This was Larry's first professional musician job. That's our old San Jose phone number from 1482 DeTracey St., which was later the home of Phydeaux Records.
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Steve Turner is an English poet and biographer who has written many critically acclaimed books throughout his 45 year career. Among some of the more well known books he has written are biographies on Johnny Cash, Van Morrison, Cliff Richard and Jack Kerouac, as well as tomes like Amazing Grace and The Band That Played On. In 1977 he followed Larry for part of his '77 World Tour and ended up writing a book on Larry and the effect his presence had on pop culture in the United Kingdom. It was never published. People and publishers have asked about it for years while its mystique has slowly grown over the decades. I have seen it before, but I just came upon it again in a filing cabinet and thought I would post a photo of it. I have plans to publish it next year, so until then here's a peek at 193 pages that need to be transcribed into a text document by some nimble-fingered keypuncher. It's a really good book. I've read it. In fact, It's pretty awesome if I may employ that overused word. 
"Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing." - Benjamin Franklin
There are at least 30 banker boxes in the archives, each packed with cassette boxes filled with Larry Norman songs and demos nobody has ever heard. If anyone out there would like to come and stay with us for a few days to help transfer the tapes we'd be happy to have you. I'M SERIOUS! We can set you up with a tape deck and a computer and feed you pizza and coffee until the sun comes up. If you're interested, please contact us. We'll never get around to it otherwise :-) Here's one such cassette box.  It's true. Come and help us! A folder containing all of the handwritten lyrics to the songs on Upon This Rock. The album unleashed a generation of other bands like Petra, Stryper, and, um, Dead Artist Syndrome. I wish we'd all been ready, indeed.  It's like the Magna Carta of Christian Rock. Or something. Evidently L.N. gave J.C. a B.D. album. 
I Got a Letter Today From The President. For real.
Inside one of the boxes I opened today was a photo of Larry and Charles Bronson. I told my my wife Kristin and she looked at me deadpan and said, "Of course there was. Why wouldn't there be?"  This is even cooler than a picture of Larry and Evel Knievel. Years before I was born, our cousins Bryce and Tina lived with my family for several years. Larry and Bryce were inseparable. A couple of years ago Bryce sent me an email in which he reflected on his years growing up. ________________________ "Larry taught me to read (Donald Duck comics) when I was real small, under the covers with a flashlight. We went to the creek and caught poliwogs, took 'em home and watched them grow into frogs. When we lived on 16 Peralta St in Linda Mar we would ride our bikes up to the little country store and get flip cards because we couldn't buy candy. We explored the new buildings being built around the corner, played Cowboys and Indians. I was always the Indian! We started a fire up in the hills and ran home cause we couldn't get it out. Fire trucks came. No one ever knew. Once we got real mad at each other and Joe got some boxing gloves and we duked it out. He won, I think. He never forgot the time I slipped on the bike pedals and went down in the middle of the street. A car nearly ran me over as it passed and 50 years later he was still sorry it happened. He should have rode the bigger bike. It was Bonnie's old Schwinn clunker. He protected me and taught me all I knew. I skipped the 1st grade because I knew everything he learned in school and was too smart for the class. We were more than cousins, we were almost twins, except I was black haired and he was almost white. We never fought after the boxing match and were closer than ever. I missed him badly when I moved away. Still do. Love you too cousin. I always want to share anything I can to help you know what a really fine character your brother was, and fun too! Happiest eight years of my life.." ________________________ I just came across an old scrapbook filled with photos of Larry and cousin Bryce. 
Troublemakers.
To kick off this archaeological dig, we're going to post something cool that wasn't actually in a sealed box. It was hanging in a closet. Larry's 1972 album Bootleg pictured him on the front cover, walking in a march. We think it was in Los Angeles, but we're not sure. Anyway, here's the front cover of the album.  Here's my son wearing his uncle's "famous" suede jacket. I think he needs to have it tailored.
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:: INSIDE THE BOX ::
Charles Norman occasionally opens a sealed box in the archives and posts photos of the junk inside. Archives
August 2015
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