Search results for ""wymer publishing""

Published to tie in with the 50th anniversary of these festivals, Brian Ireland revisits the events, taking stock of their historical importance, and to note their influence not just on popular culture and society, but as part of a new musical culture that developed in the late 1960s and which saw young, similarly-minded people engage about multiple rights issues such as military draft, free speech, civil rights, gender equality, drug use, spirituality, capitalism - even revolution. It explores the festivals' organisation, promotion, and unfolding, as well as their immediate and enduring impact. The book is also about the 1960s, particularly the political, social, and cultural changes that provided the context for these festivals. A catalyst for these changes was the `baby boom' that provided the `foot soldiers' for both the Vietnam War and the counterculture that opposed it. It also provided the audiences for music festivals such as the annually recurring Newport Folk Festival, and for one-off events like 1967's Monterey and of course 1969's Woodstock, and Altamont. The activism of this young generation, the `New Left', looked to American values of freedom and democracy, but found them undermined by rampant consumerism, political assassinations, and by the horrors of the Vietnam War. All of this is explored behind the backdrop of the music festivals to form a broad social agenda for change that, by the time of Woodstock, transformed how Americans viewed themselves and their society. The Altamont Speedway Free Festival occurred just a few months later. Meant to be a `Woodstock West' it is nevertheless remembered as the antithesis of Woodstock, mainly because of the violence that unfolded and especially the tragic death of Meredith Hunter - killed by Hells Angels who were employed to provide security at the festival. Country Joe McDonald, a notable performer at Woodstock, sums up the popular memory of both festivals: "Woodstock and Altamont seem like bookends to the great social experiment of the late sixties.' The former seems proof that hippie idealism about peace and love was possible; Altamont, however, seems to reflect the dark side of the hippie dream - the flip side of the coin which has Charles Manson's face upon it.

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Iron Maiden first appeared at the Reading Rock Festival in 1980 when Paul Di'Anno was fronting the band and Dennis Stratton was on guitar. They appeared second on the bill to UFO on the second night. Undoubtedly for Maiden's Steve Harris there was nothing but respect for the headliners with UFO's Pete Way being one of Harris's biggest bass guitar influences. Also on the bill that day were two future Iron Maiden members - Bruce Dickinson, then the lead singer with Samson, and guitarist Janick Gers of White Spirit, who were brought in as a replacement band. By 1982 when Maiden returned to Reading it was naturally as the headlining act on the Saturday evening. The band had gone through significant changes to the line-up, most notably with Bruce Dickinson now fronting them, which coincided with their rise in popularity. Incredibly it would be another twenty-three years before Maiden returned to Reading, by which time they were in their third decade and had become the undisputed giants of metal. Their longevity also stood out as most of the other major acts that performed over the three days had only appeared on the scene over the previous few years and none could boast a back catalogue quite like Maiden's. With a large collection of photos by Alan Perry and memorabilia from the gigs plus narrative from Iron Maiden biographer Neil Daniels, this book is a wonderful celebration of Maiden's unforgettable appearances at this British institution.

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Football fans love nothing more than to read about their favourite teams. Although this books is aimed at young teenagers they will delight all ages with their mixture of funny and enlightening stories and will give hours of pleasure discovering quirky facts about your favourite team. Each title is also augmented with a selection of sketches by the young sketch artist Becky Welton that depict some of the stories within.

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Football fans love nothing more than to read about their favourite teams. Although this books is aimed at young teenagers it will delight all ages with its mixture of funny and enlightening stories and will give hours of pleasure discovering quirky facts about your favourite team. Augmented with a selection of sketches by the young sketch artist Becky Welton that depict some of the stories within. A percentage of net profits from this title will go to the children's charity ChildLine Rocks.

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The first book ever on the classic British rock band UFO. Based around the author's many interviews with all the key players such as Phil Mogg, Pete Way & Michael Schenker. Noted author Martin Popoff takes you through the Schenker era in great detail; album-by-album, song by song along with touring anecdotes and of course, tales revolving around the wild and excessive behaviour that was very much a part of the band. Rounding if off is a full discography.

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This in-depth and authoritative account of one of the most original, creative, imaginative and mercurial bands in the history of rock music surveys the twists, turns and episodes of brilliance that define Siouxsie and The Banshees' evolution from 1980 to 1987.

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In this second part of Genesis on Record, Popoff's panel of progressive pronouncers are at your service. Indeed, Martin is confident that after you read what these guys have to say, you'll be scurrying back to the albums looking for any number of the hundreds of details celebrated in these Q&A chapters of yummy music talk.

