Posts Tagged ‘Manic Street Preachers’
Stuart Adamson biography reviews – ‘Moving and well-judged’
“An overdue tribute to a visionary musician and honourable man” – Keith Cameron, MOJO
“A fascinating story that will appeal to more people than just those who are fans of his music … [Stuart Adamson – In A Big Country] is a celebration of a man who cared too much, someone who wasn’t able to turn the emotion off. Listening to those early records again while reading In A Big Country made me realise that Scottish music misses him more than it realises”- Alistair Braidwood, DEARSCOTLAND.COM To read the full review, click here
“This biography presents a critical perspective not only of Adamson’s music and its wider influence, but also of the excesses of fame and the music business as it really is” – THE SCOTS MAGAZINE
“[This] intimate study of a true Scottish original has already been acclaimed by Bruce Springsteen. To say that we’re with ‘The Boss’ on this one would be a huge understatement. A superb book about a man who was as talented as he was under-appreciated” – THE GRID. To read the full review, click here
“Homage to a true Fife great” – John Murray, FIFE FREE PRESS
“Memories of long lost tracks came flooding back as I read this book” – GOODREADS.COM. To read the full review, click here
“Moving and well-judged … Adamson emerges as a bruised romantic” – Rob Hughes, THE WORD
“This is the first biography on this talented man and [the author] does a fine job of covering a life that ended way too soon” – INNOCENT WORDS. To read the full review, click here
“A fitting tribute to a man whose musical legacy will live on for years to come” – Matt Meade, DUNFERMLINE PRESS. To read the full article, click here
Author interview with Stuart Adamson fan website
Why did you write the book?
Writing the book was an opportunity to pay tribute to Stuart Adamson, and celebrate the work of the Skids and Big Country. Without wishing to sound too nostalgic, the late 70s, 80s and 90s were an exciting – if often frustrating – time to be a fan of the Skids and Big Country. The interviews and features on both bands in magazines and newspapers rarely captured the era. The story has never been documented at any great length, and with any real depth or critical analysis.
What feedback have you had from fans of the Skids and Big Country about your book?
The overwhelming majority of feedback has been very positive. The main recurring point among comments has been that a book such as this was long overdue.
What would you like readers to get out of reading Stuart Adamson – In a Big Country?
I’d say I set out to write a book that explored Stuart’s career so I would hope that readers might learn something about his work, or at least get a feel for what was going on in Britain or within the music industry at the time.
James Dean Bradfield of the Manic Street Preachers wrote the foreword for your book and Ian Rankin wrote the introduction. How did that come about?
Both were approached and wanted to get involved. I knew James Dean Bradfield was a big fan of Stuart Adamson and hardly lets a Manics gig go by without reminding everyone where that guitar riff from Motown Junk really comes from. It was a great honour to have them contribute.
How long did it take you to write Stuart Adamson – In a Big Country?
About three years.
Did you think your book would get this level of success?
To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t sure what the reaction was going to be when it was first published. If anything, it was just a privilege to be given the opportunity to write it. As for ‘success’, if a reader felt emotionally moved in any way I would judge the book to be successful.
This is an edited version of a Q&A feature that first appeared on the Stuart Adamson fan website in June 2012.
To view the original article, click here
Stuart Adamson - In A Big Country 