THINGS WE LOST IN THE NIGHT,
A Memoir of Love and Music in the 60s

Larry J. Dunlap

NIGHT PEOPLE, Book 1

(P June 15, 2015) Fifty years ago, a young singer in a vocal group in the Midwest finds himself unexpectedly thrust into the chaos of San Francisco’s historical musical and cultural revolution with his three vocalist friends. He leads the group’s struggle to form a band, then survive the rough east bay dive bars, though not without personal sacrifice, Larry loses the girl he’s loved since high school in a family power struggle that leaves his wife and sons behind. The band achieves success in a mob-operated nightclub at the pinnacle of San Francisco’s North Beach nightlife–at the point of a gun, and Larry meets a Chicana girl who will be his lover and companion over the next three years.

In Hollywood, the band finds celebrity managers, star-studded clubs, Sunset Boulevard recording sessions.  In Las Vegas, they open mega-casino, Caesars Palace’s new lounge–the first rock band to play a major hotel. As the band prepares for their first record release, crises abound as Larry is suddenly inducted into the army with a sure ticket to Vietnam, the band nearly starves when engagements fall through and agents let them down, and they grapple with finding the right mix of band members, but the original four vocalists from the Midwest find a way to stick together through the difficulties. Though the band’s success seems assured, Larry’s romantic relationship is ending, as their next record, Look Back in Love, is already picked to hit the top of the Billboard charts. When the band returns from their engagement in Hawaii, it seems certain that Stark Naked and the Car Thieves will soon take it’s place in the pantheon of nationally famous recording artists.

 

AMAZON REVIEWS FOR NIGHT PEOPLE, Book 1 (follow link)

GOODREADS REVIEWS FOR FOR NIGHT PEOPLE, Book 1 (below)

ENCHANTED, Book 2 

(Coming late 2018) In a magical engagement in Hawaii, Larry finds that danger lurks beneath the exotic beauty of the island of Oahu. A near-death drowning experience and a dramatic night of love and romance immersed in island magic are burned into memory. He is compelled to confront sex traffickers, and he and his friends learn firsthand of the horrors of the Vietnam War he barely avoided. As the band seeks elusive fame in their recording career, success continues infamous Las Vegas resort hotels, and Larry’s chance at a forever-marriage with his Hawaiian wife blooms with the birth of their young son. With a chance to record the theme of a new major movie, it seems nothing can stop Stark Naked and the Car Thieves’ ascent to the top. But, when disaster strikes, it is sudden and catastrophic. He must try to save his dream marriage, his band — even his life and sanity —  before the music ends forever.

– Larry J. Dunlap

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