressure. The FM stations became very creative. You could play what you wanted and you could create an art form out of your own broadcast. Cerphe was involved in this.” –Frank Zappa

“I've been a fan of Cerphe for decades, as a friend and a musician. He's always searched for and shared great music with his radio listeners. I always appreciated Cerphe’s sharing my own music, too. I've enjoyed many colorful discussions with Cerphe through the years about the wonders of all types of inspired music, and believe we share a common belief that music is truly our planet's sacred weapon. I recommend his book to all music fans.” —Nils Lofgren, solo musician, member of the Rock Hall of Fame with the E Street Band

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