Gang of Four: Damaged Gods

by Paul Lester

This is the story of Leed's radical post punk renegades, who, between 1977 and 1984, pioneed the idea of the indie guitar band who could make you simultaneously dance and think. Published to co-incide with the 30th anniversary of the release of their debut single "Damaged Goods" when the band will release their first new studio album featuring the original line up. It demonstrates how the influence of this intelligent rock-fun collective had a huge impact on some of the world's biggest bands including Red Hot Chili Peppers and Franz Ferdinand. It follows their beginnings when they emerged at the height of punk and how in 2007 their 1979 debut album "Entertainment" was nominated by NME as one of the most important and influential rock albums of all time.

Genres: Music

204 pages, Paperback

First published September 8, 2008

Reviews

[lucy · Rating 2 out of 5]

realistically this is more of a 2.5 star book. it was fine. i took issue with much of the writing - it’s written like a sensational tabloid article at times, it doesn’t put me in the moment with the band ever, and there are many confusingly long sentences. but the actual information in the book is good, and the quotes from the interviews are great! interesting if you’re a GOF fan, but definitely not a great book.

[Brent Bonet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally, a direct examination of one of the most important bands of the last 30 years with full participation of all of the original members. It was particularly interesting to read about the reason for Dave Allen's departure, and the reunion of the original line up in 2005. The last chapter was a bit of a he said, she said with plenty of accusations, but all sides gave their input. At only 200 pages it was a very fast read.

[Craig White · Rating 4 out of 5]

What We All Wanted? - Not Quite!
whilst looking for the forthcoming, ridiculously expensive box set, 'gang of four 77-81', i came across this book, that i didn't know existed. so interest in gof and lack of literature on the subject bought it for me, and i feel better informed for having read it, but am left with the impression that it could have been more expansive, and as noted by a fellow reviewer, less repetitive.
for me, gof's first 3 albums are amongst the best ever, any genre, (and being perverse, cite 'solid gold' as best!), and that forms much of the book, along with the absolute fact that the headline was their live work. i saw them in glasgow 1981, with pere ubu, which despite being an incredible bill and an awesome performance (king was obviously 'steaming', and didn't actually appear until the 3rd song), this tour is only mentioned on a photo caption. i also saw them in 2009 in the same place, with the 'entertainment' anniversary tour - devastatingly brilliant, so i concur with that finding. the latter was beyond the date scope of this book, and there were further elements to the story, almost right up to andy gill's passing.
the author has clearly researched capably, spoken to the relevant individuals, and has outlined well the in-fighting, bitching, line-up changes, mistakes (missed opportunities?), and the general philosophies of the band (well, king and gill's), but, even considering this, it seems a little short on anecdotal material, concentrating more on the members calling down each other - jeez, hugo's angry! no? - and accusations and rebuttals, which is fine in moderation, but seems to have coloured the book as a whole, to the level of an autopsy rather than a celebration of achievement.
having said that, i did enjoy the book, found out things i wasn't aware of, learned more of their vision and purpose, but felt that, generally, it did fall a little short of complete.