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If you saw Queen, then Queen Live! will serve as the ultimate tour program-type memento of those magic days. And if you didn't, this book goes a long way toward putting you in that hallowed space, watching one of the most talented bands night after night, year after year until the bitter end on this most eminent of British institutions.

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Crammed full of live and off-stage shots of Keith Emerson, Greg Lake, and Carl Palmer from their days with The Nice, King Crimson, Arthur Brown's Crazy World and Atomic Rooster, through the ELP years, as well as documenting their solo work and other outside projects. Topped and tailed with 15,000 words by musicologist and author Laura Shenton.

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Renowned rock author Martin Popoff's exhaustive and detailed timeline of Deep Purple milestones from 1980 - 2011, including some similar bands, influences, cultural milieu, tour stuff, recording sessions, charts, singles, certification news, break-ups, personal stuff, trivia for miles, and lots and lots of artist quotes to add to the entries, turning the book into a quasi-oral history loaded with factual matter. But as this is about family the text weaves in and out of the story of Purple proper, the dastardly diaries of Rainbow, Whitesnake, Gillan, Blackmore's Night, all the solo projects, guest slots, Gary Moore, Black Sabbath and Black Country Communion, always with contextual explanation plus rare and very cool archival advertisements of shows and records.

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When Kerry Packer appeared on the cricket scene in the late seventies he revolutionised the game. Today's followers are used to coloured clothing and all the other razzmatazz that is now a part of cricket, but back in 1977 Packer's intervention was divisive and nearly broke the game completely. Players were ostracised by their nations and for a while it looked as if cricket might not survive. Henry Blofeld observed the goings on from his position as both a cricket commentator and writer. In 1978 he compiled a detailed account of the events that unfolded, aided by his interviews with Packer, as well as the deposed English captain Tony Grieg. He witnessed at first hand the Packer Tests in Australia, The Australia-India Test series, MCC play Pakistan and New Zealand, and finally the young Australian side that took on the 'Packer-filled' West Indies. In a mere seven-week period he witnessed all the then six Test-playing nations playing Test cricket. The first time that had been possible. The Man Who Coloured Cricket is Henry Blofeld's detailed document that also shows concern for the human dimensions of the controversy. The varied reaction of the English county players; overseas players; the legal tussles; the complex and surprising character of Packer himself, and the establishment figures with whom he did battle, are strands of the story expertly woven together to make The Man Who Coloured Cricket a dramatic and moving story.

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Colin Hart, the former Deep Purple and Rainbow tour manager devoted over thirty years of his life to these great rock musicians. This is his story and indeed theirs. A tale of excess in terms of greed, petulance, anger and devotion. It is counter balanced by extremes of pure talent, showmanship and, of course musicianship. He was the constant 'man in the middle' through all of the break ups, make-ups and revolving door line-up changes. Joining them at twenty-four years old and leaving with a curt email dismissal thirty years later, he was there every step of their rock 'n' roll way. A story of two of the most innovative, often copied, rock bands; seen through the eyes, ears and emotions of their 'mother hen' (as Jon Lord described him). He was their minder, chauffeur, carer, provider, protector, father confessor & confidant. In truth he is the only one who can tell this tale of both bands as he was the only one there on the road throughout the life of, not one, but both gigantic bands.

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In Dominance and Submission: The Blue Oyster Cult Canon, three-time BOC book author Martin Popoff turns the microphone away from himself to moderate a gathered and esteemed panel of Cult experts for deep-dive discussions on every Blue Oyster Cult studio album. No stone is left unturned, as we look at the personalities in the band, every song, every album cover, the band's highly regarded lyrics as poetry, their music as ground-breaking and genre-defying. Dominance and Submission is set-up in Q&A format, allowing for pure and piercing prose that is also conversational and easy-access. In the end, the author is confident that the wise words from this cabal of music authorities-with Popoff not pulling any punches either, joining in the fun when the door is opened-will have you playing the band's "canon" with a renewed appreciation as to the complexity laced throughout such albums as Tyranny and Mutation, Agents of Fortune-with its career defining hit "(Don't Fear) The Reaper"-Spectres, Fire of Unknown Origin and the daunting Imaginos. But have no fear, Martin and his team have taken us right up to the band's effusively received comeback album, The Symbol Remains, bringing band and fan full circle-umlauts included, of course. Finally, augmenting the learning (and listening) experience, Dominance and Submission provides a plethora of images that make these essays on the band's fifteen albums that much more visceral. Bottom line: if you thought Martin had covered everything you need to know in his definitive Agents of Fortune: The Blue Oyster Cult Story, think again-the analysis proffered by his panel even sent Popoff back to the sacred texts for a rock 'n' roll re-imagining. If he's been made smarter by what these guys have to say, you will be too.

