Customer Reviews
You're not up to much - By: N. J. Tanner, 12 Jul 2008 
Well they say you should never meet your heroes, I would posit that this has never been more true thenin the case of Mr Mark E Smith.
The sight of a young MES fronting The FAll going at full tilt into 'container drivers' would be one of the the most exciting & charming experiences I have had as an alternative music fan.
The sound of an older MES being unpleasant about EVERYTHING & EVERYONE is awful. If you want to know what this book is like without reading it, Get on YOUTUBE & watch the clip when He's 'interviewed' on Newsnight about John Peel's death. On the occasion of a mild mannered & well loved Fall-Championing legend dying, MES has a stunning lack of insight, & uses the opportunity to ramble incoherently & acts bizarrely, until the producers start to wonder why the hell they had him on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The book is full of irrelevant rantings & thoughts, most of which is ill considered, sounds unfair or very immature. Reading it is an interesting though slightly sad experience, & I felt like I was trappedin the corner of a pub - trying to be polite to an old drunk who only made sense when he's abusing someone.
I'd recommend buying it, just for the bizarre experience
Save your money - By: Ageing Cynic, 25 Jun 2008 
Would suggest die hard Fall fans put their uncritical acclaim for M.E.S to one side & have an objective look at this book - its a bit of a stinker... sorry folks whilst he may be a left field British institution you're left with the feeling of someone cashingin on a publishing advance.
Smith spends the early part of the book going on about how much he loves writing - after 20/30 pages you start wondering then why its ghost written. Actaully its just a seris of repetetive monolues stiched together. As another reviewer has already said he obviously has no talent for prose - just as likely he lacks the ability or inclination to order his thoughts into anything much more than a megalomanics blinkered rant.
Strip way the rants about ex band members & you're left with a series of incohernet monlogues about nothing of any consequence cobbled together into a little more than a set of extended interviews that someone not under pressure to deliver a book would have heavily edited . Not being a massive Fall fan but having maintained a passing interestin M.E.S over 30 years or so mainly for his dogged intransigence I found this hugely dissapointing & didn't add anything to what anyone would have already known about him.
You can find an opiniated beligerent drunk with very little charismain any pub you choose to walk into so you don't need to spend £15 to encounter one from the comfort of your armchair. Hope person who bought me this as a present isn't reading as don't want to appear ungrateful - there are many more books on offer far more deserving of your hard-earned.
Excellent biography - By: Mr. Ian K. Travis, 20 May 2008 
I have to declare an interest here - I'm namedin the acknowledgements by the ghostwriter of this book, Austin Collings. As far as the book goes, it's good stuff; I suspect that Mr Collings has contributed more to it that Mr Smith, but that's the drawback to writing someone else's story for them.
The book confirms what I'd long thought: my admiration for Mark E Smith, leader & creative mainspring of The Fall, is stillin place. The man has stuck to his vision of that band, weathering the storms of umpteen lineup changes, bankruptcy, drugs & alcohol as he's gone. The book even made me laugh out loud, not what I expected at all.
Unfortunately, the book also confirms that Mr Collings has had a hard ride himself trying to produce this book - what's the betting that Mr Smith couldn't tell you what'sin it?
Entertaining - but not easy going.
Aspalls and The Fall, a deadly brew. - By: jonny comet, 14 May 2008 Ive just comein from the garden on a particularly lovely May evening having finished both this biography & three bottles of Aspalls dry cider. (sorry if this lacks coherence)
I'm quite partial to both of themin moderation. Whilst the cider was very good but nothing new I must admit that I was hoping I gain something new fom reading this book.....a different insight & to world of the Fall & Mr Smith. Sadly that didn't happen.
Somewhere around the half way point I couldn't help reading between the lines about all the musicians he's sacked, voting tory, etc, etc. At this he starts to become the grating, misanthropic, reactionary drunkardin the corner of the pub strungling with his false teeth. This side of him soon wears thin & my subsequent interestin the book started to wain. Howeverin the second half there are enough interesting anecdotes of him pulling himself out of impending oblivion & serious scrapes to keep most readers hooked. I also enjoyed his Lady Di, Beckham, Elton John, New-Labour bashing.
I can't forget that this is the man who has given us Sparta, Hit the North, Mr Phamacist & dozens of other stunning, witty, & insightful records over years & years. The over-riding power of this book is that M.E.S is rather like the character of Johnnyin the film Naked: the down-trodden, intelligent, dissatisfied outsider lookingin on society & commenting on the obvious broken mess around us that most people accept or don't even see. The Fall made really wonderful music. There's much about the tenacityin his life lived through the tough times pretty well describedin the book that informs & often powers the music of the Fall.
No great revelations here but it will be a very sad day when he stops.
Smell the whisky tang - By: chepalle, 05 May 2008 This is undeniably an entertaining read but the memory has taken a battering over the years. He comes out with some ridiculous stuff like "I paid all the band the same as U2 were getting" etc & banging on about others being sloppy & unprofessional. Half the the Fall concerts I've seen he's spent the gig forgetting words, walking off stage & twiddling amp knobs to no effect.
If you take his ramblings with a pinch of salt you'll find some hilarious moments; Japanese camp guard, Dad's advice & Vic & Bob's unexpected cameo.
Love the guy's music & glad he's doing what he's doing. Also glad I don't have to work with him.
