Author:Stephen Lambe & others

The concept behind this newly published series of paperback books is to take the works of the chosen artist, and go through each album, song by song, as well as providing some interesting background information on each release. They have been put together by a number of different authors (a couple with connections to the Classic Rock Society), but each one is very obviously a fan of the band involved, and these books seem to be something of a labour of love, written by fans for fans. I don’t see that much here that would particularly interest a casual reader or someone with just a passing interest in the featured music,but there’s plenty on offer for the dedicated devotee.

The Queen book is perhaps the most detailed, especially on the early part of their long career, even analysing a number of key songs on a minute by minute basis! That’s the exception, but all the books are extremely thorough, including information on songs that were recorded but ultimately left off albums. I would particularly single out the Yes one as it gives an in depth coverage to the various and numerous comings and goings in » Continue Reading.

Author:Alan Parks

It’s not that unusual to see a novel start with a song lyric, but until now I don’t think I’ve ever come across one that uses a line from an Alvin Stardust song! That’s the case in this new work by Scottish crime writer Alan Parks. This is his second novel, and I guess you’d describe this as tartan noir – a gritty police procedural set in the Glasgow of the seventies, with lots of drinking, drugs, swearing and ultra violence – all the ingredients you might expect in fact. Detective Harry McCoy, a man with a troubled past, is the main protagonist, and the novel is set against a background of rival gangs competing for control of the city as new drugs flood in to the market. With a strong supporting cast of colleagues and underworld characters, some of whom he has dubious connections with, McCoy has to track down a serial killer, whose calling card is to carve grisly messages into the chests of his victims. The policing is definitely of the ‘Life On Mars’ vintage, but the characters are well developed and there are some evocative descriptions of the city of Glasgow itself, which almost » Continue Reading.

Author:Gerald Seymour

One thing that never fails to lift my post-Christmas spirits is the annual arrival of a new Gerald Seymour novel. Full disclosure – I absolutely love his writing, and always look forward to a new book. Don’t make the mistake of thinking his novels are always espionage based, because many, including this one, are not. I will say though that as the author has got older (he’s 77 now), his novels seem to have become more dour, grim and unrelenting., and there are usually no happy endings on offer for the main players. This tale revolves around a terrorist plot, in conjunction with the criminal underworld, to bring an automatic rifle into the UK from France, and the undercover police operation to thwart and subvert it. Intertwined with this as a sub-plot is the story of the weapon itself, from its manufacture to the numerous hands it passes through over the years before reaching its present location. I’m not sure this is a totally successful idea as for me it doesn’t add that much to the overall story, and at times actually distracts attention from it. Nevertheless, I found myself immersed in the plot – not many of » Continue Reading.

Author:Joe Hagan

Not a book as you might expect about the Rolling Stones, this lengthy work is actually about Rolling Stone magazine – indeed it is subtitled The Life and Times of Jann Wenner and Rolling Stone Magazine, which about says it all really. I’m not sure there’s ever really been a UK equivalent to this magazine, which covers both music, politics and current affairs, and as such the magazine has accumulated much more cultural importance in the States than it has here, where it’s quite a niche read, concentrating as it does pretty much solely on matters American. The first edition appeared in 1967, and came with a free roach clip. Over the years though it gradually went from being at the forefront of the music and counterculture scene to becoming an established and respectable pillar of the society it once rebelled against. Of course, its prime time was in the late sixties and seventies, when it was the go-to place for big name rock interviews. Those halcyon days, when interviewees were often paid with an envelope of cocaine, are covered in depth, and there are mini-biographies included of its most famous contributors such as Hunter S Thompson, Joe » Continue Reading.

Author:Glenn Povey

This book tells the story of Pink Floyd, not through the normal route of long narrative passages, but through a curated collection of items – instruments, posters, ticket stubs, inflatables, press cuttings, inflatables, records and lots more. It’s been put together by Glenn Povey, who’s previously written a number of very good books on the band.

The book runs in chronological order, from a 1964 ticket to a Those Without show (the band included Syd Barrett, who appears to have signed the ticket), right through to a Nick Mason’s Saucerful Of Secrets poster and set list. Each era, and each entry, is accompanied by a detailed text explaining the significance, and despite the visual nature of the book, it runs to some 50,000 words.

