Question What are you reading?

[Ricey]

Finished Slash’s autobiography. A very long book and only went up to 2007 but what a life he had. A great read and I would recommend it. Love Slash he’s up there with my all time favourite guitarists.

 

[MK Shrimper]

The Butterfly Lion by Michael Morpurgo. Knocked it out in a couple of hours. Teenagers book but damn good like all his books.

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Barna, do you read more than one book at at time?

Ha! Normally I try not to (not that great at multi-tasking)but occasionally pick up a book which I think I should read,don't like it and pick up someting else (maybe a little easier)before going back to the book I originally started.So yes-occasionally.

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Just started Deirdre Bair's Parisian Lives ;Samuel Beckett,Simone de Beauvoir and Me.Interesting memoir but I think I would prefer a liitle less Me.

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Srarted Polly Samson's A Theatre For Dreamers last night.Set in Hydra 1960 .Looks like a good read.

 

[Rob Noxious]

Just finished Billy Bragg's 'Roots, Radicals and Rockers: How Skiffle Changed The World' - with thanks to my Cultural Commissar, 'Tangled Up in Blue'.

It's a learned tome about the characters involved in the birth and development of Skiffle - a neglected but significant and influential musical genre, not least because it inspired so many future British rock and rollers who became famous in the nineteen-sixties. It's fitting that it was written by 'The Bard of Barking and Bridport' who makes the connection between Skiffle and Punk - how both developed outside the commercial mainstream initially but inspired countless non-musically trained people to give it a go - as the latter certainly did that for him.

It's also great on the social history of not only dear old Blighty but the USA too, especially the influence of New Orleans and Jazz and Blues. And it's really informative on how the songs and style of the mighty Huddie Ledbetter, better known as 'Lead Belly', led to Lonnie Donegan's breakthrough with 'Rock Island Line'.

As Jack White said at The Brit Awards, "Remember, Lonnie Donegan started it for you."

 

[Massimo Giovanni]

Korea by Max Hastings.
He covers the Japanese expansionist period, the aftermath of WW2 and the build up to the "police action".
Some very interesting stuff.

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Korea by Max Hastings.
He covers the Japanese expansionist period, the aftermath of WW2 and the build up to the "police action".
Some very interesting stuff.

He was a Torygraph journalist though.

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Just started One,Two ,Three,Four:The Beatles in Time by Craig Brown.looks like a well-written fun read.Ideal for a lockdown.

 

[Ricky Otto]

Finished Slash’s autobiography. A very long book and only went up to 2007 but what a life he had. A great read and I would recommend it. Love Slash he’s up there with my all time favourite guitarists.

It's a good one that. Rock star autobiographies are a favourite genre of mine "Ozzy" by Ozzy Osbourne and "the Dirt" by Motley Crue are even better than Slash's. "Scar Tissue" by Anthony Kiedis is decent as well

 

[Mad Cyril]

It's a good one that. Rock star autobiographies are a favourite genre of mine "Ozzy" by Ozzy Osbourne and "the Dirt" by Motley Crue are even better than Slash's. "Scar Tissue" by Anthony Kiedis is decent as well

The Dirt is fantastic.

 

[Rob Noxious]

John Peel began this autobiography, 'Margrave Of The Marshes', prior to his death in 2004, and his wife Sheila Ravenscroft completed it from John's diary notes, the book plan that he sent to his agent and also via her own recollections of the events that John wished to note. I found it quite a good insight into the mores of English society, particularly John's difficult experience of being at public school in Shrewsbury in the early 1950s. He writes also of his time in the US where he landed his first DJ spots, being in Dallas when JFK was killed and of getting married to the wrong person.

Sheila takes over for the second part of the book when John is in London as a Radio 1 DJ in the late 1960s, and in an unhappy marriage. Sheila also conveys John's great humour and principled nature and my feeling about the book is that it can be viewed as a charming love story - of John's love for Sheila, known as 'Pig' due to her snorting laugh, and their children, as well of course to the music and the bands/individual artists who he championed until his untimely death.

A good read and a sweet reminder of a much-missed "national treasure."

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Just finished Michael Frayn's Magic Mobile.It's supposed to be funny Sadly it''s not.

 

[graingerroad54]

Just finished Michael Frayn's Magic Mobile.It's supposed to be funny Sadly it''s not.

A book to dip into is THE SOUTHEND UNITED CHRONICLES 1906-2006 editor,Keith Roe, publisher,Desert Island Books. Look out for the player who had go off suffering with a bad stitch!

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Just started Toni Morrison's Mouth Full of Blood.A timely read in this BLM. era

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

A book to dip into is THE SOUTHEND UNITED CHRONICLES 1906-2006 editor,Keith Roe, publisher,Desert Island Books. Look out for the player who had go off suffering with a bad stitch!

Amazon tells me aI bought that in November 2006.Can't remember who it was that went off with a "bad stitch" though.

 

[RobM]

"The Istanbul Puzzle". So far, one beheading, diplomats shot at, one bombed, a deadly virus and riots in London!

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

John Peel began this autobiography, 'Margrave Of The Marshes', prior to his death in 2004, and his wife Sheila Ravenscroft completed it from John's diary notes, the book plan that he sent to his agent and also via her own recollections of the events that John wished to note. I found it quite a good insight into the mores of English society, particularly John's difficult experience of being at public school in Shrewsbury in the early 1950s. He writes also of his time in the US where he landed his first DJ spots, being in Dallas when JFK was killed and of getting married to the wrong person.

Sheila takes over for the second part of the book when John is in London as a Radio 1 DJ in the late 1960s, and in an unhappy marriage. Sheila also conveys John's great humour and principled nature and my feeling about the book is that it can be viewed as a charming love story - of John's love for Sheila, known as 'Pig' due to her snorting laugh, and their children, as well of course to the music and the bands/individual artists who he championed until his untimely death.

A good read and a sweet reminder of a much-missed "national treasure."

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I'd forgotten John Peel was the compere at Mickey Jupp's Big Band's final gig at Roots Hall, (I was there), on 31/05/1976.Alvin Lee ,Budgie and Fairport Convention also shared the bill.

After MJ's bands performance John Peel sad :"This rock and roll business is great,isn't it? There's terrific bands like this who have to split because they can't afford to stay together,while there are crap bands going to America to avoid their taxes". "

"Right on,John"

(Quotes from Mike Wade's Hole in My Pocket.

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Just finished Paul Talling's London 's Lost Music Venues.Wonderful read for those-ahem-of a certain age.

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Just started Hanif Kurishi's What Happened? Arguably the UK's greatest living writer.