Author:Peter Kearns / Alan Byrne / Matthew Restall

Perhaps not the most obvious choice from Kate’s back catalogue for this series, The Dreaming is one of her more difficult albums and as such is often overlooked in comparison to some of her other releases. Released in late 1982 with its Houdini pastiche artwork, it was a mixture of very disparate styles and influences, with no obvious singles, Sat In Your Lap being the closest to a hit. I think it has actually improved with age, and the likes of the title track and Pull Out The Pin sound better to me today than they did forty odd years ago, although some of the remaining songs are still quite slight, almost throwaway pieces. The book is certainly worth looking out for if you want to find out more about the writing and recording of this record, which I think it’s fair to say, still divides opinion.

Renegade is a revised and updated version of a book that was previously only published in Ireland. Since Lynott’s untimely death in 1986, his legend has continued to flourish, fueled by the plethora of reissues of the key albums in the Thin Lizzy canon. Obviously » Continue Reading.

Author:Paul Kidby

The artist Paul Kidby was Terry Pratchett’s long term collaborator, bringing his fantastical visions to life with his beautiful and inventive illustrations. For over three decades, he conjured up the artwork that graced the Discworld novels, turning the imaginary creations of Pratchett’s fertile mind into images for the reader to enjoy. For me, they were always a great bonus dotted among the pages of the stories, while the equally eye catching covers almost leapt from the shelves of the bookshops. This gorgeous book, produced on top quality art paper, traces the illustrations from the earliest initial sketches through to the final finished magnificent masterpieces, and gives a behind the scenes look at how the magic spell was woven, and how influences and inspirations from many disparate strands of art and pop culture were incorporated into the work. There’s a good helping of previously unseen work on show as well as some familiar images, all backed up with a selection of great background stories as to how and why the drawings were created. A super book, beautifully illustrated in full colour, that would make an ideal Christmas present for the Pratchett fan in your life!

Length of Read:Medium

Might » Continue Reading.

Author:John Connolly

Just in time for Halloween, Connolly has produced this sequel to his previous short story collections Nocturnes and Night Music. Actually, this is something of a hybrid as only the first half of the book comprises short stories, with the second half being given over to a lengthy piece, incorporating plenty of his rather laconic sense of humour, on his favourite movie, the rather obscure Horror Express. The short stories range from that of a fantastical library where fictional characters come to life in their own world to a sci fi tale about Nazi war criminals to a couple of tales that rather put me in mind of HP Lovecraft and MR James. They are certainly a captivating bunch of pieces that are just right for this time of year. The latter part of the book, as I mentioned, is devoted to his love for Horror Express, a film I must confess that has managed to pass me by, but this piece also encompasses his ruminations on his relationship with his late father, the power of nostalgia and the horror genre in general, as well as giving us a very detailed look at the actors involved and the » Continue Reading.

Author:Alex Van Halen

The passing of Eddie Van Halen marked the end of the road for a band that in its two different incarnations sold over 80 million albums worldwide. As his elder brother, and the man behind the drum kit who often seemed to be he glue that held the band together, no one is better placed to recount their story. This though is a book that is as much about the relationship between two young brothers uprooted to a foreign country as it is about the band. Moving from Holland to the US in 1962 was a huge upheaval for them, especially as they didn’t even speak English at the time. However, encouraged by the work ethic of their father, and the musical talents they inherited from him, they stuck together and eventually fought their way through school and into various line ups of the band that would ultimately bring them fame and fortune, but would also lead them into the grip of alcoholism and the excesses of archetypal rock star behaviour. Throughout the book the author looks back without donning rose tinted glasses to give an inside look at their career, although surprisingly he doesn’t have a » Continue Reading.

