The article which originally filled this page contained seven years’ worth of trivia, anecdotes and gig reviews from my old diaries as a music fan at the height of UK pub rock, punk and ska. I kept it available here as a free read for ten years, but now I’m asking people to buy the book instead.
I started the diaries in 1975, when I was just 16 and ended them in 1981. Among the gigs I saw – and have described in the book - you’ll find a 1977 Clash show in a sweaty little club (plus the NYC appearance which gave us London Calling’s cover two years later), Lynyrd Skynyrd supporting the Stones at Knebworth, pre-fame encounters with both Ian Dury and Shane MacGowan, the Damned becoming the first punk band to play a major London venue, the Ruts frantically improvising on the first night Malcolm Owen went AWOL and a couple of wonderfully chaotic label revue tours by Stiff and 2 Tone. Live music in Britain had never been more exciting, and I had an almost indecent amount of fun chasing down the best shows.
Elsewhere in the book, you’ll find PlanetSlade’s follow-up piece (cunningly titled More Moshpit Memories), which updates the story to 2002 via appearances by Tom Waits, Nick Cave, the Pogues and Jim Rose’s extraordinary Circus Sideshow. Finally, I’ve included a bunch of my recent Songlines and fRoots interviews with roots musicians like Tom Russell, Charlie Parr and Eric Bibb.
All these delights, plus a bonus comic strip looking back on the aftermath of punk, can be yours in either paperback or e-book form. Head over to the book’s Amazon page to buy your copy now!
