What do you think?
Rate this book
I Shoot Rock Stars: The Wild Adventures of a Music Video Director, an instant Sunday Times bestseller
The 1980s saw the birth of a new medium that took the world by the pop video. And Tim Pope, a music fanboy-turned-video director, was at the forefront of this wild ride.
Shooting his first performance footage at a concert after smuggling a camera inside his trousers, Tim got his break directing the video for Soft Cell's follow-up to 'Tainted Love'. Work snowballed, and he was soon jetting back and forth across the Atlantic to feed the newly launched engine of MTV, making videos for The Cure, Queen, Talk Talk, Wham!, Hall & Oates, Siouxsie & the Banshees and The Bangles, among others.
From dressing Freddie Mercury as a giant Mediterranean prawn to being called a 'funny little arsehole' by David Bowie; hanging out with Neil Young on his family ranch or locking The Cure in a wardrobe and launching it off a cliff, Tim had a front-row seat on the excesses, egos and larger-than-life characters of the era. Capturing the improvisational mood of a time when directors worked guerrilla-style, money flowed freely and no idea was too wacky to pursue, I Shoot Rock Stars provides a fly-on-the-wall glimpse of an extraordinary cast of personalities, capturing the fizzing energy of this unique creative moment. More than anything, it's the hilarious and frequently moving story of a music-mad kid who ended up working with his heroes, and who here chronicles his - and his industry's - creative triumphs and follies in riotous style.
Shooting his first performance footage at a concert after smuggling a camera inside his trousers, Tim got his break directing the video for Soft Cell's follow-up to 'Tainted Love'. Work snowballed, and he was soon jetting back and forth across the Atlantic to feed the newly launched engine of MTV, making videos for The Cure, Queen, Talk Talk, Wham!, Hall & Oates, Siouxsie & the Banshees and The Bangles, among others.
From dressing Freddie Mercury as a giant Mediterranean prawn to being called a 'funny little arsehole' by David Bowie; hanging out with Neil Young on his family ranch or locking The Cure in a wardrobe and launching it off a cliff, Tim had a front-row seat on the excesses, egos and larger-than-life characters of the era. Capturing the improvisational mood of a time when directors worked guerrilla-style, money flowed freely and no idea was too wacky to pursue, I Shoot Rock Stars provides a fly-on-the-wall glimpse of an extraordinary cast of personalities, capturing the fizzing energy of this unique creative moment. More than anything, it's the hilarious and frequently moving story of a music-mad kid who ended up working with his heroes, and who here chronicles his - and his industry's - creative triumphs and follies in riotous style.
385 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 13, 2026
About the author
Tim Pope
1 book2 followersTim Pope is a British director renowned for his highly imaginative, visually distinctive music videos and his defining contribution to the look of alternative music in the 1980s and 1990s. He rose to prominence through his long-running collaboration with The Cure, crafting iconic videos such as 'Close to Me', 'Lullaby' and 'Just Like Heaven', where surrealism, wit, and a playful darkness became his signature.
Alongside The Cure, Pope worked with a wide range of influential artists across genres. His credits include videos for David Bowie, Queen, Soft Cell, Iggy Pop, Siouxsie & the Banshees, The The, The Psychedelic Furs, Talk Talk, Paul Weller, Paul McCartney, Hall & Oates, Neil Young, The Bangles and The Cars, among others - helping to shape the visual identity of an era.
Beyond music videos, Pope has directed a feature film, The Crow: City of Angels (1996), as well as documentaries and commercials. His work is marked by a strong sense of visual storytelling, often blending theatricality with emotional depth, and continues to influence generations of directors working across music, film, and advertising.
He is currently casting a movie, The Photographer's Assistant, working on commercials and a cinema documentary project for The Cure to celebrate their 50th anniversary.
His memoir, I Shoot Rock Stars - The Wild Adventures of a Music Video Director, will be published by Wildfire Books/Headline in the UK on August 13 2026. and in the US by Diversion Books on September 1.
Alongside The Cure, Pope worked with a wide range of influential artists across genres. His credits include videos for David Bowie, Queen, Soft Cell, Iggy Pop, Siouxsie & the Banshees, The The, The Psychedelic Furs, Talk Talk, Paul Weller, Paul McCartney, Hall & Oates, Neil Young, The Bangles and The Cars, among others - helping to shape the visual identity of an era.
Beyond music videos, Pope has directed a feature film, The Crow: City of Angels (1996), as well as documentaries and commercials. His work is marked by a strong sense of visual storytelling, often blending theatricality with emotional depth, and continues to influence generations of directors working across music, film, and advertising.
He is currently casting a movie, The Photographer's Assistant, working on commercials and a cinema documentary project for The Cure to celebrate their 50th anniversary.
His memoir, I Shoot Rock Stars - The Wild Adventures of a Music Video Director, will be published by Wildfire Books/Headline in the UK on August 13 2026. and in the US by Diversion Books on September 1.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
August 20, 2026
Wonderful. Honest and funny. For fans of The Cure, Bowie, Neil Young, Iggy Pop, The The and or Talk Talk and many others.
Displaying 1 of 1 review