Reach for the Stars: 1996–2006: Fame, Fallout and Pop’s Final Party: A Times Summer Read 2023
£11.20£12.30 (-9%)
A Guardian 50 Best Holiday Reads 2023
‘This really is a wonderful book for pop kids everywhere’ – RICHARD OSMAN
Using the arrival of the Spice Girls as a jumping-off point, this fascinating new narrative will explore, celebrate and contextualise the thus-far-uncharted period of British pop that flourished between 1996 and 2006. A double-denim-loving time before the glare of social media and the accession of streaming.
The bastions of ’00s pop – armed with buoyant, immaculately crafted, carefree anthems – provided entertainment, escapism and fun for millions. It was a heady, chorus-heavy decade – populated by the likes of Steps, S Club 7, Blue, 5ive, Mis-Teeq, Hear’Say, Busted, Girls Aloud, McFly, Craig David and Atomic Kitten, among countless others – yet the music was often dismissed as inauthentic, juvenile, not ‘worthy’ enough: ultimately, a ‘guilty pleasure’.
Now, music writer Michael Cragg aims to redress that balance. Using the oral-history format, Cragg goes beneath the surface of the bubblegum exterior, speaking to hundred’s of the key players about the reality of their experiences.
Compiled from interviews with popstars, songwriters, producers, choreographers, magazine editors, record-company executives, TV moguls and more, this is a complete behind-the-scenes history of the last great movement in British pop – a technicolour turning-point ripe for re-evaluation, documented here in astonishing, honest and eye-opening detail.
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Additional information
| Publisher | Nine Eight Books (12 Oct. 2023) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 560 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 1788707273 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1788707275 |
| Dimensions | 12.9 x 2.9 x 19.8 cm |
by A viewer
I must admit, and this is my fault entirely, when I preordered the book I presumed it was going to be an author revisiting and critically evaluating a period and a sound that I love. I hadn’t spotted that it would take the form of an oral history. So, at first, I was a bit disappointed when I realised this format was going to be the format of the entire book. And indeed opening with the Spice Girls story – one we’re all pretty familiar with by this point – didn’t really provide much new insight.
But then, once I got used to the format, and the chopping and changing of voices (the who’s who section at the start is essential) and anecdotes, it built into a definitive text on this wonderful era and many – but not all – of the acts who soundtracked it. I read it pretty quickly, and I gleefully devoured the anecdotes detailing how savagely Jenny replaced Kerry in Atomic Kitten.
I’d thoroughly recommend this as a – to date – definitive text of pop music in this era. It wasn’t what I expected, but it’s intelligently edited by the author, who has pieced together a compelling narrative from evidently lots of hard work, research and interviews. The respect – for source music that doesn’t often get respect – shines through.
However, I really loved the sections that were voiced by the author – personal reflections about the era, and witty scene-setting and chapter introductions. It got me thinking that, were the author to one day consider writing that book I was originally expecting, I might enjoy that even more.
by JKM
From first reading about this book I was excited and it did not disappoint. Cragg is clearly a fan of this pop decade, which shines through. He balances explaining the innovation, changes and excitement of what was happening in pop music at this time but doesn’t shy away from some of pop’s less savoury elements. Reading about celebrities behind forced to come out, hide their sexuality and pop stars struggling with their mental health had a significant impact for those effected and wasn’t spoken about at that time. It’s good Cragg has included these voices in his book.
The book covers 1996 to 2006 to varying levels of detail. There’s a short chapter on being hungover on morning television. I’m not sure there was much else to say on the subject.
Overall, a great read that gives the people involved at the time I chance to put across their versions of events and celebrates pop music from the time in all its glory.
by Kindle-klant
I pre-ordered the book for me and my bestie as we were and are still massive 90’s popfans. At first I was a bit disappointed for the lack of pictures (I sort of thought I could walk through memory lane with never-seen-before pics), but after the first chapter, I was just hooked. Of course, I knew most of the stories, the ups and downs but what was poignant was how tough the industry and media were (and still are to some extent) on how a popstar looked and how little attention was paid to one’s physical and mental well-being. I was just shocked because all these people just brought lively, cheerful and good music into my life. Without getting into too much details, this is a must-read for 90’s popfans. I devoured the book in two weeks (had to go to work in between readings). The book is packed full of quotes, fun facts, sad anecdotes and reveals how tough the pop music industry can be.
by Robert McColl Millar
I bought this because of the press it received. I’m too old to know many of the songs and artists discussed (although I remembered more than I thought I would. when I was the same age as most of the artists mentioned here, I would not have been able to cope with half the stress these artists survived. They have my respect. The discussion of the X factor and its aftermath made for quite harrowing reading at times. It would be good to read an honest and in-depth discussion and analysis of the process from the artists’ point of view.
by Tina
Really great read. Loved it, a must if you are a pop fan.
by Martina Gruppo
Very interesting. Written in a way you can pick it up at anytime. Louis Walsh exactly who I imagined. A tit.