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Nothing Is Real
Pop music’s a simple pleasure. Is it catchy? Can you dance to it? Do you fancy the singer?But what’s fascinating about pop is our relationship with it. David Hepworth is interested in the human side of pop. He’s interested in how people make the stuff and, more importantly, what it means to us. In this collection of essays written throughout his career, Hepworth shows how it is possible to take music seriously and, at the same time, not drain the life out of it. From the legacy of the Beatles to the dramatic decline of the record shop via the bewildering nomenclature of musical genres; with characteristic insight and humour Hepworth asks some essential questions about music and, indeed, is it all about the drummer; are band managers misunderstood; and is it appropriate to play ‘Angels’ at funerals?As Pope John Paul II said ‘of all the unimportant things, football is the most important’. David Hepworth believes the same to be true of music and this selection of his best writing, covering the music of last fifty years, shows you precisely why.
240 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2018
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688 people want to read
About the author
David Hepworth
13 books216 followersDavid Hepworth is a music journalist, writer, and publishing industry analyst who has launched several successful British magazines, including Smash Hits, Q, Mojo and The Word, among many others. He presented the definitive BBC rock music program Whistle Test and anchored the BBC's coverage of Live Aid in 1985. He has won the Editor of the Year and Writer of the Year awards from the Professional Publishers Association and the Mark Boxer Award from the British Society of Magazine Editors. He is the radio columnist for the Saturday Guardian and a regular media correspondent for the newspaper.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 74 reviews
September 24, 2025
"My copy [of Rubber Soul] arrived on Christmas Day and I played it for forty-eight hours straight. It was the unique genius of the Beatles that their pop appeal was not easily worn out. There was always another layer of texture beneath. Once you had exhausted its knowingness its heart was there to nourish you. [.] There was nothing they couldn't do . . . Obviously everybody thinks the music made when they were fifteen was the best music of all. It's not my fault that I happen to be right.😉" -- on page 30
Although I was somewhat underwhelmed with author Hepworth's A Fabulous Creation several months ago, the luster on his unique style of rock & roll writing has been restored with Nothing Is Real: The Beatles Were Underrated and Other Sweeping Statements About Pop. It is comprised of various essays throughout his decades-long career, and they are organized into loose chapters focusing on the Beatles, the music of 1960's (The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, The Kinks, etc.), and then moving on to even more scattershot themes such as dance club DJs, decibel levels, the death of the once-ubiquitous record shops, and - probably my favorite of the bunch - when novelists make factual errors when including rock music references. While the final segment felt a little padded - the articles were basically 'best-of' lists, which can sometimes smack of writing on autopilot and/or a deadline - there WAS a thoughtful discourse on the underrated B-sides (remember them?) from a number of rock / pop / soul singles of the 60's, which should prompt any curious music lover to go running towards Spotify or YouTube for these undiscovered aural treasures in waiting.
Although I was somewhat underwhelmed with author Hepworth's A Fabulous Creation several months ago, the luster on his unique style of rock & roll writing has been restored with Nothing Is Real: The Beatles Were Underrated and Other Sweeping Statements About Pop. It is comprised of various essays throughout his decades-long career, and they are organized into loose chapters focusing on the Beatles, the music of 1960's (The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, The Kinks, etc.), and then moving on to even more scattershot themes such as dance club DJs, decibel levels, the death of the once-ubiquitous record shops, and - probably my favorite of the bunch - when novelists make factual errors when including rock music references. While the final segment felt a little padded - the articles were basically 'best-of' lists, which can sometimes smack of writing on autopilot and/or a deadline - there WAS a thoughtful discourse on the underrated B-sides (remember them?) from a number of rock / pop / soul singles of the 60's, which should prompt any curious music lover to go running towards Spotify or YouTube for these undiscovered aural treasures in waiting.
May 29, 2023
David Hepworth is a music journalist of some repute in the UK. He's responsible for launching several popular magazines over the last 40 years, including Q and Mojo. But he's arguably most famous for being one of the presenters at Live Aid, encouraging Bob Geldof to turn the air blue in his efforts to raise money for Africa.
This is a collection of essays written over the course of Hepworth's career, examining our relationship with pop music. It's quite varied in scope - he takes a look at the decline of record stores, the role of the radio DJ in modern culture, and the best songs to play at weddings. He believes the 60s was rock's greatest decade, so a number of pieces explore that era, with the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan coming in for particular praise.
However, it's quite easy to discern Hepworth's favourite band, and the best writing in this book relates to the Beatles. His most controversial theory is that the Fab Four were actually underrated, and I have to admit that after reading his thoughts I'm convinced he's right. He sings the praises of Ringo and takes a look at A Hard Day's Night fifty years after first watching that magical film in wide-eyed jubilation. Hepworth's passion and enthusiasm for the band shines through, and I'm a bit of a Beatles nut myself so I really enjoyed those pieces.
