Current Music Books

[ale]

Bunnyman Memoir-Will Sergeant. A very good read. Will is engaging candid and self effacing. Covers his upbringing in council estate Liverpool from late 1950s-Outwardly it all boys high jinks and friends made for life. Inwardly he meets pals on doorstep rather inviting them inside and is far happier in other family homes. Yet although early lacerating towards an abusive father who natural environment is public house & bookie his mother leaving is treated as welcome relief-she has suitcase packed and going through door before as an afterthought she asks if her son wants to accompany her. He doesnst see her for another 8 years. In the meantime he does the necessary years at school from which he draws conclusion it far better to be at be at lower end of educational scale but not the actual remedial one. Music fills his life-his age means he into Quo & Led Zep so misses punk in its infancy though makes a claim to recognising the authenticity of Anarchy In UK played at a Dr Feelgood gig of the time.A biker in dress and musical taste he nevertheless by 1977 a member of Erics and embracing the culture if only on the fringes- name drops follow for Jayne Casey Pete Burns Holly Johnson and naturally Julian Cope. By end of memoir some two years on-the break being swapping the Echo drum machine for Pete de Freitas as actual drummer-Will is reflecting and bemused on how effortless the band has progressed-him and Macul spend a few months playing guitars together once a week without a lyric being written. Les Pattinson volunteers to join without ever playing a bass guitar-and when he does it only has three strings. Yet debut single Pictures On Wall is unanimous record of week in music press and they doing John Peel session . Second book eagerly awaited

[Sunderporinostesta]

CSMs Hendrix biog seemed all over a third of the way through but he backtracks and weaves Hendrixs tale into an extended essay on the black experience and a history of black music in America. I liked it. For me its still Hendrixs lyrics that let him down I suspect he knew that himself.

CSM had another go this time with John Lee Hooker as the frame he hangs his musings on. This ones a bit more personal and a lot flatter. Whether that’s because he knew his subject and had to tread carefully or not I don’t know. It’s very repetitive and unfocused.

Im halfway through Springsteen’s at the point where he reveals his issues with depression. It’s ok so far but a bit flowery. Where’s the grit n meat n potatoes of the Bruce story? That’s what I want to hear.

[ale]

In Fairness, I'm sure "Margrave of the Marshes" would have been a better book had he not died halfway through writing it.

Agree that "Goodnight and Good Riddance" is definitely the one to go for if you're interested in Peel.

Enjoyed it. David Cavanagh spent an inordinate time putting it together and he does the balance between respect and doubt very well. Comes down on the side of respect and why wouldnt you. Also what worked well is my personal interaction with Peel radio shows started in 1977 and ended in 1983. But author has made made me seek out stuff that escaped me in the 20 years since.

[Huey666]

Just finished reading 'Bodies' by Ian Winwood, about mental health in the modern music industry. Good read but quite depressing really, especially as things seem to be possibly getting worse.

Review here: Bodies by Ian Winwood review – rock and a hard place | Books | The Guardian

[imp]

Browsing and gorging on Jonny Trunk's pictorial AZ Record Shop Bags.

[Sunderporinostesta]

Just finished the huge updated Severed Alliance by John Rogan. I knew Morrissey was a nasty piece of work but Marr isn’t far behind judging by the goings on chronicled by Rogan. Wear steel toed safety boots while reading it just in case you drop it. Way too heavy for a commute read, i could feel my back going.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Someone gave me Little Girl Blue — The Life of Karen Carpenter by Randy L Schmidt for my birthday. I know nothing about it, though suspect it won't be a joyful read. I'll report back.

[imp]

'Swell Maps 1972-1980' by their bassist Jowe Head. Very nicely presented hardback with a 7" single, lots of interviews, artwork, cuttings and pictures make it a perfect dip-into volume if the band were ever on your radar. On the downside, Jowe's no writer and could definitely have used an experienced music hack to bash it into shape - very much reads like he wrote a first draft and that it was never edited. Nonetheless, a worthy scrapbook for the record.

[Sunderporinostesta]

Nick Tosches-Where Dead Voices Gather. A worthy study of black face minstrelsy and his attempt to place one bloke at the centre of the birth of blues, jazz, soul, rock n roll etc singing will struggle to succeed as long as the blokes not available on Spotify.

[Satchmo Distel]

Joy and Fear - John Lyons:

The Beatles in Chicago. There is a lot of primary research so it's a worthwhile delve if you're interested in the group's impact on one city.