There are some interesting items chosen, such as the Syd’s mirror disc Telecaster, Gilmour’s famous black Strat, the bootleg Winter Tour ’74 album, a poster for the infamous Montreal concert in 1977, the film script for The Wall and the metal Division Bell heads, to pick out just a few at random.

The whole thing has been very well researched, as you’d expect from the author’s previous work, and is presented on top » Continue Reading.

Author:Professor Steve Peters

Professor Steve Peters is probably best known for his previous work, the mind management guide The Chimp Paradox, as well as his work with various high profile sporting figures. This book is a sequel to The Chimp Paradox, and is also accompanied by the publication of a companion volume, My Hidden Chimp, which is targeted specifically at children. In a nutshell, the two interconnected books attempt to explain how we can manage our minds from childhood through to adulthood, along the way simplifying quite complex neurological science into simple, understandable language. The Silent Guides of the title are the coping mechanisms and unconscious beliefs that influence our daily lives, and the book aims to help the reader identify them, remove unhelpful ones and nurture beneficial ones. For those such as myself who have struggled with depression, anxiety, inability to switch off, etc the book attempts to guide you into a better understanding of your behaviour and offers ways to help you navigate through life. If you have children, then a good portion of the book is devoted to managing and helping them, in the process learning about a child’s emotion based logic, all very useful if you » Continue Reading.

Author:Kate Bush

Collections of lyrics are often somewhat strange affairs. Reading the lyrics as poetry or verse, without the familiar musical accompaniment can be an odd experience. Still, Kate Bush has never been afraid to do something a little left field, so here we have a collection of lyrics in this rather nice cloth bound book. Now this isn’t a comprehensive volume by any means – it comprises selected lyrics from her large catalogue, mainly taken from her albums of course, but also including a smattering of non album tracks which haven’t appeared in printed form before. The lyrics aren’t in chronological order, being arranged instead in a number of themed sections, and there’s no indication as to what the basis for inclusion was, other than presumably the author’s personal preference. I thought the words might perhaps be augmented on occasion with illustrations pertinent to each song, but in fact this is presented purely as a book of verse. As such, some pieces work better than others, with the lyrics from her later albums being the strongest for me, but as the songs jump from one era to another it’s hard to trace a definite line of development in her » Continue Reading.

Author:Stephen Fry

This is a companion to last year’s Mythos, in which Stephen Fry recounted and explained in modern language the myths and fables of Ancient Greece. Where Mythos dealt mainly with the Greek Gods, here, he delves into the world of mere mortals, that of the legendary Greek heroes, Jason, Atalanta, Oedipus and so on. These tales are again recounted in today’s language, rather like Neil Gaiman did in his excellent book on Norse mythology not too long ago. I do feel the stories benefit from this entertaining treatment, potentially introducing them to a whole new generation of readers. Some of the footnotes are a bit dry, but Fry is obviously not only very knowledgeable about these stories, but also very fond of them too. His rich style manages to convey a real sense of excitement, as adventures are had, perils overcome and vengeful Gods outwitted. These tales have obviously withstood the test of time and remain in turn funny, dramatic and tragic. If you want battles, white knuckle chases, acts of bravery (and of cowardice), murder, self sacrifice, solving of riddles and seemingly impossible puzzles, then look no further because they are all on offer here!

Length of » Continue Reading.

Author:Q

I suspect many of us were at one time or another devotees of Q. Launched in 1986, for a good time it was the best music monthly around, and I was certainly one of the regulars. Over the years, its appeal for me dwindled markedly – or maybe I just got older and moved out of its demographic. Whatever, it’s a long time since I last looked at a copy other than a casual flick through in the supermarket. This shortish book, aimed squarely at the Christmas market, basically comprises a series of quotes on various random topics and aspects of life from sundry rock stars, some of which were published in the magazine along with others that fell by the wayside. I have to say that among the usual well known suspects, Bono, Noel Gallagher, John Lydon etc there are quite a few I’ve not actually heard of – showing my age perhaps – Big Narstie, Ezra Koenig and Charli XCX to pluck out a few at random. The book is reasonably interesting, and at times amusing, to dip in and out of when you have a spare few minutes. There are no great revelations or indeed insights » Continue Reading.