Bookworm
Here, then, are the reviews of my music books.............
Eno & Byrne
1. On Some Faraway Beach The Life and Times of Brian Eno
David Sheppard [2008] hb “Great biography. Classy."
2. Brian Eno His Music and the Vertical Colour of Sound
Eric Tamm [1995] pb
3.. A Year with Swollen Appendices Brian Eno's Diary
Brian Eno [1996] pb “Out of print for many years and commanding vast sums on amazon. Now reprinted so everyone can indulge. It's basically a diary written by Eno during one of his busy mid-ninety periods. What makes it attractive is his main subjects, U2 and David Bowie, with whom he was working for the first time since the 'Low' period. I actually liked his tales of Egypt. His ideas and working methods are to the fore and it's riveting stuff."
4. Brian Eno Visual Music
Christopher Scoates [2013] with free mp3 download “Academic in tone. Very nice book. Visual, too.”
5.. How Music Works
David Byrne [2012] hb (though soft to the touch, padded) “Lovely to hold and delightful to read. Exceptional."
6. Brian Eno Oblique Music
edited by: Albiez & Pattie [2016] “Many academic essays evaluating Eno’s place in the grand scheme of things. You may be surprised.”
Other Biographies / Music related stuff
1. The Guiness Book of Hits of the 70s
Jo & Tim Rice, Paul Gambaccini, Mike Reid [1986] pb “Reference book, but written with enthusiasm."
2. Nilsson The Life of a Singer-Songwriter
Alan Shipton [2013] hb “Funny. Sad. Enthralling. Disquieting. A huge monument to a huge talent. Genuinely upsetting at times. Beggars belief."
3. Turquoise Days The Weird World of Echo & the Bunnymen
Chris Adams [2002] pb “Got the band involved in discussing the songs, using sidebars throughout the book. Neat."
4. Soul Catalogue - edition 1
Edited by: Chris Wells [1994] pb “Labels. Numbers. Alphabetical releases."
5. The Devil's Music A History of the Blues
Giles Oakley [1976] pb “Does what it says on the tin. Fascinating.”
6. Destroy The Definitive History of Punk
Alvin Gibbs [1996] pb “A jaunty ride through the days of anarchy and beyond.”
7. Voxpop Profiles of the Pop Process
Michael Wale [1972] pb “A very detailed examination of the music industry in the early seventies, with chapters/interviews with all the major players at that time. Virtually every job is covered from PR to producer. The star happens to be Marc Bolan, who reveals a completely different character from the one feeding the media with crap. Disarmingly sensible and switched on. A book which is often overlooked or ignored. Essential."
8. Alice Cooper Welcome to my Nightmare
Dave Thompson [2012] pb “After doing a fine job on Bowie's later career, Dave is spreading himself too thin here. Not the best."
9. The Soul Book
Ian Hoare, Clive Anderson, Tony Cummings, Simon Frith [1975] pb “Deserves a makeover and revision.”
10. Ronnie
Ron Wood [2007] pb “Entertaining throughout. A right knees-up. I still prefer the Faces to the Stones! What do you think about that, Rod? And Ronnie was just the bass-player in the Jeff Beck group."
11. Alice Cooper Golf Monster How a Wild Rock 'N Roll Life Led to a Serious Golf Addiction
Alice Cooper with Keith & Kent Zimmerman [2007] pb “Everything you needed to know about golf, Graucho Marx & Raquel Welch. Bring on the Hollywood Vampires, indeed. Wonderful."
12. Innocent When You Dream Tom Waits The Collected Interviews
Edited by: Mac Montandon Foreword by: Frank Black [2006] pb “A collection of interviews with the unique Waits. Often surreal.”
13. Roxy The Band That Invented An Era
Michael Bracewell [2007] pb
14.. Unknown Pleasures Inside Joy Division
Peter Hook [2012] pb “This is the one which gets Hooky's juices flowing for writing. Power to that. Great insights into the awful struggles bands initially face. Not a happy tale, this, but therapeutic nevertheless."
15. Scott Walker The Rhymes of Goodbye
Lewis Williams [2006] pb “Dense. Oblique. Comprehensive. Who said pop was trivial?"
16. Madonna An Intimate Biography
J Randy Taraborrelli [2002] pb “Everyone's an expert."
