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Darren Johnson

The Sweet's look, sound and attitude became an instantly recognisable hallmark of the early 1970s glam rock era. But the band did not start the 1970s as a glam band and certainly didn't finish as one. This book charts the band's journey through the decade that made them a household name: from their initial rise as purveyors of manufactured bubblegum pop to their metamorphosis into harder-edged glam rock icons. The Sweet in the 1970s takes a look at both their successes and their struggles in their quest to be recognised as a serious rock act in the latter part of the decade, once the sparkle and glitter of glam had begun to pale.

 The decade saw them score fifteen UK Top 40 singles, release seven studio albums and tour several continents. Unlike many bands of the era, personnel changes were few. The Sweet began the 1970s with the arrival of new guitarist Andy Scott and ended the decade with the departure of frontman Brian Connolly, followed by an ultimately ill-fated attempt to continue as a three-piece.

 This book is an unashamed celebration of the music of the Sweet and charts the lasting impact they had on many of the bands that followed them.

 

After acquiring a second-hand copy of Sweet's Give Us A Wink album from Action Records in Preston as a teenager in the early 1980s, Darren has been a dedicated fan of the band. A former politician, he has written for a number of UK national newspapers, but after stepping away from politics, he has been able to devote more time to his first love: music. A keen follower of both rock and folk, he maintains a popular music blog Darren's Music Blog and has reviewed albums and gigs for a variety of publications. He lives in Hastings, East Sussex, UK.

Sonicbond Publishing

Decades

The Sweet in the 1970s

Slade were one of the biggest British bands of the 1970s. One of the early pioneers of glam rock, they enjoyed an incredible run of six number-one singles, five top-ten albums and a succession of sell-out tours.

 However, after a failed attempt at an American breakthrough in the mid-1970s, Slade returned to Britain and faced dwindling record sales, smaller concert halls and a music press that had lost interest in them. By the end of the decade, they were playing residencies in cabaret clubs and recorded a cover of a children’s novelty song. But then came a last-minute invitation to play the 1980 Reading Festival, setting in motion one of the most remarkable comebacks in rock history.

 It’s now 50 years since Slade’s 1973 annus mirabilis that saw ‘Cum On Feel The Noize’, ‘Skweeze Me, Pleeze Me’ and ‘Merry Xmas Everybody’ all enter the UK charts at number one, and this book celebrates the music of this legendary band. From their beginnings in the mid-1960s through each year of the decade that gave them their biggest successes, every album and single is examined, as well as coverage of their raucous live shows and colourful media profile.

A former politician, Darren spent many years writing about current affairs but after stepping away from politics he was able to devote time to his first love: music. His first book, The Sweet in the 1970s, was published by Sonicbond in 2021, followed by Suzi Quatro in the 1970s in 2022. Now he turns his attention to the first band he truly fell in love with: Slade. A keen follower of both rock and folk, he maintains a popular music blog – Darren’s Music Blog – and has reviewed albums and gigs for a variety of publications. He lives in Hastings, East Sussex.

Slade in the 1970s

Chris Sutton

The 1980s saw Alice Cooper arguably release his most diverse collection of albums, ranging from new wave to metal to full-on radio-friendly rock. They weren’t all commercially successful, but all are worth listening to and some are excellent.

This book, which follows on from the author’s acclaimed Alice Cooper In The 1970s, features all new interview material by the author with 45 musicians and performers who worked with Alice over the decade. Many have never been interviewed before but they offer a fascinating insight into working with Alice and with each other. Key interviewees include Mike Pinera, Jan Uvena, John Nitzinger, Graham Shaw, Ken Mary, Kip Winger, Kane Roberts, John McCurry and Al Pitrelli. Consequently, the book includes a lot of new information that should please fans.

 The author adds commentary and opinions on all of the songs from the era, Alice’s film work and the five live tours. There is also an appendix on the album that could have been but never was. Alice himself ‘contributes’ from the contemporary press of the time, his comments becoming more loquacious as the decade progresses.

Alice Cooper in the 1980s, what a thrill ride that was!