I will say though that some of the essays, particularly those from the early 2000s, feel pretty dated right now. And the last section, a series of lists including his favourite gigs, felt like filler to me. If you're looking for a better example of David Hepworth's supreme pop music analysis, I'd recommend the excellent Uncommon People. But Nothing Is Real is still a fun book to dip in and out of - a diverting anthology of musings from a writer who really knows his stuff.
This is a collection of essays written over the course of Hepworth's career, examining our relationship with pop music. It's quite varied in scope - he takes a look at the decline of record stores, the role of the radio DJ in modern culture, and the best songs to play at weddings. He believes the 60s was rock's greatest decade, so a number of pieces explore that era, with the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan coming in for particular praise.
However, it's quite easy to discern Hepworth's favourite band, and the best writing in this book relates to the Beatles. His most controversial theory is that the Fab Four were actually underrated, and I have to admit that after reading his thoughts I'm convinced he's right. He sings the praises of Ringo and takes a look at A Hard Day's Night fifty years after first watching that magical film in wide-eyed jubilation. Hepworth's passion and enthusiasm for the band shines through, and I'm a bit of a Beatles nut myself so I really enjoyed those pieces.
I will say though that some of the essays, particularly those from the early 2000s, feel pretty dated right now. And the last section, a series of lists including his favourite gigs, felt like filler to me. If you're looking for a better example of David Hepworth's supreme pop music analysis, I'd recommend the excellent Uncommon People. But Nothing Is Real is still a fun book to dip in and out of - a diverting anthology of musings from a writer who really knows his stuff.
December 10, 2018
My favourite line is ‘The drum solo is the auditory equivalent of being unable to find the exit from a multi-storey car park’
January 27, 2021
In this collection of essays, David Hepworth muses on various aspects of music. These range from subjects as wide ranging as drummers, managers, B-Sides, record shops and DJ’s. Hepworth has long been involved in the world of music and is happy relating his adventures – from being the interviewer that Bob Geldof brushed aside in his tirade during Band Aid, urging people to give money (yes, THAT interview), to watching cricket with Mick Jagger or presenting The Old Grey Whistle Test, he is always good company.
He is also a real lover of music, as well as knowledgeable about it. He recalls an uncle referring to the Beatles album he got at Christmas as a child (they’ll be forgotten next year….) and the joy he had each December revealing the next record throughout the decade. For Hepworth, as for me, the Beatles are the fixed point of the musical universe. In the title essay of this book he writes of the long shadow of the Beatles and why they were, are and remain important. As well as the title essay, he writes of, “A Hard Day’s Night,” “Rubber Soul,” and other essays also touch on the Beatles, as well as the importance of the Sixties as a decade, the summer the Sixties begun and also other Sixties artists – from Ray Davies to the Rolling Stones to Bob Dylan.
This is not just about the Sixties though. Hepworth writes about different forms of music, such as the Blues and digresses on subjects such as the volume of music or being asked to create a playlist for funerals as he ‘knows,’ about music. Yes, this may be a collection of previously published articles, but it’s an excellent collection and I have enjoyed all the books I have read by David Hepworth so far and look forward to reading his other titles.
He is also a real lover of music, as well as knowledgeable about it. He recalls an uncle referring to the Beatles album he got at Christmas as a child (they’ll be forgotten next year….) and the joy he had each December revealing the next record throughout the decade. For Hepworth, as for me, the Beatles are the fixed point of the musical universe. In the title essay of this book he writes of the long shadow of the Beatles and why they were, are and remain important. As well as the title essay, he writes of, “A Hard Day’s Night,” “Rubber Soul,” and other essays also touch on the Beatles, as well as the importance of the Sixties as a decade, the summer the Sixties begun and also other Sixties artists – from Ray Davies to the Rolling Stones to Bob Dylan.
This is not just about the Sixties though. Hepworth writes about different forms of music, such as the Blues and digresses on subjects such as the volume of music or being asked to create a playlist for funerals as he ‘knows,’ about music. Yes, this may be a collection of previously published articles, but it’s an excellent collection and I have enjoyed all the books I have read by David Hepworth so far and look forward to reading his other titles.
January 2, 2019
“Nothing is Real” is a compendium of essays by the veteran music journalist and publisher David Hepworth, some of them taken from his recent BBC3 series, some published here for the first time, and others culled from the late-lamented Word magazine. These wide-ranging opinion pieces touch on many aspects of the music industry and rock journalism, taking in topics like the personality dynamics within groups, the difficulties with showing music acts on live television and – as per the subtitle – why The Beatles might in fact be the most under-rated act in music history,
As such, “Nothing is Real” lacks the overarching themes that ran through Hepworth’s previous titles, “1971” and “Uncommon People: the rise and fall of the rock star”. This isn’t too much of a drawback because, even when he is putting across a contentious view or adopting a wilfully contrarian stance, David Hepworth is an entertaining and erudite writer.
