- Hardcover: 352 pages
- Publisher: Blake Publishing (28 Jun 2002)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1904034039
- ISBN-13: 978-1904034032
- Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15 x 3.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 869,145 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Hard Radio, Canada
Bloody ‘ell, ... an explosive, violent, funny, daft, shag-worthy, and charming storyteller’s biog of this cad for the ages.
The Walthamstow Guardian, Newspaper
Depending on your point of view, he is either Waltham
Forest’s proudest export or its most vile creation.
Forest’s proudest export or its most vile creation.
Inside This Book
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The Beast is not a book designed for music aficionados
who wish to read about the original Iron Maiden singer.
It’s more of an action adventure story staring a Jack Daniels,
cocaine fuelled fighting machine that just happens to be a
vocalist in a rock band. Take the extremities of The Dirt,
remove most of the drugs, replace them with violence and
you’ve pretty much got The Beast.
Once you’ve read this book you won’t want to step into the
same pub as Paul Di’anno, never mind spill his pint. This is
a very honest account of an excessive existence that the singer
has chosen not to glamorise. Although Paul kicking his own guitarist’s teeth out and chasing journalists from venues are
amusing there are more serious topics contained within this
tome. Di’anno confesses to wife beating that led to a spell in
the LA penitentiary as well as admitting that he was holding
Maiden back and that Bruce Dickinson is a superior vocalist.
who wish to read about the original Iron Maiden singer.
It’s more of an action adventure story staring a Jack Daniels,
cocaine fuelled fighting machine that just happens to be a
vocalist in a rock band. Take the extremities of The Dirt,
remove most of the drugs, replace them with violence and
you’ve pretty much got The Beast.
Once you’ve read this book you won’t want to step into the
same pub as Paul Di’anno, never mind spill his pint. This is
a very honest account of an excessive existence that the singer
has chosen not to glamorise. Although Paul kicking his own guitarist’s teeth out and chasing journalists from venues are
amusing there are more serious topics contained within this
tome. Di’anno confesses to wife beating that led to a spell in
the LA penitentiary as well as admitting that he was holding
Maiden back and that Bruce Dickinson is a superior vocalist.
This is the opportunity to tap into the mind of one of the
maddest rock stars of all time. It’s no mistake that certain
stores have the book filed under Serious Crime.
Ian Camfield
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I really wanted to like this because Paul's singing added that magic X factor to the first 2 Iron Maiden LP's. The man can sing - no issue there, it's just this book proves Paul hasn't let go from that era and hasn't produced anything to equal since leaving Iron Maiden. Hell, even his logo is in the Maiden font, his band names frequently have a close association to Maiden ( killers for example ) and everything else he produces still has that Maiden connection ( the beast, the classics album which is covers of guess who?, you got it, Iron Maiden. It goes on and on ) The man simply cannot let go of his past but to be honest, what can he let go to because the vast majority of his own music is sub standard UK pub rock sludge destined for the bargain bin and greatly overshadowed by his Maiden work which is either his only work of note or a real albertross around his neck.
Paul Di Anno is a bitter man because of this and this book makes that clear. Also, how can Di'anno maintain that he is an 'internationally know rock star'? He made his name off the back of Iron Maiden but that finished back in 1981 - with hardly an energetic media profile since, Di'anno is simply the old Iron Maiden singer ( and not even recognisable from those days at that either). He submerges himself in this famous rock star delusion throughout the whole book making himself look like someone hoping if he tells you he's famous enough, the reader will believe he is. You decide.
I enjoyed the Iron Maiden bits and there's some other entertaining segments but the continuous references to him boasting about his temper, his drug/alcohol intake, his uncontrollable violence to men and women, how hard he is and you'd better not mess with him, his groupie action- all referred to with school bully smugness ( and this is on nearly every page folks ), it gets very boring very fast.
It all comes across as a ploy to say' hey i'm still here and i don't need Iron Maiden anyway ' whilst milking the past for all it's worth. I'm sure Di Anno is a diamond geezer and all that but his time just faded away years ago.
