TALENTED singer/songwriter Julian Dawson, who lives in Crewkerne, has just seen a ten year 'labour of love' come to fruition.
It is the publication of his authoritative insight into the life and work of one of rock's most respected musicians.
If you were to study the album covers of the greatest British and American bands and recording artists of the sixties, seventies and eighties, one name crops up with stunning regularity - Nicky Hopkins.
Known as the 'sixth Rolling Stone' no other pianist was held in such high esteem or played on more important recordings.
His trademark licks graced landmark songs such as The Rolling Stones' Sympathy for the Devil and Angie, the Beatles' Revolution and Joe Cocker's signature ballad, You Are So Beautiful.
Nicky's client list included The Who, The Kinks, Jeff Beck, all of the ex-Beatles and countless other leading names of the era.
Author Julian Dawson knew Nicky Hopkins and worked with him only months before his untimely death in 1994.
Julian has since spent ten years researching and speaking in person to those who knew Nicky best, including Keith Richards, Pete Townshend, Rod Stewart, Ray Davies as well as close friends and family.
The result is not just an intimate and revealing portrait of one of rock music's unsung heroes with all its highs and lows, but a document of a forgotten age and a glimpse behind the scenes where the classic music of our times was made, in studios and on stage.
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