If you’re very lucky, perhaps you’ve seen The Rolling Stones in concert or, maybe you harbor some collectable vinyl albums. It’s unlikely, however, that you’ve gone on tour with the Stones, spent dozens of hours interviewing members of the band, or even spent days living at Mick Jagger’s villa. Award-winning author and summer Peaks Island resident Robert Greenfield has done those things; it’s fair to say that our understanding of music in 20th century society is better for it.

Author Robert Greenfield

In a quick telephone interview with me, Greenfield conceded that he has had some extraordinary opportunities to write about several “rather megahuman” individuals. Greenfield was referring to Grateful Dead lead guitarist Jerry Garcia, six-time Grammy Award winner Burt Bacharach, and Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun. That’s the short list. Greenfield said, “Writing about extraordinary people you can learn something about life that is different than writing about people with quiet lives.” In part, Greenfield attributes the success of his career — writing about icons of the music industry — to “feeling passionate about the work and remaining absolutely trustworthy in trying to capture the humanity of people who can really be very difficult.”

When I asked Greenfield if he considered himself a journalist, a narrative non-fiction writer, or a classic rock documentarian, he said, “I’m a writer. I don’t like to be categorized.” Fair enough considering that he’s also a novelist, screenwriter, and playwright who served as Associate Editor of the London bureau of Rolling Stone Magazine.

“Ain’t It Time We Said Goodbye” book cover

This Thursday evening, you’ll have the opportunity to meet Greenfield and hear him read from his newly-published “Ain’t It Time We Said Goodbye: The Rolling Stones on the Road to Exile (Da Capo Press/Perseus Books 2014), one of the twelve books that he has authored. The Peaks Island Branch of the Portland Public Library will host the event this Thursday, August 14th from 7-9:00 PM.

Peaks Island Press offers behind-the-scenes glimpses of a vibrant, literary community perched on Peaks Island, two miles off the coast of the beautiful and award-winning city of Portland, Maine. If you haven’t already, you may subscribe in the upper right corner at http://www.peaksislandpress.com.