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Author Topic: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni  (Read 45873 times)

Love Expresso

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ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« on: September 11, 2010, 09:39:28 PM »
Hi,

The first parts of the introduction are available via download from  Jack's site:

http://www.jacksonni.com/

The audio download is about 22 minutes long and contains more paragraphs  than the online-print-version. Mark is mentioned in a friendly way and described as a good friend. Jack is able to put a nice "cliffhanger" at the end to let the question come up how all this rock n roll hype could vanish so fast out of his life. I am very curious about the book and about further updates. Interesting, have a look!

LE

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #1 on: September 12, 2010, 07:12:19 AM »
LE,

Thanks soooo much !! I enjoyed reading the excerpt and the rest of what he wrote on his site.  IMO, Jack brought with him a great energy to DS with his undaunting showy personality.  I would prefer that he didn't refer Mark as his "Boss" Sound a little too cynical to me.  WELL .....?

Love Expresso

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #2 on: March 27, 2011, 12:01:36 PM »
After several references in the last few days (at Guy's forum f.e.) I revisited Jack Sonni's page but did not find any update of the book or anything. I thought about it and realized that he himself gives the answer to all his "problems" of being "sacked" by using the term "Fame". When he really rates his time with Dire Straits as his "15 minutes of fame", then it is clear to me that he had other expectations from playing guitar in a band than Mark had or still has. Just look and listen carefully to the great BBC documentary lately and get all answers you want to have to this issue. Maybe someone should send Jack a copy...

LE

OfflineTally

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #3 on: March 27, 2011, 03:48:09 PM »
I look forward to reading more about this. I can certainly see this from Jack's angle, and of course that year was his 15 minutes of fame, propelled into superstardom and a world class act from obscurity. That doesn't mean that he wasn't a musician first. MK's views on this are probably more extreme than typical of rock stars (MK never really was one). I wouldn't say we should 'blame' Mark for Jack's feelings, but it seems that he was expecting a call from Mark, and Mark mentions Jack on the Mandela gig, so he wasn't out the picture at than point.

What Jack could have done, I suppose, was trying to get another gig/band to work with after the tour. But then, he probably saw himself as part of the biggest band in the world and so I guess it did not seem natural for him to do that.

Onlinedustyvalentino

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #4 on: March 28, 2011, 11:34:02 AM »
I remember a thread on Jack's Facebook page a while back where he casually mentioned that Eric Clapton invited him to join his band, but he didn't finish the BiA tour in time.

He mentioned an offer with someone else that he couldn't accept for some reason, possibly Stevie Wonder but I can't remember.
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Offlineds1984

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #5 on: March 28, 2011, 06:10:07 PM »
One day at the top, the day after at the bottom line.
The haters are those who write shit

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #6 on: March 31, 2011, 01:28:35 AM »
Jack and Mark were friends before the BIA tour, I
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OfflineBanjo99uk

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #7 on: March 31, 2011, 03:52:57 AM »
It may be a case of the old saying that business and pleasure do not mix.

Jackal

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #8 on: March 31, 2011, 12:31:40 PM »
It may be a case of the old saying that business and pleasure do not mix.

A very wise saying, and one I certainly try live by. Never involve friends and family in business unless you have to. And if you have to, make a contract specifying all the terms. Then everybody knows what's going on. Speaking of contract, here's Guy's reply to a question on the forum:

"We were all simply hired musicians for that tour. There was nothing in any contract to say there was more afterwards and however you look at it, Mark moved on. No-one was sacked, just not asked back. That's the world of the professional musician."

Not very difficult, is it?
 
« Last Edit: March 31, 2011, 02:42:13 PM by Jackal »

OfflineTally

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #9 on: March 31, 2011, 01:10:10 PM »
It may be a case of the old saying that business and pleasure do not mix.

A very wise saying, and one I certainly try live. Never involve friends and family in business unless you have to. And if you have to, make a contract specifying all the terms. Then everybody knows what's going on. Speaking of contract, here's Guy's reply to a question on the forum:

"We were all simply hired musicians for that tour. There was nothing in any contract to say there was more afterwards and however you look at it, Mark moved on. No-one was sacked, just not asked back. That's the world of the professional musician."

Not very difficult, is it?

Perhaps not, but when you've played in a band for a year and is best friends with the bad leader, it's not odd that you start seeing yourself as part of the band rather than being just the hired help.

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #10 on: March 31, 2011, 02:16:17 PM »
"We were all simply hired musicians for that tour. There was nothing in any contract to say there was more afterwards and however you look at it, Mark moved on. No-one was sacked, just not asked back. That's the world of the professional musician."
 

Well, Guy was a hired musician that became MK's friend.

Jack was a friend that became a hired musician.

I can understand very easily the Jack
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Jackal

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #11 on: March 31, 2011, 05:08:08 PM »
Sure, feelings are feelings, even Guy said it in the Show Me How to Play video (I think), that it was kind of crazy to see Mark and John rake in a lot of money during the tour, whereas he (and the rest of the touring band) got paid a musician's salary according to the contract, which apparently wasn't that great. But business (contract) is business, and as long as the terms of the contract are fulfilled, no one can complain. But that he was left in a great emotional vaccuum (oh, man ... Dr Ruth next?) is understandable.

However, come to think of it, I don't think Jack did anything special during the tour. He added some life maybe with the silly sunglasses and using no shoes at times, but sometimes it was really corny. I mean, look at Live Aid. It's like a band of electronics engineers + Elton John ... His whole rockstar approach just seemed out of place.

Another thing is that relationships change over the years. People move on, move places, get new interests, and contact becomes more infrequent, just like for all people. Maybe Mark and Jack were very good friends, but when they did On Every Street, it's probable that things could have changed. We're talking five years after the Brothers tour, Mark had done a lot of things, DS was inactive, Mark had kids, etc.

To me it isn't obvious that Jack should have been asked back. And that he now starts to "whine" about it is pretty pathetic I think. He should start talking about himself as a touring musician, not a rockstar. Then maybe reality would be easier to cope with.

Offlinejakehadlee

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #12 on: March 31, 2011, 09:57:59 PM »


To me it isn't obvious that Jack should have been asked back. And that he now starts to "whine" about it is pretty pathetic I think. He should start talking about himself as a touring musician, not a rockstar. Then maybe reality would be easier to cope with.

I didn't get the impression he was whining about how he was treated - thought he was quite honest about how difficult it was to be thrown into such a weird, high-profile position unexpectedly, then to have to suddenly go back to normality. Don't think he's blaming MK. It's an experience that would probably mess any of us up - celebrity, even vicarious celebrity - is a weird place to be and no-one ever seems to come out the same.

Jackal

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #13 on: March 31, 2011, 10:13:18 PM »
"Whine" is probably not the right word. When you read the excerpts and also his blog posts, he does come across as bit bitter or feeling sorry for himself though. Whether that is caused by failed expectations or just having to deal with coming back to normal life is anyone's guess. Maybe the rest of the book will shed more light on that. However, it is 25 years since the he was involved with DS, and that's why I think this sulking poor-me kind-of tone is a bit out of place. One would think that he'd be over it by now and could have related the story in a more light-hearted way.

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Re: ROCK N ROLLED A Memoir by Jack Sonni
« Reply #14 on: April 01, 2011, 11:34:43 AM »
Jack and Mark were friends before the BIA tour, I
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