If you know anything about Thunderclap Newman, it’s probably that they had one hit, “Something In the Air,” produced by The Who‘s Pete Townshend. But their story is evidently interesting enough to have spawned an entire book, which comes out Oct. 1 on Jack White‘s Third Man Books.
Hollywood Dream: The Thunderclap Newman Story features a foreword penned by Townshend, who also played bass on and produced the band’s one and only album, Hollywood Dream, in his home studio.
The band was comprised of jazz pianist Andy Newman; Townshend’s friend and driver John “Speedy” Keen, who wrote “Armenia City in the Sky” on 1967’s The Who Sell Out; and 15-year-old Jimmy McCulloch, who went on to play guitar in Wings during the ’70s.
Keen penned their #1 U.K. hit “Something In the Air,” which remains popular through its use in movies, commercials and cover versions, including one by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers.
Townshend writes in the foreword, “For me Thunderclap Newman was a great adventure and one I try to relive often … [the book] is carefully and devotedly researched with lots of input from all kinds of other friends of mine who shared their journey, and that itself builds a unique picture of the kind of Boiler Room world that musicians thrived in during the mid to late ‘60s.”
Pete writes of the band, whose members have all passed away, “The saddest part of it all is that they don’t exist today. This book brings them back to life.”
A hardcover limited-edition signed by Pete and author Mark Wilkerson is available only through thirdmanbooks.com.
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