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Pete Brown is a lot of things. A major songwriting talent who was responsible for Cream's classic musical moments, important collaborations with Jack Bruce and such notable experiments in jazz and rock as The Battered Ornaments, Graham Bond and countless progressive music groups. A talented poet who helped pioneer the emerging UK Beat scene in the sixties, making history with his earliest performances and going poetic toe to toe with the likes of Allen Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Gregory Corso. He was also a child of war and the memories of The Blitz are still with him to this day. He is an anarchist at heart who believes in the mantra of telling it like it is and has done as much through the decades of a songwriter, musician, producer and poet. Within certain circles Pete Brown is a legend, a creative force of nature who is constantly on the move to the next big thing. To much of the world, Pete Brown is an unknown quantity, known for his Cream fame and not much else. With this book, Pete Brown: The Poet Who Rocks, the creative whirlwind will be on full display. This is Pete Brown. Now his story can be told.

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Released in 1980, bold and original, Remain In Light features a fascinating blend of African-inspired music and innovative use of recording technology. Hosting the hit single ‘Once In A Lifetime’, it was an album that commanded attention. As Talking Heads’ Jerry Harrison put it, “Remain In Light was the beginning of a new vision. It was a very creative period and really amazing.” In this book, Laura Shenton MA LLCM DipRSL offers an in-depth perspective on Remain In Light from a range of angles including how the album came to be, how it was presented and received at the time (live as well as on record), and what it means in terms of Talking Heads’ legacy today.

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The album that made a huge star out of David Bowie in 1972 and introduced his Ziggy Stardust persona, The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars is iconic for many reasons. Featuring the much-loved ‘Starman’, ‘Moonage Daydream’ and ‘Five Years’, the story of Bowie’s fifth studio album is one that needs to be told in detail. In this book, author Laura Shenton MA LLCM DipRSL offers an in-depth perspective on The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars from a range of angles including how the album came to be, how it was presented and received at the time (live as well as on record), and what it means in terms of Bowie’s legacy today.

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This mammoth tome chronicles Jethro Tull's career from the outset to the end of the seventies. From the late sixties - a vital period where the group dynamics were established, Chronicles delves extensively into the history. Vintage gig and album reviews, contemporary quotes from band members, rare advertisements documenting how they were billed alongside their peers, it's all in here. Aside from the 140,000-word narrative, this is also a stunningly visual book adorned with countless photos, many of them previously unpublished. Preserving the detailed history of a band as influential as Jethro Tull is a vital endeavour. Archiving matters and to many fans out there, so does the fascinating story of Jethro Tull. Shenton has pulled it all together to make this an indispensable addition to Jethro Tull's bibliography.

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Previously unpublished photos of The Stranglers from 1977 to the present day with Baz Warne and Jim Macaulay. This full colour 128-page A4 book includes photos from several locations including the Locarno Ballroom, Coventry; the notorious Battersea Park concert; Wembley Stadium as support to The Who; Reading Festival; Leamington and Birmingham.

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Football fans love nothing more than to read about their favourite teams. Although this book is aimed at young teenagers, they will delight all ages with their mixture of funny and enlightening stories and will give hours of pleasure discovering quirky facts about your favourite team. Each title is also augmented with a selection of sketches that depict some of the stories within.

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Released in 1978, This Year’s Model was Elvis Costello’s second album and his first with The Attractions. Abundant in clever songwriting that often-made bold observational statements (even about the music industry itself!), This Year’s Model grabbed the attention of both UK and US audiences. In this book, author Laura Shenton MA LLCM DipRSL offers an in-depth perspective on This Year’s Model from a range of angles including how the album came to be, how it was presented and received at the time (live as well as on record), and what it means in terms of Elvis Costello’s legacy today.

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In 1974, Stormbringer was a pivotal album for Deep Purple. The second one made by the Mk3 lineup of Ritchie Blackmore, Jon Lord, Ian Paice, Glenn Hughes and David Coverdale, it was ultimately the album that would see Blackmore call it a day with Deep Purple until the Mk2 line-up reformed in 1984. Blending a range of styles across heavy rock, funk and soul, Stormbringer is a very unique Deep Purple album and there is a lot to be said about the story behind it. In this book, music author Laura Shenton MA LLCM DipRSL offers an in depth perspective on Stormbringer from a range of angles including how the album came to be, how it was presented and received at the time (live as well as on record), and what it means in terms of Deep Purple's legacy today. As the author explains: "Basically, the book covers how the album was made, what was going on with the music in terms of the artist's intentions, how it did musically and commercially and what happened next." The narrative is essentially driven by contemporary interviews with the artists with small bits of music theory where relevant... in some cases they delve into the structure / key signatures / time signatures, based on the original sheet music without straying away from being an engaging read for non-musicians.