Among the best essays in “Nothing is Real” can be found in the first quarter of the book, which is devoted to the aforementioned Beatles. Hepworth attempts to reclaim the Fab 4 from the chin-stroking critics, making a spirited case that what was important about The Beatles wasn’t their latter innovations and cultural significance, but it was the sublime tunes and melodies of their early work. Another excellent article is Hepworth’s appreciation of the much-maligned drummer as being the most important member of any group, and also a particularly sharp piece on how the record industry destroys bands by giving them too much time to produce albums (“there is nothing in media and entertainment that cannot be ruined by more money and more time … there is no better illustration of that principle than ‘A Hard Day’s Night’”).
Other stand-out pieces deal with the perils of making a funeral mixtape or DJing at a wedding, why rock stars never say anything interesting during TV interviews, and why the real reason Live Aid was such a success was because of the weather rather than Freddie Mercury and Queen (and Hepworth should know – he was presenting the live TV coverage on the day). “Nothing is Real” is an enjoyable and diverting stopgap while we are waiting for David Hepworth’s next major project on music history.
As such, “Nothing is Real” lacks the overarching themes that ran through Hepworth’s previous titles, “1971” and “Uncommon People: the rise and fall of the rock star”. This isn’t too much of a drawback because, even when he is putting across a contentious view or adopting a wilfully contrarian stance, David Hepworth is an entertaining and erudite writer.
Among the best essays in “Nothing is Real” can be found in the first quarter of the book, which is devoted to the aforementioned Beatles. Hepworth attempts to reclaim the Fab 4 from the chin-stroking critics, making a spirited case that what was important about The Beatles wasn’t their latter innovations and cultural significance, but it was the sublime tunes and melodies of their early work. Another excellent article is Hepworth’s appreciation of the much-maligned drummer as being the most important member of any group, and also a particularly sharp piece on how the record industry destroys bands by giving them too much time to produce albums (“there is nothing in media and entertainment that cannot be ruined by more money and more time … there is no better illustration of that principle than ‘A Hard Day’s Night’”).
Other stand-out pieces deal with the perils of making a funeral mixtape or DJing at a wedding, why rock stars never say anything interesting during TV interviews, and why the real reason Live Aid was such a success was because of the weather rather than Freddie Mercury and Queen (and Hepworth should know – he was presenting the live TV coverage on the day). “Nothing is Real” is an enjoyable and diverting stopgap while we are waiting for David Hepworth’s next major project on music history.
March 14, 2019
[3.5] I have to admit I might have given this an extra half-star if it wasn't for a sense of having heard, or read, quite a lot of this book's contents before. Anyone who reads Dave Hepworth's blog, 'What is he on about now?', or listens to the podcast he co-hosts with Mark Ellen, will be familiar with an awful lot of the arguments he makes in this book: that The Beatles were in fact under-rated, particularly their early work; that rock fans' attitude towards pop music is arbitrary snobbery and that neither rock nor pop music is much suited to providing a soundtrack to funerals.
Nonetheless, it's a good read and I particularly enjoyed the collection of essays that began life on Radio 3 looking at, amongst other things, the concept of 'authenticity' in music. He notes that while Seasick Steve, a jobbing session musician of a certain age who found a level of success in the mid noughties pretending to be a homeless drifter/busker might seem like a very modern form of artifice, this is something with a pedigree that goes right back to the early days of the blues when labels sought to play up the outlaw status of their various bluesmen. That the authenticity is a part of the artifice.
There's not much of note on anything that has happened musically since about 1985 in this book, but that might be no bad thing. It's a fair reflection of the author's age and personal prejudices - at one point, he notes that “Everyone thinks that the best music was made when they were 15 years old, I just happen to be right”* - and I'm much more inclined to trust his judgment on the best records of that era than, for example, what were the highlights of the early 1990s.
*And maybe he is in the sense of the point in time when the most innovative and influential material within the genre of 'pop music' (or 'beat music', which he suggests as a good catch-all covering everything from death metal, through hardcore techno to chart pop) was made. But my own favourite records still lay a good twenty or so years in the future at that point.
Nonetheless, it's a good read and I particularly enjoyed the collection of essays that began life on Radio 3 looking at, amongst other things, the concept of 'authenticity' in music. He notes that while Seasick Steve, a jobbing session musician of a certain age who found a level of success in the mid noughties pretending to be a homeless drifter/busker might seem like a very modern form of artifice, this is something with a pedigree that goes right back to the early days of the blues when labels sought to play up the outlaw status of their various bluesmen. That the authenticity is a part of the artifice.
