Peter Richardson's "Brand New Beat," with Laura Lewers

This event is FREE to attend. Seating is first come, first served. (RSVPs are optional, but encouraged for our planning purposes.)

Meet the author, find out about a terrific new book, ask questions, hear directly from the author, and get personalized signed books!

Bookshop West Portal can't wait to host Peter Richardson, former professor of California Culture and now author of Brand New Beat: The Wild Rise of Rolling Stone Magazine, about how the iconic publication's unruly first decade rewrote the rules of journalism. This new book charts the origins and evolution of the magazine during its formative early years in San Francisco. Local West Portaler Laura Lewers will be in conversation with Richardson.

You don't need to have read the book beforehand to enjoy the event, but we do recommend reserving your copy ahead of time:

About the Book:

How the iconic publication's unruly first decade rewrote the rules of journalism.

Rolling Stone's first decade was truly rock and roll: chaotic, wild, and unpredictable. Brand New Beat charts the origins and evolution of the magazine during its formative early years in San Francisco. Founded in 1967 by a 21-year-old college dropout, Rolling Stone and its editors were steeped in the Bay Area's counterculture and viewed rock and roll as the animating spirit of a social revolution. Reaching beyond music, the magazine delved into the tempestuous culture and politics of the time.

Acclaimed author Peter Richardson takes readers inside the iconic magazine during an era of legendary events, major cultural figures, and unforgettable music. Showing how Rolling Stone became a journalistic juggernaut--nurturing music-focused writers like Cameron Crowe, Lester Bangs, and Greil Marcus as well as New Journalism giants Hunter S. Thompson and Tom Wolfe--this book reveals how Rolling Stone both exemplified and critiqued the counterculture. Always more than the definitive rock magazine, Rolling Stone leveraged the power of popular music to deliver groundbreaking coverage of historic events, setting a new standard for the next generation of American journalism.

About the Author:

Peter Richardson is the author of Brand New Beat: The Wild Rise of Rolling Stone Magazine as well as critically acclaimed books about Hunter S. Thompson, the Grateful Dead, and Ramparts magazine. His essays have appeared in The Nation, The New Republic, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Los Angeles Times, and many other outlets. A Bay Area native, he taught courses on California culture at San Francisco State University from 2006 to 2023. He lives in Sonoma County.

About the Conversation Partner:

Laura Lewers is a West Portal book club member who lives in the neighborhood with her husband and their dog, Sutter. She has professional experience training and speaking on effective, authentic, and persuasive communication. A passionate reader and skilled interviewer, Laura is especially interested in authors’ creative processes and counts several among her friends.

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