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The long overdue autobiography from guitar great and former member of Genesis, Steve Hackett. As with his music, Steve has written a highly detailed, entertaining and embracing tome that charts his life in full, but with a firm emphasis on his years with Genesis that saw the band's meteoric rise to become one of the most successful British bands of all time. Steve talks candidly about his early life, his time with Genesis, and in particular his personal relationships with the other four band members, with great insight into the daily goings on of this major rock band. Naturally A Genesis In My Bed also regales stories of Steve's career since leaving Genesis and the many different journeys that it has taken him on. With his flair for the creative, and a great deal of levity, A Genesis In My Bed is a riveting read. Indispensable for Genesis fans but also essential for general music lovers and avid readers of autobiographies full of heartfelt and emotive tales.

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For Kate Bush, and indeed many in her strong fanbase, The Kick Inside is the album that started it all. Her 1978 debut was certainly attention grabbing; it propelled her to fame and got the ball rolling for a phenomenal career as a much appreciated musician and admired female talent. With the iconic 'Wuthering Heights', the young Kate had captured people's imagination with her original songwriting style and of course, her unique voice. In this book, music author Laura Shenton MA LLCM DipRSL offers an in depth perspective on The Kick Inside from a range of angles including how the album came to be, how it was presented and received at the time (live as well as on record), and what it means in terms of Kate Bush's legacy today. As the author explains: "Basically, the book covers how the album was made, what was going on with the music in terms of the artist's intentions, how it did musically and commercially and what happened next." The narrative is essentially driven by contemporary interviews with the artists with small bits of music theory where relevant... in some cases they delve into the structure / key signatures / time signatures, based on the original sheet music without straying away from being an engaging read for non-musicians.

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Football fans love nothing more than to read about their favourite teams. Although this book is aimed at young teenagers they will delight all ages with their mixture of funny and enlightening stories and will give hours of pleasure discovering quirky facts about your favourite team. Each title is also augmented with a selection of sketches by the young sketch artist Becky Welton that depict some of the stories within.

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As humanly possible, this book attempts to evaluate every track that Paul McCartney has released on a major label. Thus, the premise of this book: to sift the gems from the chaff and examine what's driven McCartney up and down for fifty years. There are plenty of tracks suitable for casual fans, adolescents, even pre-schoolers. But there are tracks for an older audience too, tracks so good they can supply grown-ups with a rewarding soundtrack for a lifetime. It's these that make for a playlist worth keeping. From 1970 and beyond, the songwriting McCartney seemed to be saddled with a rickety who-cares system that generated iffy results. Gone were ‘Eleanor Rigby’ and ‘Penny Lane’. Instead, came the thought-free ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’ and ‘Bip Bop’, songs The Beatles wouldn't have considered for a second. Troubles swarmed around him as he searched for his place. The Beatles had theirs - where was his? Was he overly obsessed with perfection? Maybe. Or was it insecurity? His next record couldn't be a forward-thinking experiment, with sales falling wherever they may. It had to - had to - be a chart topper adored all over the world.

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Ritchie Blackmore once said, “You can’t get any better than Cozy, you know. He’s always up there on stage going crazy, he always pushes me on when I look round. He always gives me that incentive to play because Cozy won’t let anybody take it easy.” He wasn't wrong. Cozy Powell was a talented, reliable and versatile drummer. A drummer of such calibre that he played with Jeff Beck, Rainbow, Michael Schenker, Whitesnake, Emerson and Lake, Black Sabbath and Brian May as well as being a hugely in-demand session player. But before all that he initially came to prominence with three Mickie Most produced top twenty singles under his own name. An extraordinary feat for an instrumentalist, and a drummer at that. Cozy Powell's career as a musician is a story that needs to be told. Author Laura Shenton MA LLCM DipRSL has a Masters degree in music and provides an insightful angle on Cozy Powell’s abilities along with detailed research that presents Powell's career in all its glory.

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The year 1972 saw the release of Jethro Tull's iconic album, Thick As A Brick. A song spanning two whole sides of the LP with no gaps in between, Thick As A Brick was unusual even by so-called progressive rock standards at the time. Ironically, even though band leader Ian Anderson joked that the album was intended as "a bit of a spoof", it has gone on to be remembered as a masterpiece of the genre nearly fifty years later. In this book, music author Laura Shenton MA LLCM DipRSL offers an in depth perspective on Thick As A Brick from a range of angles including how the album came to be, how it was presented and received at the time (live as well as on record), and what it means in terms of Jethro Tull's legacy today. As the author explains: "Basically, the book covers how the album was made, what was going on with the music in terms of the artist's intentions, how it did musically and commercially and what happened next." The narrative is essentially driven by contemporary interviews with the artists with small bits of music theory where relevant... in some cases they delve into the structure / key signatures / time signatures, based on the original sheet music without straying away from being an engaging read for non-musicians.

