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I Don't Fit In: My Wild Ride Through the Punk & Power Pop Trenches with the NERVES and the BEAT
Paul Collins' memoir covering the early Punk and Power Pop scenes in Los Angeles and San Francisco in the 1970s. Throughout the 1980s with The Beat, and up to the present day.
- GenresMusic
272 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2020
46 people want to read
About the author
Paul Collins
255 books92 followersPaul Collins has written many books, mostly for younger readers. He is best known for his fantasy and science fiction titles: The Jelindel Chronicles (Dragonlinks, Dragonfang, Dragonsight and Wardragon), and The Quentaris Chronicles ─ co-edited with Michael Pryor ─ (Swords of Quentaris, Slaves of Quentaris, Dragonlords of Quentaris, Princess of Shadows, The Forgotten Prince, Vampires of Quentaris and The Spell of Undoing). His trade books published in America are The Earthborn, The Skyborn and The Hiveborn.
Paul has edited many anthologies which include Trust Me!, Metaworlds and Australia’s first fantasy anthology, Dream Weavers. He also edited The MUP Encyclopaedia of Australian SF&F.
Paul has been short-listed for many awards and has won the Inaugural Peter McNamara and the A Bertram Chandler awards, both of which were for lifetime achievement in science fiction, and the Aurealis and William Atheling awards.
His recent fantasy series is The World of Grrym (Allira’s Gift, Lords of Quibbitt and Morgassa’s Folly), in collaboration with Danny Willis. His latest YA book is The Only Game in the Galaxy, Book #3 in The Maximus Black Files.
His book, Slaves of Quentaris, features in 1001 Children’s Books You Must Read Before You Die (UK, 2009).
Paul’s adult books are the anthology The Government in Exile and Cyberskin. His current adult horror novel, The Beckoning, Damnation Books (US) is available from http://tinyurl.com/ny6urwy.
Other than his writing, Paul is the publisher at Ford Street Publishing, publishing everything from picture books through to young adult literature, and he manages Creative Net, a speakers’ agency.
Paul’s websites are: www.paulcollins.com.au; www.fordstreetpublishing.com and www.fordstreetpublishing.com/cnet
Awards
1980s — 2000s a handful of nominations for Best Editor and Best Short Fiction in the Australian SF Achievement Awards
1999— Winner William Atheling Award for work on The MUP Encyclopaedia of Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy; Shortlisted for the Aurealis Convenors’ Award.
2000— The Dog King, Notable Book Children’s Book Council; Shortlisted for the Clayton’s Award.
2001— Winner of the Aurealis Convenors’ Award (With Co-editor Meredith Costain) for Spinouts Bronze published by Pearson Education. Joint winner was Shaun Tan for The Lost Thing.
2002 — Winner of the inaugural Peter McNamara Award for lifetime achievement in SF.
2004 — Home Run (Illustrated by Connah Brecon), Notable Book, Children’s Book Council.
2009 -- Morgassa's Folly (in collaboration with Danny Willis), short-listed for the Chronos Award.
2010 -- The Slightly Skewed Life of Toby Chrysler, short-listed for The Speech Pathology Award.
2011 -- The Glasshouse (illustrated by Jo Thompson) chosen by international IBBY as an Outstanding Book; short-listed for the CBC's Crichton Award.
2011 --Awarded the A Bertram Chandler Award for Lifetime Achievement in Australian Science Fiction.
Paul has edited many anthologies which include Trust Me!, Metaworlds and Australia’s first fantasy anthology, Dream Weavers. He also edited The MUP Encyclopaedia of Australian SF&F.
Paul has been short-listed for many awards and has won the Inaugural Peter McNamara and the A Bertram Chandler awards, both of which were for lifetime achievement in science fiction, and the Aurealis and William Atheling awards.
His recent fantasy series is The World of Grrym (Allira’s Gift, Lords of Quibbitt and Morgassa’s Folly), in collaboration with Danny Willis. His latest YA book is The Only Game in the Galaxy, Book #3 in The Maximus Black Files.
His book, Slaves of Quentaris, features in 1001 Children’s Books You Must Read Before You Die (UK, 2009).
Paul’s adult books are the anthology The Government in Exile and Cyberskin. His current adult horror novel, The Beckoning, Damnation Books (US) is available from http://tinyurl.com/ny6urwy.
Other than his writing, Paul is the publisher at Ford Street Publishing, publishing everything from picture books through to young adult literature, and he manages Creative Net, a speakers’ agency.
Paul’s websites are: www.paulcollins.com.au; www.fordstreetpublishing.com and www.fordstreetpublishing.com/cnet
Awards
1980s — 2000s a handful of nominations for Best Editor and Best Short Fiction in the Australian SF Achievement Awards
1999— Winner William Atheling Award for work on The MUP Encyclopaedia of Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy; Shortlisted for the Aurealis Convenors’ Award.
2000— The Dog King, Notable Book Children’s Book Council; Shortlisted for the Clayton’s Award.
2001— Winner of the Aurealis Convenors’ Award (With Co-editor Meredith Costain) for Spinouts Bronze published by Pearson Education. Joint winner was Shaun Tan for The Lost Thing.
2002 — Winner of the inaugural Peter McNamara Award for lifetime achievement in SF.
