Product Description

Alternative humour had not been heard of when Chic Murray, a comic Colossus, bestrode the stage. His style was utterly original. He was unique, a 'one-off', a comedic pioneer ranked in the highest echelons of his art in the last century. And he turned the Celtic tradition of story-telling into an art form, a hybrid Salvador Dali of humour on stage. His oblique, often perverse look at life was underpinned by a stunning sense of timing which likely originated from his accomplished, but little known, musicianship. Chic became a cult figure and he remains so, far beyond the confines of his homeland.Not long before his death, Chic memorably portrayed Liverpool Football Club manager Bill Shankly 'You'll Never Walk Alone'. It received rave reviews - not surprisingly, because this was a living legend representing another in his lifetime. 'Just Daft' is the story of one of Scotland's greatest comedians, from his birth in Greenock in 1919, charting his rise through his amateur beginnings in the 1930s, all the way to his 1956 performance in the 'Royal Variety Show' at the London Palladium and his appearances in films such as 'Casino Royale' (1967), 'Gregory's Girl' (1980) and 'You'll Never Walk Alone' (1984).

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #277707 in Books
• Published on: 2008-09-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 240 pages

About the Author
Robbie Grigor is an expert on Scottish comedy and culture. Annabelle Meredith is Chic Murray's daughter

Customer Reviews

Just Daft: The Chic Murray Story
The story of Chic Murray deserves to be told: the testament of many household names recorded in the final part of the boook confirm this. Some are from people who new him directly, some indirectly and some who never met him but knew of him. All agree that the humour of Chic Murray has left a mark on their lives. Chic Murray can be considered the first zany commedian - all of his wit and humour are based on his ability to keenly observe life going on around him. Sadly her never quite achieved the equivalent status of today's idea of a celebrity and there is considerable pathos in his life story. There is a considerable amount of his side-splitting stage material peppered throughout the book. Well worth a read.

Excellent
I ordered this book originally from Tesco for my fathers birthday and after a 2 month wait cancelled my order and ordered from yourselves, I got the book within 2 days, fantastic, my dad was happy too. Will definitley use again.

A celebration not "the story"
"A Celebration of Chic Murray" would have been a more accurate sub-title. There are many gaps in the story. Maddie his wife and on-stage partner grows tired and decides to quit the act and stay at home. A few pages later we are told that they are divorced. Since we read in great detail about their romance it would have been of interest to know more about how and why the marriage ended. Or indeed the partnership on stage. Was it just because Maddie was tired, or did it have something to do with the obvious fact that while Chic was timeless (indeed before his time) a middle aged Scots singer/accordionist as part of the act would hardly have worked for a general audience in the Beatles era. And we heard at some length about his attempt to enter the American market, only for it to come to stop when his US agent dies in a car accident. Were other agents considered? Wc aren't told.

More importantly perhaps the story is of unrelenting success. apart from a couple of disappointing TV shows (not Chic's fault we are told) every performance is a triumph, every tour a huge success, in Scotland, the North, the Midlands, London. Could this really be true? Lots of people didn't "get" Chic and surely somewhere along the road a few audiences or parts of them also didn't.

There is also a little bit of a problem with the numerous Chic jokes, or stories, quoted. Quite a lot of Chic was about the "way he told them" and a lot of them don't work that well on paper. Not so much of a problem perhaps for those who remember him and can imagine him telling them, but I am not sure anyone without that advantage would understand what the fuss is about.

For fans of Chic a five star celebration. For others I suspect a useful partial (in both senses) introduction that leaves you wondering about the real story.