There's not much of note on anything that has happened musically since about 1985 in this book, but that might be no bad thing. It's a fair reflection of the author's age and personal prejudices - at one point, he notes that “Everyone thinks that the best music was made when they were 15 years old, I just happen to be right”* - and I'm much more inclined to trust his judgment on the best records of that era than, for example, what were the highlights of the early 1990s.
*And maybe he is in the sense of the point in time when the most innovative and influential material within the genre of 'pop music' (or 'beat music', which he suggests as a good catch-all covering everything from death metal, through hardcore techno to chart pop) was made. But my own favourite records still lay a good twenty or so years in the future at that point.
August 2, 2019
I've seen a few complaints about this book being little more than a collection of The Word essays strung together. I don't have any problem with that having forgotten the few issues I read many years ago. I was more disappointed at how flimsy the articles were. It's a short read - I finished it in under two hours, and the articles range from a couple of thousand words to a couple of hundred. There's a strong...focus seems the wrong word because there really isn't much focus across the whole thing, so let's say an emphasis on the '60s and '70s, with influences of the blues given a short once over, but ultimately it really does feel like, to put in musical terms a collection of B sides, rarities and oddities - the sort of thing record companies will put out when a band is out of contract and that's all they've got left to push. It's an odd collection of personal thoughts, many of which feel like notebook noodling (there aren't many record shops around any more, why I don't like to be asked about music at parties, iTunes isn't as good as putting together an old compilation etc), of a old man shouting at the kids on his lawn. There are a few fairly random top ten lists (music trilogies, best gigs, songs about travelling), that you could find on anyone interested in music's blog, and there's little to no deep insight on any of them that that same blogger couldn't do as well or better. Overall disappointing and given how much I enjoyed Hepworth as a presenter and journalist doesn't make me want to rush out to get any of his other books. The back cover blurb says he's one of the best music writers around, 'a dream author', a 'clever writer', and 'sublime' - those things may well be true, and the more holistic praise may be because this is a collection of essays, but as a volume the pieces feel very lightweight and thrown together.
July 19, 2019
This collection of pieces about pop music is an enjoyable read, written by someone who can be considered an expert on the subject having spent his career working in and writing about the music industry (He was one of the co-presenters of Live Aid, who was on air trying to give the viewers information on how to donate during Bob Geldof's infamous expletive outburst on live tv). The book made me want to pick up my guitar again which has been gathering dust for a few years and get the band back together, and also left me feeling frustrated that I (being born in the early 90s) wasn’t around for the 60s & 70s (where this book spends a lot of time and where my musical taste most aligns to) and slightly jealous of the author for all his stories of hanging out with rock stars and seeing some of the best bands in their heyday.
January 5, 2019
Terrific set of essays and opinion pieces full of insight, wit and knowledge about that wondrous thing called pop music. I found myself nodding and saying: yes; damn right; absolutely all the way through which probably says more about me than the author but who knows? A gem of a writer.
January 7, 2019
Incisive and wittily informative as always, just too short!
November 3, 2022
i always have enjoyed reading essays but never read any from david hepworth. man he is some kind of writing genius, nobody captures popculture and records as david. his essays where really enjoyable. it goes from the beatles, which i really liked since im a huge beatles fan. also goes from the kinks to bob dylan and donald fagan. i am not even doing the range of these essays the justice it deserves. incredible short read. i have to admit, because it contains such a wide range of essay topics some didn't interest me as much as others, but that's what we call personal taste eh?
January 14, 2020
No idea how this only has a 3.68 rating. For articles and essays, I enjoy these as much as I do Didion. He does the little hook line at the end of each piece but only a few are saccharine and most are meant to be.
Hepworth has the nack for voicing observations that you completely agree with and have never solidified into thought yourself and does so with a light candid touch while writing about one of the most polorising subjects you can throw into a conversation. Loved every page of it.
Hepworth has the nack for voicing observations that you completely agree with and have never solidified into thought yourself and does so with a light candid touch while writing about one of the most polorising subjects you can throw into a conversation. Loved every page of it.
February 18, 2020
My two loves in life are books and music. Combine them and I am in literary and musical heaven. Nothing is Real by David Hepworth was a brilliant read that collected some of his previous articles. Reading his articles, I felt envious about his experiences but enjoyed getting to live vicariously through him…and I would love to go through his vinyl collection.
Nothing is Real – The Beatles were Underrated and Other Sweeping Statements About Pop by David Hepworth is available now.
Nothing is Real – The Beatles were Underrated and Other Sweeping Statements About Pop by David Hepworth is available now.
August 11, 2020
I have not read anything by David Hepworth before, but I quite liked this. It is various columns on mostly rock music, grouped into themes. I really liked the first chapter on The Beales. I also like lists of good songs or albums, like The Great Accidental Trilogies, The Greatest Hot Streak in Pop (Kinks), and the columns about what to play at weddings and funerals. Not everything was great, but the interesting bits were well worth it for this quick read.
May 11, 2020
Very entertaining. Only 3 star rather than 4 because several filler chapters are just song lists (eg songs to play at wedding) and felt like padding.
February 3, 2022
Another collection of essays and articles. As I read more David Hepworth, I realise he isn't writing for me, he's writing for middle aged men. His constant nostalgia about records becomes fairly boring, and the instant rejection of music written after the 1980's reminds me of my dad. I really enjoyed his writings on The Beatles and also his time working on Band Aid. His thoughts on how we should treat pop was also novel but lots I thought was distinctly average.
January 5, 2023
A collection of short opinion pieces, well explained and thought through, and consistent with David Hepworth's worldview, with The Beatles as the greatest thing ever, which he argues cogently. If you are going to be annoyed by a piece titles "The Beatles were Underrated", this is not the book for you. But you don't have to agree with all of his loss to enjoy the thought and craft that has gone into them.
January 6, 2026
A delightful collection of essays on various different music themes. David Hepworth is an excellent writer with an insightful knowledge of all genres of music. A great read.
April 12, 2019
Considering that Frank Zappa opined that writing about music is like tap-dancing about architecture David Hepworth is possibly the Lionel Blair of Bauhaus (not the band); immensely readable, funny and knowledgeable about all things vinyl.
His cover statement that The Beatles were under-rated stands up to scrutiny and I entirely agree with his thesis. Especially that their early work was the best stuff. My favourite albums are still A Hard Day’s Night and Help. The theory that the greatest pop careers can only be sustained for a maximum of three years neatly splits the mop tops’ six years of unsurpassed pop genius into two incredible three-year outpourings. And they went from Love Me Do to A Day In The Life within four of those years!
This series of essays and articles from a journalist who experienced the pop revolution in real time is a great comfort to those of us who feel slightly embarrassed about loving what we thought at the time was a completely disposable fad. Will the current generation growing up with unlimited free digital downloads ever feel the ache and excitement of choosing which single on which to spend one’s six and eightpence (LPs were only for Christmas)? As for the B-side. There’s a whole chapter on these.
His cover statement that The Beatles were under-rated stands up to scrutiny and I entirely agree with his thesis. Especially that their early work was the best stuff. My favourite albums are still A Hard Day’s Night and Help. The theory that the greatest pop careers can only be sustained for a maximum of three years neatly splits the mop tops’ six years of unsurpassed pop genius into two incredible three-year outpourings. And they went from Love Me Do to A Day In The Life within four of those years!
This series of essays and articles from a journalist who experienced the pop revolution in real time is a great comfort to those of us who feel slightly embarrassed about loving what we thought at the time was a completely disposable fad. Will the current generation growing up with unlimited free digital downloads ever feel the ache and excitement of choosing which single on which to spend one’s six and eightpence (LPs were only for Christmas)? As for the B-side. There’s a whole chapter on these.
March 20, 2019
I received this book as a surprise present, and it’s perfect for anyone (like me) who’s a fully-fledged music nerd/junkie!
Seriously though, it’s always a pleasure to read David’s books, and this one is no different.
It’s an entertaining and rewarding compilation of various articles over the years that he’s put together into this one handy volume.
What comes across is his sense of passion, wonder and nostalgia for the music that’s coloured and lit up his life over the decades, and most readers (like me) will find themselves nodding along in approval, and bathing in the past glories of our favourite artistes.
There’s lots to reflect on along the way, and David’s well-travelled knowledge, experience and analysis of the world of music that he inhabits is a real joy to behold.
Seriously though, it’s always a pleasure to read David’s books, and this one is no different.
It’s an entertaining and rewarding compilation of various articles over the years that he’s put together into this one handy volume.
What comes across is his sense of passion, wonder and nostalgia for the music that’s coloured and lit up his life over the decades, and most readers (like me) will find themselves nodding along in approval, and bathing in the past glories of our favourite artistes.
There’s lots to reflect on along the way, and David’s well-travelled knowledge, experience and analysis of the world of music that he inhabits is a real joy to behold.
March 10, 2019
An enjoyable collection of essays on popular music and how it has changed and adapted to emerging technology, corporate meddling and evermore transient expectations. As with his earlier books, David Hepworth writes with considerable knowledge and experience but never gets too dry or didadtic and is always informative and engaging. That said, he'll cost me a fortune if I actually buy all the CDs he's brought my attention to.
