The inside story of New Zealand's iconic independent record label by the man who made it happen.I wanted to be more than just an observer. I wanted to be a part of what was going on. I had told someone and the word was out, and now I had to actually do this thing. Start a record label.I must have been drunk.Roger Shepherd was working in a Christchurch record shop when he realised the local bands he loved needed someone to make their records. Flying...

The inside story of New Zealand's iconic independent record label by the man who made it happen.I wanted to be more than just an observer. I wanted to be a part of what was going on. I had told someone and the word was out, and now I had to actually do this thing. Start a record label.I must have been drunk.Roger Shepherd was working in a Christchurch record shop when he realised the local bands he loved needed someone to make their records. Flying...

Jimmy Edwards stars as the irascible Headmaster in this vintage BBC Radio comedy series set in a boys’ public schoolStarting life on BBC TV, Whack-O! transferred to radio in 1961 and ran for three series on the Light Programme until 1963. Not all of the radio episodes survive, but many from Series 1 and the entirety of Series 2 were recovered by a BBC archivist from a listener’s tapes in 2012, and have since been broadcast on Radio 4 Extra.Collecte...

With a new introduction by Nick RhodesThe talent. The charisma. The videos. From their 1981 hit "Planet Earth" to their latest number-one album, All You Need Is Now, John Taylor and Duran Duran have enchanted audiences around the world. It's been a wild ride, and—for John in particular—dangerous. John recounts the story of the band's formation, their massive success, and his journey to the brink of self-destruction. Told with humor, honesty—and pa...

Dubbed a National Treasure by Gough Whitlam, a Gay Icon by Les McDonald and a Household Name by the Sydney Morning Herald ('so is Sorbent,' her unimpressed mother remarked), Jacki Weaver has combined a distinguished acting career with a tumultuous personal life.A self-confessed bolter and adventuress, with five marriages under her tiny belt, there have been times of great wealth (most notably during her marriage to Derryn Hinch) and times of scraping along. There have alwa...

An electrifying updated edition of the bestselling memoir from the frontwoman of Divinyls and one of Australia's greatest rock singersBrave, funny, ferocious - there's never been anyone like Chrissy Amphlett. A true legend of Australian rock'n'roll, we are so lucky that she shared her raw, gripping and searingly honest story. In these pages, Chrissy spared no one - least of all herself. Taking us from her childhood, where it became apparent music w...

A rambling trip through a colourful and melodic St. John's childhood combined with a how-not-to-do-it-yourself guide to the music business and a thoughtful and sometimes poignant look at the way a legendary Canadian band creates music all of these threads and many others are pulled together by writer and musician Bob Hallett. Writing Out the Notes began as a series of essays Hallett wrote to explain his love of music but it turned into a humorous biography and a kind of extended solo on mu...

From the bestselling author of The Psychopath Test comes a characteristically humorous story of a musician on the margins. In Frank: The True Story that Inspired the Movie, Jon Ronson reflects on his days playing keyboard for the Frank Sidebottom Oh Blimey Big Band. Frank Sidebottom, best known for performing with a big fake head with a cartoon face painted on it, was a cult favorite in the United Kingdom and is the subject of the new movie Frank, co-written by R...

George Michael is an enigma. While he is one of the most open and vocal pop superstars on the planet, he also fiercely protective of his privacy. From the formation of Wham! In 1981 he immediately found fame and fortune beyond his wildest dreams. His music formed the soundtrack to the 1980s and he achieved all of this despite growing up in a dysfunctional family where his father openly proclaimed that George had no talent.Wham! split in 1986 but Michael went on to greater things as...

"A largely untold, much more controversial story… anything but a hagiography. A fresh, incisive take on the band." - MOJO **** "Fink's ability to overcome the Youngs’ code of Scottish-Australian omert? is impressive… a cut above other AC/DC tomes, and Fink knows it." - Classic Rock **** 1Z2 With sales of over 200 million albums, AC/DC is not just the biggest rock band in the world, it's a family business built by three brothers: George, Malcolm and Angus Young. As with any business, some p...

“All I have to say about these songs is that I love them, and want to sing along to them, and force other people to listen to them, and get cross when these other people don’t like them as much as I do.” —Nick Hornby, from SongbookA wise and hilarious collection from the bestselling author of Dickens and Prince, Just Like You, Funny Girl and About a Boy.Songs, songwriters, and why and how they get under o...

Are you a fan of Cliff Richard? Have you followed every twist and turn in his long and successful career? Do you know all there is to know about the man and his music? Then why not put your knowledge to the test with this tribute to the legendary entertainer?Cliff Richard first appeared on the music scene in the late 1950s and quickly went on to become one of the UK’s best loved stars, producing a string of hits that together have notched up an incredible 250 million sales. The iconic vete...