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Blood And Fire
Blood And Fire
Oct 4, 2024 11:24 AM

Author:Robin Campbell,Ali Campbell

Blood And Fire

Born and raised in a council house on Birmingham's notorious Balsall Heath under the watchful eye of their staunchly socialist, folk singer father, Robin and Ali Campbell were to become members of the most successful reggae band in the world, a career that has spanned four decades.

But this is not the autobiography of a pop band legend, but rather the story of two working class brothers crashing and burning and fighting back against the odds. It is the story of growing up in the 1960s to the sounds of Motown and ska, folk music and skiffle and radical politics and - most importantly - the new and infectious sound of reggae that was to capture the ears of these two teenage kids from the Midlands.

Instilled by their father from an early age to always do things their own way, the brothers - in between dead end jobs and the dole office - put together a band that would show Balsall Heath what reggae was all about . Mismanagement, drink, drugs, divorce, paranoia and jail terms would dog the band and threaten to destroy it all - including the brother's relationship and yet they come to amass record sales in excess of 50 million, with nearly 50 hit singles to their credit - from 'Red Red Wine' and 'Don't Break My Heart' to 'Homely Girl' and 'I Got You Babe'.

Reviews

UB40 on overcoming alcohol and drugs to become a stronger band than ever.

—— the Mirror

Highly readable... fascinating... remarkable

—— The Mail

Steinmeyer's history of the golden age of stage magic was a dazzling read, and has given me a few ideas about how to keep the family entertained at Christmas

—— Matthew Sweet , Independent

A highly entertaining study of magic's Golden Age

—— The Times

Highly readable ... fascinating ... A remarkable collection of strongly motivated egomaniacs and charlatans, all depicted in the boldest of colours

—— Marcus Berkman

A fascinating history of mirror illusions and the magicians who created them

—— Nicholas Blincoe , The Telegraph

Steinmeyer ... has a gift for translating stage performances to the page

—— Time Out

This is a really marvellous book, the most uninhibitedly intimate portrayal ever of the short, hard life and overall musical triumph of Lady Day...With Billie vividly reflects the chaos that Billie Holiday was born into and only rarely escaped from

—— Spectator
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