April 6, 2020
A series of essays on music. From a man who was ahead of the curve in music journalism. There are so many gems of insights in his essays. I'm reminded of a line from Grampa Abe Simpsons (of The Simpsons) who once said to Homer: I was 'with it' once, but now what I'm with isn't it and what's it is weird and scary to me. It will happen to you!
I came to know David Hepworh's writing as an elder statesman type as a radio critic. little did I know he was a music critic who was with 'it'.
I came to know David Hepworh's writing as an elder statesman type as a radio critic. little did I know he was a music critic who was with 'it'.
February 1, 2019
great selection of pieces from mr hepworth
January 28, 2025
This book starts with using up all David Hepworth's journalistic lolly pops, all his most familiar and most personal stories about the most famous band the twentieth century could imagine, The Beatles over five short sharp chapters. But also a further six stories about different near-contemporaries who to varying degrees are still thought of as mattering today. Some of the material would suit only people who very little about the acts that David Hepworth describes. Then comes print versions of a series of radio essays. If you want to hear one of these essays as a sample, then please left click https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b09... to experience one of the odder phenomena of modern life the radio programme that was once accepted as ephemera assuming a new and unexpected permanence.
The next batch of essays are about music-as-lifestyle. The most informative essay of which is titled 'Everything I know about The Blues', which is about lives more than lifestyles and packs in more information in solid biography and fact based assessments than I have read in many a while. The piece after that 'Everything I know about Rock TV' does what it is meant to do - pulls any reader with access to the internet towards youtube to see the material Hepworth is referring to. It was not long before I was looking up his appearances on Whistle Test (the 'Old Grey' part of the name going when Hepworth became a regular contributor in '81 or '82, though Hepworth first appeared on Whistle Test in Dec 1980.
What impressed me with 'Everything I know about The Blues' is Hepworth's effortless immersion of me as a reader into a music that was once so new and so unknown in the 1920's that at first it had no name, no fixed financial/remunerative structure for performers, and no music biz structure or fixed touring scheduling applied to it. It was a genre with no name, or identity. And whilst it's practitioners had names that would assume mythic proportions in future, the value of their names were valuable only to themselves at the time. The story of John Hammond seeking Robert Johnson out for the 1938 'From Spirituals to Swing' Carnegie Hall concert several months after Johnson had died in obscurity illustrates the value of a name going from ordinary to mythical proves my point. With no live Johnson John Hammond played the 78 rpm disc of Robert Johnson's 'The Walking Blues' to the audience.
His dry point of view on how well or poorly live music, musicians, and how television interacted with each other in the 1980's is more instructive than funny, and is in it's own way an extension of his profile of the early blues players when he points out what can go right and how easily events and careers can go wrong. With the blues playing and recording the blues went wrong 99 % of the time, forcing the blues man to take up a day job to keep playing, and quite often give up playing altogether until better times rediscovered them. In the 1970's and 80's many musicians thought the times far better than before and they were talented and personally tough enough to try to make the music business work for them, but when the public did not buy their records and did not attend their concerts then the artist had no choice but to rethink what to do with their life. This sometimes meant short lives and short careers.
The song lists at the end, of songs of different genres -songs about American travel, songs for weddings, etc - were a perfunctory post script for what had been an at times thrilling and informative read. Though the index is the last item in the book; it is the mark of a good book that it has an index of names and song titles at the end, this one has nine closely typed pages of index.
The next batch of essays are about music-as-lifestyle. The most informative essay of which is titled 'Everything I know about The Blues', which is about lives more than lifestyles and packs in more information in solid biography and fact based assessments than I have read in many a while. The piece after that 'Everything I know about Rock TV' does what it is meant to do - pulls any reader with access to the internet towards youtube to see the material Hepworth is referring to. It was not long before I was looking up his appearances on Whistle Test (the 'Old Grey' part of the name going when Hepworth became a regular contributor in '81 or '82, though Hepworth first appeared on Whistle Test in Dec 1980.
What impressed me with 'Everything I know about The Blues' is Hepworth's effortless immersion of me as a reader into a music that was once so new and so unknown in the 1920's that at first it had no name, no fixed financial/remunerative structure for performers, and no music biz structure or fixed touring scheduling applied to it. It was a genre with no name, or identity. And whilst it's practitioners had names that would assume mythic proportions in future, the value of their names were valuable only to themselves at the time. The story of John Hammond seeking Robert Johnson out for the 1938 'From Spirituals to Swing' Carnegie Hall concert several months after Johnson had died in obscurity illustrates the value of a name going from ordinary to mythical proves my point. With no live Johnson John Hammond played the 78 rpm disc of Robert Johnson's 'The Walking Blues' to the audience.
