Seymour Stein is a legend in the music business and America’s greatest living record man. But did you know he had local ties to the Queen City? It was in Cincinnati, under the guidance of Syd Nathan at King Records, that a young Seymour learned the business. The Library welcomes Stein back to the Queen City 3 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 1 at the Main Library for a discussion on his mentor Syd Nathan and his many adventures in the music business.
Founder of Sire Records, Stein discovered and signed such artists as The Ramones, Talking Heads, The Dead Boys, Richard Hell, Madonna, Depeche Mode, The Smiths, The Cure, Ice-T, Seal and many others. Stein will be signing copies of his new memoir, Siren Song. Copies of the book will be available for purchase at the event.
This program is co-sponsored by Shake It Records and the Friends of the Public Library. Darren Blasé, co-owner of Shake It Records and a King Records historian, is hosting the book talk.
About the Book
The autobiography of America’s greatest living record man: the founder of Sire Records and spotter of rock talent from the Ramones to Madonna.
Stein is America's greatest living record man. Having signed and nurtured more important artists than anyone alive, he continues to travel the globe in search of the next big thing, after 60 years in the game.
Since the late fifties, he's been wherever it's happening: Billboard, Tin Pan Alley, The British Invasion, CBGB, Studio 54, Danceteria, the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame and the CD crash. Along that winding path, he discovered and broke out a skyline full of stars: Madonna, The Ramones, Talking Heads, Depeche Mode, Madonna, The Smiths, The Cure, Ice-T, Lou Reed, Seal, and many others.
Brimming with hilarious scenes and character portraits, Siren Song’s wider narrative is about modernity in motion, and the slow acceptance of diversity in America – thanks largely to daring pop music. Including both the high and low points in his life, Siren Song touches on everything from his discovery of Madonna to his wife Linda Stein's violent death.
