Sounds of Glory

This book chronicles the most exciting generation of British music the world has ever seen. After 1976, the subversive firestorm of punk rock kicked open the door for hosts of other scenes. In rapid succession came Ska, New Mod, New Wave, anarcho-punk and Oi/street-punk.

It was an explosion of madcap musical energy as incendiary as it was inspirational, created and performed by both geniuses and madmen.

At the heart of this rock ’n’ roll tsunami was SOUNDS magazine. And at the heart of SOUNDS was your narrator, Garry Bushell.

Like his idols, Garry lived every day as if it was his last. Which it nearly was. Going to prison with the Angelic Upstarts, tripping into paranoid West Berlin with the Exploited before The Wall came down, fighting a world champion boxer…all in a day’s work for our Garry.

These were truly days of glory. Bushell joined The Specials and The Selecter as they toured the US for the first time. He hung out with Debbie Harry, feuded with Crass, skanked away with Madness, championed Secret Affair and managed the Cockney Rejects.

From John Cooper Clarke to Right to Work marches, from Squeeze in South London to seedy German brothels, this volume is a unique record of raw and exciting bands, giant characters and radical ideas – all told with a twinkle in the eyes and a smile on the lip.

Sounds Of Glory is a brilliant new memoir from one of Britain’s most daring and controversial rock journalists. It’s a must-read for anyone who loved Sounds and lived through the golden years of British rock and pop.