Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978-1984

by Simon Reynolds

Book Overview

A landmark history of post-punk, the basis of the documentary film directed by Nikolaos Katranis

Renowned music journalist Simon Reynolds celebrates the futurist spirit of such bands as Joy Division, Gang of Four, Talking Heads, and Devo, which resulted in endless innovations in music, lyrics, performance, and style and continued into the early eighties with the video-savvy synth-pop of groups such as Human League, Depeche Mode, and...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0143036726
• ISBN13: 9780143036722
• Release Date: February 2006
• Publisher: Penguin Books
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.5" x 8.4"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

A great read

Reynold's book is a fascinating and thoroughly enjoyable read- far more so than it ought to be, given its length (well, the UK version anyway, which runs to over 540 pages), and the fact that the book's momentum is carried forward more by the author's enthusiasm and writing ability than by any compelling thesis. Reynold's claim is that the late 70s/early 80s was a kind of golden era for music, a claim which hardly holds any water, because it boils down to his being a teenager during the period in question, hence viewing the whole shebang through rose-tinted spectacles. Its true that this period gave us Joy Division, Pere Ubu, Television and Talking Heads. But it also gave us a lot of crap too (Bow Wow Wow, ABC etc), as well as the massively over-rated PiL and the oh-so-pretentious Scritti Politti, both of whom Reynolds spends a lot of time on. I think the bottom line is that if you analyse any period with the kind of obsessive detail which Reynolds does here, you're bound to unearth a lot of interesting material. And Reynolds has certainly done that, due in no small part to his obsessive love for the period in question. And this ossession is what drives the book, making it such a great read. The prose brims with passion- particularly in his descriptions of the music itself, which are superb throughout. I particularly liked his description of the "flinty peal" of Will Sergeant's lead guitar on Echo & The Bunnymen's debut LP, and Peter Hook's compressed bass-line on She's Lost Control (described as like a "steel cable" running through the song.) He even manages to get excited about describing the sound of Trevor Horn's Fairlight sampler on Frankie Goes to Hollwood's "Relax." (Now that's what I call obsessive!) In addition to this musical nous, Reynolds also offers some enlightening intellectual and socio-historical context, albeit a rather summary overview. It seems from the other reviewers that the US version has been cut. I'm not terribly surprised by this, as there's some pretty disturbing stuff in here. The early 80s music scene (like any underground scene, I guess)had its fair share of psychos and misfits. Some of the "musicians" here were admirers of Charles Manson, The Moors Murderers, and Hitler. Somewhat less extreme (although no less distasteful) was Devo's support for hardcore pornography, proclaiming that it was the only means for the working-classes to get "real" sex (conveniently passing over the porn industry's constitutive exploitation and misogyny). Most shocking of all was Malcolm McLaren's (thwarted) attempt to set up what could only be described as a magazine for paedophiles in the early 80s. Reynolds avoids making too much of this, partly because to moralise would be rather un-rock'n'roll, but mainly because he entertains a rather naive idea of the avant-garde as a kind of playground for adults, where "anything goes." (This hand-me-down idea was particularly fruitful for the rock'n'roll lfestyle). Having s

Seems Great

Let me admit right up front that I am not a fan of 95% of the music chronicled in this book. But several of my friends are, so I thought I'd dip into it to see if it would make a nice gift. With that in mind, I read the one chapter that covers music I really love, the chapter about the rapid rise and fall of the 2-Tone ska movement. Those twenty pages were enough to convince me that Reynolds is best kind of music writer, able to write evocatively about the music itself while providing the social, economic, and political context for its creation. He hits the nail firmly on the head in his analysis of The Specials' songs as "cheerless" -- tying them to social-realist cinema and the bleak post-WWII concrete jungle of their native Coventry. Reynolds also does a nice job of describing the origins of ska, it's development in England, and rather complicated ties to the mod and skinhead subcultures. He's also brimming with details about the major bands and why it all fell apart so quickly. Two quibbles do present themselves. One is that some of the transitions are a bit choppy, and I later learned that the US edition I read is an abridged version of the UK edition (nowhere is this obviously stated on the US edition). Some 300+ pages were cut, which would explain some of the choppiness I found, and I have to say that I'll be buying the more expensive UK version for my friends. The second reservation I have with the book is the total lack of documentation. It's great to quote Dammers, Hall, Staple, and all these other musicians, but it would be nice to know where these quotes came from so that one could do follow-up reading or research -- there's not even a bibliography! These cavaets of abrdigement and referencing aside, this appears to be an excellent, well-written account of an overlooked era of music history and should stand as the definitive work for many years to come.

Great book with only a few omissions....

Wow, a book that actually means something! This has been quite an enjoyable read, picked it up last Monday and was finished by Thursday morning. Reynolds is quickly becoming my fave writer of the last ten years... he truly does his homework and included some fascinating interview snips and historical anecdotes that really makes this era come alive. I feel those years were the best for quality experimental music too and it was a blast getting a chance to experience it firsthand or secondhand, it doesn't really matter... and in my opinion it is simply the best era for music hands down. I have only one nitpick, after my first read I didn't find anything about Shriekback (formed from members of XTC, Gang of Four, etc.). They were the quintessential post-punk band and if there ever was a group that said "post-punk sounding" besides PIL, early Shriekback was that sound. I also felt like the Cure got short shrift in the book, only a paragraph, but we all know they place an important role in the history of this style of music.

Awesome; Must-Read

I had read Reynolds' impressive "Generation Ecstasy" and been awed at the job he did there encapsulating and providing rationale for an entire musical movement. When I heard that he was going to write this book and speak to the incredibly fertile "post punk" years, I was very excited. As should we all be. And, it's a great book full of insight. Reynolds' level of ambition and capability eclipse any other writer who has taken on rock music or any subgenre within it. Must-read.

The Post-Punk Encyclopedia

"Rip It Up" is the rarest kind of rock and roll book: You are a smarter person for having read it. While reading about, say, Liquid Liquid, it became clear that I understand much better not just how popular music evolved but how popular culture itself was warped and evolving during the late seventies and early eighties. If punk music represented the death of the popular music of the era (disco, easy listening, ELO-style orchestration)what would emerge in its wake? In short, what could possibly follow the "Blank Generation?" Reynolds book shows us the highs and lows of what emerged. In addition, he provides enough information on, for example, Thatcher-era Britain and how their musicians responed to it, to give the book some historical interest as well. As such, I was surprised that the previous reviewer found Reynold's book to be anything less than definitive; it seems that every story Reynolds tells, from the evolution of Joy Division into New Order to (my favorite) the rise and fall of Postcard Records, is full of the kind of detail you practically would have to be in the studio to know. One hopes that after Reynolds' book certain bands (such as criminally neglected Feelies) will finally come back into print. That aside, perhaps what I enjoy best is the level of detail within the book. "Rip It Up" (which covers some many bands and genres within this era of music) is the kind of resource you want to have around at all times for its reference material alone. If you are the kind of person that goes into a record shop with a pages-long list of albums to look for this is a must-have book.