17. One Train Later
Andy Summers [2006] pb “What a magnificent book! Or, rather, two books. Yep. One paperback, but two separate parts. Young Andy writes as well as he plays and offers value for money. Book Two naturally focuses on the most famous story, his role in the Police. But Book One has the really interesting bits.So why One Train Later? Well, if you've scanned 'The Coincidence Diaries' in one of my other blogs, you'll know how strange synchronous moments can be. If Andy had caught one train later, he may not have bumped into Stewart Copeland and rekindled their friendship and conseqential band structure. Such are the vagaries of fate. One train later and we wouldn't have had Message in a Bottle and Every Breath You Take. The cynical may have wished for an alternative universe. Anyway, without Andy we would not have the Les Paul & an altogether different version of Derek or God. That may come as a major surprise. He also jammed with Jimi, borrowed from Jimmy and played with two Kevins. He was also a major player in the Animals and a mate of Zoot Money. By the time he'd got to meet Gordon he'd had enough careers to sink a battleship. An awesome account of a charmed existence by one of the finest guitarists this country has ever produced. Essential."
18. No More Mister Nice Guy
Keith Altham [1999] hb signed “The PR King dishes the dirt and lavishes praise where it's due. He knows everyone. All Van Morrison fans should buy this!"
19. Waging Heavy Peace
Neil Young [2012] pb “How can one human suffer so much misfortune? Unbelievable. And you thought Neil was just rocking in the free world. What a talent. Gifted writing. Magnificent book."
20. This is a Call TheLife and Times of Dave Grohl
Paul Brannigan [2011] pb “On the bookshelf currently.”
21. Reckless My Life
Chryssie Hynde [2015] pb “What's the connection between Chrissie Hynde & Harvey Andrews? Bet she's never heard of him! Extraordinary book. Have to admire such honesty. I don't think I'd be telling everyone about half of this, if it were me. The depths of depravity, the filth, the lack of dignity and self-worth, but never loathing.....the sheer recklessness.......is astonishing. Certainly changes perceptions. You have to admire the resilience. Just glad books don't smell. Essential."
22. Bedsit Disco Queen How I Grew Up and Tried to be a Pop Star
Tracey Thorn [2013] hb “Fantastic. What do you expect from one who has a first-class degree in English Literature? Rock has come a long way from 'Beatles by Royal Command.' I must dig out my Marine Girls tapes from John Peel's radio shows."
23. Rod
Rod Stewart [2012] hb “Good old honest Rod. It's all about model railways and how many women's lives you can destroy, really. Get yer 'ands outta yer pocket, yer tight bastard!"
24. Vacant ADiary of the Punk Years 1976-1979
Nils Stevenson (Ray: photos) [1999] pb “A picture book with some words. Hanging on the coat-tails a tad.”
25. Terence Trent D'Arby
Daisann McLane [1989] pb “Slight. Fan-boy item from the pin-up early days. The autobiography will be stunning when it transpires. Watch out, Sony!"
26. John Peel The olivetti chronicles [2009] hb “A useful addition to the Peel legacy.”
27. Chronicles
Bob Dylan [2004] hb “Dylan is a writer. He writes with ease and is thoroughly engaging. It's fantastic stuff, with some anecdotes, seemingly tangental, turning into entire chapters. When Dylan escapes, so does the reader. Should be on every literature curriculum list."
28. Shakey Neil Young's Biography
Jimmy McDonough [2002] pb “Very thick. Detailed. Undone by Young’s own masterpiece.”
29. Sex
Madonna [1992] metal “Madonna's monument to her body. Big. Visual. Has metal covers. Why not?"
30. Encyclopaedia of Albums (1000)
General Editor: Paul du Noyer [1988] hb
reference only (subjective)
31. Guiness Rockopedia The Ultimate A-Z of Rock & Pop [1998] hb
reference only
32. Pop the Weird, the Wacky, the Wonderful World of Pop[2008] hb
reference only
33. The Pop & Rock World Records 2011
Luke Crampton & Dafydd Rees [2010] hb
reference only
34. Roxy Music Both Ends Burning
Jonathan Rigby [2008] or 2005 pb “It's great when an author knows his subject and is an enthusiast, too. He also retains considerable objectivity, especially in dealing with Ferry's weaknesses. It's chock-full of detail with lengthy analyses of all the album tracks and related material. Had me seeking out my old Roxy stuff on several occasions while reading the book. Grateful to have so many of their brilliant concerts, too. If only Siren had been a total masterpiece. Buy it."
35. Born to Run
Bruce Springsteen [2016] hb “Don't know what you'd expect from The Boss, but it's nothing Boss-like whatsoever. And that's both a relief and a very pleasant surprise. This is not your typical rock-star book at all. If you didn't know it was Springsteen on the cover, you'd never believe what you were reading. Bruce opens up. It's often very dark. The gradual descent into insecurity comes as a shock when you consider the media persona we're so used to witnessing, a man who displays such confidence on stage in public. It's gripping stuff. Loyalty, love and friendship mean everything. The wealth? It may seem disingenuous, but somehow it never is. I immediately went back to listen to the bare sounds of his stripped-back acoustic albums. They make sense. Genius needs to be tortured, apparently."
