Me, the Mob, and the Music: One Helluva Ride with Tommy James and the Shondells

Tommy James is one of those performers who touches your life. I first heard the music of Tommy and the Shondells when I was growing up in Baltimore and I can remember discovering the 45 of "Crystal Blue Persuasion" in my aunt's basement. Hearing this song changed my life. It immediately struck a spiritual chord in me and I felt as if I had known Tommy all of my life. It was my dream to meet him. My wish came true in 1977 when Tommy was making an appearance at the Baltimore Civic Center during of all things, a CB Jamboree. I was immediately awestruck by his kindness and dedication to the fans. Tommy was on the road all night just coming in from New York and he gave his heart and soul to the performance. Tommy was one of the performers who inspired me to enter the broadcasting business and to live my own dream. When I heard his book "Me, the Mob and the Music" was coming out, I knew it was a must have. I read the entire book in two days because you simply cannot put it down. Tommy shares with deep honesty about his love of performing and the personal price that comes with it. I truly urge any up and coming artists and even established performers to read about Tommy's dealings with Morris Levy and the brutal mob connection that was behind the Roulette record label. Tommy and the Shondells were young and talented musicians who were placed on an emotional roller coaster having to juggle the demands of touring, promotion, performing and in turn being cheated by Morris Levy who had a reputation for being just as corrupt as his mob buddies. Parts of the book made me cry when I read of Tommy's personal struggles to survive in the chaos while still creating gems like "Crimson and Clover", "Sweet Cherry Wine" and the songs that we loved on the radio. Tommy found the courage to make the positive changes in his life and is here today sharing the music that has touched a generation and continues to influence even the young fans. The book will also make you laugh as Tommy shares some great stories about the road and living out of a suitcase. Let me also mention that Mike Vale of the Shondells (who now fronts the group "Hog Heaven") is a wonderful, heartfelt and talented performer too. "Me, the Mob and the Music" earns five stars easily.

I agree with almost all the assessments in the other reviews. It's a highly enjoyable and quick read, being just over 200 pages with rather large printing. But there's not a wasted moment in there -- every story and incident relates in one way or another to the theme of a simple rock and roller getting caught up in a world of the Mob, money, drugs, and life on the road. Tommy is refreshingly candid in these matters, and doesn't paint himself as any kind of God. He made a lot of mistakes, admits them, and never tries to blame things on anyone else, even when he had a right to in many instances. I mean, if I was going to get hit on the head with a bunch of baseball bats, I might not always do the "right" thing or the "smart" thing either! My one criticism of the book is that Tommy wraps up the last part of his career (post-1970 to the present) much too quickly. As a long-time fan of his music, I am aware of all the marvelous work he's done since his glory days, and he's truly one of the pop performing/recording/songwriting legends of the last 50 years, but he spends almost no time on any of this. Those who've followed his career closely know that he's just about the only pop/rock artist from that era still writing brilliant music today, and performing it with the authenticity of his early recordings. Almost no mention of his superb work since the hit-making machine that was Tommy James and the Shondells stopped, and a few titles that I can think of on the spot are "Give It All," "Angels and Strangers," "In Slow Emotion," "Go," "Ordinary Girl," "You're So Easy to Love," "Runnin' Out on Love," "Annie Come Knockin'," the incredible "Distant Thunder," and even his 1995 remake of "I Think We're Alone Now" (from his BIG CITY album), that turns this bubblegum-sounding hit into a contemporary power pop masterpiece. Maybe these last 40 years haven't been as memorable to James as the hit-making years were, but they've been every bit as creative, and I would have welcomed hearing stories about his life over the last few decades and what he thinks of this music, which I consider to be even better than much of what he churned out during the early part of his career. While I know the book was meant to focus on the "Mob Years," and it did so perfectly, Tommy's ability to keep his music relevant throughout the years was unfortunately slighted in the process. At least we have his CDs and albums to provide substantial proof of that.

