The Secret Life of a Teenage Punk Rocker: The Andy Blade Chronicles

by Andy Blade

Few knew that Blade, born Andy Radwan, had emerged from a very untypical background and that he would go on to embrace a very different lifestyle. This book puts the history-making punk period into the context of a very unusual life. It also offers a vivid insight into the London new wave scene from someone who was present at many of the epochal moments, rubbing shoulders with Johnny Rotten and many other movers and shakers. While Eater's original recorded legacy was limited to four singles ("Outside View" the most famous), an EP and an album, the fact the book's foreword has been provided by Henry Rollins of Black Flag fame is testament to their influence. Rollins says: "Andy Blade has gone to great lengths to tell the tale of how it went down and what happened afterwards with a steel trap memory and an alarming lack of restraint or self-congratulation. Punches are not pulled, and I'm sure there will be a few ruffled feathers." The Sid and Johnny stories are worth the price of admission on their own. People who are now acknowledged as Punk gods pass through the pages of this book. He was at shows that are the real stuff of legend, like the first ever UK appearance of the Ramones. A photo section includes previously unseen pictures of the band from Andy Blade's archives.

Genres: Music, Biography, Nonfiction, Punk

224 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2005

Reviews

[Nigeyb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Andy Blade provides a vivid insight into the early London punk scene from someone who there. Added North London recognition factor makes it even more enjoyable for a North London boy like myself.

Andy Blade's punk group Eater were inspired by the most exciting band ever …. the Sex Pistols. Eater typified the tidal wave of DIY ambition, making up the rules up as they went along. Andy was only 16 years old when he formed Eater in November 1976. Drummer, Dee Generate was a mere 14 years old. What fun they had. Their adolescent naivety mirrors my own life during that era as a 14 year old in 1976 who was also inspired by the Pistols, Clash, Damned etc. Sadly I never thought to form a band though.

Two years later it was all over - Eater split up in January 1979 having released one album and a few singles which still sound great.

Andy describes his "mid-life crisis" at 18. Amazingly he went straight from punk to becoming a hippy.

4/5

[Peter Landau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eater should have been bigger than Hanson, at least in my mind. I loved this obscure English first-wave punk band so much when I learned about them in
the early 1980s, years after they broke up, having only recorded a few singles and an album. I even had my band Da Willys cover "My Business," a song that's never mentioned in the book, except as a line item in the back-page discography. That's my biggest beef with this conversational, loosely structured confessional memoir: there's so little about the making of the music. It's mentioned almost in passing, passing great gossip about Johnny Rotten, the Clash, Billy Idol, et al. The tone of the book is a drink with an old friend who's catching you up on the years missed. Andy Blade holds few lurid details back in THE SECRET LIFE OF A TEENAGE PUNK ROCKER. If you grew up in the scene before it became an item on the Hot Topic rack, you'll probably recognize a lot of the enthusiasm and characters, though by different names. Punk broke
the fourth wall or, more accurately, revealed it as the myth it was, albeit it while building up a new mythology. That freedom Blade was first attracted
to didn't last long and he laments it as his story carries on a bit too long, but he does capture it in all its crude glory and with no holds barred in his sketches of the freaks who thrived in the primordial stew.

[Lissa Oliver · Rating 5 out of 5]

I give a lot of 5 stars to excellent books I've read. Anything less and I usually don't bother finishing or reviewing. As with the others, Andy Blade fully deserves the high rating. His misuse and over use of commas aside, he's an excellent writer and I loved his witty style. Above all, his story was compelling and downright astonishing. Hard to imagine the youthfulness of his band and I had to keep reminding myself they were just 15-year-olds during some of the adventures. He painted the era and scene so vividly and the big names he hung out with were at the time just kids as well. So good to look back on those heady days and see what the disaffected youth of the day could get up and do - and do so well. Eater was such a good band, the songs have stood the test of time. Andy Blade is such a good writer, his book will stand well with his songs, a classic.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll admit i knew little about Eater when i bought this book a few years ago, despite my love of punk. However, Andy's tale of both the brief history of Eater and his life afterwards were equally enthralling. A fascinating book whether you are a punk fan or not.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

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[Steve Loft · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyable insight as to what it was like to be a 15 year old in the midst of the punk rock explosion.