Martin Roach

Author Martin Roach reveals how the band members met, played their early gigs, financed their own early EPs and how – with four hit albums under their belt – they still continue to maintain a tight degree of control over their output.Featuring insights into Coldplay's professional insecurities and anxieties, their very successful efforts to crack the US, the notoriously angst-ridden personality of lead vocalist Chris Martin and the bands continuing personal and professional evolution with each of their acclaimed albums, this is an in-depth portrait of one of Britain's most successful bands of the new millennium.Packed with rare photos of the band and including a comprehensive discography.

A Biography

Viva Coldplay!

Rick Wakeman

Around about August 1948, Mr and Mrs Cyril Wakeman had an early night and some time later, at Perivale in Middlesex, Mrs Wakeman produced a bonny baby son. They named him Richard, but he quickly became known as Rick. Rick was a likeable little fellow who had a talent for the piano and for making trouble. Music became Rick's life.

And Other Wondrous Stories

Grumpy Old Rock Star

Michael Auger, Richard Hadfield, Jamie Lambert, Matt Pagan and Thomas J Redgrave had been singing together for just one month when they decided to enter Britain's Got Talent. But despite the judges' initial scepticism, Collabro received a standing ovation at their audition as their rendition of Les Misérables' 'Stars' captivated the audience. Chosen by the judges to progress to the live semi-finals, they performed another Les Misérables hit and received the highest number of votes from the public (62.3%), ensuring their automatic progression to the final. Their live final performance received 26.5% of the vote and Collabro won the competition by a wide margin. Their debut album 'Stars' sold 49,749 copies in just one week, making them the fastest selling new British band of 2014. Their No1 album also sold more than both the No.2 and No.3 albums combined. Providing detailed personal insight into each member of the band, this book will take you on a journey from how the band formed, through their Britain's Got Talent experience to what lies ahead. Plus exclusive pictures

Collabro - Our Story

From humble beginnings as a 1970s motoring show, Top Gear has gone on to achieve diesel-powered world domination. After Clarkson and producer Andy Wilman successfully pitched a new format to BBC bosses, Top Gear returned to become the irreverent, funny and often controversial show we now know and love. The Star in a Reasonably Priced Car, the Cool Wall and Power Laps by the mysterious Stig have all become staples of Britain's favourite Sunday evening entertainment. Recent series have been defined by their madcap challenges such as driving across Africa in clapped-out bangers - with predictably hilarious results. However, the show's most shocking moment came in 2006, when Hammond suffered serious head injuries while driving a Vampire turbojet drag racing car at over 300mph. Clarkson, Hammond and May; they are the politically-incorrect-joking, stone-washed-denim-wearing, bloke-hero trio for the modern(ish) age. This brilliant, detailed book is fitting tribute to the show, its presenters and its most memorable moments.

The Top Gear Story - The 100% Unofficial Story of the Most Famous Car Show... In The World

David Coulthard

From his quiet beginnings in rural Scotland to his multi-millionaire lifestyle in Monte Carlo, where he owns one of the most luxurious hotels in the principality, David Coulthard's life story is an extraordinary one. He got his breakthrough into Formula One in the tragic circumstances of Ayrton Senna's death in 1994, and quickly established himself as one of the best drivers on the circuit. From 1996-2004, he drove for McLaren, one of the leading teams throughout the entire period, before moving to Red Bull for 2005-07. Taking the reader from his early days when he first became hooked on racing karts at the age of eleven, through to the high-speed world of Formula One he now inhabits, Coulthard has written one of the most honest and powerful sports autobiographies of recent years. In the book, he talks about his ups and downs at McLaren, the reputation he gained for his playboy lifestyle and how hard this has made it for him to settle down. Throughout it all he seeks to answer the questions about himself that anyone might ask, and so to reveal what it is that really drives him on. His struggle to understand himself makes for a remarkable memoir.

The Autobiography

It is what it is

Combining interviews, quotes, news reports and pictures, this work provides a review of pop heart-throbs Blur. It also includes details of live performances and gives a month-by-month account of life with the boys.