Paul Di Anno is a bitter man because of this and this book makes that clear. Also, how can Di'anno maintain that he is an 'internationally know rock star'? He made his name off the back of Iron Maiden but that finished back in 1981 - with hardly an energetic media profile since, Di'anno is simply the old Iron Maiden singer ( and not even recognisable from those days at that either). He submerges himself in this famous rock star delusion throughout the whole book making himself look like someone hoping if he tells you he's famous enough, the reader will believe he is. You decide.
I enjoyed the Iron Maiden bits and there's some other entertaining segments but the continuous references to him boasting about his temper, his drug/alcohol intake, his uncontrollable violence to men and women, how hard he is and you'd better not mess with him, his groupie action- all referred to with school bully smugness ( and this is on nearly every page folks ), it gets very boring very fast.
It all comes across as a ploy to say' hey i'm still here and i don't need Iron Maiden anyway ' whilst milking the past for all it's worth. I'm sure Di Anno is a diamond geezer and all that but his time just faded away years ago.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I received 2 rock autobiographies this Christmas - this one and Thomas Gabriel Warriors, from Celtic Frost. This allows a useful comparison, as one is written by a man who clearly struggles with the nuances of the English language and the other is written by an erudite guy from Switzerland who can remember what actually happened in some detail (a plus point for a biography). Whereas Warrior is aware of his shortcomings (and his deserved greatness) and wears his heart very much on his sleeve Di'anno has all the sensitivity of a rhinoceros in labour.
From the outset of this tabloid newspaper styled expose he wants to lay down his manly credentials - I am Di'anno the former singer with Iron Maiden and if you mess with me I'll smash your teeth in. To prove the point upfront, so that there is no doubt of his credentials, we get a couple of random juicy anecdotes at the beginning of this rag to prove how `ard he is. This irrational and angry style permeates thereafter and if you want to avoid the tiresome prospect of reading the book yourself it goes unrelentingly something like this:
`I think I was in this club doing the big rock star thing, cos I'm Paul Di'anno of Iron Maiden, and there's this ******* punk giving me the evil eye cos I am Paul Di'anno lead singer with Iron Maiden. Now I can't put up with this as people are watching and they all know how hard I am in me leathers and studs and, cos I am Paul Di'anno, I give him the come on if your `ard enough look - he comes at me swinging but I got a bottle hidden (or was it a chair, I can't recall), which he didn't see, so I smashes it on his head and he's going down, no messing. Two kicks to the head with me cowboy boots have the **** out but I aint finished yet so I smash him hard again - he ain't gonna forget me in a hurry, ha! ha! Anyway, there's this gorgeous city bird watching me, all dolled up like in suit and bowler hat (I can't remember really), and thinking I am the cool rock star so I goes up to her, all suave as you like, and pretty soon she's got her laughing gear all over me Bruce ****inson, cos I am Paul ****** Dianno of ******* Iron Maiden.'
What makes this unrelenting diatribe even harder to stomach is the point where Paul, after 200 pages of mindless violence and endless sinful fornication with anything that breathes, `obviously' converts to Islam - the reason that Paul gives for this road to Damascus conversion is that Islam is totally more hard core than Christianity....(I am not making this up) - what this is meant to mean is simply left to the readers imagination. And when his new beliefs on the self proclaimed religion of peace are questioned by a guy in a bar Paul's obvious response is, well you guessed it, to smash his face in..... (even Paul wonders at the delicious irony of all of this).
After losing the will to carry on past the conversion from one deity to another deity I am left baffled as to what to make of this once iconic singer (in metal circles at least). It's quite a feat to project yourself in such a way that you can leave the reader totally cold to you as a person. However, this would probably make a `great' B Movie if the title were changed slightly. Unfortunately Steve Martin has already made `The Jerk' so it'll simply have to be called `The boast'.