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Having written the first book ever on UFO, 2005’s long out-of-print Shoot Out the Lights, Martin Popoff, author of over seventy rock books, has now greatly expanded and rewritten the later years material from that title, bringing us now Lettin’ Go: UFO in the `80s & `90s. Popoff brings to the project new interviews with the key members throughout the decades, along with a substantial amount of new research to offer what is now the only book to focus on the eighties and nineties era of the band that saw huge turbulence amongst the ranks. Utilising his celebrated one album per chapter method, Popoff analyses the complete catalogue from the period of the band where initially Paul Chapman takes over from the departed Michael Schenker for the albums. No Place To Run, The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent, Mechanix and Making Contact. The journey takes us through the albums following the departure of Chapman and bassist Pete Way and concludes with 1995’s Walk On Water that sees the classic line-up reunited with Schenker back on guitar before he sensationally walked out on the band after just four shows of the supporting tour. In and around Popoff’s famed meticulous analysis of the catalogue, look for lots of tour talk, revealing nightmares surrounding the band’s business, and warnings about how the twin demons of drugs and alcohol can slow a band’s progress on the way to the top.

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Tales of a Rock Star's Daughter are the sharp, funny recollections of Nettie Baker, eldest daughter of Ginger Baker, legendary `wild man’ and drummer with the Graham Bond Organisation, Cream, Blind Faith and Airforce. From poverty to riches and back, featuring a colourful cast of characters known and unknown. Famous faces of the music world and aristocracy are scattered throughout the text alongside those from the `normal-land’ that Nettie found herself half in and half out of and set in the vanished world of sixties/seventies/eighties UK pop culture.

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This new tome by the hugely prolific Canadian author Martin Popoff is a detailed re-write and expanded edition of his 2005 publication English Castle Magic. In fact the book is 50% bigger, a whopping 120,000 words and 318 pages including two swell colour photo sections. Sensitive To Light is without doubt the most comprehensive Rainbow biography to date and is based around multiple interviews the author has conducted with most of the key band members over many years including Ritchie Blackmore, as well as Roger Glover, Tony Carey, Graham Bonnet and Joe Lynn Turner, along with those who are sadly no longer with us, namely Cozy Powell Ronnie James Dio, Jimmy Bain and Craig Gruber. Loads more research has also gone into this new publication which is brought bang up to date with the Ronnie Romero era live shows and new songs, following Blackmore’s decision to rejuvenate Rainbow in 2016, almost twenty years on from the last incarnation that had concluded in 1997. From the raw and fiery Dio years, through the criminally under-rated Down to Earth album, the smooth crooning Joe Lynn Turner era and into one final somewhat forgotten record fronted by Doogie White, it’s all examined here, track by track, fascinating tale by trick. Ritchie Blackmore and his reputation is legion. But is it warranted? This is the book you should read to find out why as we look at the man’s career as reigning lord over the constantly evolving consortium of monster talents known as Rainbow.

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This lavish coffee table style book will delight all Cream fans. Drawing on archive photos from the 60s as well as the 2005 reunion this book is further enhanced with rare memorabilia along with words by Nettie Baker, Ginger’s eldest daughter and co-author of his autobiography Hellraiser. This photographic chronology also captures rarely seen images of Jack, Ginger & Eric before the formation of Cream, where they developed their craft alongside the Graham Bond Organisation, The Yardbirds and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers before moving on to Cream with loads of on and off stage shots from their formation in 1966 through to the farewell concert in November 1968. Astonishingly in such a short time, Cream became superstars, particularly in the States where they toured relentlessly but also managed to produce four albums, along with countless hit singles. Full Cream also captures a snapshot of life after Cream, not forgetting the brief 1993 reunion for the Rock `n’ Roll Hall of Fame induction, and of course the full reunion in 2005 with shows in London at the Royal Albert Hall in May, and in October at New York’s Madison Square Garden. Sadly with the loss of Jack Bruce in 2014 any chance that the trio would ever get together again was extinguished. But Full Cream will at least be one great momento that fans can keep forever as a reminder of Britain’s first and arguably best supergroup. In a custom-made, block foil presentation case with a set of 4 prints. One of the band and one each of Baker, Clapton and Bruce.

