HiFi Subjectivist ¦ Audio Forum ¦ NVA User Group

Posted: **Sun Jul 19, 2020 9:00 am**

Just starting into a book that the average HFS-er will love:

'Utopia Avenue' by David Mitchell.

David Mitchell just happens to be one of my favourite authors and all of his novels are excellent.
'Utopia Avenue' tells the story of a bunch of struggling beat musicians in the late 60's London scene who briefly find fame and fortune.

Any book that has a cameo appearance from Rick Wakeman on page 1 is simply fine by me.

Get reading.

Posted: **Fri Dec 31, 2021 5:59 pm**

I am reading Bob Mortimer's Autobiography And away. It's a very easy and amusing read. A bit like an episode of would I lie to you, most of the tales from his youth in Middlesbrough are hilarious. I am really enjoying it and so I should being a huge fan of the man.

Posted: **Fri Dec 31, 2021 7:13 pm**

Mike Barnes - A new day yesterday: UK progressive rock in the 70s

A present from Santa which I am enjoying. Before any comments, I do not suffer from insomnia.

Posted: **Fri Dec 31, 2021 9:03 pm**

Currently reading Peter Crouch's "How To Be A Footballer," with "I, Robot: How to Be a Footballer 2," to follow. After those, I've got Bernie Marsden's "Where's My Guitar" waiting in the wings to give me a quick break between footballers' autobiographies.

At night I'm reading an Urban Fantasy series, "Her Paranormal Majesty’s Secret Service." which is fairly trashy, cost me 99p for the 9 book series, and is the perfect thing to fall asleep to, in bed.

Posted: **Sat Oct 15, 2022 10:24 pm**

Found a series that will appeal to all lovers of classic space-opera SciFi:

'The Murderbot Diaries' by Martha Wells

The main character is a sentient humanoid robot who has broken his programming as a killing machine to become a cynical rogue, addicted to drama shows and soap-operas.

Smartly-written and full of action and humour.
Brilliant and addictive. Start here: 'All Systems Red'

Posted: **Fri Feb 03, 2023 10:20 pm**

I saw mention of Chris Blackwell's autobiography in another post, and it's one of the books I asked for, for Christmas. and along with Birthday pressies, I scored big time on hardback biographies/autobiographies this year. Along with Chris Blackwell's: The Islander: My Life in Music and Beyond, I ended up with...

Madly, Deeply: The Alan Rickman Diaries
Terry Pratchett: A Life With Footnotes: The Official Biography
B.B.King: The Authorized Biography
Life: (Keith Richards)
Charlie's Good Tonight: The Authorised Biography of Charlie Watts: (Paul Sexton)
Soul Survivor: The Autobiography: (P .P. Arnold)
The Shankly Years: Revolution in Football - Liverpool FC, 1959-74: (Phil Thompson)
Life in a Jungle: (Bruce Grobbelaar)
Jon Savage: England's Dreaming
Kenney Jones: Let The Good times Roll
Marianne Faithfull: Memories, Dreams and Reflections
Stoned: Andrew Loog Oldham
Barry Fantoni: A Whole Scene Going On: My Story of Private Eye, the Pop Revolution and Swinging Sixties London My Story of Private Eye, the Pop Revolution and Swinging Sixties London
John Cooper Clarke: I Wanna Be Yours
Marcus Connaughton: Rory Gallagher: His Life and Times His Life and Times
Bob Harris: Still Whispering After All These Years
Brain Blessed: Absolute Pandemonium: My Louder Than Life Story My Louder Than Life Story
Simon Napier Bell: Ta-Ra-Ra-Boom-De-Ay: The dodgy business of popular music
Simon Napier Bell: Sour Mouth, Sweet Bottom: Lessons from a Dissolute Life Lessons from a Dissolute Life

It was a Hell of a Christmas list.

Posted: **Fri Feb 03, 2023 10:24 pm**

Our book club is reading Phosphate Rocks by Fiona Erskine, she is an engineer and it adds an additional dimension to her writing.

Posted: **Fri Feb 03, 2023 11:31 pm**

slinger wrote: ↑Fri Feb 03, 2023 10:20 pm I saw mention of Chris Blackwell's autobiography in another post, and it's one of the books I asked for, for Christmas. and along with Birthday pressies, I scored big time on hardback biographies/autobiographies this year. Along with Chris Blackwell's: The Islander: My Life in Music and Beyond, I ended up with...

Madly, Deeply: The Alan Rickman Diaries
Terry Pratchett: A Life With Footnotes: The Official Biography
B.B.King: The Authorized Biography
Life: (Keith Richards)
Charlie's Good Tonight: The Authorised Biography of Charlie Watts: (Paul Sexton)
Soul Survivor: The Autobiography: (P .P. Arnold)
The Shankly Years: Revolution in Football - Liverpool FC, 1959-74: (Phil Thompson)
Life in a Jungle: (Bruce Grobbelaar)
Jon Savage: England's Dreaming
Kenney Jones: Let The Good times Roll
Marianne Faithfull: Memories, Dreams and Reflections
Stoned: Andrew Loog Oldham
Barry Fantoni: A Whole Scene Going On: My Story of Private Eye, the Pop Revolution and Swinging Sixties London My Story of Private Eye, the Pop Revolution and Swinging Sixties London
John Cooper Clarke: I Wanna Be Yours
Marcus Connaughton: Rory Gallagher: His Life and Times His Life and Times
Bob Harris: Still Whispering After All These Years
Brain Blessed: Absolute Pandemonium: My Louder Than Life Story My Louder Than Life Story
Simon Napier Bell: Ta-Ra-Ra-Boom-De-Ay: The dodgy business of popular music
Simon Napier Bell: Sour Mouth, Sweet Bottom: Lessons from a Dissolute Life Lessons from a Dissolute Life

It was a Hell of a Christmas list.

Bloody hell thats a crazy long list, I listen to rather than read books these days. For the most part autobiographies of living people are read by the person in question although Chris Blackwell got Bill Nighy to recite his. I enjoyed John Cooper Clarke, its as I remember him. I will be interested to see what you think of Keith Richards book, I didn't manage to finish mine. I think I have read/listened to about 20 so far and Viv Albertine of the Slits, Music, Clothes, Boys stands out as the best by some distance.
Away from autobiographies, Ian Ports book the birth of loud about the development of the electric guitar and the rivalry of Leo Fender & Les Paul is a great book in every way.

Posted: **Sat Feb 04, 2023 1:26 pm**

Keith Richards autobiography is very good. In contrast Ronnie Wood's is the worst I have come across. I think it was censored by Mick Jagger, unlike Keef's who tells it as it is. Mick could not tell the difference between coke and heroin, amongst other revelations.

Good ones I have read are by Ozzy Osbourne, Slash, Rod Stewart, Roger Daltery, Bruce Dickinson and Lemmy. Not so good by Tony Iomi and KK Downing. The later had an axe to grind, no punn intended. Neil Young's book is a bit unusual.

Posted: **Sat Feb 04, 2023 6:27 pm**

Geoff.R.G wrote: ↑Fri Feb 03, 2023 10:24 pm Our book club is reading Phosphate Rocks by Fiona Erskine, she is an engineer and it adds an additional dimension to her writing.

She looks to be an interesting author. It's rare to find what looks to be an original slant on the crime/detective novel genre these days.

Ms Erskine seems to have a series of four books (so far?) featuring a "Dr Jaq Silver.: Skier, scientist, international jet-setter, and explosives expert. She blows things up to keep people safe."

I think I need to investigate her work.

HiFi Subjectivist ¦ Audio Forum ¦ NVA User Group

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