Blue Öyster Cult: Secrets Revealed! is now called Agents of Fortune: The Blue Öyster Cult Story and is published out of the UK and is no longer available as Blue Öyster Cult: Secrets Revealed!, which was a 2009 update of the 2005 book.

I did a long rewrite, expansion, re-edit on this thing (plus songs in double quotes, albums italicized, little up-classing details) with new interview footage from Eric Bloom, Al Bouchard, Joe Bouchard, Donald Roeser and the always quotable Sandy Pearlman. maybe a few other citations as well, plus better writing.

Less pictures than the 2009 book and for obvious reasons, I’m not crazy about the front cover! But where it really matters, the writing... well, this was my best band biog ever and now it’s even way better, with expanded examinations of many of the songs and an updating of the story, mostly with the continued writing and recording careers of Joe and Al.

Blue Öyster Cult… six gold and platinum U.S. albums… classic trax like “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper,” “Godzilla,” “Burnin’ for You,” “Astronomy” and “E.T.I.” Indeed, Donald “Buck Dharma” Roeser, Eric Bloom, Allen Lanier, Albert Bouchard and Joe Bouchard comprised one of the great stadium acts of the ‘70s and ‘80s. BOC were heavy metal enough to duke it out with Kiss, Rush, Aerosmith, Ted Nugent and Black Sabbath, yet smart, funny, ironic and jaded enough to please the tough New York critics, of which more than a couple mingled within their ranks.

Agents of Fortune is not a biography as such, but a biography of the band’s albums, a canon of work I consider one of the finest in rock, and truly superlative on the lyrical front. Indeed, in radio, print and TV interviews, I’ve consistently called the band’s lyrics the best in the business, tied with those of Captain Beefheart and Pye Dubois (Max Webster, Kim Mitchell). And what’s more, it’s been well-documented that I consider this the most action-packed, intellectual and highly interesting of the band biographies I’ve penned. The guys are just really cool, creative and have killer stories.

The book examines the complicated early days of the band, graphically demonstrating the show biz sweat that goes into making an act an act. The majority of the book however is centered around the peerless intellectual quality of the songs, a quality made entertaining by the band’s psychotropic and ghoulish humor, and by its interest in all manner of conspiracy theories, cults, monsters, vampires, UFO tales, foul play, arcane spiritualism, alchemy, love lost and love buried, science fiction and science friction.

Along the way, I talked (in some cases numerous times) with Buck, Eric, Albert and Joe, along with drummer Bobby Rondinelli, legendary producer of the band Murray Krugman and BÖC expert Bolle Gregmar. For insight into the band’s fantastic lyrical world, I went right to the source, the penners of BÖC classics. Some of the best insights into creativity I’ve ever heard - through 1400 interviews an’ counting - came from Sandy Pearlman (also the band’s manager during the golden years), Richard Meltzer, Helen Wheels, David Roter and John Shirley, along with cover artists Greg Scott and Ioannis. Helen Wheels and David Roter are since deceased—these chats with them are among their last interviews.

Books will be signed by me to you, so make clear if it’s a gift to someone else.

Prices for Agents of Fortune: The Blue Öyster Cult Story including shipping (the book will be signed, by me, to you, unless otherwise requested):

PayPal happily accepted! Ask me if you'd like a PayPal invoice (please indicate what country you are in), or just do yer usual and direct funds to [email protected].

Sweet postage savings to be had for multiple orders (or two of pretty much anything—long story, ask me!). Given new mailing system, works best for US orders.

 
Or mail payment (personal check in US funds, cash, or INTERNATIONAL money order), to:
Martin Popoff
P.O. Box 65208, 358 Danforth Ave.
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M4K 2Z2