2008 Pop Conference Bios/AbstractsDavid RitzDavid Ritz, a four-time winner of the Ralph J. Gleason Award (for books with Jerry Wexler, the Neville Brothers, B.B. King and Etta James), is also the author of independent life studies (
Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye, Faith in Time: The Life of Jimmy Scott), novels (
Blue Notes Under a Green Felt Hat, The Man Who Brought the Dodgers Back to Brooklyn) and song lyrics ("Sexual Healing"). He's currently working on books with Leiber & Stoller, Cornel West, Janet Jackson and Paul Shaffer.
Panel(s):David Ritz, "Divided Byline: How a Student of Leslie Fiedler and Colleague of Charles Keil Became the Ghostwriter for Everybody from Ray Charles to Cornel West"Saturday, April 12, 2008, 6:00 - 7:00
Abstract:"
Divided Byline: How a Student of Leslie Fiedler and Colleague of Charles Keil Became the Ghostwriter for Everybody from Ray Charles to Cornel West"
In this talk, David Ritz discusses the much-misunderstood art of ghostwriting. He frames his discussion around his own story-- starting out as an academic, moving on to musical journalism, and finally finding his voice in the voice of others.
Ritz's view of music criticism starts with his sense of what Keil once termed "fan-dom." "The point of genuine ghosting is to love an artist enough to take a chance on entering his or her world," he says. "The writer no longer stands on the outside looking in, making observations or judgments. The writer goes all the way inside, absorbing himself into the artist's very heart and soul. In a mystical and sometimes frightening way, the artist and writer become one. Some see the ghost as a hack. I'm partial to the term Holy Ghost."
But how does one enter the world of Aretha Franklin, B.B. King, Grandmaster Flash, Smokey Robinson and Etta James? For a white writer, what are the obstacles and racial implications of channeling such voices? How does a ghost shape the mythology of a life story not his own? What are the dangers? The thrills? The rewards? The literary fallout? Ritz takes a long hard look at the collaborative biography as a way into a world clouded with mystery.
