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Slade in Flame
Flame Pidgeon, John
- GenresMusic
158 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1975
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
July 27, 2019
I loved Slade when they hit my consciousness as a glam rock obsessed 10 year old in 1972. In the past few years I've read and enjoyed 'So Here It Is: How the Boy From Wolverhampton Rocked the World With Slade' by Slade’s guitarist, and legendary Super Yob, Dave Hill, along with 'Look Wot I Dun: My Life In Slade' by Slade’s drummer Don Powell and Lise Lyng Falkenberg.
I grew up with Slade and bought all of their classic 1970s singles with my pocket money as a 10-13 year old glam fan. This is Dave Thompson capturing what is great about Slade…
…“in contrast to Marc Bolan’s fey cerebral other-worldliness, Slade were totally common, out-of-town yobbos intent on raising hell everywhere they went. Slade’s songs weren’t music, they were aural graffiti, slabs of working class consciousness spray painted across the wall of the Establishment, each new song more misspelled than the last”
In late Summer of 1974, Slade, at the peak of their fame, made the film Slade In Flame. The film was a mild success in the UK and generally dismissed by critics at the time but, in the intervening years, it has achieved critical and cult acclaim. The film's dark and gritty portrayal of the music business is not what most fans were expecting and that must have contributed to the film's modest success on its release.
Critic Mark Kermode states Slade in Flame is one of his favourite films describing it as the Citizen Kane of British pop movies.
Once the Flame film was complete, a novel was commissioned - Slade in Flame by John Pidgeon - based on the original screenplay by Andrew Birkin. John Pidgeon based it closely on the film script but made it tougher. The sex and violence were beefed up.
Slade in Flame was published by Panther Books in January 1975 and sold 150,000 copies in 1975. "Pretty good for any book" said Nick Webb, the editorial executive at Panther Books at the time.
I really enjoyed the novelised version of the Slade in Flame tale. The story involves the rise of the group Flame, who start as two separate groups, from local gigs to the big time. They are given a helping hand by a wealthy patron who wants to apply his branding techniques to marketing a pop group. Lurking in the background is the group's old manager, a gangster, who tries to get a cut of the action. Tensions within the group emerge as they become more successful. It's a cynical and world weary view of the music business. The film informed how I saw it all in my mind's eye but that is no bad thing. The book doesn't really add much to the film but is no less enjoyable for that. If you have fond memories of Slade, or the film, then I can guarantee you'll enjoy reading the story too.
4/5
Flame (1975) by John Pidgeon
I grew up with Slade and bought all of their classic 1970s singles with my pocket money as a 10-13 year old glam fan. This is Dave Thompson capturing what is great about Slade…
…“in contrast to Marc Bolan’s fey cerebral other-worldliness, Slade were totally common, out-of-town yobbos intent on raising hell everywhere they went. Slade’s songs weren’t music, they were aural graffiti, slabs of working class consciousness spray painted across the wall of the Establishment, each new song more misspelled than the last”
In late Summer of 1974, Slade, at the peak of their fame, made the film Slade In Flame. The film was a mild success in the UK and generally dismissed by critics at the time but, in the intervening years, it has achieved critical and cult acclaim. The film's dark and gritty portrayal of the music business is not what most fans were expecting and that must have contributed to the film's modest success on its release.
Critic Mark Kermode states Slade in Flame is one of his favourite films describing it as the Citizen Kane of British pop movies.
Once the Flame film was complete, a novel was commissioned - Slade in Flame by John Pidgeon - based on the original screenplay by Andrew Birkin. John Pidgeon based it closely on the film script but made it tougher. The sex and violence were beefed up.
Slade in Flame was published by Panther Books in January 1975 and sold 150,000 copies in 1975. "Pretty good for any book" said Nick Webb, the editorial executive at Panther Books at the time.
I really enjoyed the novelised version of the Slade in Flame tale. The story involves the rise of the group Flame, who start as two separate groups, from local gigs to the big time. They are given a helping hand by a wealthy patron who wants to apply his branding techniques to marketing a pop group. Lurking in the background is the group's old manager, a gangster, who tries to get a cut of the action. Tensions within the group emerge as they become more successful. It's a cynical and world weary view of the music business. The film informed how I saw it all in my mind's eye but that is no bad thing. The book doesn't really add much to the film but is no less enjoyable for that. If you have fond memories of Slade, or the film, then I can guarantee you'll enjoy reading the story too.
4/5
Flame (1975) by John Pidgeon
June 29, 2022
Got this book for my birthday in 1976 or 77... Maybe Xmas 1976? At that time I was hovering between dying glam, hard rock like AC/DC and the burgeoning punk rock phenomenon...
Loved it. Loved Slade. The violence in the novel was very graphic - I have a strong memory of someone getting their todger "dismembered".
I didn't see the movie until early 1978, and it was very tame by comparison to the book. Actually I was surprised to get into to see it (in Melbourne Australia) as I'd assumed it would be Rated "R", but the violence was considerably less than I remember from the book.
Still listen to Slade some of the time, still have "Sladest" album on vinyl (and I still play vinyl sometimes, and still collecting it).
I've no idea what happened to my copy of this paperback of this novel. Buckley's chance of getting it as an e-book I guess (I only read e-books these days - shonky eyesight).
I must watch the movie again... Just watched "Get Carter", love British gangster movies (and Caine reminds me a bit of Noddy Holder - or vice versa).
Loved it. Loved Slade. The violence in the novel was very graphic - I have a strong memory of someone getting their todger "dismembered".
I didn't see the movie until early 1978, and it was very tame by comparison to the book. Actually I was surprised to get into to see it (in Melbourne Australia) as I'd assumed it would be Rated "R", but the violence was considerably less than I remember from the book.
Still listen to Slade some of the time, still have "Sladest" album on vinyl (and I still play vinyl sometimes, and still collecting it).
I've no idea what happened to my copy of this paperback of this novel. Buckley's chance of getting it as an e-book I guess (I only read e-books these days - shonky eyesight).
I must watch the movie again... Just watched "Get Carter", love British gangster movies (and Caine reminds me a bit of Noddy Holder - or vice versa).
Read
January 2, 2011The book of the film so long ago I can't remember all that much about it, except it was much more meaty than the film! Perhaps due another read?
February 8, 2016
The book was written after the movie, but it is sooo much better! The movie would have been much more interesting if the book had come first!
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews