Product Description

This book is about Bernard Sumner's life and times, from the back streets of Salford to the international fame and critical acclaim of Joy Division, New Order and Electronic. Jolted into action by the punk explosion of 1976, Sumner is the man who stepped into the shoes of Ian Curtis after his suicide in 1980 and steered New Order to even greater success, helping to create Acid House, the second Summer of Love and The Hacienda nightclub in Manchester, the most famous club in the world and a magnet for the city's gun and drug culture. His collaborations with The Smiths' Johnny Marr created Electronic, the first true post-punk supergroup. But Sumner's past, even his real name, has always remained a mystery...until now. In a work of rare investigative depth, Nolan re-writes the history of one of music's most influential figures, and in the process nullifies many myths, with exhaustive primary source research, dozens of exclusive interviews and scores of previously unseen photos.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #28367 in Books
• Published on: 2007-08-30
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

Clash
There are heaps of formerly unseen photographs to satisfy even the most voyeuristic of fans out there

About the Author
David Nolan is a multi award-winning journalist, documentary-maker and television producer who has written for publications as diverse as British Business Magazine and Penthouse. His first book, I Swear I Was There, exploded the myths surrounding the Sex Pistols’s famous first gig in Manchester, 1976. He is a recognised world expert on the Manchester music scene.

Customer Reviews

Confused? You won't be
This is a really unusual book, not what I was expecting at all. Nolan has done the research and the leg work, found out about Sumner's past (including the reason for all those name changes) tracked down school friends and former workmates from when Bernard was an animator, as well as former employees, Factory and Hacienda colleagues ... then he's handed it over to the New Order man to get his thoughts. And Sumner gives them big time. Everything from his mum's disability to his feelings about Peter Hook quitting (that's how up to date it is - how did they manage that??) It's all here. For a guy who's never opened up before, Sumner is funny and honest in his contributions. He's not perfect and doesn't pretend to be. The style is different - like two voices in your head, Sumner's and Nolan's - but you get used to it. The introduction says that Bernard would rather this book didn't exist ... but I for one am really glad it does.

Insight
In the light of the current resurgence of interest in Joy Division and Ian Curtis, this book offers a timely and (surprisingly) compelling insight into the life of Bernard Sumner - the reluctant successor to Curtis as Joy Division/New Order 'frontman'. The fact Sumner has taken this role for almost 3 decades in near total anonymity provides an interesting counterpoint to the ongoing public excavation of every detail of Ian Curtis's short and tragic life. Through David Nolan's thorough (as usual!) research, we find that Sumner himself has an interesting early personal history, marked with difficult challenges - but his stoicism and reluctance or refusal to discuss his personal history in interviews is admirable in a time where every Z-list celebrity is willing to spill their emotional guts, and detail the 'tragedy' of their lives to any hack who will listen. Nonetheless, Nolan manages to draw Sumner into the project, and the multiple voices of Sumner, Nolan and other interviewees creates an interesting, informative but fundamentally ambiguous portrayal of the man and musician. However, this ambiguity is inherent to all public figures - so is not a criticism of the book - more an observation of how all such identities are complex and multi-layered, and ultimately unknowable as there is no simple truth to find ...

I personally enjoyed the contextual sections on post-war Salford, but often felt that I'd like more detail on the claims (by Tony Wilson et al)that Sumner was a great producer - but I guess that would be appeal more to tech-heads rather than the broader audience the book is aimed at.

Overall, I'd recommend this to anybody interested in Factory / Manchester music / JD/NO - and also to those who are interested in the sequel to the story recounted in the many books, films & documentaries on Curtis and Joy Division - where will it end?

Brave but flawed
This isn't quite the exhaustive piece of research it boasts it is. Nolan hasn't really penetrated Barney's inner circle and relies heavily on press cuttings, anecdotes from the HAcienda's glass collectors and an embittered old schoolfriend. His lumbering prose doesn't help much either. Suffice to say, he's no Ian MacDonald!
But if you're a Joy Div/ New Order fanatic like me, I'd still recommend it. It throws up some interesting, previously undocumented facts about the man, and presents a sketchy, but fascinating, picture of a modest, prickly and complex unsung genius. I guess the real USP here is the responses he's printed from Bernard to some of the anecdotes - they start off as acerbic and witty and become increasingly indignant as the book goes on!

Not a classic, but ten times more likeable, readable and original than Paul Morley's wretched, smug Joy Division book.