Metal / Death / Black etc
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26.99 €
Dreaming Japanese
Megadeth / Japanese Music Industry - Book - by Marty Friedman
(2025)
Growing up in a Jewish household in Maryland, the son of an NSA
executive, he lacked motivation until he accidentally discovered the
guitar and immediately found his calling. Enjoying a hazy adolescence
overflowing with partying, music, and teen antics, he achieved local
stardom in Deuce, then burst onto the national scene by pioneering a
radically new style of playing, bringing attention to the guitar
aficionado label, Shrapnel Records. Acclaim didn’t breed success or
money, but undeterred, Friedman moved to California, and after attempts
to join Madonna, KISS, and Ozzy Osbourne, finally scored a gig in
Megadeth at a time when the band members were just recovering from the
verge of self-destruction, and Marty was in and out of homelessness.
Friedman
is the most revered guitarist to play in any Megadeth lineup. During
his ten years, his exotic, innovating style helped define the sound of
their biggest albums, and while it elevated him to guitar hero status
with all the accompanying perks, it came at a significant cost. As the
only clean and sober member, Friedman vividly recalls the triumphs and
trials of each album cycle and more, bringing to light previously
undisclosed personal feelings surrounding the circumstances that forced
the band into hiding in the midst of the Countdown to Extinction Tour
and the brutal effort it took to get the band back up and running.
His
profound and complicated relationship with frontman Dave Mustaine was
symbolic of the band’s insane dynamic, and Marty poignantly and
generously shares his experiences within the band’s inner sanctum during
the highs, lows, and daily routines. But Dreaming Japanese is far more
than a memoir about Friedman’s multi-Platinum years in Megadeth. The
riveting narrative captures his relentless perseverance as he struggles
to start again from nothing.
Spontaneously leaving his home in
the US and feeling lost in the middle of Tokyo, with few connections or
concrete plans, the story traces his journey to acclimate and assimilate
into the inner core of an alien society, language and culture, almost
like a double agent spy. In fascinating detail and clarity, Marty shares
how he gradually made inroads into the Japanese entertainment industry,
becoming a household name and fixture on mainstream television and
earning respect as a highly influential solo artist. Dreaming Japanese
follows the wildly entertaining, inspiring, and above all, unprecedented
path of a rock and roll guitar player who took the biggest risk,
leaving worldwide success to start over from scratch in a country,
culture and society far from his own, ultimately becoming an official
ambassador of Japan.
