I can't even touch the books you've read

Some books I’ve been reading:

The Hardest (Working) Man in Showbiz by Ron Jeremy
As promised here is my review of Ron Jeremy’s Autobiography.
It’s a great book. Not only for the funny porno tales, but for the honesty with which he reveals his frustrations at not being taken seriously. His work means that he has lost all the women dear to him in his life. But it is like a drug for him and he can’t change his ways. By the end of the book, he’s accepted that he will forever be known as Porn’s most famous star. And it’s a little sad in many respects. But overall it is a very funny read punctuated by real humanity.


Tony Visconti: the Autobiography.
This book is on the world famous producer who worked with Marc Bolan and T-Rex and David Bowie (among many others). Again this was an interesting read, although it lagged a little towards the end. Some of the stories surrounding Bowie’s songs are very interesting though - it would make a great read for a Bowie fan.


Gangs: A Journey into the Hear of the British Underworld by Tony Thompson.
This was given to me by my mate Will as a birthday present. He assured me that this wasn’t some crappy book aimed at FHM readers and was really interesting. And you know what, despite my worries that he was completely wrong, he did have a very valid point. The author goes undercover with British gangs and charts their history. Looking at various aspects of the criminal underworld (Guns, drugs, robbery, people-smuggling), the book does a great job of teaching the reader about how incredibly dodgy these characters are and does reveal the lack of success the police has had in stopping organised crime. As a fan of the Sopranos, it was great to read about their English colleagues.


The Progressive Patriot by Billy Bragg.
I’m now tucking into Billy Bragg’s book. I’ve only read a couple of chapters so far, but it is very promising indeed. The premise of the book is Bragg’s interpretation of patriotism and how where he has come from has defined the person he has become. As would be expected by a book from Bragg politics are important throughout and he does a great job of mixing current and past political issues and linking them to his personal life and experiences. Looking forward to finishing this one while I’m on holiday this weekend.





Other things:

Some other stuff I’ve been doing recently includes seeing the Arctic Monkeys at the Astoria in London. I’ve also been listening to Willy Mason’s new record. Click on the links to see what I thought of them.



Idiot Wind