 

Chris Sutton has been a fan of Alice Cooper since 1972 and the band's famous debut appearance on Top Of The Pops. The reunion of the band for their UK tour in 2017 stands as one of his happiest memories. He manages Smethwick Heritage Centre Museum and has written several publications for them. He has also written several plays. Alice Cooper In The 1980s is his third book for Sonicbond Publishing, with several more to follow. He lives in Great Malvern, UK.

Alice Cooper in the 1980s

The 1970s was the decade that saw the arrival of Alice Cooper as a major force in the rock firmament. Chris Sutton explores the story of Alice Cooper the band and also Alice the solo performer from their early years through to the end of the decade. A roller-coaster ride of classic albums and singles, the songs recorded in the 1970s still dominate his live sets to this day. The book features all new interview material from key figures including Michael Bruce, Dennis Dunaway and Neal Smith from the original band, Prakash John from the solo years, and Ernie Cefalu, whose company Pacific Eye and Ear designed the sleeve packaging. Several other musicians, concert promoters and even the band's first roadie have also contributed their thoughts.

 All of the albums and singles from Don't Blow Your Mind, until From The Inside are examined in detail, along with related archive releases and songs that didn't make the final cut. In the course of putting the book together much new information came to light that will be of huge interest to hardened collectors and new fans alike, making this book is an essential guide to Alice Cooper in the decade that the band helped to define.

 

Chris Sutton has been a fan of Alice Cooper since 1972 and the band’s famous debut appearance on Top Of The Pops. The reunion of the band for their UK tour in 2017 stands as one of his happiest memories. He manages Smethwick Heritage Centre Museum and has written several publications for them. He has also written several plays. Alice Cooper in the 1970s is his first venture into music writing, with others to follow. He lives in Great Malvern, UK.

Alice Cooper in the 1970s

Andrew Mon Hughes

Grant Walters

Mark Crohan

In April 1967, the Bee Gees launched themselves onto the international music scene with the release of ‘New York Mining Disaster 1941’. Whilst that haunting classic would be the first of many hits, the Bee Gees consisting of brothers Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb had been releasing records since 1963. As extraordinary as it sounds, with more than ten years of performing and four years of recording behind them, the Gibb twins, Robin and Maurice, were just seventeen while elder brother Barry was only twenty. In an incredible career the Bee Gees would go on to sell over 200 million records, making them among the best\-selling music artists of all time, they would be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Australian Recording Industry’s Hall of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and receive lifetime achievement awards from the British Phonographic Industry, the American Music Awards, World Music Awards and the Grammys. According to Billboard magazine the Bee Gees are one of top three most successful bands in their charts’ history. Few musical groups have provided the soundtrack to our lives like the Bee Gees, and it all started in the fascinating decade that was the 1960s

The Bee Gees in the 1960s

The Bee Gees’ music and image have long been synonymous with the 1970s, and the career trajectory of brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb in those ten years meanders between dizzying highs and devastating lows. In 1970, the band was bitterly split after succumbing to the pressures and excesses of their first wave of international fame in the latter part of the 1960s, but by 1979 they were one of the most successful music acts on the planet. In between, the brothers crafted timeless works that defied genre, transcended societal boundaries, and permeated generations of listeners. 

 The Bee Gees would go on to sell over 200 million records, making them among the best-selling music artists of all time; they would be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Australian Recording Industry’s Hall of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and receive lifetime achievement awards from the British Phonographic Industry, the American Music Awards, World Music Awards and the Grammys. According to Billboard magazine, the Bee Gees are one of the top three most successful bands in their charts’ history. 

 In the 1970s, The Bee Gees established themselves as innovative and versatile artists, and their songs scored a turbulent decade of global cultural change and discovery.

The Bee Gees in the 70s

Steve Pilkington

Incredibly, Uriah Heep have now been active for a full fifty years. However, few would argue that the period which has come to define them the most, and during which they were at their most influential, was from 1970-1980. During this decade, they released an incredible thirteen studio albums and a legendary double live album, as well as having a regular turnaround of musicians in all but the guitar and keyboard roles. This remarkable decade began with the first three albums, as the band sought to find a stable line-up, followed by the classic run begun by the Demons And Wizards album featuring the definitive Box/Hensley/Byron/Kerslake/Thain line-up.