The Whole Story

Blur

From Abracadabra by the Steve Miller Band to Zoom by ELO, this indispensable, innovatively designed book celebrates fifty years of British album charts, telling you everything you could possibly want to know about every album to reach the Top 100. With new feature material covering a huge range of areas, bands and history, it's an essential part of any serious music fan's collection.The Virgin Book of British Hit Albums covers everything, from the classics (Sgt Pepper, Nevermind, The Dark Side of the Moon) to the dodgy (Spiceworld, Seriously Orchestra) and the downright bizarre (Smurfs Go Pop!, Seventies Dinner Party).Where else are you going to find out that-Bridge over Troubled Water spent 307 weeks in the chartsPavarotti has topped the album charts - twiceLily Allen went triple-platinum in 2006 with Alright, StillOasis sold 356,000 copies of Be Here Now in one day aloneBoth Gary Glitter and Mariah Carey released an album called GlitterDonny Osmond has never made it to No. 1 in the album charts

The Virgin Book of British Hit Albums

Imagine: you're a pop star. Your limo takes you from designer clothes shops to TV appearances. Your face stares out from magazine covers. Could it really happen to you? Achieving the dream of becoming a pop star is riddled with complex difficulties and frustrating obstacles. This book offers a useful guide for every aspiring superstar.

How to Make Your Dreams of Fame Come True

So You Want to be a Pop Star

Ever since we built machines that could transport us, there has been a desire to find ways to make them go faster. For some, going faster isn't enough - they want to be the fastest. This book celebrates those who have built the machines and driven them at ever greater speeds. This is The History of Speed. Bestselling motorsport writer Martin Roach tells the extraordinary story of those who have come to be obsessed by speed. From Camille Jenatzy, 'the Red Devil', who became the first man to drive at over 100kmh in 1899, through the golden age of Malcolm Campbell and his Bluebird, and on to the modern era of jet- and rocket-propelled cars, we have gone faster and faster. But this book is not just about these record-breakers, Roach also looks at the technology, the engines and the inventors who helped progress in speed at all levels, from Formula One to the supercars from the likes of Ferrari and Mercedes that are eagerly snapped up by collectors, rarely to be seen on the road. Accompanied by some of the most stunning images of the cars and those who made and drove them, Roach tells a wonderful story of innovation and invention. He talks to some of the great drivers to find out what inspires them to risk their lives, and finds out from engineers how they developed their ideas. Along the way, we hear some remarkable tale and anecdotes, but also find out how the pursuit of speed can also have its costs, with many tragic heroes and heroines falling along the way. If you've ever thrilled to the roar of a sports car engine, of loved the feel of the g-force as you accelerate away, or even looked on in wonder at a powerful engine, The History of Speed is a book that you will not want to miss out on.

The History of Speed

A biography of the hard dance band, The Prodigy. This official history contains lengthy and extensive interviews with the band, exclusive and previously unpublished photographs from the band's own personal albums, and a full discography.

Electronic Punks

The Prodigy

From humble beginnings in a Cumbrian farmyard over forty years ago, the Eddie Stobart fleet has found a big parking place in the nation's heart, loved as much for its 2,200 immaculate green and red trucks, each emblazoned with a girl's name on the front, as for its famous army of dedicated Stobart Spotters who try to find each one. Buckle up with the Stobart drivers, and join them on a week in the life of a massive delivery, from paperwork to pallet. Learn what it's like to be sat in the driver seat of a Stobart truck - the noises, visibility, clutch control, gears, steering - and discover the sheer size and power of these machines. Illustrated throughout with amazing photographs, and featuring first-hand stories of incredible journeys from the intrepid truckers, as well as astonishing facts and stats and the history of the fleet, this is truly an irresistible book for Stobart fans of all ages.

The Ultimate Guide to the British Trucking Legends

Eddie Stobart

Published to coincide with the release of their new album, this is the photo story of the country's biggest alternative act. The Prodigy had two number one singles in 1996 and have sold over 5 million records worldwide. Written by the band, it includes 125 colour photographs and reveals, in entirely the band's own words, the thinking behind such ground-breaking releases as Firestarter and Breathe, giving an insider's view on their remarkable live show and life in the Prodigy.

The Fat of the Land

Prodigy

Author Martin Roach reveals how the band members met, played their early gigs, financed their own early EPs and how - with four hit albums under their belt – they still continue to maintain a tight degree of control over their output. Featuring insights into Coldplay's professional insecurities and anxieties and the notoriously angst-ridden personality of lead vocalist Chris Martin, this is an in-depth portrait of one of Britain’s most successful bands of the new millennium. Fully illustrated and including a comprehensive discography.