2004 — Home Run (Illustrated by Connah Brecon), Notable Book, Children’s Book Council.
2009 -- Morgassa's Folly (in collaboration with Danny Willis), short-listed for the Chronos Award.
2010 -- The Slightly Skewed Life of Toby Chrysler, short-listed for The Speech Pathology Award.
2011 -- The Glasshouse (illustrated by Jo Thompson) chosen by international IBBY as an Outstanding Book; short-listed for the CBC's Crichton Award.
2011 --Awarded the A Bertram Chandler Award for Lifetime Achievement in Australian Science Fiction.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 25, 2023
As a fan it’s hard not to love this one… a story about someone who never really “made it” yet still has made an indelible mark on American music. It’s heartbreaking and honest.
February 12, 2021
Who are the Nerves and why are we still talking about them? In 1976 they released their one and only single EP, made a ground-breaking self-organized tour of the US and broke up. Their music didn’t really fit in with the mid 1970s and they weren’t accepted by the early punk bands either. But Paul Collins, Jack Lee and Peter Case had struck a blow for rock & roll that may have not hit with the sledgehammer power of the Ramones and Pistols, but still resonated with tons of kids across the country. They may have been embarrassed by the term, but they invented power pop.
I was one of those kids that plunked down $3 for that Nerves EP even though they looked really lost on that cover as opposed to the ultra-cool and threatening bands like the Ramones in their leather jackets. But the Nerves sounded cool – their music rocked and they sure knew how to write a great three-minute song. By the time Blondie rescued them with a cover of “Hanging On the Telephone” that became a huge hit the Nerves were gone.
But this was just the beginning for Paul Collins and he takes us on wild and crazy ride through the punk & power pop trenches in another excellent release from Holzac Books. After the Nerves he created the Beat (or the Paul Collins Beat) and continued to write and perform brilliant rock & roll. The Beat didn’t sell too many records either, but built a legion of fans throughout the USA and Europe through touring and releasing great music. Paul Collin’s journey through life was never straightforward, but he always found himself returning to music and continuing to perform and record till today. His stories about the road and his fractured relationships with the ex-Nerves give us a glimpse into the troubles and joys of being a musician. The writing is both poignant and hilarious as Jack Lee seems to pop in as in a King Fu episode to give Paul another lecture on life. The disastrous reunion tour with Peter Case and the aborted Nerves documentary both show that maybe reunions aren’t always a great idea. The impact of Paul Collins on rock & roll is immense and the impact of this book on you will be the same.
I was lucky enough to see Pail Collins perform in Austin a few years ago and was amazed at the talent and heart that he brings to every song. I’m busy now tracking down the records of his that I don’t have to relive that show.
Finally, I have to give special thanks to Holzac Books and Records. They publish fantastic books about rock & roll that are a joy to read and re-read and they release records that go along with these books. Holzac also released a Paul Collins single and provided a soundtrack for the book. What could possibly be better!!!!!!
I was one of those kids that plunked down $3 for that Nerves EP even though they looked really lost on that cover as opposed to the ultra-cool and threatening bands like the Ramones in their leather jackets. But the Nerves sounded cool – their music rocked and they sure knew how to write a great three-minute song. By the time Blondie rescued them with a cover of “Hanging On the Telephone” that became a huge hit the Nerves were gone.
But this was just the beginning for Paul Collins and he takes us on wild and crazy ride through the punk & power pop trenches in another excellent release from Holzac Books. After the Nerves he created the Beat (or the Paul Collins Beat) and continued to write and perform brilliant rock & roll. The Beat didn’t sell too many records either, but built a legion of fans throughout the USA and Europe through touring and releasing great music. Paul Collin’s journey through life was never straightforward, but he always found himself returning to music and continuing to perform and record till today. His stories about the road and his fractured relationships with the ex-Nerves give us a glimpse into the troubles and joys of being a musician. The writing is both poignant and hilarious as Jack Lee seems to pop in as in a King Fu episode to give Paul another lecture on life. The disastrous reunion tour with Peter Case and the aborted Nerves documentary both show that maybe reunions aren’t always a great idea. The impact of Paul Collins on rock & roll is immense and the impact of this book on you will be the same.
I was lucky enough to see Pail Collins perform in Austin a few years ago and was amazed at the talent and heart that he brings to every song. I’m busy now tracking down the records of his that I don’t have to relive that show.
Finally, I have to give special thanks to Holzac Books and Records. They publish fantastic books about rock & roll that are a joy to read and re-read and they release records that go along with these books. Holzac also released a Paul Collins single and provided a soundtrack for the book. What could possibly be better!!!!!!
December 17, 2020
An entertaining read. It took me longer to read than it probably should have, but I went back and re-read all the reproduced articles. That print was small man. Some cool info about the early years of underground American rock and illuminating insights into just how much better artists have in over in Europe
February 9, 2021
Excellent read of what it’s like to pursue your musical dream only often to have your plans thwarted by musical differences, band politics, promoter/record internecine infighting. As I read further—closing in on the end—I was afraid that this would end like most Korean revenge movies: nobody gets out alive. Happily, I was wrong. This is great storytelling; what a life!
December 28, 2020
Most music memoirs are pretty awful, but this is a good one. Many great stories and it's well-written.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews