Sinead O'Connor: So Different

by Dermott Hayes

An illustrated biography of Irish singer/songwriter Sinead O'Connor, who broke into the mainstream of British pop music with the number one hit single "Nothing Compares 2 U", written by Prince.

Genres: Music, Biography

Paperback

Published January 1, 1991

About the author

Writing has always been an essential part of my life; almost as important as breathing. When I was a youngster, I set up my own school newspaper which I edited and was the sole reporter. I could have been the sole reader too, if it were not for supportive parents. My father gave me a love of reading; particularly pulp crime fiction from Mickey Spillane, Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. He loved to quote Shakespeare, Milton and Wordsworth. He also introduced me to the writings of John Steinbeck whose In Dubious Battle, a story of strike organizers and agitators among migrant fruit workers in Depression era California, brought two things together for me; political awareness and story telling. I resolved, at the age of ten, to become a writer. I became a journalist and worked in that business for twenty five years. It took me that long to wake up and decide I have only one shot so if I don’t take it, there’s no-one to blame but myself. So, I took a deep breath...

Reviews

[Graham Brownett · Rating 2 out of 5]

As this Kindle version was published in 2019 I kind of expected it to be updated but unfortunately it remains the same as the paper edition first published in 1991 which is a disappointment, my fault for not checking.

Written by an Irish journalist, Dermot Hayes, despite knowing Sinead O’Connor, the content mainly relies on rewrites of newspaper and magazine articles and transcripts from TV interviews, there is little that is original or not already in the public domain. As a music industry insider Hayes does go over the top analysing the influence, genre and background to the songs and I found the constant referencing to the same facts slightly irritating.

However, despite the book covering less than 15 years of her life it is an interesting insight into the singer’s early life, she came from a fairly well-off family, it tells of her estranged relationship with her mother and her continuous battle with her own demons and contradictions. She worked hard for her success, first in Dublin clubs and then in London. There is absolutely no doubting her musical talent, she is a wonderful song writer and has a beautiful, at times haunting, voice and deserves her success and accolades she has received.

The book is a two and a half star, I plumped for a three but as I write this review I am drifting back to a two star. Not quite what I was expecting nor what I hoped for, perhaps the blame should be on the publisher rather than the author for milking it and I’m sure there are better and more up to date books available, which don’t finish just has her career is taking off.

[matty creen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun

I just wish it was updated. There are so many more sinead things to discuss. Further, it’s so sad there aren’t more books about saint Sinead.