His dry point of view on how well or poorly live music, musicians, and how television interacted with each other in the 1980's is more instructive than funny, and is in it's own way an extension of his profile of the early blues players when he points out what can go right and how easily events and careers can go wrong. With the blues playing and recording the blues went wrong 99 % of the time, forcing the blues man to take up a day job to keep playing, and quite often give up playing altogether until better times rediscovered them. In the 1970's and 80's many musicians thought the times far better than before and they were talented and personally tough enough to try to make the music business work for them, but when the public did not buy their records and did not attend their concerts then the artist had no choice but to rethink what to do with their life. This sometimes meant short lives and short careers.
The song lists at the end, of songs of different genres -songs about American travel, songs for weddings, etc - were a perfunctory post script for what had been an at times thrilling and informative read. Though the index is the last item in the book; it is the mark of a good book that it has an index of names and song titles at the end, this one has nine closely typed pages of index.
March 21, 2020
After reading 1984 recently, this was the perfect antidote. ‘Nothing is Real’ is the FOURTH volume about music I’ve read from David Hepworth, a veteran UK music journalist and brilliantly funny raconteur.
Nothing is Real one is more a collection of already published essays than the previous themed collections - 1971 (about the ‘greatest year’ in music, Uncommon People (about what makes rock stars tick) and A Fabulous Creation (about the now bygone era of the album) - but it has the same very dry and world-weary yet fond observations about rock and pop music from a man who grew up with it.
Hepworth is about nine years older than me (he was going to concerts in the early 60s) but so many of his observations had me nodding my head in firm agreement. The subtitle of the book is ‘The Beatles were Underrated’. What he means is the early Beatles. The Please Please Me to Help era Beatles - and I agree. The chapters on ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ (still my favourite Beatles album) and Ringo’s hugely overlooked talent as a drummer are full of rich insights.
But there’s humour aplenty as well, particularly in his observations about the longevity of the baby boomer rock icons. Hepworth loves pop music but doesn’t take it too seriously. I know it was a great music book because I kept stopping during his rhapsodising about Ringo’s drumming on ‘Ticket to Ride’ or John Lennon’s genius middle eight on ‘No Reply’ to open up Spotify and listen to the original tracks.
My favourite music writer by far.
Nothing is Real one is more a collection of already published essays than the previous themed collections - 1971 (about the ‘greatest year’ in music, Uncommon People (about what makes rock stars tick) and A Fabulous Creation (about the now bygone era of the album) - but it has the same very dry and world-weary yet fond observations about rock and pop music from a man who grew up with it.
Hepworth is about nine years older than me (he was going to concerts in the early 60s) but so many of his observations had me nodding my head in firm agreement. The subtitle of the book is ‘The Beatles were Underrated’. What he means is the early Beatles. The Please Please Me to Help era Beatles - and I agree. The chapters on ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ (still my favourite Beatles album) and Ringo’s hugely overlooked talent as a drummer are full of rich insights.
But there’s humour aplenty as well, particularly in his observations about the longevity of the baby boomer rock icons. Hepworth loves pop music but doesn’t take it too seriously. I know it was a great music book because I kept stopping during his rhapsodising about Ringo’s drumming on ‘Ticket to Ride’ or John Lennon’s genius middle eight on ‘No Reply’ to open up Spotify and listen to the original tracks.
My favourite music writer by far.
November 28, 2023
3.5 stars. I've enjoyed Hepworth's books on 1971, British rock stars in the U.S. during "classic rock," and the glory days 1967-82 of the LP. This fourth is a compendium of his shorter pieces. Some very much so, no more than a few paragraphs probably originated in online commentary. However, the title reveals not so much more Beatles musings--although these are typically thoughtful--buf a powerful essay on supposed authenticity in popular, and not so much as in niches for purists, music. He traces this obsession to John Lomax, who packaged Delta blues singers for the bearded, earnest, midcentury hip denizens of big city sophistication. Who wanted to hear the plight of the poor, the plants of the proletariat. He had Leadbelly, who preferred on the outside to dress to the nines, sometimes perform in his Angola Penitentiary striped uniform.
You may never look at Dylan, swoon over Tom Waits or The Boss, in the same way again. While not as tightly edited and thematically coherent as his full-length studies of rock mores and.pop pretending, it's best left to dip into after you've read his main three books to date. He repeats some anecdotes and recycles observations now and then, but Hepworth's nevertheless astute, amusing, and guardedly affectionate when it's merited for the ways that the "starmaking machinery" has shaped billions of us in the past decades. He makes you think, recollect, and chuckle.
