45 (Paperback)

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Amazon.co.uk Review
With Bill Drummond, it's always best to expect the unexpected. He has made a career out of being gloriously unpredictable. He famously tasted pop success with the KLF, burned a million pounds on a remote Scottish isle and introduced the world to Echo & The Bunnymen and Julian Cope. 45 is as unexpected as the KLF collaborating with Tammy Wynette: a semi-autobiography from a man who has previously been loathe to talk about his work in public. The book takes the form of a collection of short stories and essays focusing on various aspects of Drummond's life. While some chapters are definite page-turners, others move at a more ponderous pace. 45 really comes alive when Drummond discusses hair-brained KLF schemes and K Foundation art stunts. It is within these chapters that he gets closest to confessional, musing on disillusionment, musical myth and the nature of nationalism. Here we get to glimpse into the mind of one of pop's wayward geniuses. Yet it is never more than a mere glimpse. Drummond clearly finds it hard to be truly revelatory. We should, of course, expect this from a man who spent his musical career building up myths, creating alter egos and trying to fool the media and the record-buying public. If anything, 45 illustrates perfectly Drummond's chameleon-like nature. On one hand, he is a shy, retiring family man who enjoys long walks in the country and drinking tea. Yet he is also a tortured genius, a frustrated artist and a man in the throes of a mid-life crisis. When he lets himself go, 45 is a cracking read and one of the most interesting books about music and art in years. --Matt Anniss

Review
'Drummond has the inimitable wisdom of a true maverick' THE TIMES 'It has flashes of twisted brilliance reminiscent of Iain Sinclair or Will Self' GUARDIAN 'Drummond is a cultural magician and this is his logbook' INDEPENDENT 'Invigorating, irritating and endearing, Drummond is a gifted postmodern raconteur with his tongue stuck firmly in his cheek.' IRISH NEWS 'Inspired.' INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY 'With Bill Drummond, it's always best to expect the unexpected. He has made a career out of being gloriously unpredictable. He famously tasted pop success with the KLF, burned a million pounds on a remote Scottish isle and introduced the world to Echo & The Bunnymen and Julian Cope. 45 is as unexpected as the KLF collaborating with Tammy Wynette: a semi-autobiography from a man who has previously been loathe to talk about his work in public. The book takes the form of a collection of short stories and essays focusing on various aspects of Drummond's life. While some chapters are definite page-turners, others move at a more ponderous pace. 45 really comes alive when Drummond discusses hair-brained KLF schemes and K Foundation art stunts. It is within these chapters that he gets closest to confessional, musing on disillusionment, musical myth and the nature of nationalism. Here we get to glimpse into the mind of one of pop's wayward geniuses. Yet it is never more than a mere glimpse. Drummond clearly finds it hard to be truly revelatory. We should, of course, expect this from a man who spent his musical career building up myths, creating alter egos and trying to fool the media and the record-buying public. If anything, 45 illustrates perfectly Drummond's chameleon-like nature. On one hand, he is a shy, retiring family man who enjoys long walks in the country and drinking tea. Yet he is also a tortured genius, a frustrated artist and a man in the throes of a mid-life crisis. When he lets himself go, 45 is a cracking read and one of the most interesting books about music and art in years.' Matt Anniss, AMAZON.CO.UK REVIEW

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I'm pulling my horse face. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
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11 Reviews 5 star:  (6) 4 star:  (3) 3 star:    (0) 2 star:  (2) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 4.2 out of 5 stars (11 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews   5 of 5 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Postcards from over the edge, 1 Dec 2001 By A Customer This review is from: 45 (Paperback) Bill Drummond is an ideas man. One time manager of great rock and roll bands (Echo And The Bunnymen, The Teardrop Explodes) and purveyor of genius pop records of his own (The Timelords, The KLF). One of THE great "thinkers" of our age. In his 45th year on this planet he set about setting down some of his best ideas in a book. The result is an inspirational collection of "stories" based on his life and experiences. Bill Drummond is The Prankster, we salute him! Buy this book! Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   3 of 3 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars Daring you to follow through., 18 Aug 2000 By A Customer A challenging and incendiary book for anyone who has ever felt the unfocussed urge to do something, but has backed away from their wildest ideas. The stories show Drummond following those urges through, persuing half-formed ideas and trying to understand his own motivations. Some work, some go horribly wrong, some remain unclear. From strange notions about the Bunnymen and Teardrops explode, through "the K Foundation burn £1m", to 2k Plant Hire, "F**k the Millenium" and beyond. Unfortunately Drummond's need to both build and destroy his own mythology simultaenously sees the book end on a tired and jaded note with the comparative failure of the ICA concert. Despite that a "must read" for the life, energy, and driven quality of many of the other stories, and the way that challenges you to follow your own ideas. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   3 of 3 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Out there, but making sense, 29 Feb 2000 By A Customer Bill Drummond, arch art critic, svengali and KLF founder launches into thoughts at the age of 45. And what thoughts. Interstellar ley lines in Liverpool, the illuminati, Abba and burning £1million, it's all here. I read this book in two sittings. Compulsive, readable but eminently convincing, which under the circumstances is very unikely. Read this and Julian Cope's Repossessed / Head on and, if you're lucky, your attitude to life could be changed forever (or you could just be confused by the ramblings of the Liverpool scene past). Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this) Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review › See all 11 customer reviews...		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars Honest Lovely insight of a real artist in this fake world. Contains sudden loud laughs, honest and cynic. A bit too much of a whining and selfconfession, however they fit the agenda. Read more Published on 29 Jan 2007 by Molnár Dániel 5.0 out of 5 stars Change your mind Having read Head On/Repossessed I sought out this book. I can't recommend it enough. I had some vague, unfounded dislike for Bill Drummond. Read more Published on 9 Aug 2005 by A librarian writes... 5.0 out of 5 stars interresting, witty, funny, strange, moving... A collection of very well written stories from the life of one of the most intelligent and fascinating people in popular culture. Read more Published on 14 May 2002 by M. Bogh 5.0 out of 5 stars Superb. My review is short and sweet - a great book, he's a natural storyteller and makes the mundane interesting. Read more Published on 26 Feb 2002 by T. Allen 2.0 out of 5 stars Present not past Bill Drummond has a brillant book in him about the Liverpool scene; the Bunnymen, the Teardrops, Erics, the whole lot. This isn't that book. Published on 21 Feb 2002 by missbugg@tesco.net 2.0 out of 5 stars VERY AMUSING Bill Drummond has got to be one of the most intelligent people I have read about. This book was very interesting at see what a man like him gets up to day by day. Read more Published on 14 Mar 2001 by S. Brady 4.0 out of 5 stars Myth or reality, who cares? Compulsive reading. Not all is it fantastic, but when he does hit a high point it is very funny. The various stunts they pulled are usually the high points (fave is the 2 cows and... Read more Published on 6 Aug 2000 4.0 out of 5 stars good to dip into now and then He doesn't really give too much away of himself in this collection of short essays. But there's a lot of interesting stuff: memories of the Liverpool punk scene, distributing cans... Read more Published on 28 Jul 2000 Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews › See all 11 customer reviews...

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