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Get acquainted with a northern soul Jimmy Nail has been a household name since Auf Wiedersehen, Pet hit our screens in the 1980s. since then, his career as an actor and a musician has put on him on the silver screen alongside Madonna and given him a No. 1 hit single. Success on this astonishing scale was beyond the wildest dreams of the working class lad whose harsh childhood and brutal schooling put him on a collision course with Strangeways. But a short spell in prison helped propel Nail onwards and upwards. With the support of his friends and family, it wasn't long before Jimmy's unique talents and single-minded determination brought him attention of a different kind and changed his life for ever. In A Northern Soul, Jimmy Nail tells his own vivid story in this intriguing, inspiring and sometimes confounding account of how one man rose to fame and fortune by refusing to be anything but himself. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Mini series novelization
This book is the novelization of the British mini-series Crocodile Shoes from the 1980s.The project was created by actor/singer Jimmy Nail.The book exactly follows the mini-series.I bought it hoping to get some back story and details about some of the characters, but there was not one bit of any of that in the book.If you saw the mini series, you won't learn anything more by reading the book.The one thing it did help with was understanding a few places where I couldn't make out what actors said, mostly due to Geordie accents.

Of course, you can read the book even if you never saw or even heard of the mini-series.In fact, this is the only way to access it, since the TV series is not available on DVD.

This is the story of two men's quest to turn the directions of their lives.Jed is a factory worker in Newcastle who spends his off time in his room making music.Adrian is a record company exec who used to have the best ears in the business, but he hasn't found any new talent lately, perhaps because he has too much taste to buy into the current sounds.His cocaine habit and heavy drinking are adding to the downward spiral of his life.Ade is also very unfortunate in the people who surrond him--a ruthless, unfaithful girlfriend and a backstabbing boss/friend.When a tape of Jed's music lands on Adrian's desk, they join forces to turn around both of their lives by making Jed the next big thing.However, the road to success has a lot of bumps and twists.

Jed's story is really rather lackluster--working man dreams of stardom.There are some scenes of Jed and his work buddies worrying about the factory closing, but that is not particularly interesting.It's Adrian and his problems that make the story intriguing.(And, if you are lucky enough to get your hands on a copy of the TV program, it will be James Wilby as Adrian who will have you watching the show repeatedly.)

Since the book is by Nail, who plays Jed, it is interesting to see how he perceives himself.I see Jed as oafish, homely, and really rough around the edges.Watching scenes where he is eating or drinking is not pretty.Apparently, he sees himself as "kinda cute."In another scene he thinks Jed looks better than Adrian.A person must have an extremely vivid imagination to think Jimmy Nail is better looking than James Wilby under any circumstances.Some of the book takes place in America.It's interesting to see a Brit's view of America.I suspect Nail has not spent much time here, as he labels Nashville the "wild west."There is also a bit of stereotyping of Americans--the frantic NYC businessman, the Italian mafia type, the Southerner rednecks.I tried not to be offended and overlook it.

I suspect that this book won't be satisfying reading to the person who has not seen the mini-series because there's not a lot of descriptions of characters or settings.While the person who has seen the program can fill in the blanks by remembering the scenes, the person who had not seen it might find the book less than riveting. ... Read more

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A novel featuring the undercover cop Spender and his criminal friend Stick. A Newcastle abbatoir gets torched, and when its owners strike back there's a lot of blood around, but this time it's human. ... Read more

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Commentary (music and lyrics not included).Chapters: Love, Walking on the Moon, Love Don't Live Here Anymore, Ain't No Doubt, Big River, Crocodile Shoes. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 24. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: from the album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band "Love" is a ballad by John Lennon, originally released in 1970 on his John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band album. The song first came out on Lennon's 1970 album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. "Love" later appeared on the 1982 compilation The John Lennon Collection, and was released as a promotional tie-in single for the collection. The single version is a remix of the original track, which most notably differs in having the piano intro and outro (played by Phil Spector) mixed at the same volume as the rest of the song; on the original album version, these parts begin much quieter and increase in volume. An alternate take of the song appears on the John Lennon Anthology box set. The picture on the sleeve for 1982 release of "Love" was taken by famed photographer Annie Leibovitz on December 8, 1980 - the very day of Lennon's murder. Like the 1982 UK issue, the original version of the song was released as a single again in October 1998 for the Japanese market only with the Japanese edition of another compilation Lennon Legend: The Very Best of John Lennon, and gained moderate success on the Japan's Oricon chart. The musicians who performed on the original recording were as follows: The Dream Academy covered this song in their 1990 album A Different Kind of Weather, and also released as a single (CD, cassette, and vinyl formats are available). The single featured a strong Indian theme throughout (evident in the music video). The song sampled the Funky drummer drum break. Like the album it was released on, A Different Kind of Weather it...http://booksllc.net/?id=5721446 ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Jimmy Nail is an English singer-songwriter, actor and musician. He has starred in numerous roles on television since 1983. He is 6'3" tall and is an avid Newcastle United supporter. He is most famous for his role as Leonard "Oz" Osbourne in the hit television show Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, his title role in Spender, and his 1992 number one single Ain't No Doubt. ... Read more

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Chapters: Tupac Shakur, Nine Inch Nails, No Doubt, Will Smith, Jimmy Eat World, Gwen Stefani, Afi, Shaquille O'neal, Nirvana, Audioslave, Lady Gaga, Brand New, Keane, La Roux, All Time Low, Wale, Robin Thicke, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, the Wallflowers, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Soulja Boy Tell 'em, Kirk Franklin, New Edition, Pop Will Eat Itself, Keri Hilson, Tv on the Radio, Street Drum Corps, Bubba Sparxxx, Kina Grannis, Clique Girlz, List of Current Interscope Records Artists, Lmfao, the Firm, Charles Hamilton, Space Cowboy, Bilal Oliver, the Lox, Ali Lohan, Teairra Marí, Blackstreet, Chronic Future, Lindi Ortega, Scott Storch, Wesley Jonathan, Fiend, Headway, Wish Bone, Yung L.a., Michael Bivins, Elan Atias, Akinyele. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 412. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction. NIN's music straddles a wide range of genres, while retaining a characteristic sound using electronic instruments and processing. After recording a new album, Reznor usually assembles a live band to perform with him. The touring band features a revolving lineup that often rearranges songs to fit a live setting. On stage, NIN often employs visual elements to accompany performances, which frequently include light shows. Underground music audiences warmly received Nine Inch Nails in its early years. Reznor produced several highly influential records in the 1990s that achieved widespread popularity; many Nine Inch Nails songs became radio hits, two NIN recordings won Grammy Awards, and the band has sold over 20 million albums worldwide, with ...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=71966 ... Read more