Written
by Clinton Heylin and published in November 2012, “All the Madmen: Barrett,
Bowie, Drake, the Floyd, The Kinks, The Who and a Journey to the Dark Side of
English Rock” puts the microscope on six of English rocks biggest stars, who in
the years following the often mythicized “Summer of Love” experienced various
problems with their mental wellbeing, while often battling to maintain their
sanity. In this fascinating and insightful read, Heylin explores the drug
problems of Syd Barrett and Peter Green, the battle David Bowie faced over his
identity in the guise of Ziggy Satrdust, the depression faced by Nick Drake and
Ray Davies often in response to their lack of commercial success, and the eccentricity
of Pete Townshend. Heylin also looks into how these musicians were able to take
their own personal experiences and use them as fuel for their work,
highlighting how during this period (the early 1970s) these great musicians
used their somewhat fragile state of minds to produce some of the greatest British
albums of all time. He puts the spotlight on the making of albums such as
Quadrophenia, Ziggy Stardust, and The Dark Side of the Moon looking into the influences
behind these albums and the themes they explore, as well as how a lot of the
music on these albums came about as a response to how the likes of Bowie and
Townshend were feeling at the time. This book is very well researched and pays
great attention to detail in its subject matter, while Heylin does a good job
in presenting what can often be sensitive areas to go into including the issues
of drug abuse and mental illness in a carefully considered manner. I would recommend
"All the Madmen" to anyone interested in rock history, as well as those
interested in the psychological side of music making. "All the Madmen" is a
highly informative and interesting read that examines an area which is often
overlooked in rock history, the madness and mystery of its participants, and
how psychology and self-examination came to play a massive role in influencing
the art that was created.
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