In various associations (not always happy)  with the likes of Jim Morrison, Jeff Buckley, Andy Warhol, David Cassidy, John Cameron Mitchell, Nico, the Ramones- designated by Alice Cooper as "the mayor of the backroom at Max's Kansas City,”  Danny Fields was the person who bridged the gaps, passed the gossip and kept a roaring fire lit backstage (literally, at the Monterey Pop Festival). “Danny is a connector-- like a fuel injector in a car. He brings all the elements together for an extreme explosion,” so says Iggy Pop. 


After dropping out of Harvard Law School (where at 19, he was the youngest person in his entering class) Danny saw his New York loft on West 20th Street become a crash pad for the Harvard Square contingent of the Factory crowd (Edie Sedgwick stayed there on her way to "Girl of the Year"). After brushes at bizarre entities such as Liquor Store and Outdoor Advertiser Magazines, Danny  found himself in the teen-fan world of Datebook Magazine. In 1966, as Managing Editor, Danny was responsible for shining a spotlight on John Lennon’s cataclysmic “more popular than Jesus” quote, which sent a shock-wave through the American Bible Belt, where bonfires and death threats contributed to the Beatles decision to stop performing live at the height of their career. At Datebook,  Danny befriended the talented, young photographer, Linda Eastman, who became one of Danny’s closest friends (before she became Mrs. Paul McCartney)—Danny and Linda frequently worked as a photographer/reporter team. Many years later, Linda’s husband was amused to hear that his wife's friend mischievously, though of course quite inadvertently, lit the spark that caused much trouble for the biggest band in the universe.

And for years, sparks continued to fly. Danny got a severe dressing-down from Eric Clapton for letting his lead vocalist, Jack Bruce, swallow acid-laced popcorn, "kidnapped" Jim Morrison, was fired from Atlantic Records for leaving the company credit card at the mercy of Abbie Hoffman and the Yippies, and was the first male in America to be censored on public access TV for pretending to stick a light bulb up a TV repairman's anus, in Anton Perich’s historic made-for-cable movie, Mr. Fixit.

But Danny also shook the world of rock 'n' roll as a discoverer and supporter of pioneering talent. In his job as a budding rock journalist, Danny was among the first to publish stories on the Velvet Underground, Jefferson Airplane and the Who. In 1968, Danny got the MC5 and the Stooges a recording contract at Elektra Records with one phone call to Jac Holzman, the company president. As a revered (and feared?) presence at Max’s Kansas City, Danny introduced Iggy Pop to David Bowie and granted Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe an invitation to sit at his backroom table. In a lowly job at Atlantic Records, Danny had been the first person to spot the commercial and artistic potential of the Allman Brothers, and was persuasive in signing Loudon Wainwright III (coincidentally, Fields is a friend of Loudon’s son, Rufus Wainwright).  With Chelsea Girls star Brigid Berlin, aka Brigid Polk, he sold to Atlantic Brigid’s cassette tape which became the album The Velvet Underground Live at Max's Kansas City, recording Lou Reed’s last night performing with the band. Danny briefly— as in “two weeks”--  managed Lou Reed. In 1968, Danny signed Nico to Elektra Records for her groundbreaking collaboration (Marble Index) with John Cale. In 1975, Danny became the manager of the Ramones after hearing them at CBGB's. The peculiar list continues with side jaunts as free-form DJ at WFMU, co-editor in chief of 16 Magazine, editor of farsighted country music magazine, Country Rhythms, chauffeur to Steve Paul, interviewer of thousands of stars, columnist, photographer, rock 'n' roll tour guide, movie critic, porn director and many things between.

Danny's taste these days is as offbeat as ever. Please Kill MeThe Uncensored Oral History of Punk (now available in 14 languages) by Gillian McCain and Legs McNeil, includes a dedication to Danny Fields as "forever the coolest guy in the room." Danny Fields is currently active, curious, and wary in New York City.