Johnny Rogan (1953–2021)

This book is 400 pages long (well, my UK paperback copy is, anyway), and I didn't think I was sufficiently interested in pop management to read all 400 pages. I expected to dip into the chapters for the managers and bands that most interested me. But I ended up reading it cover to cover, as Rogan tells such a good story. Very well researched with lots of exclusive interviews with the characters. Rogan was homeless for much of the time he wrote this -- I don't get the impression he wrote it show more to get rich, and the book is delightfully free of sensationalism. show less

I'm a big fan of Rogan as a rock biographer and historian. Once again his depth of research is impressive, particularly on the early Belfast years which are covered at length (to give an idea of the emphasis, by half way through Van has only recorded his first solo album, Astral Weeks). But I can't avoid the feeling that is a mean-spirited portrait of its subject, which fails to convey what's special about him. We get Van in the 1970s as a curmudgeon in New York and California, in the '80s show more as a curmudgeon on a vague spiritual quest, and in the '90s as a curmudgeon flirting and then withdrawing from the Dublin social scene. Few people from any stage of his career have a good word to say about him. Rogan's criticisms of the man all seem to be viewed through the same narrow lens; he is unimpressed by all but two or three of his albums, dismissive of his pretensions as a writer/poet/teacher/mystic. In search of a hook to hang this picture on, Rogan alights on the comparison with Ian Paisley: he sets this up at the beginning of the book, but manifestly fails to make it stick in the rest of the narrative. So Van is a conceited, socially awkward and titanically stubborn curmudgeon... What makes him stand out among other curmudgeons? How has he won such a following, and built such a long career despite pissing off everyone he meets? These are questions that No Surrender leaves begging. show less

Very good attempt at a biography of a difficult man although it did leave me wondering if there was actually any point attempting to characterise such an essentially unknowable person. Contains plenty of fascinating background detail on the Belfast of Morrison's youth but a slightly dubious thread runs through the whole thing linking his personality to that of Unionist fanatic Ian Paisley. No wonder Van didn't like it!

This is a very detailed biography of primarily Morrissey, despite the title. At times he manages to make claims for what Mozza was doing on a particular date during his school days, without ever providing a source or hint of how he knows. This is intriguing, but the same level of detail becomes, frankly, a little boring when applied to the comings & goings of The Smiths various business managers. Its Morrissey we’re interested in, but inevitably the essence of Mozz still escapes us, show more despite all the digging & detail. show less