Interview – A new book about The Beatles may be the big selling point of a much-anticipated talk on Music in the 60s and 70s in the forthcoming Raworths Literature Festival in Harrogate.
But, as renowned writer and broadcaster Stuart Cosgrove tells the Harrogate Advertiser on the phone, the event will aim to stretch the music discussion beyond the usual clichés.
The former head of arts for Channel 4 and author of acclaimed books such as Young Soul Rebels – A Personal History of Northern Soul, tells me: “I’m interested in social history. The 60s were an important era – the Vietnam War, the civil rights battles.
“Those subjects are still with us. Quite a lot of things I’ve written about in my latest book feed into the history of hip hop. The book ends in a very contemporary place.”
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Taking place at the Crown Hotel on Sunday, October 20 at 3pm, the trio of music experts vary wildly in content and style.
The ex-editor of the NME, Cosgrove himself has delved deep into the underlying culture and politics of classic soul music in his acclaim trilogy of recent books culminating in Harlem 69: The Future of Soul.
A man who has interviews the likes of Keith Richards and Paul McCartney, Tom Doyle is synonymous with Q music magazines.
Finally, Ken McNabb is a highly-respected Scottish journalist and Beatles obsessive, whose new book, And In The End, throws new light on the final days of the Fab Four.
Fans can expect a lively and intelligent debate at the Raworths event.
Cosgrove himself is far from your usual music geek old skool journalist with fingers still smudged in ink from the glory days of the NME.
In fact, he graduated in Drama and English from the University of Hull and has studied at George Mason University, Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and Wharton Business School.
He said: “I’m happy to talk about all the things the other guys are writing about like The Beatles but they’re a band no one listens to anymore.
“I’m an old Northern Soul man. I grew up as a youngster loving soul music more than the Stones or The Beatles, although early music was influenced by soul music.”
Music in the 60s and 70s, The Crown Hotel, Harrogate, Sunday, October 20, 3pm.