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The Beach Boys: All The Songs is a detailed look at the recorded output of this most unique and influential popular music group. From the 1962 debut Surfin' Safari through to 2012's That's Why God Made the Radio - the first record Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys had made together in sixteen years. This book covers all the material released by the major labels. To qualify, a song must have been issued commercially and released under the name "Beach Boys." Some of the truly obscure are included, such as `Howdy from Maui', a collaboration with Jeff Foxworthy from 1996. As well as covering the highest UK and US chart placings, each album is dissected with explanations on each song including songwriting credits and also includes background information to the making of each album. Documented in chronological order, each album release is given its own chapter and "orphaned" tracks such as B-sides and outtakes are also included within the appropriate time line. Author Rick Swan also provides bios for the key band members as well as the supporting musicians and the book is capped off with a full song title index for easy reference. Whether you are just starting out on your discovery of The Beach Boys or a longstanding fan, this detailed tome provides great insight into this most enduring band.

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Football fans love nothing more than to read about their favourite teams. Although this books is aimed at young teenagers it will delight all ages with its mixture of funny and enlightening stories and will give hours of pleasure discovering quirky facts about your favourite team. Augmented with a selection of sketches by the young sketch artist Becky Welton that depict some of the stories within. A percentage of net profits from this title will go to the children's charity ChildLine Rocks.

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Football fans love nothing more than to read about their favourite teams. Although this books is aimed at young teenagers they will delight all ages with their mixture of funny and enlightening stories and will give hours of pleasure discovering quirky facts about your favourite team. Each title is also augmented with a selection of sketches by the young sketch artist Becky Welton that depict some of the stories within. A percentage of net profits from this title will go to the children's charity ChildLine Rocks.

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A Matter Of Fact is the perfect companion to Deep Purple's music. Full of bizarre, obscure and amazing facts that have surrounded the band throughout its career of over forty years. If you have ever had disagreements with fellow fans about various facts or want to test the biggest fan on just how good their Deep Purple knowledge is, then this is the book for you. * How did Ian Paice and Rod Evans end up supporting Deep Purple? * Why did Ritchie Blackmore's country and western guitar playing save him from a beating? * Why did Dire Straits' Mark Knopfler review a Purple gig? * Who first recorded versions of several Deep Purple songs, complete with an orchestra? * Did Deep Purple's explosive performance at Plumpton really prevent Yes from performing? * Who did Deep Purple sue for selling bootlegs? * Which big rock star did the band get in a spat with at Knebworth? * Why did the Bee Gees receive Purple's lifetime achievement award? * What was Deep Purple's involvement with a film about a sixteenth century naval explorer that never got produced? * Why were some of Deep Purple's recent gigs illegal? The answers to all these questions, and many more amazing facts are revealed in this captivating book. Based on interviews with band and road crew members, contemporary press articles, and drawing on management files, A Matter Of Fact helps to clarify the truth behind several stories. It also dispels some untruths once and for all, as well a few previously un-revealed new stories that will appeal to even the most diehard fans.

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Wild Mood Swings: Disintegrating The Cure Album by Album, Martin Popoff’s innovative new project on iconic post-punk pioneers The Cure, celebrates 50 years now since key actor of the band Robert Smith got hold of his first guitar. And the form this celebration takes is a critical analysis of the band’s 13 studio albums, utilising a panel of thoughtful and engaging music critics culled from the author’s and Marco D’Auria’s video channel, The Contrarians. Presented in easy-to-read Q&A format, Martin gathers these wise music swamis into small teams with an aim toward deconstructing and reassembling each album, hopefully generating myriad new ways for the reader and Cure fan to appreciate the band’s seminal records, beginning with Three Imaginary Boys in 1979 and ending with 4:13 Dream in 2008. As bonus to the discussion, Popoff has created a detailed timeline linked to each album, echoing the format used for his many celebrated visual biographies issued through Wymer Publishing in recent years. The end result presents a fresh methodology with which to consider a band’s catalogue, with the hope being that the mix of hard chronological reference material and freewheeling opinion, review and analysis makes for a lively celebration of—and subsequent richer appreciation for—everything Robert Smith has done for millions of Cure fans around the world, much of it therapeutic, redemptive and in so many inspiring instances, urgently life-saving.

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With the addition of new photos, tour dates, an expansive discography, a deep dive into Cozy's cars and racing career, as well as lots of new information unearthed on his music career, this second edition of The Cozy Powell Story builds massively upon the original and is truly comprehensive and a worthy legacy to Cozy Powell.