Thomas Gregory Jackson born on April 29, 1947 in Dayton, Ohio... would morph as a teenager into rock star Tommy James who along with various incarnations of the Shondells would sell over TWENTY-MILLION-ALBUMS-AND SINGLES-IN-EIGHTEEN-MONTHS... and yet make almost no royalty money. The reason is because of his signing a contract with Morris Levy and Roulette Records. The crux of James's story is that he tied his rock-and-roll dreams to a man who was "mobbed-up". In fact it wasn't Tommy's ultimate goal to sign with Levy. Levy was just one of a number of record companies that Tommy met with in looking for national representation for his first soon to be mega-hit "HANKY PANKY". Each company Tommy met with loved the record but by the time Tommy got back to his hotel Levy had told all the other companies to "BACK OFF" this guy's mine! And when your business associates include *ANTHONY "FAT TONY" SALERNO* of the *GENOVESE FAMILY* (Tony Soprano was modeled after Salerno.)... *GAETANO "CORKY" VASTOLA* an underboss for the DeCavalcante family... *DOMINICK "QUIET DOM" CIRILLO* a future acting boss of the *GENOVESE FAMILY*... *THOMAS "TOMMY RYAN" EBOLI* a *GENOVESE CRIME FAMILY HEAD... and *VINCENT "THE CHIN" GIGANTE* a future *GENOVESE FAMILY HEAD* with the longest run in Genovese history... among others... as daily associates most people shakingly did as they were told. Later in James's career which was marked by an amphetamine/upper addiction and heavy drinking... along with his fear of Levy and associates... he finally tried to confront Levy about his unpaid royalties... after having an audit taken. "THE NUMBERS WERE ASTONISHING. MORRIS OWED ME UPWARD OF FORTY MILLION DOLLARS. IT WAS JUST HORRENDOUS. EVEN WITH MY MISERABLE ROYALTY RATE HE OWED ME THAT MUCH." James takes you on a quick ride through his life that led him to this dangerous exhilarating conundrum. From his early love of music... to starting a teenage band... to working in a record store... to a high school pregnancy and marriage... to his string of all-time classic hits such as "I THINK WE'RE ALONE NOW"... "MONY MONY"... CRIMSON AND CLOVER"... "CRYSTAL BLUE PERSUASION"... "DRAGGIN' THE LINE"... and many more. Along with the drug and alcohol abuse there's the cheating on his first wife... cheating on his second wife (whose uncle happened to run a hotel in Florida that was connected with the Jewish Mob and "made-man" Santo Trafficante)... and his marriage to his third wife. The reader will be enlightened by how some of these "gold-records" were written... by whom... and the inspiration for some songs that became part of our everyday lexicon. Many times during this rapid two-hundred-twenty-five-page book you might wonder how Tommy could have possibly put up with being so massively short changed on money due him and his band... but then Morris and an associate would grab baseball bats that were always available in the office and put someone in the hospital who either owed them money or

If you've ever wanted to sit down with you favorite artist - in this case, rock legend Tommy James - and have them tell you about their life and career, then here's your chance. The "Me" refers to Tommy himself, who shares (in a first-person voice well captured by co-author, Martin Fitzpatrick) the amazing story of how a Midwest teen with a band and a dream ended up with the number one record in America ("Hanky Panky"), and went on to record a string of classic tracks. Along the way he weaves an engrossing tale of his personal behind-the-scenes struggles and triumphs, told with a healthy dose of trademark James wit. "The Mob" - as in THE MOB - appears in the guise of one of the seminal figures in early R & B and rock 'n' roll, Roulette Records owner Morris Levy. Levy knew a hit record when he heard one and knew how to make it happen. Despite his darker side, Morris acted as James' surrogate music biz father, providing Tommy with the environment and support needed for him to be successful. What he didn't provide to James was the singer's hard-earned money, a fact that ultimately led to a "family" break-up. Such material makes for fascinating reading about a complex relationship, one that still looms large in James' life, long after Levy's death in 1990. "The Music," of course, is why this book exists in the first place. From the garage-band "Hanky" to the party-rock "Mony Mony," the psychedelic "Crimson and Clover," the spiritual-pop ballad "Crystal Blue Persuasion," the singer/songwriter-anthem "Draggin' The Line" and many others, Tommy's musical legacy is rich and he has many a back-story to tell about how it came to be. Me, the Mob & the Music is a wonderful inside look at the turbulent music business of the 1960s/70s, the colorful characters who ran it, and one man who thrived and lived to tell about it. One helluva read, indeed. (I strongly urge you to have a copy of Tommy's 40 Years singles collection on hand so you can listen to the music while reading about it.40th Anniversary Singles Collection)

It's incredible, but not surprising that Tommy James has yet to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame;he's one of their inexcusable oversights. His music has endured far more powerfully than he's usually given credit for, and to this day his live show walks the walk of the true independent rocker. Me,the Mob and the Music is the harrowing tale not only of Tommy and the Shondells entrance into the world of rock and roll, but the story of how he survived being employed by one of the most notorious record biz cartels that ever existed(the infamous Morris Levy's Roulette label). Music history lovers will get a kick out of learning the origins of how Tommy came to be a major hitmaker, and those who enjoy biographies will marvel at how a simple kid with a guitar innocently winds up at the center of a Soprano's worthy operetta! You'll sweat it out with Tommy as he is forced to come up with hit after hit (for a label where the quietest place on earth exists: the accounts payable department).You'll relive the pressures of the travel demands,personal sacrifices, over indulgences and the not so glamorous side of being a star as Tommy recounts his days in the midst of a truly vibrant & creatively signifigant period of music. You'll even learn why he turned down the Woodstock gig that changed the music business forever, and how "Mony Mony" got its title. The characters and situations Tommy walks you with and through are memorable as heck, and the story is told in a matter of fact,personable (and,yes,of course,occasionally egotistical) style that will have you racing through the pages. Once you're done you'll be craving to hear his great recordings again, and excitedly awaiting either the film version, or perhaps even a fabulous "Jersey Boys" style juke-box drama.This book proves Tommy James is still a hitmaker; God Bless him!