Leave The Capital: A History Of Manchester Music In 13 Recordings

by Paul Hanley

When British bands took the world by storm in the mid-sixties, the world turned and looked at London. Despite the fact that the most successful of these bands hailed from the North West corner of England, for the USA, London was the source of these thrilling new sounds. And in many ways it was – The Beatles, The Hollies and Herman’s Hermits recorded all their hits with London-based producers, for London-based companies in London studios. And that’s how it remained, until four Mancunian musicians became alive to the possibility of recording away from the capital.

Against the prevailing wisdom, they opted to plough their hard-earned cash back into the city they loved in the form of proper recording facilities. Eric Stewart of The Mindbenders and songwriter extraordinaire Graham Gouldman created Strawberry Studios; Keith Hopwood and Derek Leckenby of Herman’s Hermits crafted Pluto. Between them they gave Manchester a voice, and facilitated a musical revolution that would be defined by its rejection of the capital.

This book tells the story of Manchester music through the prism of the two studio’s key recordings. Of course that story inevitably takes in The Smiths, Joy Division, The Fall and The Stone Roses. But it’s equally the story of ‘Bus Stop’ and ‘East West’ and ‘I’m Not in Love’. It’s the story of the Manchester attitude of L.S. Lowry, by way of Brian and Michael, and how that attitude rubbed off on The Clash and Neil Sedaka. Above all, it’s the story of music that couldn’t have been made anywhere else but Manchester.

Genres: Music, History, Nonfiction

216 pages, Paperback

First published November 13, 2017

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hanley, a former drummer for The Fall, is an astute critic, fine historian, and has a cutting, but affectionate wit that makes this a breezy and enjoyable read. The title pretty much describes the book. But before getting to the 13 recordings, Hanley starts at Ground Zero for Manchester during the rock era, telling the story of Herman's Hermits and Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders and other assorted contributors. This section alone was worth the money, as I learned a lot and was thoroughly entertained by Hanley's prose. Having set the scene's the chapters on the 13 recordings dig deeper and provide further insight. There is even a surprise or two among the 13 (but only if you don't read the table of contents first). This book was actually too short. I hope Hanley finds inspiration to write another book, as this was a great read.

[James Hartley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm from Liverpool (though an Evertonian), and a Fall fan, so must get that on the table before starting.
I found this a great little book which dates from the early days of rock and roll and takes us up to the Stone Roses era, charting the history of various Manchester bands, personalities and studios. Hanley is a fresh voice, too, a welcome change to the norm, and writes with vigour, knowledge and passion.
If you've got any interest in sixties, seventies, eighties and nineties pop and rock, you'll enjoy this.

[Aloke · Rating 4 out of 5]

More weighted to the 60s and 70s but still fun. Would've liked to hear something about 808 State.

[K.A. Laity · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn’t know what a Graham Gouldman fan I was until I made my way through this book. To be fair, I only have two speeds: not interested and totally obsessed. Unfortunately, the obsessions can be really off kilter and sometimes I’m running so fast after the thing that I think is interesting, I don’t stop to question the assumptions passed along the way.

Like 10cc=Godley & Creme. Ha!

10cc (and Godley & Creme) has been one of those fading in and out interests. Of course Consequences because of the Peter Cook obsession, but one of my top fave singles as a youngster was ‘I’m Not in Love’ and yet it didn’t really sink in that the song was ‘written by band members Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman.’ Ditto ‘Things We Do for Love’ which was the only 10cc record I bought at that time. I know: eejit.

But it goes back further. On my scratchy hand-me-down but beloved Herman’s Hermits LP the best song by a mile (much as I enjoyed all the bubblegum) was clearly ‘No Milk Today’ which of course is also Gouldman. So I’ve been catching up on his solo stuff and kicking myself for being obtuse.

Now about the rest of this book: there’s tons of reviews here and there, and some great interviews (including this new one with Real Gone), so I won’t drone on about the usual things. It’s an inventive angle (A History of Manchester Music in 13 Recordings) which really brings out the deliberate desire of many Mancunians to ignore London and its machinations as much as possible.

'It doesn’t matter that this London isn’t entirely real. The fact that the elitist, greedy, insular, condescending Emerald City exists as much in the collective minds of the North as it does on the streets of the capital doesn’t make its rejection any less important.'

The intimacy of the recording tradition in Manchester has a lot to do with it starting small — minuscule even — but also that it’s rooted in the musicians and sound folk wanting to give back to their community. Hanley contrasts this with the whole-hearted embrace of the capital by groups like The Beatles, who not only set up there but in the richest neighbourhoods, too. Savile Row and Mayfair certainly radiated ‘success’ but left them a little rootless.

'It’s worth emphasising this again, when Eric Stewart first pondered the possibility of building a professional-standard recording studio outside London, he was completely alone. The thought hadn’t struck anyone else at all.'

Strawberry Studios became a nexus of creative sound for the next three decades, an influence that’s still felt. ‘You could tell it was built with love rather than profit in mind,’ the studio’s first female engineer, Julia Adamson, told Hanley.

It’s a fascinating look at pop music, recording, musical influences and the history that binds together any given record made in the city in these formative years. Perhaps most importantly, it’s a terrifically funny book. I read most of it on the train then on a cross-Atlantic flight and I’m sure I annoyed the people around me by constantly chortling at Hanley’s mordant wit (cf footnote 161). What might have been a dull listing of names and dates instead sounds like the best pub conversation you ever overheard.

[Glenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witty, illuminating, idiosyncratic, superb.

