Prisoner of Woodstock

This autobiography-cum-cautionary tale candidly explores the ``dark side'' of the music industry. Taylor, former drummer of Crosby, Stills and Nash, recounts the excitements and the risks of life in the rock 'n' roll fast lane. He explains that it is very difficult for a young musician to separate the trappings of a successful career--fame, money, sexual debauchery and drugs--from music-making. Consequently, Taylor became one of many rockers to suffer repeated bouts of substance abuse and many broken relationships. Taylor's dream of harmony and freedom--symbolized by the 1969 Woodstock festival--soured as his heroine addiction began to cost him jobs, friends and self-respect. After several suicide attempts, he kicked the habit in 1985, with the help of a treatment program, but his body had suffered; in 1991 he needed a liver transplant. While vividly capturing his younger self's wide-eyed enthusiasm for rock 'n' roll, Taylor begins each chapter with a graphic account of a physical and/or mental pain he has suffered while he played. He presents a stark picture of himself as a rock 'n' roll casualty, while maintaining a belief in the most positive, idealistic aspects of the contemporary music scene. Photos not seen by PW. (July)