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A highly detailed and thoroughly researched biography of the man who gave us Parisienne Walkways, Róisín Dubh (Black Rose): A Rock Legend', and Still Got the Blues (For You)'. Belfast-born Moore was perhaps the greatest guitarist of his era and this book explores his musical heritage, providing analysis of album releases and live performances.

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Between 1967-69 Henry Blofeld was fortunate to witness cricket on three continents. He followed the great West Indies side captained by Garry Sobers through its home series against England - to the 1968-9 Australian tour, and finally their early summer '69 tour of England. Two main themes are explored throughout: The gradual demise of the West Indian side that included the likes of Lance Gibbs, Basil Butcher and Deryck Murray - but which also saw the emergence of future greats such as Clive Lloyd - and the link between a country's topography, style and endemic characteristics with the type of cricket it plays. These threads are skilfully woven together to highlight great cricketing moments and analyse the humour and style of both the Australians and West Indians with thoughtful insight.

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The story of a fanatical Marc Bolan fan who took his obsession to a completely different level! This is an amazing journey of one man's ambition and determination to bring to the people the sounds, the performance, the songs, the stage craft, and the imagery of his lifetime musical hero: The 1970s Glam Rock superstar Marc Bolan of T.Rex, who died in an untimely car accident on 16th September 1977 at only 29 years old. Danielz, the founder member of T.Rextasy, writes honestly and memorably from his teenage years as a Bolan fan watching T.Rex in concert. Then later striving to make it with his own original material. Recording with members of Gary Numan's band, Alex Harvey's, Ozzy Osbourne's, Iron Maiden, and others, through to his years in the most successful, credible, and endorsed live tribute band dedicated to Marc Bolan, recognised as the world's only official Marc Bolan tribute - T.REXTASY. Read about his exploits; the gigs, the countries, and the people he has met along the way: Slade, The Sweet, Ian Hunter (Mott The Hoople), Cockney Rebel, Ray Dorset (Mungo Jerry), Marc Almond (Soft Cell), Clem Burke (Blondie), Alvin Stardust, Linda Lewis, The Damned, Shakin' Stevens, and of course, T.Rex, Tony Visconti, Gloria Jones & Rolan Bolan. Danielz story is also interwoven with fascinating tales about the very man who inspired him - Marc Bolan. Throughout the book stories are regaled by those who were close to Bolan and in turn have become associated with Danielz. He also writes about his acquisition of the Bolan master tapes and the subsequent releases of previously unissued Bolan recordings. With forewords by Tony Visconti, Rolan Bolan & Marc Almond, this is an essential read for T.Rextasy and Bolan fans alike.

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All supremely talented musicians in their own right, together as The Police, Sting, Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland had a string of reggae-infused hits in the late seventies: 'Roxanne', 'Can't Stand Losing You', 'Message In A Bottle' and 'Walking On The Moon'. By the eighties, with the commercial and critical success of 'Don't Stand So Close To Me' and 'Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic', The Police were considered to be one of the biggest bands in the world, pushing new musical boundaries where their punk and new wave contemporaries hadn't dared to go. With the hit single 'Every Breath You Take' elevating them to greater heights of stardom, there was everything to play for. In celebration of the band's full tenure and complemented with a narrative by Laura Shenton MA LLCM Dip(RSL), this visual biography is crammed full with photos and memorabilia, all reproduced on high quality art paper.

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Endearingly, the differences between Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson were key ingredients in what would become the musical and writing chemistry of Supertramp - a band that made a fascinating and diverse contribution to music. From their first commercial breakthrough in 1974 with Crime Of The Century, they exceeded their own expectations with the colossal success of Breakfast In America in 1979. But it was never a smooth journey. With ups and downs financially, commercially and in terms of their working relationship, Supertramp lived the highs and lows of the music business. From local gigs to many highly demanding tours, this book documents it all. As Roger Hodgson once said, "The music always came pretty easily. Both the music and the lyrics come from the same place. For me, composing is literally losing myself in the music. I let the inspiration just come naturally. It is a very magical process. When I start hearing melodies, then I just start singing and the words start coming. The words will have something to do with what I am going through in my life, or what's in my heart at the time. I will have an idea of what the song's about and then work with the melody."

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Rock And Roll Survivor charts all the ups and downs of Del Bromham - guitarist, singer and songwriter for the rock band Stray. Del's story takes you back on his 'Time Machine' to share recollections of his life. Born, and growing up in the 1950s. Becoming a teenager in London during the 'swinging 60s'. Forming his first band and learning his musical apprenticeship playing the clubs at the age of fourteen years in his brothers group. Constantly on tour with Stray he recalls tales of Ozzy Osbourne, Lemmy Kilmister and touring with Kiss and Rush to name but a few. Meeting the Mafia Boss Joe Pagano. His associations with Wilf Pine and Charles Kray (elder brother of the infamous Kray twins) at the offices of the equally infamous Don Arden, along with Arden's daughter Sharon (who became Osbourne). Charting the ups and many downs of being a musician over fifty years in the music business. With forewords by life-long Stray fans, The Damned's Captain Sensible and Iron Maiden's Steve Harris, this is a true rollercoaster ride.

