Canyon of Dreams: The Magic and the Music of Laurel Can… (2025)

A coffee table size book, full of photos. The history of Laurel Canyon residents from the 1930's through the early 2000's. The book is mostly focused on the music scene of the late 1960's--the glory days of the Canyon and the clubs on Sunset Strip. The proximity of the canyon and clubs existed before this time, and the reader gets a glimpse of the interconnectivity of the Hollywood movie scene, with the mix of the Southern California music world. At times the writer's style seems similar to liner notes, which is for a good reason. Kubernik wrote liner notes for the re-release of Carole King's Tapestry album in 2008, and the re-release of Elvis Presley's '68 Special album in the same year. The last chapter of the book almost seems like a promotional piece for the current Laurel Canyon.

A nicely put together book that is fun look at Laurel Canyon in a slice of history.

This is a MASTERPIECE for readability, exhaustive detail & research, ACCURACY and Context. I've known Harvey since we attended College together and am AMAZED for his accomplishments! ... No One can top the Information & Historic Tableau that Harvey establishes with THIS Masterpiece! Period!

Beautiful coffee table style book of the decades-long music history of the Laurel Canyon, especially focusing on the mid-sixties and seventies highlighting groups such as Buffalo Springfield, Crosby Still & Nash, Mamas & Papas and many many more. It's not for sitting reading through but rather diving in and reading short sections at a time. If you are a fan of music of that era, don't miss this book.

The Canyon of Dreams, the Magic and Music of Laurel Canyon is an amazing history of Laurel Canyon that sits in the Hollywood Hills right above Sunset Boulevard and since the beginning of Hollywood, starting with The Garden of Allah, a hotel opened by one of the wives of Rudolph Valentino, it quickly garnered a reputation as a place for a hideaway for movie stars, musicians, and artists. Errol Flynn had trysts there, jazz musicians came there to score opium, big band leaders Tommy Dorsey and Kay Kyser had an argument there as to which was the more popular, Dorsey won the argument by producing two naked women (who in the Rock ‘n’ Roll era would be groupies), one of whom had a ‘T’ shaved in her pubic hair and the other a ‘D’. Proving that sex and drugs and wild times existed before Rock ‘n’ Roll and the farther into the future we go, the easier it is to touch the past.

The book is formatted like a scrapbook full of pictures, quotes, and paraphernalia, such as, matchbook covers of famous night clubs, record jackets, restaurant menu’s, one from a Chinese restaurant owned by Benson Fong’s father, and another that lists a combination pizza at $1.65! The chapters are easy to read and filled with amazing stories of residents and the adventures, misadventures, artistic pursuits, parties, trysts, or some combination of all of the above. The chapters cover different eras usually from the viewpoint of a Laurel Canyon resident who was present, and are divided into relevant tangents that give you a broader feel for everything that was going on at the time. For instance rock photographer Henry Diltz leads off the chapter that recounts the invasion of the Rock ‘n’ Roll industry. Diltz recounts his own days as folk singer and how his career morphed into that of an iconic rock photographer. His most famous album cover probably being The Doors, Morrison Hotel. The section after Diltz’s story tells of Robby Krieger and John Densmore moving into the canyon, followed by Jim Morrison and they recount their stories of the canyon, such as dinners at John Densmore’s house, or Robby Krieger hanging out at Frank Zappa’s house and Zappa’s interest in producing The Doors.

Doug Dragon, (brother of Daryl Dragon of Captain and Tennille fame), tells of their living in the canyon in the 50’s. His father was a famous symphony conductor, Carmen Dragon and tells of his father playing at The Hollywood Bowl, and how the house they lived in was later bought by TV star Wally Cox, Peter Tork, Stephen Stills and was later used by the Rolling Stones to rehearse for a tour.

So many famous and infamous people have lived in Laurel Canyon, H.B. Barnum, Harry Houdini, Frank Zappa, Tom Mix, Tex Ritter, Jackie DeShannon, Joni Mitchell, Van Dyke Parks, Robert Heinlein, Tim Buckley, Peter Tork, Mickey Dolenz, Billy James, Paul Rothchild, Dick Bock, Jackson Browne, and so many others I could list names for the entire length of the review and it would be a compelling reason to buy this book!