Ray Charles - Michael Lydon (1998):

The definitive biography and covers all the issues you'd want to be addressed. Ray's ability to make so much great music when addicted to smack (as well as being blind) was a testament to how much talent he had but also how hard he worked. Not many musicians, (maybe just Miles Davis, Monk and John Coltrane) left such a consistent body of groundbreaking work in the 50s and early 60s.

[delicatemoth]

You Must Get Them All - The Fall On Record by Steve Pringle

An exhaustive trawl through The Fall's entire catalogue is as close as we'll get to a 'Revolution In The Head' for the group. A fine companion, especially for the later material.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Little Girl Blue (see above) is thorough, and given the tragic subject of the bio, probably as impartial as possible. There's a clear villain. Though, to do him justice, Schmidt doesn't beat up on Agnes Carpenter as much as he might have. Nor as much as a subjective reader might wish he had. A dark template for controlling parenthood, she attempted to worm her way into every aspect of her children's lives. Insisted they live at home into their late 20s, vetoing who they dated, and managing their finances until they got too complex. A comparison with the Wilson brothers' father is notable. (Maybe it's the air in LA?) Richard survived his Mother's suffocating presence better than Karen. He was older, "the talented one" and could, and did, fight back. Karen was just his tomboy little sister. Her eating disorders and eventual death are a textbook case of parental love and approval with-held.

Their musical development is almost as interesting, and less well known. Richard was something of a prodigy. Karen wasn't but gravitated to drums in high school, even though "they weren't a girl's instrument,'" according to her band master. She quickly got very good. To the end she thought of herself as primarily a drummer. Into the mid-70s she sang from behind her kit at the back of the stage. It was only Richard's instance that dragged her into the spotlight. The Carpenters stagecraft was always a problem. They didn't really get it. Neither of them was particularly extrovert, and their instruments also required them to be static. Finally Karen's voice, gorgeous as it was, was what's referred to as a "mic" voice. She couldn't project. Apparently you could stand three feet away from her and not hear a word. Well worth a read.

[Cal Alamein]

Took awhile (700 pages), but finally finished SHOCK and AWE - Glam Rock and its Legacy by Simon Reynolds.

Very comprehensive, w/ extensive focus on Bowie, Bolan and Roxy Music.

[Sporting]

You Must Get Them All - The Fall On Record by Steve Pringle

An exhaustive trawl through The Fall's entire catalogue is as close as we'll get to a 'Revolution In The Head' for the group. A fine companion, especially for the later material.

I want to get this and though not put off by the 25 quid plus postage price for such a heavy tome the customs costs are ridiculous and seemingly made up on the spot.

[ad hoc]

I want to get this and though not put off by the 25 quid plus postage price for such a heavy tome the customs costs are ridiculous and seemingly made up on the spot.

Can you order it from a bookseller in Ireland?

[Sporting]

Not yet. At the moment it's only being sold from the UK publisher. The author isn t happy but his hands are tied.

[Sunderporinostesta]

Just finished Mixerman by Mixerman.
A mildly entertaining in print version of a recording engineers anonymous online diary of an shambolic recording session in LA-NYC-LA. Bunch of semi talented eejits get a major deal and proceed to make a hash of it. I’ve not yet looked up the blog to find out the bands real ID and how things turned out for them post blog/book.

I bought it obviously unread for 99p in a charity shop during lockdown. I intended to return it after reading but have discovered a dedication to someone with my first name just inside the cover. Vanity compels me to keep it but I’ll need to invent a sender with a first name along the lines of Messrs Smith, Goldmith and fuckin Weinstein ferchrissakes. Any suggestions?

[Satchmo Distel]

There's a trilogy by Simon Goddard on Bowie in 1970-72 that I have been considering buying but I am on the fence. Anyone here read it?

[ale]

There's a trilogy by Simon Goddard on Bowie in 1970-72 that I have been considering buying but I am on the fence. Anyone here read it?

Is obviously going to continue past trilogy status and getting decent reviews. Havent indulged yet though.Value for money not yet compatible with size of books. Less than 200 pages each one. And yes I get 200 pages of good lean writing is better than 400 pages of poor flabby writing. But a 200 page book shouldnt be priced the same as a 400 page book.

