Hungry and Determined
Geffen was a schemer, no doubt. And bending truth was part of his method. For instance, he manipulated Richard Perry into producing Barbra Streisand’s Stoney End album. After that, Geffen pressed Nyro to tell Streisand that her song Wedding Bell Blues was personally written for her. Nyro wasn’t only appalled by the suggestion, she rejected it.
Laura Nyro and David Geffen 1969. Photo by Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images
He wasn’t even 30, and his hunger for success was so powerful that he made his dream – of being the next Mo Ostin or Ahmet Ertegun – come true, albeit in a devious way. He kept his eye on the industry’s power shifts.