Try as I might I can’t resist reading biographies of musicians. I read a crazy biog of Hank Williams by a sports hack once – that was a wild read! I will read about any musician someone was bothered enough about to think was worth the ink for a book, or happily consume those slim tomes churned out by some journo to pay the rent…

The Glory Years

My favourite period is the 60’s and 70’s when musical popular culture went into creative overdrive. A really interesting time when recording technology developed in leaps and bounds, the market facilitated the global sale of records by recording artists (some of whom leveraged immense creative control) and the whole notion of the music industry was positive and inspirational – that last bit might just be me! So I like to read, finding out how the magic that created iconic music ‘products’ like Pet Sounds, Abbey Road, The Ramones and London Calling (…obviously that list could go on for pages) was in the hands of obsessives who truly believed in their music, songs and messages.

Pet Sound System

Recently I read a great book on the Beatles, You Never Give Me Your Money and then I read Nick Kent’s books. He was a journalist for the NME and after some troubled times continues to write and work based out of Paris. Apathy for the Devil is great, the Dark Stuff is great too containing a mad article about a mad Brian Wilson.

The article was quite sad, Brian Wilson was very troubled and unhappy – seriously dark – but he said some brilliant things about his work. It’s worth reading if you like the Beach Boys music. Listening again to those amazing songs, then mixing in some of the most excellent moments I’ve had recently on Beatles Rock Band gave me such a great sense of what music can really do. The way a record can hit a deep spot in your memory making it possible to actually remember a mood or a feeling so vividly in your conscious mind that you think you might burst.

Interactive Transmedia Product – Tomorrow Never Knows

Which brings me to writing this – my love of interactive media-transmedia-multi-convergent-thingy-stuff driven by my favourite stories, films, music and technology – I’m trying to work out where this is all heading or at least work out what we need to consider to be creating emotionally engaging global interactive transmedia experiences – I have some more ideas on this subject which I’ll jot down shortly but right now I’m going to strap on the plastic Les Paul and nail some of the Let It Be tunes on top of the Apple Corps headquarters circa 1969…   TBC