[imp]

I think I may have mentioned this before but after a te-read (or more accurately a more focused read) I’m prepared to say that Jeff Tweedy’s ‘Lets Go (So We Can Get Back’) is the most engaging and enjoyable music autobiography (or biography) I’ve ever read. He writes beautifully: the kind of sparse, pacy style associated with someone like Raymond Carver. The tone is unremittingly self deprecating and it’s very, very funny.

Reading this right now and loving every page - thanks for the recommendation, TC.

[Tony C]

I’m giving Paul Morley’s ‘From Manchester with love: the life and opinions of Tony Wilson’ a second (or maybe third) go and again finding it desperately hard work. I like Morley and Wilson is an interesting enough subject but even as a Mancunian I feel my sense of civic responsibility is being excessively challenged by having to continue with this. This book could be literally half the length and twice as good for it.

[Jobi1]

Currently reading Jarvis Cocker's Good Pop Bad Pop, basically him clearing out his loft and using the items he finds as a jumping-off point to tell stories from his past and give his thoughts on various things in the world of music and beyond. So, it's kind of a memoir, but with a bit of music history, philosophy (sort of) and general musings. He's got a lovely writing style (as you'd perhaps expect) and the book itself is visually really interesting, being filled with photos and other images, and use of colour and typefaces to really elevate it above a bog-standard autobiog. I'm sure some will find it a bit daft and self-indulgent, but I'm really enjoying it – lots of fun but also some really interesting stuff too.

[imp]

I'm reading Peter Hook's Joy Division book, bought a while back from the remainders pile in Fopp. Entertaining enough behind-the-scenes indie-rock romp, though a bit repetitive. But he seems very honest, and self-critical enough, and even while bitching about the band (especially Bernard Sumner) he gives credit where it's due, as well as not holding back on what idiots they were not to notice how ill Ian Curtis was. It's funny to read it straight after Richard Beard's Sad Little Men (see Stu Hennigan thread), imagining their two approximately parallel lives in Britain at the time, and the different backgrounds and educations and attitudes they came out of school with at the same time as punk was kicking off.

[Benjm]

I've just finished Karl Bartos's The Sound of the Machine. At 600+ pages it's a hefty tome but I'd strongly recommend it to anyone with an interest in Kraftwerk. Bartos is a warm and engaging voice and there is plenty to enjoy on growing up in post-war Germany and the bohemian life of a music student/aspiring professional in the late '60s and '70s. The main draw for most readers will of course be his time with the 'Werk. KB's account largely supports what is already known. A heady burst of creativity is gradually slowed and stalled. Cycling takes the place of heroin in more traditional tales of band disintegration. The inertia reaches such a point that Wolfgang Flur's departure goes unnoticed for a couple of years. There are some incisive passages about the class division in the band and Hutter and Schneider's treatment of Bartos as an employee but the tone isn't overly bitter. What makes the book is the fleshing out of Bartos's life and routine, splitting his time between the classical world, show bands and Kraftwerk, before deciding to fully commit to the latter. He makes clear that for him the great joy of Kraftwerk was the three (generally, sometimes four) of them playing together and sparking ideas off each other in the Kling Klang studio and firmly attributes their demise to technology improving and personal relationships deteriorating to a point where that joy in collaborative creation was lost. Post Kraftwerk, the book does lose momentum a little, but the author is thoughtful and touching in recognising that this was so in life too as he tries to rebuild his career.

Before that I read Gordon King's When Does The Mindbending Start: The Life and Times of World of Twist. Despite WoT being a footnote in musical history compared to Kraftwerk, I would press this on someone who wasn't already a fan of the act in question ahead of the Bartos, not least because it is less than half the length. Twist guitarist King has a pleasingly wry tone in explaining his passion for pop music, the grand ambition and surreal logic behind the band and their inability to realise those ambitions. A sense of melancholy creeps in as the latter point becomes apparent even before the group's short but expensive stay on a major label is terminated. The book has a great sense of time and place in the Sheffield and Manchester of the 1980s and early '90s, even as the protagonists blithely ignore prevailing trends that might have taken them further.

[RobW]

I’m giving Paul Morley’s ‘From Manchester with love: the life and opinions of Tony Wilson’ a second (or maybe third) go and again finding it desperately hard work. I like Morley and Wilson is an interesting enough subject but even as a Mancunian I feel my sense of civic responsibility is being excessively challenged by having to continue with this. This book could be literally half the length and twice as good for it.

Ah, I did flick through that in Waterstone's and thought about adding it on to my reading list. I think I opened at a very good story from Richard Madeley about Wilson's behaviour.