Viva Coldplay: A Biography

Ian Snowball

Pete McKenna

From punks and teddy boys to mods and rockers, the last 50 years has seen the British Isles overrun with the iconic styles and attitudes - youthful 'tribes' changing the world with their bold new ideas. The authors have amassed a wealth of exclusive interviews with key players from all the iconic groups, as well as unpublished photographs from personal collections.

Made in Britain - A Personal History of British Subculture

Tribe

DAMON ALBARN is the frontman of Blur and the face of Britpop. While his peers have gradually fallen by the wayside, Albarn has survived Britpop to completely reinvent himself as the mastermind behind the global phenomenon that is Gorillaz. With his eclectic solo projects - such as the currently much-revered The Good, the Bad & the Queen - and his work with legends like Soul music icon Bobby Womack, he has proven again and again that he is one of British music’s most respected, innovative and important personalities. And in 2015, with the release of The Magic Whip, Blur’s first album for over a decade, Damon Albarn will take his place once more as an iconic jewel in the crown of the British music scene. This fully up-to-date book - the only available dedicated biography of Albarn - covers his multiple musical personas in depth, with first-hand interviews by those close to Albarn in his formative years, as well as social and musical context that covers the Britpop era and Albarn’s re-emergence as the Godfather to the iPod generation.

Damon Albarn - Blur, Gorillaz and Other Fables

The full story of the unstoppable rise of Clarkson, Hammond, May, and the Stig-and how they created one of the most famous TV shows of the 21st century Reaching a peak in the 1990s thanks to presenter Jeremy Clarkson, the original series faced the axe in 2001 but Clarkson and producer Andy Wilman successfully pitched a new format to BBC bosses and Top Gear returned to become the irreverent, funny, and often controversial show we now know and love. The addition of Richard Hammond and James May completed the Top Gear dream team and ratings soared as viewers tuned in to see the latest Star in a R.

The Top Gear Story

David Nolan

Damon Albarn is the frontman of Blur and the face of Britpop. While his peers have gradually fallen by the wayside, Albarn has survived Britpop to completely reinvent himself as the mastermind behind the global phenomenon that is Gorillaz. With his eclectic solo projects--such as the currently much-revered The Good, the Bad & the Queen--and his work with legends like soul music icon Bobby Womack, he has proven again and again that he is one of British music's most respected, innovative and important personalities. And in 2015, with the release of The Magic Whip, Blur's first album for more than a decade, Damon Albarn takes his place once more as an iconic jewel in the crown of the British music scene. This updated book, the only available dedicated biography of Albarn, covers his multiple musical personas in depth, with first-hand interviews by those close to Albarn in his formative years, as well as social and musical context that covers the Britpop era and Albarn's reemergence as the Godfather to the iPod generation.

Blur, Gorillaz and Other Fables

Damon Albarn

Originating from a thriving rave scene, The Prodigy have become the most successful hard dance band ever. This official history contains extensive interviews with the band, many previously unpublished photographs and a full discography.

The Early Years

THE PRODIGY have sold 25 million records and single-handedly reinvented the crossover between dance and rock music, with legendary songs such as 'Firestarter', 'Omen' and 'Breathe'. However, long before they became a stadium-filling rock monster, The Prodigy were prowling the underground of the UK rave scene, first as a blistering demo of tunes by the 'prodigious' teenage Liam Howlett, then latterly with their breakthrough masterpiece, Music For The Jilted Generation.Martin Roach was present throughout the band's early years and documented their rise from the underground into the bright lights of music superstardom. Containing hours and hours of exclusive interviews, the book chronicles the band's early years in minute detail, speaking to each band member and all the key players along the way.With a new introduction by Liam Howlett putting this classic early phase in the context of their historically important career, this book is a must-buy for the millions of Prodigy fans eager to learn about the band's formative days.

The Prodigy: The Official Story - Electronic Punks

From Arctic Monkeys and ABBA to the Zutons and Ziggy Stardust, from 'Anarchy in the UK' to 'Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah' - and over 30,000 hit singles in between - this collector's must-have contains everything you could possibly want to know about every single to reach the charts since 1952. Packed full of charts, lists, facts and timelines as well as up-to-date information, extensive cross references and analysis from Martin Roach, this is the perfect book for music buffs, downloaders glued to iPods and budding Mark Ronsons. This new edition, previously published by Guinness World Records, is the first to be published under the Virgin brand with a whole new look. With new feature material covering a huge range of areas, bands and history from industry-insider Martin Roach, it's an essential part of any serious music fan's collection.

Martin Roach

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