Street-Level Superstar: a year with LAWRENCE

"Will has finally written his masterpiece. I'm glad I could be of assistance." —LAWRENCE

Lawrence is the greatest pop star who never made it, his dreams of glory thwarted over the past five decades by bad luck and self-sabotage. At 61, he set off on a new mission: to escape poverty, obscurity and the humiliation of kids at the bus stop laughing at him by writing a smash hit. But what is the cost of a dream?

In 1980, Lawrence formed Felt, releasing 10 albums and 10 singles in 10 years. In 19...