You may never look at Dylan, swoon over Tom Waits or The Boss, in the same way again. While not as tightly edited and thematically coherent as his full-length studies of rock mores and.pop pretending, it's best left to dip into after you've read his main three books to date. He repeats some anecdotes and recycles observations now and then, but Hepworth's nevertheless astute, amusing, and guardedly affectionate when it's merited for the ways that the "starmaking machinery" has shaped billions of us in the past decades. He makes you think, recollect, and chuckle.
September 14, 2024
More like a 2.5. I bought this book five years ago just before starting an MA in Popular Music Research. One MA, several COVID lockdowns and three jobs later, I finally got round to it as it was starting to haunt my book shelf. In a way I’m glad I didn’t read it back then because my pompous academic ass would’ve been a lot less forgiving and way more critical. If you’re a stereotypical pop music nerd who loves The Beatles, Bob Dylan et al (aka the sixties and seventies white man parade) you’ll be lapping it up. If you’re a more progressive pop music nerd like me, you’ll be bothered about how this book is heavily subjective and sometimes downright absurd. That said here are some genuinely fascinating insights and opinions, especially about drummers and the role of pop music at funerals. Hepworth is a music journalist heavyweight and exemplifies the weird dynamic of pop music studies, where journalists are considered very important the academic space because they got there first. It’s not really an essay collection, more a bunch of short vignettes and thoughts on random pop topics compiled as a book. Very readable when you finally do get round to it but probably won’t age well.
January 25, 2020
Hepworth consistently falls short, just when you think he might take off. He has interesting perceptions, but doesn't follow through, loses his own thread or goes for a (usually not brilliant) joke instead of trying a bit harder and making himself and his reader think. He's compulsively down-to-earth. He loves pop music but is apparently a bit uncomfortable admitting it, so he emphasises its limitations. He should follow his heart and his head more, and stop worrying what people think of him.
I have to express my resentment, too, that his title makes such cheap use of the resonant phrase from Strawberry Fields Forever. This book is really nothing: just a compilation of bits and pieces of mostly hacky journalism, repetitive, heterogeneous yet narrow, anything but transcendent. He should have called it Warmed-Over Meat and Potatoes.
It's not bad; it could be much better. Must try harder (but won't).
I have to express my resentment, too, that his title makes such cheap use of the resonant phrase from Strawberry Fields Forever. This book is really nothing: just a compilation of bits and pieces of mostly hacky journalism, repetitive, heterogeneous yet narrow, anything but transcendent. He should have called it Warmed-Over Meat and Potatoes.
It's not bad; it could be much better. Must try harder (but won't).
August 30, 2020
Hepworth is one of those writers who ruins lesser writers for you. Having read this one immediately after I read a book about rock music in the sixties and seventies by one such writer, it was like going from canned tuna to lobster (or for you vegans, like going from a fistful of bean sprouts to a veggie burger).
Among the author's insights are about how teenage boys and teenage girls used to differ on how they evaluated new music, something that I found to be so accurate it was spooky. He does all this while being engaging and entertaining.
The book is a collection of his essays about pop and rock music, and if songs have meant a lot to you during your life, and you grew up in the sixties or seventies, you're going to love this. If you're younger? Well, then it depends on how much enthusiasm you have for the musical culture of your parents.
Among the author's insights are about how teenage boys and teenage girls used to differ on how they evaluated new music, something that I found to be so accurate it was spooky. He does all this while being engaging and entertaining.
The book is a collection of his essays about pop and rock music, and if songs have meant a lot to you during your life, and you grew up in the sixties or seventies, you're going to love this. If you're younger? Well, then it depends on how much enthusiasm you have for the musical culture of your parents.
January 28, 2022
Basically a collection of previously published (or read) short pieces from various sources, this is light Hepworth fare, but his observations and opinions on the entertainment business (mostly music, of course) are always trenchant and entertaining, even if you don’t agree with them, though he’s always persuasive.
His stock-in-trade remains making a fairly outrageous statement (“The Beatles are underrated”), and then backing it up from his vast musical knowledge, industry experience, and reservoirs of anecdotes. It’s in the nature of things that it lacks the consistent “through-line” that is present in his “real” books (I highly recommend “1971”, upon which the recent Apple TV documentary series was based), but it’s still a decent stocking-filler for the music fan in your life.
His stock-in-trade remains making a fairly outrageous statement (“The Beatles are underrated”), and then backing it up from his vast musical knowledge, industry experience, and reservoirs of anecdotes. It’s in the nature of things that it lacks the consistent “through-line” that is present in his “real” books (I highly recommend “1971”, upon which the recent Apple TV documentary series was based), but it’s still a decent stocking-filler for the music fan in your life.
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