[Hugolane]

This is an engaging easy read if you love British pop/rock of the 1960s-1980s, especially if you are interested in the backroom aspects of the business. On reflection it reminded me a bit of Peter Guralnick's _Lost Highway_ but more narrowly focused on one city and the curious path that made Manchester seem the capital of pop musical innovation in the early 1980s. Hanley's thesis is that the decision by two figures from Manchester bands of the British Invasion era to set up independent studies (Strawberry and then Pluto) played a key role in paving the way for the creative burst of the late 1970s and 1980s. In the process, he makes the story of Herman's Hermits and Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders far more interesting than most would imagine. We also get a fairly in depth history of Graham Gouldman's journey from successful songwriter and unsuccessful member of a band during the 1960s to the success of 10CC in the 1970s.

The title makes a nod to the trend of large-scale macro history through specific artifacts, exemplified by _The History of the World in 100 Objects_ or the _A History of the World in Six Glasses. Nominally each chapter is about a recording, most of which are a single song, although the chapters about Joy Division, The Fall, and the Smiths all focus on entire albums. Yet, every chapter is really more an occasion to focus on broader issues like changing line-ups and the way the music business changed in the first part. The songs are not picked apart and discussed in excruciating detail, which is fine.

Probably the chapter on Joy Division stays most focused on the recording in question "Unknown Pleasures" -- although Hanley does discuss the technical and presentation problems with Joy Division's self-produced "Ideal for Living." The focus though is on Martin Hannett as the shaper of the Joy Division sound, but focusing on "Unknown Pleasures" allows Hanley to talk in detail about Hannett's use of Strawberry studios technology to create the sound. His essay on the Fall's "Perverted By Language" is shaped in part by his personal experience as one of the drummers of the band at the time, though he claims to have been somewhat reticent about including a Fall record, even though he has also written a book about the Fall's "Hex-Enduction Hour." The final album he writes about is the Smith's debut album. He has great things to say about the Morrissey-Marr writing team, but also makes clear his sympathies for the original Smith's rhythm session. (Never a big Smith's fan, I give Hanley Credit for getting me to listen to the first Smiths album for the first time in decades). The book closes with an early recording by the Stone Roses, who because of technological changes ended up being one of the last bands to record at the Pluto studio.

Hanley is an engaging storyteller. and he is good at dropping lines that fans of Manchester music, particularly of the early 1980s, will appreciate. I will be buying his book about "Hex-Enduction Hour" soon.

[Geoff Winston Leghorn Balme · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fine little book! Hanley does so much more in a few chapters than I expected from a choice list of 13 numbers and I'm learned and grateful for it. I purchased the book as a fan of the Fall (and Joy Division) but found myself fascinated with the first half the book covering Herman's Hermits, Mindbenders, And Neil Sedaka among many others. By the time we're introduced to the Smiths (Mark E and Morrissey /Marr) we've been prepared with a mini course! Thank you Paul! Keep writing!

[John Corrigan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will fill some gaps in your musical knowledge

[El Sh'Booms · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating story of the history of late 20th Century Mancunian pop music told by a former member of one of Manchester's finest (The Fall). Hanley draws a very neat line from the miasma of the pre-Beatles era, through the British Explosion to the Sex Pistols' shows at Manchester Free Trade Hall, and on to the Stone Roses working with Martin Hannett at Strawberry Studios. In many ways this book is a love letter to Strawberry Studios and the slightly more economical Pluto Studios. I have immense newfound respect for Graham Gouldman as a songwriter for "For Your Love", the Mindbenders, the Hollies, 10cc, bubblegum, and as one of the key moving forces within the story told in this book. His wheeling and dealing is responsible for the existence of Strawberry Studios and Strawberry Studios is where Joy Division, The Smiths, and the Stone Roses found their voices. It is the sound of "Unknown Pleasures" and that is something monumental.
Fun Fact: Neal Sedaka wrote and recorded his version of "Love Will Keep Us Together" in the same room where Ian Curtis recorded "Love Will Tear Us Apart" (while supposedly unaware of the former).

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not being a Mancunian nor having any Manchester connections (bar one weird cousin who lived there decades ago), I was aware of Strawberry in Stockport via the Joy Division connection but now have that bit more knowledge. When I listened to music in the 70s (Glam to punk via prog rock) I really didn't pay attention to where bands came from until I discovered punk. It came as a surprise to find the 10CC history and that Barclay James Harvest came from Oldham. An interesting selection although I feel it might have benefited from being longer.

Ray Smillie

[Paul Robbo · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book telling the story of how two Manchester studios , Strawberry and Pluto were key to the movement of the recording industry away from London. From Herman's Hermits, 10cc and Graham Gouldman to JoyDivision, The Smiths and the Stone Roses. This book charts the development and success of the Manchester music scene intrinsically linked with these recording studios and characters. A great read

[Knut Sigurd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Veldig moro. Full av supre anekdotar, og særleg i den første delen av boka fekk iallfall eg greie på samanhengar eg ikkje var klar over. Stone Roses-kapitlet tek litt av futten ut av boka, men det kan skuldast at det kjem etter dei som handlar mest om The Fall og The Smiths.

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 to 4.5 stars. Funny, informative, and rightly celebratory of Manchester's part in England's music scene. Thoroughly enjoyable.

[Andrew Korell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good quick read and some interesting incites on the groups and recordings discussed. Hanley adds an interesting perspective without getting bogged down in the gory details of things.

[Ted Prezelski · Rating 4 out of 5]

So many good reviews on here of this book and it is all justified. The footnotes are golden.

[Aidan Curtis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read-very readable and very funny footnotes

[Miles Buckley · Rating 4 out of 5]

First half is abit slow, but from 10cc onwards it’s a joy. Met Paul a couple weeks ago, nice bloke.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good stories in here but it really advantages those with a deep working background knowledge. I just don’t give enough of a shit about producers and impresarios. Insiders need to learn how to write for outsiders. Not for the uninitiated.