NEW Police Book "Walking on the Moon" by Chris Campion

[empty]

Hey there

I happen to have an advance galley copy of a new book: "Walking On the Moon" Subtitle: The Untold Story of the Police and the rise of new wave rock by Chris Campion, and excellent english author on pop culture.

I hadn't heard about it, and I just got it last night. Anyone else reading/read it/looking forward to reading it?


oh, apparently it is coming out now : http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Walkin ... 0470282403

[TOWOS]

Preordered it on Amazon. I like Campion.

[empty]

busy day, so haven't gotten too far, but so far It's good. I like campion too.

[ltwoman]

Whatever happend to Henri Padovani's book? Haven't heard anymore about that being published, released.

[sockii]

There was a thread about the book a little while ago:

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=10746&p=174419&hilit=campion#p174410

I'm sure I'll pick it up to be a completist, but I'm not expecting much given what was said about the book there.

[DirtyMartini]

I just reread the excerpt, and yep, to me it still reads like a trashy book report.

Too True Hollywood Story for my taste, but others might enjoy and certainly worthwhile for completists. (If I remember correctly, the new photos are all from the same Japanese photographer; name started with A, I think. We've seen variations on some of them already.) I'll wait for the cheap used copies for the bibliography in the back.

ETA: Just an interesting (to me) note: because of timing, it would seem, Campion clearly didn't have the benefit of Strange Things Happen when he wrote the reunion tour chapter. I'd be curious to know if the galley's (STH-less) ending stands, or if a new ending got slapped together for publication.

[TOWOS]

I was expecting more of a cultural travelogue in the early 80s - For 18 dollars! Thinking about canceling preorder.

[DirtyMartini]

An interview w/ Campion about the book can be found here: http://www.thisisbrandx.com/2009/11/new ... tings.html


Though I'm honestly confused because everything that Campion says is untold, I thought has been told a few dozen times over at this point.

He says, "Everything we know about the Police has been told from their perspective."

Uh, no it hasn't. As is shown, for example, by all the secondary sources in the book.

He says, "The Police are one of the most famous and successful bands in rock history, but they’ve somehow evaded any kind of critical thought or writing about their music or their career for over 30 years."

Dude, are you kidding? The only way I can see that holding is if the only sources you consider are teen magazines.

"the Police were exceedingly good at creating their own myth as they went along -- a compelling narrative about the underdogs who took on the music world and won that’s been taken at face value ever since."

Good at creating their own myth: yes.
Underdogs: Mmm, I don't know about that.
Taken at face value ever since: Bollocks.

"But, in fact, there was an awful lot of image management involved in maintaining the fun-loving public face of a band who, even by their own admission, were at each other’s throats from almost the first moment they formed."

Image management: yes, true -- but not an untold mystery. Creating myth and image management aren't mutually exclusive; in fact, just the opposite.

"It’s not a book that sets out to flatter either them or their fans but, rather, to show what kind of person it takes to be in a world-beating rock band. Instead of sex and drugs -- which, frankly, gets a bit tiresome -- it’s packed with vanity, ambition, ego and competition. It’s a bit like Valley of the Dolls, if the three protagonists were all alpha males."

Can someone tell me where we haven't already heard all of this before? At least half the articles/reviews say as much, the band says as much, and you could add "alpha males" to the Stewart Copeland drinking game. That idea of "culture wars" as symbolized by hair cuts in the book's opening -- also a big one in the SC drinking game, and not a new concept even then. (No offense, Stewart.)

None of this is news. I'm with the guy when he says sex, drugs, rock 'n' yawn. I'm with the guy when he says that Miles Copeland is often underrepresented -- but I wouldn't say that his tactics are. See all that already-told image building, tour scheduling, etc.

I admit again that I have not read the whole book: only parts. There may, in fact, be something genuinely untold in there that I haven't seen. I am not saying otherwise, and I'm happy to be wrong. But thus far, I don't understand how this qualifies as a new angle as all of these new selling points are points that writers have been making for years. I look forward to hearing from folks as they read through.


[Edited ETA: Kellie edited the above to add italics and tweak some of her thoughts that she felt read as unclear. ]

[sockii]

Wow. I may wait to find this one for sale used somewhere as I'm not all that keen on giving this guy any of my money directly.

[TOWOS]

Well, to be fair, a reviewer that did not read the entire book and whose review was in dire need of tweaking for clarity of reading according to our DM (and I know she is right since I read the same interview) does not seem as worthy of much credit either.

So I am willing to give this a chance and think with my head, or read more reviews, instead of making my choices based on the partial readings of a self-appointed critic.

I will always remember our local entertaining website, SFGate (whose movie reviews are followed almost as gospels by most people I know) giving 5 stars to movies that proved unwatchable (The Muse with Sharon Stone and Albert Finney? Do you remember this movie? My point, exactly).

[DirtyMartini]

Sorry to confuse, T -- I meant that *I* edited for clarity because I had seen that I missed some pronouns and such. I didn't copy and paste the article provided at that link: that above was me talking in reaction to Campion's interview answers. So self-appointed critic, yes, absolutely, but I wasn't reviewing parts of the book just now but crying foul on Campion's assertions in that interview.

[ltwoman]

Thanks for the "review", DM. I'm with sockii on this one:

Wow. I may wait to find this one for sale used somewhere as I'm not all that keen on giving this guy any of my money directly.

Now educate me on the "Stewart Copeland drinking game" please. Very interesting...

[TOWOS]

[quote="DirtyMartini"]Sorry to confuse, T -- I meant that *I* edited for clarity because I had seen that I missed some pronouns and such. I didn't copy and paste the article provided at that link: that above was me talking in reaction to Campion's interview answers. So self-appointed critic, yes, absolutely, but I wasn't reviewing parts of the book just now but crying foul on Campion's assertions in that interview.[/quote]

LOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!Sorry - I really need more espresso this morning. Total mixup! I said I read the same interview you published, but in the fog of my mind I was referring to this scathing one in particular:
http://www.dangerousminds.net/index.php/C4/

Apart from this, I found the other few reviews rather positive, but you never know what's put out by the author's friends or by the publishing company:
http://www.antimusic.com/news/09/oct/07 ... Rock.shtml

Let's give a shot at a sample of the book itself:

http://tr.im/F9q5

[dufmanno]

I happened to order it on a whim and just finished it last night. Not really sure how I feel about it as it takes information that's already widely known and sort of twists it a little bit to make it seem the the original tales have a little more to them than may meet the eye. Maybe it was just me, but I thought he was unusually critical of Andy and his memoir. Saying a lot of things like "Summers glosses over this point/leaves this bit out in his book" He paints him in what seems to be an unfavorable light. It astounded me that he thought the idea that rock stars have sex with groupies occasionally was earth shattering. GASP! NO!
Also the ending seems far too abrupt for me and his assessment of the Police reunion tour is a bit harsh.

[DirtyMartini]

Thanks for the insight, dufmanno. The last chapter is one I read in full and is definitely lacking.