At its best, sublime. Be prepared for patches (but very few) of tedium. Paul Kelly, one of the best singer songwriters around, uses a selection of his songs as portals to events in his life and ideas in his head. Lyrics are printed at the opening of each chapter; if you know the songs you know also that reading the lyrics does them poor justice. Highly recommend acquiring the companion recording if you don't already have a complete Paul Kelly collection (I do). Ultimately the book succeeds as a work of integration by weaving together memoir, pop psychology, historical witness, and a critical analysis of musicality from an insider perspective. I always thought Paul Kelly was very mean looking and was a little hesitant about him, but this extraordinary autobiography has made me warm to him so much. He comes across as such a sensitive person, so passionate about words, music, life. He is also very well read so this is kind of a scrapbook of all the threads, people, musicians, books, poems and places that have led to his songs. He himself admits that writing a song is the art of patchwork and that cliches are a writer's best friends. The cover is confronting, but this takes you deep into who he is, and what Australia is too. An inspiring handbook for any creative person.
What do You think about How To Make Gravy (2010)?
So sorry this book had to end, I could have kept going. Loved it!
—demotendo
Some great bits, but a lot of musician chit chat.
—anni
