Secondhand Music Books

This first ever biography of the multi-platinum selling band tells the compelling story of how a group of boys from deeply religious families broke away from their backgrounds and rose...

His talent was unbounded, a raw force that commanded attention and respect. His death was tragic - a violent homage to the power of his voice. His legacy is indomitable...

Van Morrison is an enigma. The legendary rock star who wrote and recorded such influential albums as Astral Weeks and Moondance and has mesmerised millions live is also a reclusive...

Twenty-eight years after its original release, "The Clash's London Calling" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame as a 'recording of lasting qualitative or historical significance'. It has topped...

Ronnie Wood is one of rock's true originals. This is his story, in his own words, about his life, loves, family, friends, music, art and survival against the odds. It's...

The final word on music's greatest legend, in which Philip Norman reveals a John Lennon the world has never seen. With ground-breaking insight into the pain, beauty and frustration that...

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'A unique and thoughtful musical memoir' Observer'Gritty coming-of-age story . . . plenty of anecdotes to keep us hooked, and his memories of Joy Division's Ian Curtis...

Few people rode the popular wave of the sixties quite like Tara Browne. One of Swinging London's most popular faces, he lived fast, died young and was immortalized for ever...

'A memoir of great power and emotional honesty. To read this book is to be in awe of Spraggan's strength in writing it.' Elizabeth DayBy the age of twenty, Lucy...

Wilson Pickett was arguably the greatest male soul screamer of the 1960s and '70s. Well known for his unprecedented string of Soul hits, including "In the Midnight Hour," "Land of...

THE POWERFUL AND UPLIFTING NUMBER ONE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERIn March 2022, much-loved pop star, father and son Tom Parker died from incurable brain cancer. This story is his legacy, in...

Nirvana achieved almost overnight success, with albums such as "In Utero" and "Nevermind", taking grunge music to new heights. This book looks at the aftermath of the tragedy that was...

New discoveries and a fresh perspective, with unprecedented access to Richey's personal archiveOn 1 February 1995, Richey Edwards, guitarist of the Manic Street Preachers, went missing at the age of...

The must-read music book of the year, as heard on Steve Lamacq, The Times Radio & 5LIVE, and extracted in Rolling Stone & the Daily Telegraph'Required reading' Irish Times 'Electrifying'...

Fully updated and revised to include the most up-to-the-minute information on copyright law (including copyright and the Internet), and a section on classical music, this text aims to be an...

Once in a while a book is produced that captures the energy and spirit of the world of rock. Somebody Someday was published to massive popular and critical acclaim in...

In To Be a Gay Man, Will Young speaks out about gay shame, revealing the impact it had on his own life, how he learned to deal with it, and...

A memoir of the London Symphony Orchestra on tour, focusing on their historical first visit to America in 1912 and their most recent US tour earlier this year. Gareth Davies,...

What happens when getting played on Radio 1 isn't the goal anymore? What if music is really just about music?A few years ago, Little Fish were signed to a major...

This is the only in-depth biographical account of the legendary lead singer of Joy Division, written by his widow. Revered by his peers and idolised by his fans, Ian Curtis...

Goodnight and Good Riddance: How Thirty-Five Years of John Peel Helped to Shape Modern Britain is a social history, a diary of a nation's changing culture, and an in-depth appraisal...

In the age of global capitalism, vaporwave celebrates and undermines the electronic ghosts haunting the nostalgia industry. Ours is a time of ghosts in machines, killing meaning and exposing the...

Get Up Off Your Knees is a thoughtful and provocative collection of sermons by a group of preachers from across the international church spectrum who have been moved to theological...

Country music singer-songwriter Johnny Cash is an icon to people of all ages the world over. In Cash's first ever authorised biography, Steve Turner sifts the man from the legend...

From one of Irelands most respected singers comes her story of a lifetimes joys and pains, the shaping of her relationship with God and the most personal thing to her:...

'A lovely book - as bright, shiny and uplifting as an Abba hit' Daily Mail'[A] witty and affectionate account . . . It's not a stretch to say that, at...

This study analyzes music, moving from the personal response of the listener to the cultural and public ramifications of its performance and historical setting. Covering subjects as diverse as the...

Shayne Ward was planning to work in his local clothes shop as usual last Christmas. Instead he was selling CDs - millions of them. In fact, the artist who secured...

Brilliantly funny misheard lyrics and outrageous earworms'Six o'clock already I was just in the middle of a dream. I was kissing Danny DeVito by a crystal blue Italian stream.''I was...

Despite the number of claims in publishers blurbs, not many people actually achieve the status of legend in their own lifetime. Fewer still actually deserve that status. John Peel is...

This is a memoir as wry, funny, moving and vivid as its inimitable subject himself. This book will be a joy for both lifelong fans and for a whole new...

Status Quo have undoubtedly earned their place in rock history. The band's record sales have exceeded 112 million units. They had 58 British hit singles - more than any other...

A RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK 'An affectionate and revealing account ... Funny, sad, real, rueful.' The Times 'Warm, rambling and self-aware' Guardian The long-awaited, rambling, tender, and very...