Author:Richard James, Chris Sutton, Opher Goodwin

I think most Rush fans would agree that the period covered by this book is peak Rush, particularly with the run of album from 2112 through to Moving Pictures. The band got off to an uncertain start with their first few records before finally finding their feet with the epic records of the late seventies and early eighties. From 1982’s Signals set they rather changed their approach, ditching the long prog pieces in favour of shorter songs more friendly to the ear of the casual listener, a trend that had actually begun in the preceding couple of albums. As usual, the book takes a song by song look at each album, producing some insightful analysis along the way. A second volume is promised covering the later years of their career, a period for me of albums with great songs rather than great albums, with the notable exception of their swan song Clockwork Angels. A good worthwhile read for fans of the band.

Sparks are a band I followed for a couple of albums after This Town Ain’t Big Enough appeared like a breath of fresh air in the charts. By the time I picked » Continue Reading.

Author:Richard Houghton

As The Stranglers edge towards their fiftieth anniversary, this updated official look back at their career shares some interesting perspectives on their history. Compiled from the reminiscences of their army of loyal fans who have stuck with them through their numerous ups and downs, the book tracks the band from 1976 all the way through to 2022. Followers tell their war stories of attending gigs at home and abroad over the years, and the passion and loyalty the band continues to evoke shines through the now often distant memories These anecdotes are supplemented by recollections from the band and their associates and there’s a great selection of images, not just of the band onstage but of record sleeves and rare memorabilia, with the whole thing being immaculately presented on really top quality paper. A very comprehensive look back at the career of this long running band – when they first appeared on the scene I don’t think many would have foreseen their longevity!

Length of Read:Medium

Might appeal to people who enjoyed…

For hardcore Stranglers fans that want to relive and enjoy precious memories one more time.

One thing you’ve learned

The band members off stage seem to » Continue Reading.

Author:Ian Rankin

Rankin had intended the previous novel, A Heart Full of Headstones, to be the final bow for John Rebus. However, a change of heart means that here we are with the 25th novel in this long running series. Picking up where the last story ended, we find Rebus is now incarcerated, not a good position for an ex copper to find himself in. However, even in prison he is dragged into the investigation of the murder of a fellow inmate, the motive for which is unclear. Meanwhile, outside the walls, Siobhan Clarke is investigating the sudden disappearance of a schoolgirl, while Malcolm Fox tries to insert himself into both cases for murky reasons of his own. I won’t give away any more of the plot here, but suffice to say this is certainly Rankin’s best work for a good while and is right up there with the very finest of the Rebus canon. The two plots run seamlessly side by side in this work, which really is the gold standard in this genre, and the stunning climax leaves the reader wondering if there’ll be more to come or whether this is it – oh, and there’s a very » Continue Reading.

Author:Mike Cormack

There are already an awful lot of books around on Pink Floyd so the question is I suppose, is there anything new to say or any information that hasn’t already been unearthed and endlessly dissected? Well, the answer is probably not, but a book like this can be useful in collating material from disparate sources and rounding it all up in one handy volume, and of course there’s always room for another opinion on the music itself. The book begins with a detailed look at each album, song by song. The author makes some interesting points although as someone who already knows a lot about the band (sound of own trumpet being blown!), I didn’t learn anything new, and I found the practice of capitalising every song title mentioned in an article quite irritating to be honest. The second section of the book is a detailed chronology day by day of what the band was doing in terms of live shows and record releases, right from its inception. It ends with the release of the Hey Hey Rise Up single in 2022, although oddly the release of The Endless River is missing. Running alongside this is a list » Continue Reading.

Author:Michael Palin

This is the fourth instalment of extracts from Michael Palin’s diaries, eventually arriving a full ten yeas after the previous volume, Travelling To Work, and the dawning of the new millennium sees him at his most reflective and introspective so far. He continues of course with his travel adventures, producing four more TV series with accompanying books, but this is also a time of great change in his personal life with the last of his children flying the nest and him eventually becoming a grandfather for the first time. However, the decade also sees huge upheavals on the world stage, with the September 11 terrorist atrocity, the 7/7 bombings, and the global financial crash, all of which contribute to his general air of unease and self doubt, exacerbated by the death of his close friend George Harrison. Nonetheless, his unquenchable curiosity and thirst for adventure remains, leading him far and wide to places as diverse as The Sahara and The Himalayas, as his fame as a global TV traveller reaches its zenith. However, always in the background providing a solid unchanging base are his family and a close-knit circle of friends, ever present and supportive whenever confidence dips. » Continue Reading.

