The Creation Records Story: My Magpie Eyes are Hungry for the Prize
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‘The greatest book ever written on British independent music’ Guardian
‘One of the best British music books of the last ten years’ Mojo
Founded by Alan McGee in 1983, Creation Records achieved notoriety as the home of Primal Scream, the Jesus and Mary Chain and other anti-Establishment acts. During the Britpop boom of the mid-90s, the astonishing success of Oasis brought Creation fame on the world stage. In 1999, however, McGee announced his shock departure as his label’s influence over a generation of British music came to a confusing and disappointing end. Containing interviews with Creation musicians, employees, supporters and detractors, this is the inside story of Creation Records – and of British music since the 1980s.
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Additional information
| Publisher | Faber & Faber, Main edition (6 July 2023) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 752 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 0571362532 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0571362530 |
| Dimensions | 15.3 x 4.2 x 23.4 cm |
by JC
Haven’t read a lot of music books but this is by far the best music biography I’ve read. Cavanagh distinguishes himself from Simon Reynolds and Jon Savage by concentrating on the mechanics of the music industry, rather than employing the dubious technique of trying to infer wider social meaning from musical trends. The indie music scene involved a production and distribution model that was, at its most ambitious in the case of Rough Trade, autonomous from the major corporate record companies. Cavanagh explores how those early punk experiments in DIY music production (early Postcard, but the author includes several other labels) ultimately fell victim to the punk ethic itself, and then (in 1983) the unholy alliance of Geoff Travis, Mike Alway and Warners’ Rob Dickens. Alan McGee cuts a rather puerile and pathetic figure by comparison, a Thatcherite narcissist driven by resentment and “ambition”, like the unlovable Jesus and Mary Chain who he spent much of the early 1980s trying to start his “revolution” with. There can be few more complete guides to the subject, and it helps that the book is unpretentious and superbly written with a delicious sense of humour and eye for the absurd.
by Hud
So many of the bands in this book my brother and I saw, bought their records or followed them passionately through the dark nights that is England. In the case of Felt, that band and their music changed my life.
That Cavanaugh has worked so hard to collect this detail is amazing. I dont care about the end of Creation when McGee is taking drugs (I just couldn’t ever sympathise with him, he seems so unlikeable) and selling out to Sony.
The first half of the book though is fantastic starting with impact of punk on the scottish music scene and how that got McGee going and starting the Living Room down in London.
I had a chance to join a Creation band but turned it down. Well we all make mistakes.
If you like the music that was “indie” from 1980 to 1995, and you’ve survived all those late night gigs and enduring the awful train lines of England, I would recommend this book, a huge huge YES.
by Kay
Great for a univeristy essay on Creation, covers a lot of the company VERY long book not a casual read.
by Westpier
Seeing as Alan McGee’s book has just come out I thought I’d give a heads-up to this book. I found it a great read, detailed about the bands relationships with the label and how the office politics changed at Creation (more interesting than that sounds – honest). The great thing about Cavanagh is his objectivity something missing from the awful Hewitt/McGee book put out at the same time. I’m hoping the new McGee book gives a better insight than the previous one.
by MD
The size of a house brick, this book was a labour of love in the reading and, no doubt, in the writing.
I’m no major fan of Creation, nor of the majority of its bands, but I lap up music history and have been an admirer of David Cavanagh’s writing since his days on Sounds. So I burdened Postie and ordered a copy. And had a job putting it down.
This is a chronological account of the label’s genesis-to-demise, veering off willfully on tangents to present back-stories. It’s packed with anecdote – who knew that the House of Love’s Guy Chadwick had a thing for getting naked at parties? – and interview, with band members, Creation staff and interested parties, while maintaining an authoritative air. Incredibly, given its near 800 pages, it’s not exhaustive. Tim Vass, for instance, who is quoted often as having been an early mover on the scene, formed a band, Razorcuts, who were signed to Creation – who fail to get a mention. A lesser author would have slavishly documented each and every act in writing *The* Creation Records Story. My Magpie Eyes… is more of a soap opera, played out for real.
Neither is the book sensationalist – whatever that appallingly designed cover might suggest – the heavy cocaine use being documented rather than drooled over, with Oasis appearing only two-thirds in. (Neither Noel nor Liam provided original quotes and you wonder why.)
Forensic in its detail, vibrant in its colour, featuring a cast of trailblazers and madmen, this is a must-read for any budding music historian.
by M. Slade
This 730-page book arrived on a Friday afternoon and I started reading it more or less immediately. It’s now 10:17pm on Sunday, and I’ve just hit page 600. It’s wonderfully readable – both in style and content – and hugely informative too. I’ve read a few books claiming to explain how music industry works, but this one’s by far the best. A very impressive achievement and one which deserves classic status.