There are other books about Laurel Canyon and it’s residents, but they pale in comparison. This is a handsome coffee table book that you’ll love to show people, and I think you’ll be surprised by the new stories that are here. You’ll meet new people, and read of events that only happen in L.A., there are stories here you haven’t read before and you won’t forget.

The book itself is gorgeous, the pages are a creamy high quality paper that gives the book a luxurious feel, is probably the closest to vellum you can get. The book is a bargain at $30.00 with the wall to wall anecdotes, all the pictures, this is a book you’ll want to read from front to back in one sitting, but I think it’s best to enjoy the sections and breath the atmosphere. However you choose to read it, it will be a satisfying experience.

It is obvious from the get-go that Harvey Kubernik, a veteran music journalist who hails from Laurel Canyon, loves his subject. The problem is that love, and the love of his version of the Canyon, may have artificially narrowed his view of his subject. This is no small book, it is a large and difficult book to hold that is chockfull of photos which make it a good choice to casually peruse at a table. In fact, I would suggest reading this book that way, as opposed to reading it cover to cover because there is no real sustained narrative here. At times I felt as though I was reading the begats section of the Bible (this musician led to that musician led to this other musician…). And, alas, this book really isn’t an examination of the Magic and Music of Laurel Canyon as the subtitle promises. It is instead a nostalgic reminiscence with surprisingly varied points of view.

full review https://faintingviolet.wordpress.com/...

I really enjoyed this book due to the artwork and illustrations. I thought the actual storytelling was a little disjointed but I thoroughly liked my experience.

One thing I wish there were more pictures of houses and places in the Canyon, and a map would have nice.

Having been to Laurel Canyon recently I was able to see certain streets and understand the flow of Laurel Canyon drive from Sunset to Mulholland. If I'd never had taken that trip I wouldn't have understood the layout or the mystique it helps create around the area. I can't wait to go back. It's true, the Canyon itself seems to pulsate with a different vibe. It's palpable even to me, and I've no creative bone in my body. Laurel Canyon is truly a remarkable place.

Honestly, I can't say I read the whole book. The narrative voice was just too trying! Either it was devoted to linking short quotes by musicians (mostly name dropping) or it focused on giving you a sense of the setting using really stilted hip-in-the-sixties speech, man. I liked looking at the pictures and getting a sense of the scene, however. The book itself was beautifully bound and the page layout was very attractive. Nice matte paper.

From my 2010 interview with Bill Mumy:

...In the last few months, a friend of mine loaned me the book Canyon of Dreams .

BM: Oh, yes. Harvey Kubernik's book.

Yes.

BM: Yes, with Henry Kubernik's photos and stuff. Yes, that's a great book.

And you're the subject of nearly an entire chapter.

BM: Yes. Well, you know? That happens when you live in the same place for 35 years. I'm just one of the old men in the canyon, I guess. Well Laurel Canyon's a great place to live. It's a wonderful artistic community. And certainly, if you're going to live in the middle of Los Angeles, which I have done all my life, it's very nice to come home and have this country kind of feeling. I mean, I got a mountain so to speak, and ten acres behind my house with deer and all sorts of creatures strolling by. It's very cool.

This book is aptly named, ever since I can remember I have loved the music that has emanated from California, I was just seven when I first got into the Beach Boys and of course the love of them sent me down a wonderful road that has as I have often said been the wonderful soundtrack to my life. I also believe that the music you love influences you as a person, this book is a testament to that as the people within the pages lives were changed by the music they heard.

The books I have read have also been influenced by the music, this book is a brilliant companion to all that wonderful music, it tells the story of the mystical 'Laurel Canyon' a place of such legend that it is no wonder this book is so vast! at almost 400 pages, it tells the tale of Neil Young, Crosby Stills and Nash, The Mamas and Papas, Buffalo Springfield to name but a few, it doesn't however just dwell on the famous folks, we get to meet alsorts of characters who were in various bands through the years, how Linda Ronstadt inadvertently put the Eagles together, (I also never knew their name was a tip of the hat to the Byrds)

The book is gloriously illustrated with beautiful images from the time, lots of which were taken by the brilliant Henry Diltz, who as well as being a photographer was also a musician, so able to melt into the background and take candid shots, as well as some famous one's; we hear the story of how Jim Morrison took a quick shower at a Laurel Canyon home, and once he had gone they were looking everywhere for a jumper, only to spot it 6 months later adorned by Jim on the cover of the 'Waiting for the sun' album, a great shot taken by the aforementioned Henry! He also took the brilliant Crosby Stills and Nash cover.

As I read the book I just had to listen to all that wonderful music again, and in the years of the ipod shuffle actually re-found the joy of listening to a complete album.

Even if the music isn't for you the book will bill, it is a moment in time a wonderful one at that, told by those who were there... Oh how I wish I had been!

Photos alone are worth the time. Also lots of stories, interviews that really capture the vibe. Thanks Paul - for loaning me this large, coffee table book

I thoroughly enjoyed this journey through Laurel Canyon! Great pictures, great stories. Another reviewer complained about the lack of a "real sustained narrative here." But I felt like that was just the point and part of the structure of the book. I felt like I was looking at a photo album with a bunch of different people as they were reminded of different stories and those they knew in the Canyon. I loved how raw, unedited, and personal some of these voices felt, particularly the quirky rambles of Van Dyke Parks. Throughout, Kubernik really did a good job of letting the egos and personas of his subjects show through by way of phrasing and their original word choice. I keep thinking of photographer Henry Diltz's use of "God's herb" when talking about pot!, and just love that quirky little detail of voice.

The 2008/2009 date of the book's publication seems like a hundred years ago. Nowhere is this more evident that the reinforcement of stereotyped gender roles throughout -- all the young girls coming to the canyon did so to not only explore their newfound sexual freedom (sort of protected by the pill) but also to take care of the guys singing, playing in bands, and producing records. I've always wanted to believe that some liberated mindset of the '60s worked against those traditional roles in meaningful and egalitarian ways, but largely, it seems that the dynamics between men and women were highly traditional even in these "liberated" enclaves. I'm not faulting Kubernik here; rather I think he's captured it and tells it much like it actually was.

As the different stories, so differently voiced, looped back through each other, sometimes from different points-of-view, at other times from the same storyteller, it suggests the way the sounds of musicians jamming in the Canyon echoed and reverberated each other -- that, to me, was one of the most lovely images that the book captured. It really gave the book a feeling of harmonious blending through narrative/interview jam sessions, and it had a homely, laidback feel to it all.

Fun book, loaded with photos and entertaining yarns, about the leafy Lauren Canyon nabe in Los Angeles, and its prodigious contributions to popular music. Kubernik chronicles the Canyon's early days, where the players included Buffalo Springfield, CSN&Y and the Mamas and the Papas, on to more current times, such as Red Hot Chili Peppers recording "Blood Sugar Sex Magik", Slash reflecting on his upbringing, and Rick Rubin producing System of a Down.
Kubernik taps a broad collection of music industry types to help chart the neighborhood's history. Some you've never heard of, and may not be too interested to hear from. Others are allowed to go on a bit too long.
Nonetheless, Kubernik produces an entertaining look at a unique neighborhood, whose charm is a bucolic setting just steps from Sunset Boulevard and Hollywood, and how it has changed across the past half-century.

Since my wife and I and another couple are planning our own tour of Laurel Canyon in a few weeks, I thought it would be a good idea to do some reading about the site and the scene (as well as find a few addresses). This coffee table style book was filled with a large slice of music and social history of a special era.
The side bars offer lots of different insights from many of the participants in the scene. They are real nice addition to the narrative. Lots of great pictures add to the book's look at the men and women who created the sounds of the Canyon.
My only criticism is that as the scene was winding down in the late '70s early 80s, my interest waned as I became less and less familiar with players. Maybe Kubernik tried to include everything when he could have just focused on the more specific era of '65 to '75.

This book was a big disappointment. The text is rambling and incoherent, and the text-to-pictures ratio is far too high to make it worthwhile for the pictures alone (many of which I'd seen elsewhere). A lot of the text is direct quotes from musicians and other music industry professionals reminiscing on the topic at hand, but it is presented as huge chunks of undirected rambling, sometimes repeating information already discussed a few paragraphs earlier, jumping randomly between different topics and bands, tossing in irrelevant information, and often ending up as more name-dropping than anecdote. An example (from p. 30):

In '61, [Lou] Adler moved to Orange Ave. off Hollywood Blvd. and became very involved with The Crickets, The Everly Brothers, Snuff Garrett, and Liberty Records because Jan & Dean were on Liberty. Adler met [D.J.] Art Laboe when he first started working with Jan & Dean.

"I had gone to his events at Scrivner's as a customer," Adler reminisces. "You would bring him records. We used to have groups play roller rinks. Phil Spector and the Reddy Bears did roller rinks. In East L.A. I grew up on R&B and jazz. I was into pop music and went to jazz concerts. One of my first big dates was going to Ciro's. I took a nurse. I was working at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital and going to Los Angeles City College.

"For me at three o'clock in the morning I was at Pink's Hot Dogs eating a hot dog, a hamburger, and a tamale. But I should be credited for bringing meals from the Villa Capri to the recording studio."

outstanding history of the music and the area with a collection of photos that are apparently unique to this volume. extensive interviews but one bugaboo is it isn't always apparent who is talking when you are reading history and anecdotes. And some of the chapter intros reach to the trite or overly cute. But worth the time!!!

Beautifully illustrated coffee table photo history of the music scene based in Los Angeles’ Laurel Canyon in the 1960s and after. Features the Byrds, Mamas and the Papas, the Monkees, the Doors, Buffalo Springfield, Joni Mitchell, Carole King and many others. Also includes extensive interviews with community members of that era. Although a few editing mistakes are apparent, the quality of the interviews and photos more than make up for that.

A mess of a book but lots of gems.

Great history of rock and roll.

The photos alone are priceless.

Info unavailable elsewhere, in a well designed & produced format.
I'm sad for the history going up in flames in 2025.

Very entertaining look (with pictures) at musicians, artists and nightclub owners that live on Laurel Canyon and played on the Strip.

soft cover
368 pg

*Another 5 ★ ♥ that I truly enjoyed ....*

Canyon Of Dreams(2009) is 368 pages with greater than 300 photographs and snapshots of memorabilia from the era discussed. There is an extensive index, photo credits, foreward ( the late Ray Manzurek) and afterword (Lou Adler).

Laurel Canyon sits in the Hollywood Hills (above Sunset Boulevard) and since the beginning of Hollywood, it quickly acquired its hideaway reputation.
This volume speaks of "the metamorphosis of the canyon from the very beginning concentrating on the 60's, until the 70's, when the magic of the canyon began to crumble."

The book layout is similar to a scrapbook (text, pictures, memorabilia of all types such as concert tickets, clippings of upcoming shows, interviews, quotes etc.)
The text was broken up by photos, interviews and memorable quotes.
But, if you had a mind to, the flow of the text could be easily followed.

I found it fascinating and informative as a musical history reference.
Longtime residents guide us as they reminisce of days in the Canyon.
The cast of characters includes "wordsmiths, authors, musicians, photographers, rock bands, record label owners,poets, dancers" and the list goes on......

Kubernik heralds it as "amazing stories of residents and the adventures, misadventures, artistic pursuits, parties, trysts, or some combination of all of the above."

Canyon of Dreams traces the enduring history and legacy of Laurel Canyon.

With an extensive collection of photographs of the times (some candid, some staged),
I would consider it a"must have" for anyone interested in the "old days" of 60's

This is a beautiful, deeply satisfying book. It is a coffee-table book filled with pictures and oral history about the Los Angeles music scene in the 60's and 70's. Laurel Canyon is the mountainous area just above West Hollywood, a 5 minute drive from the Sunset Strip, an easy commute from where proto-hippies lived, created music, made popular history at the various clubs and recording studios. Let’s see: Frank Zappa, Brian Wilson, The Doors, the Monkees, Love, The Byrds, Crosby Stills and Nash,Jackson Browne, The Momma’s and The Poppas, Neil Young, Buffalo Springfield, Joni Mitchell, The Eagles, Linda Ronstadt, Donovan, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, among others, lived in Laurel Canyon at one time and changed the musical world. I read this immediately after finishing Electric Eden, Rob Young’s seminal tome on English folk music, acoustic and electric. The contrast is striking; The Brits made ethereal music, usually with no thought of commercial potential, and remained total amateurs, drifting into obscurity. In Laurel Canyon, the long-hairs went down the mountain to sell their wares, working with the best engineers and record producers in America and achieved riches and immortality: You remember a pop song from the 60’s and 70’s? It’s likely produced in Los Angeles by one of the above strivers. Americans do commerce and hedonism, often at the same time. New York produced the Velvet Underground, San Francisco the Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead, and L.A. everyone else.

This is not a book to read from front to back ... this is a book to get lost in ... to dream about and pour over. To long for. Just looking at the cover art gentles me ... and I can barely keep myself from bursting into song!

Beautifully presented and spanning some eighty years, there is something for everyone tucked inside it's pages! A coffee table book that will spark conversations and imaginations, memories and dreams! The photos alone are worth the price tag and if I could give more stars, I would!

Although I never made it to the canyon myself, I was(figuratively)that girls younger sister, standing in the road, gazing wistfully after her, watching the dust rise up from the tattered hem of her bell bottoms as she strode confidently away, guitar case slung over a shoulder and wheat blonde hair flowing out behind her.
And I was dreaming of the day ....

Just skimmed this, but it's full of great pictures of the scenesters of Laurel Canyon in the sixties. Frank Zappa, David Crosby, Cass Elliot, Joni Mitchell, Linda Ronstadt, and Charles Manson make appearances. I was mainly looking at it for the Monkees stuff, as Peter Tork and, even more so, Micky Dolenz were important characters in this story. Michael Nesmith is given a few shoutouts, too, and mention is made of his influence (as much as Gram Parsons or the Byrds, but less recognized) as a country-rock pioneer. Makes you wish you were there.

The photos are nice, but the book is basically a to-hell-with-the-facts series of memoirs and old stories that most music fans will already have heard before. Large sections were devoted to Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, and the Eagles...but one of the most important and interesting figures from the 70's L.A. music scene, Warren Zevon, was left out of the book entirely! Additionally, don't look to this book for accurate facts: one chapter mentions that Jim Morrison died the summer before Hendrix and Joplin did.

Enjoy the photos, but you can pass this one by,

Canyon of Dreams provides a good sense of the community that created so much great music. The book itself is attractive, with thick matte pages and tons of photos. Unfortunately, the cover came unglued the second or third time I opened the book, destroying my first impression that this was a beautiful, well-made book. Still, I enjoyed it, and it enhances the experience of listening to those great musicians.

Great photos - and this book should have stopped right there. Author is annoying, very impressed with himself. Chapters are arranged by musician or band, and there is so much cross-referencing between musicians (because they were all playing at each others' homes or studios) that the book doesn't flow well.

terribly chosen large-type blurbs abound - leading me to think (upon first flip-through) that the book would be yet another poorly written tome about something i love - but, in fact, it turned out to be rather well-written & filled with charming bits. good enough for the 1 chapter before bed each night read.

Beautiful photographs. Interesting stories, grouped mainly by band or person of interest so that the reader can skip a chapter if there is no interest in that subject. I knew most of the stories, so I found them to be redundant at times, but I enjoyed learning the new things that I was able to glean from it.