Author:Jon Magidsohn, James Romag

I saw Crowded House live at an open-air theatre a couple of summers ago, and they were excellent, playing seemingly one classic after another – the show just flew by on a balmy evening. They are one of those bands though where a well put together ‘best of’ suffices for me – in this case the Recurring Dream set. That was released way back in 1996, but in my opinion the subsequent records have never consistently reached the peaks of their superb first decade. This though is a very well researched and written book covering the band’s whole career, including this year’s Gravity Stairs album, as well as featuring an exclusive chat with main man Neil Finn. It’s a very enjoyable and informative read, and gave me a reason, if one was needed, to relisten to those enduring timeless melodies one more time. When you think of rock bands coming out of Boston, thoughts naturally turn to the recently retired Aerosmith. However, The J Geils Band got there first, kicking off their career way back in the late sixties. They were mainly under the radar here before suddenly popping up with their best remembered latter day » Continue Reading.

Author:Richard Osman

Richard Osman returns with the first in a new series of novels. The overarching themes of the story are money laundering and the world of social media influencers, with plenty of murder and mayhem thrown in for good measure. The two main characters are Steve, a retired widowed ex copper living a solitary existence in a small village, and his go-getting daughter in law Amy, who is a bodyguard for the rich and famous. This is a fast paced but somehow quite cosy thriller, where the action in the short punchy chapters is recounted from the viewpoints of the numerous different characters as the action moves across the globe at almost breakneck speed. The plot gets a little complicated at times so you need to keep your wits about you as you try to identify the villain in chief, but Osman writes with a light and humorous touch and keeps the pace and excitement up pretty much non stop all the way to the final page. Although it gets quite bloodthirsty at times, you somehow know it’s all going to turn out alright in the end and, as with The Thursday Murder Club novels, the underlying message is » Continue Reading.

Author:Michael Kulikowski, Opher Goodwin

In 1972, Roxy Music hit the music scene like a breath of fresh air. Their debut album sounded quite different from anything else that was around at the time. This trend continued with 1973’s excellent For Your Pleasure, and just a few months later by its follow up Stranded – three fantastic albums in less than two years. For me, the subsequent two records, Country Life and Siren aren’t as consistently strong although they still contain plenty of good songs – in addition to the hit singles there are fine songs such as Out of the Blue and Just Another High. After a four year hiatus they returned but as a quite different band, with a sophisticated and more mainstream sound that Ferry used as a template for his solo efforts in the following years. Although there were still some great songs, Dance Away, Avalon, Oh Yeah, the creativity and inventiveness had mostly gone, replaced by the dreamy almost world weary feel that became a new trademark. I really enjoyed reading this potted history of their career, which has been thoroughly researched and gives plenty of background detail as well as looking at each song individually, » Continue Reading.

Author:Chris Charlesworth

The author joined Melody Maker in 1970 at a time when it was the biggest selling of the UK weekly music papers. He spent a couple of years cutting his teeth and seeing and interviewing most of the big name acts of the time when they visited these shores. However, it was in the summer of 1973 that he got his big break when he was chosen as the paper’s new US correspondent, based first in LA and subsequently in New York. It seemed all his Christmases had come at once, a chance to fraternise with the cream of the US and UK rock scenes while living in an apartment for which all the costs were met by the magazine’s publishers, who also provided a weekly living allowance, allowing his normal salary to accumulate untouched back in his bank account in London. Over the course of the following years he interviewed pretty much everyone who was anyone, while catching all the big gigs from the best seats in the house – it was a tough job but someone had to do it! As well as recalling these events, he quotes extensively from the articles he wrote for Melody » Continue Reading.