From the outset of this tabloid newspaper styled expose he wants to lay down his manly credentials - I am Di'anno the former singer with Iron Maiden and if you mess with me I'll smash your teeth in. To prove the point upfront, so that there is no doubt of his credentials, we get a couple of random juicy anecdotes at the beginning of this rag to prove how `ard he is. This irrational and angry style permeates thereafter and if you want to avoid the tiresome prospect of reading the book yourself it goes unrelentingly something like this:
`I think I was in this club doing the big rock star thing, cos I'm Paul Di'anno of Iron Maiden, and there's this ******* punk giving me the evil eye cos I am Paul Di'anno lead singer with Iron Maiden. Now I can't put up with this as people are watching and they all know how hard I am in me leathers and studs and, cos I am Paul Di'anno, I give him the come on if your `ard enough look - he comes at me swinging but I got a bottle hidden (or was it a chair, I can't recall), which he didn't see, so I smashes it on his head and he's going down, no messing. Two kicks to the head with me cowboy boots have the **** out but I aint finished yet so I smash him hard again - he ain't gonna forget me in a hurry, ha! ha! Anyway, there's this gorgeous city bird watching me, all dolled up like in suit and bowler hat (I can't remember really), and thinking I am the cool rock star so I goes up to her, all suave as you like, and pretty soon she's got her laughing gear all over me Bruce ****inson, cos I am Paul ****** Dianno of ******* Iron Maiden.'
What makes this unrelenting diatribe even harder to stomach is the point where Paul, after 200 pages of mindless violence and endless sinful fornication with anything that breathes, `obviously' converts to Islam - the reason that Paul gives for this road to Damascus conversion is that Islam is totally more hard core than Christianity....(I am not making this up) - what this is meant to mean is simply left to the readers imagination. And when his new beliefs on the self proclaimed religion of peace are questioned by a guy in a bar Paul's obvious response is, well you guessed it, to smash his face in..... (even Paul wonders at the delicious irony of all of this).
After losing the will to carry on past the conversion from one deity to another deity I am left baffled as to what to make of this once iconic singer (in metal circles at least). It's quite a feat to project yourself in such a way that you can leave the reader totally cold to you as a person. However, this would probably make a `great' B Movie if the title were changed slightly. Unfortunately Steve Martin has already made `The Jerk' so it'll simply have to be called `The boast'.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
what a pile of s**t
beatin up women drinking lots of jack daniels and snorting loads of coke!!! page after page of it..best part of the book somes it up as he sells all royalties to iron maiden for... Read more
Published 11 months ago by M. Moore
definitely not a fairy tale
for starters, paul di anno in my opinion is one of the most influencing heavy metal singers NWOBM had ever produced. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Omar Farid
The Moron is a better title!
If you are an Iron Maiden fan dont bother with this as any stories /anecdotes about his time with the band seem to take up about 10% of the book. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Conrad1965
Oh Dear.
I am a massive Maiden fan, and short of a book, this caught my eye. The first two albums are far from my fave, but they are part of Maidens history, as is Paul Di'Anno, so I... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Badd Family
The raspy one writes his memoirs
For most metal fans (in the UK, at least) Paul Di'anno fell off the radar that fateful day in 1981 when Rod Smallwood fired him; not because of any vocal deficiencies but because... Read more
Published 23 months ago by FlyingAspidistra
nutter
Basically this book depicts a drunken drug addled rock singer who is violent but the motivation for most of his antics seems senseless. Read more
Published on 4 April 2010 by P. G. Newman
ARE YOU SERIOUS?
If you are easily shocked you should not read this book
funny in places disturbing in others very good read though
funny in places disturbing in others very good read though
Published on 25 Mar 2010 by A. Girvan
The beast bites
I had a love for the first two Iron Maiden albums due to the rough raspy nature of the vocals and punky attitiude. Read more
Published on 27 Dec 2007 by Mr. F. P. Moon
Fisherman's Tales
I have to agree with Overlord X's review. Paul Dianno came across as a man living on past glories. The book starts off well with Dianno talking about his Maiden days and he... Read more
Published on 1 July 2007 by Jumbo Sausage
Worth a read
I was interested in this book because as a teenager I was a huge fan of Iron Maiden, a newly emerging rock band with a gorgeous handsome lead singer who wore tight black leather... Read more
Published on 17 July 2004 by "janinehyland"
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