36. Substance Inside New Order
Peter Hook [2016] hb “Running to 724 pages, this is not for the faint-hearted. However, once you start you will not put it down. By around page 500 I was exhausted and almost hated all the protagonists as much as Peter. Alcoholism and drug addiction vie with paranoia and mental health issues. Epicurean hedonism it is not. The tale of Gazza and the champagne will linger long in the memory. It's great news that Hooky has come out the other side to perform live once more. One of the great rock 'n roll books."
37. Head On Julian Cope [1994] pb “Hilarious. Cope is bordering on the polymath these days. If you were wondering which book to buy from this list, this should be the first! Rite on, drude!"
38. Art, Sex, Music
Cosey Fanni Tutti [2018] pb “Possibly one of the most depressing but astonishing autobiographies ever published. This is a 'must-read.' Abuse on a grand scale. Narcissistic megalomania unparalleled. Breathtaking arrogance. Right off porridge, forever. Bastard!“
39. Me
Elton John [2019] hb “Respect for baring all, especially in France. Barely alive. Knows everyone. Even Liz winks at Reg.”
40. Face It
Deborah Harry [2019] hb “Riveting read. Almost as reckless as Chryssie Hynde. A magnet to psychos, apparently. Hugely-talented.”
41. Shell Shocked
Howard Kaylan, with Jeff Tamarkin [2013] pb “Exhausting indispensable encyclopaedic history of all-things pop & rock from the 60s et sequitur from the walking pharma-museum and personal finance whizz. Awesome. What a life!”
42. Robert Plant
Paul Rees [2013] pb “Do the charitable donations and occasional glimpses of financial generosity compensate for the trail of human wreckage left behind or cast adrift? I’m not sure. My mate had a pint with him and said he’s ok. Rod still calls him ‘Percy.’ Oh! Dear!”
43. Happy Forever
Mark Volman [2023] pb “Mark decided to get everyone who ever knew him to tell his life story through their recollections. He arranged for his co-author to conduct a massive series of interviews, around which the sections of the book somehow evolved into a chronological account. That it works is a testament to the effort of its creators. And what a life! There should be more books like this, contradictory yet compelling.”
44. Supermensch
Shep Gordon [2016] pb “Now if you enjoy fine food or cookery, then this is the book for you. If you’d like to know what it’s like to be punched in the chops by Janis Joplin, then this is also for you. If you’d like to know what it’s like to die and live to tell the tale, then this is definitely for you. And if you’re an Alice Cooper fan, then this is essential reading. Shep Gordon has been there, everywhere and done it all…….probably twice. An incredible book. I salute such majesty.”
45. The Light Pours Out Of Me
The authorised biography of JOHN McGEOCH
Rory Sullivan-Burke [2022] hb “People often talk about great guitarists. McGeoch was the business. His unique approach is described with the affection and admiration he richly deserved. It’s such a tragic tale, though, and some come out of it with more credit than others. Mr Rotten, sadly, is just rotten. What a waste!”
46. Small Hours
The Long Night Of John Martyn
Graeme Thomson [2020] hb “Very detailed, this. Heavily reliant on very fussily-researched details about addresses, aunts and uncles, friends and friends of musicians’ friends. Get the picture? All in all a bit turgid, which is remarkable when two of the protagonists are Martyn and Danny Thompson. The author clearly admires Martyn’s talent and craft, but, frankly, I’ve read more gripping sleeve notes.”
47. Echoes
Will Sergeant [2023] hb “This is the second instalment of Will Sergeant’s quest to emulate or outdo Gibbons. He may well pull it off, too, if this book is anything to go by. He writes in the tricky present tense, taking the reader on a rock ‘n rollercoaster trip of his experiences in the Bunnymen. It’s great fun. He is self-deprecating and convivial throughout. There’s very little posturing going on here, though he is embarrassed by the extent he eschews every aspect of ‘cool.’ It just makes it all the funnier. He comes across as sound, someone who would make a great mate. Just ask Les or Brod. Books 3, 4 & 5 should be interesting!”
48. Tomorrow’s Here Today
Ian Broudie [2023] hb “Broudie (or Brod, or even Kingbird to his mates) has decided to commit his memories to print in a non-linear fashion, since he believes there are key moments which shape our existence. It works a treat, despite some chapters having a similar ending, as he recalls each chunk of his eventful life. He recalls everything vividly and with vulnerability. There’s one period which is shattering. This is a glorious read. I did it in two sittings over Xmas. Essential.”
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