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From 1975, through the eighties, re-activated in the nineties and a slight return in 2016-18, Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow took its fans on numerous journeys from the grandiose beginnings with Ronnie James Dio to the chart busting times with Graham Bonnet and Joe Lynn Turner. And again in the nineties with Doogie White as lead vocalist, and finally stepping out for the last time in the twenty-first century for a handful of shows allowing a new generation of fans to have the opportunity of hearing Rainbow live on stage. In this hefty tome Jerry Bloom charts Rainbow’s full career with great detail and information, along with a huge raft of superb imagery that covers the entire career. Aside from band photos, the visual element is enhanced with rare memorabilia and artifacts.

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In 1974, Alice Cooper shocked the rock world, scooped up his makeup kit and went solo. Consummated by a legal name change from Vincent Furnier to Alice Cooper, “the man behind the mask” never looked back, writing and recording fully 21 studio albums across a roller-coaster career that is now nearly 60 years on in the business, with almost 50 of that on his own, calling the shots as a man and brand with a plan, often guided by manager Shep Gordon, one of the best in the biz. Feed My Frankenstein: Alice Cooper, the Solo Years charts this action-packed era for Alice, beginning with the smash success of the Welcome to My Nightmare album and tour and hitting a nadir with the blackout years of the early ‘80s, where Alice nearly died from booze and hard drugs before being brought back by his faith in God and by the good graces of his wife Sheryl. Next came Alice’s third wave of major success with Trash and Hey Stoopid, followed by a settling into regular record-making and touring duties, culminating in some of his best work quite recently, with Dirty Diamonds, Along Came a Spider and 2021’s Detroit Stories. All of this is celebrated in Feed My Frankenstein, meticulously charted with timeline entries that are extensively explained and corroborated by a gallery of Alice’s band members throughout the decades. Helping bring the story to life is a smorgasbord of imagery, from live photography through to all manner of memorabilia, underscoring how visceral the visual has always been for this legendary showman. Get on board and get a sense of how each and every one of Alice’s 21 solo albums work, along with an understanding of how absolutely and insanely jam-packed life has been for Alice since 1974 when he and Shep rolled the dice, pooled all their resources and took us on an all-guns-blazing tour of Alice’s sleeping brain. Indeed, once rolling, it just never stopped. Next station was Hell, followed by a visit to the asylum and then, down the road apiece, Brutal Planet, Dragontown and finally Michigan for some Detroit Stories. It’s all here in red, black and blue — bring your camera.

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The Damned are forever in the history books as the first UK punk band to get an album out. Damned Damned Damned was a flamethrower of a record, led by the incendiary violence of “New Rose” (first UK punk single as well) and “Neat Neat Neat,” two shocking punk anthems that defined the golden era of the new wave more purely pogo-mad than anything outta The Clash or the Sex Pistols. And the mayhem never let up, with the band already breaking up and reforming (another first!) by 1979 for one of the greatest punk albums of all time, Machine Gun Etiquette (by the way, The Damned were also the first UK punk band to tour America). More punch-ups and gratuitous vandalism ensued as the band expanded its palette through the years. Popoff has wanted to write Lively Arts: The Damned Deconstructed for decades, and now that it’s finished, he’s been all over video and radio calling it his favourite and best book he’s ever done. For in it, Popoff got to analyse monastically — headphones and repeat button at the ready — every damned Damned song across all the albums and every EP and single. This herculean task represented a joy of an exercise from a penmanship point of view, but it was most satisfying in a proselytizing sense — Martin wants everybody joining him in poring over The Damned catalogue in minute detail. Let this long-suffering band of scrapping, scratching cats in a sack know how important and beloved they are before they’re all dead!

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Pink Floyd author Glenn Povey delves deep into Floyd’s history within the biggest music market in the world. This book not only charts the concerts they played and records that Floyd released in the USA and Canada from 1967 through to 1983 but it also looks in great detail at the band’s relationship with their American record company; the promotional aspects (or lack off!) that propelled Floyd to stadium status, and extensive details of TV and radio appearances, along with band interviews and much more. With loads of new information unearthed, Pink Floyd In North America shines new light on these crazy diamonds from their days playing small clubs right through to superstar status as one of the world’s biggest bands.

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