 When charismatic frontman David Byron departed, there was a period of some uncertainty, but still some remarkable music was made. This book, which features a foreword from founding member Paul Newton, is a year-by-year journey through that decade, looking at the albums, the often-gruelling touring schedules and the ups and downs of the relationships within the band. Never quite attaining the sales and success of some of their rivals at the time, Uriah Heep nevertheless released some of the most extraordinary music of the 1970s – and this book takes you through it all.

 

The author: Steve Pilkington is a music journalist, editor and broadcaster. He was Editor in Chief for the Classic Rock Society Magazine Rock Society and is now co-administrator of the rock website Velvet Thunder as well as presenting a weekly internet radio show called A Saucerful Of Prog. Before taking on this work full-time, he spent years writing for fanzines and an Internet music review site on a part-time basis. He has recently published books on Deep Purple and Rainbow, The Rolling Stones and Iron Maiden, all for Sonicbond, and has also written the official biography of legendary guitarist Gordon Giltrap. He lives in Wigan, Lancashire, UK.

Uriah Heep in the 1970s

Georg Purvis

It may have all started with Syd Barrett, but the persistence and creativity of Roger Waters, Rick Wright, Nick Mason and David Gilmour meant that Pink Floyd went from one of England’s top underground psychedelic bands to one of the biggest rock bands on the planet — all thanks to an album wondering if there really was a dark side of the moon. Pink Floyd in the 1970s: Decades focuses on the band throughout the 1970s — undoubtedly the peak of their success — from the weird brilliance of Atom Heart Mother to the epic, autobiographical storytelling of The Wall. In between, the band achieved tremendous success with Meddle and Dark Side of the Moon, yet struggled to come to terms with their place in the pantheon of rock music on Wish You Were Here and Animals.

The decade of Pink Floyd’s greatest successes was dominated by shifting musical trends and a balance in power in the band changing from democratic equality to Waters calling most of the shots. These factors, and the looming spectre of Barrett, their erstwhile founder, inspired some of the greatest albums of all time. The book explores the music, the defining moments and the personality clashes that very nearly destroyed the band.

The author: Georg Purvis is the author of Queen: The Complete Works, currently in its third edition. While Queen was his gateway band, he has come to appreciate all kinds of music over the years and considers himself lucky that his first-ever concert, at the age of 10, was on Pink Floyd’s The Division Bell tour at Veteran’s Stadium on June 2, 1994. He has since turned his love of writing about music into a hobby, with several unfinished manuscripts collecting dust on an external hard drive. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife, Meredith, and their two cats, Spencer and William.

Pink Floyd in the 1970s

Nathaniel Webb

Derided as seventies throwbacks upon their arrival and misremembered by the wider population as one-hit wonders, Marillion rode the 1980s as one of the most successful bands in Britain. Delivering the musical and conceptual density of early progressive rock with the caustic energy of punk, the Aylesbury heroes both spearheaded the neo-prog revival and produced its crown jewel in their number one album Misplaced Childhood and its Top 5 singles 'Kayleigh' and 'Lavender.' Musically, their influence reaches from prog legends Dream Theater and Steven Wilson to household names like Radiohead and Muse. 
 The 1980s encapsulated Marillion’s birth, commercial apex, and near-implosion. This book combines meticulous history with careful musical analysis to chronicle their most turbulent decade from their first gig, through the dizzying success and destructive decadence of their time with frontman Fish, to his bitter departure and replacement by Steve Hogarth. It turns an experienced critical eye not only on their five albums of the decade - from the seminal Script For A Jester's Tear to Season's End - Hogarth's debut - and a line up that remains as active as ever. The book also discusses demos, singles, and Fish’s solo debut to dissect a band which critics still love to hate, even as today’s music industry stands upon their shoulders as pioneers of self-promotion and internet-based crowd funding.

 Nathaniel Webb is an American author, musician, and game designer. As a lead guitarist, he has toured and recorded for numerous acts including Grammy-nominated singers Beth Hart and Jana Mashonee, Colombian pop star Marre, and Talking to Walls. His writing includes the novels Expedition: Summerlands, The Days of Guns and Roses, and Arcadia Mon Amour. A graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy and Wesleyan University, Nathaniel lives in Portland, Maine with his wife and son under a big pile of cats. He can be found on Facebook and Twitter @nat20w.

Decades - La serie de libros

Decades - La serie de libros

Decades libros en orden

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