On Friday, November 9th, at 7:00 pm, writer Paul Myers will host a San Francisco launch of his new book, "It Ain't Easy: Long John Baldry and the Birth of the British Blues". The launch takes place at The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, San Francisco, CA, 94117, tel: (415) 863-8688. Myers, who interviewed Elton at length for this book, will be on hand to discuss and sign copies of the book at the San Francisco launch. There will also be a brief screening of an excerpt from a new BBC / Bravo! documentary, Long John Baldry: In The Shadow of the Blues.

The book is a detailed account of the foundations of British rock, and of the life of Long John Baldry, the musician who inspired a generation of British artists to discover American blues and sell it back to the States. Baldry was a key musical figure in Elton's early career. He provided Reg Dwight with the John part of his new name, and he is also acknowledged as 'sugarbear', the subject of the song Someone Saved My Life Tonight, about a period when Elton was in despair due to problems in his personal life.

A driving force behind the British blues explosion in the 1960s, Baldry's passion and support for American blues artists such as Muddy Waters, Lead Belly and Howlin' Wolf influenced many British musicians including Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, The Rolling Stones and the Beatles. While Baldry is credited with helping launch the careers of Rod Stewart and Elton, he died in relative obscurity in Vancouver, Canada in July 2005. Myers' biography celebrates the wild life of Long John Baldry and, as a history of blues, gives new insight into a cornerstone of rock-and-roll.

Paul Myers gained exclusive interviews with Baldry's family members including his 20-year partner Oz and his siblings Margaret and Roger; as well as musicians including Elton, Paul McCartney, Mick Fleetwood and Rod Stewart; and other notable figures such as the Rolling Stones' former manager Andrew Loog Oldham.

Myers said, 'After a lot of string pulling and journalistic sleuthing, I was thrilled by how many famous and integral names turned out to speak about their old friend John.'