Bo Diddley - Guitar Solos Book

As this was published in 1997, it is now quite out of date, but it's a good book about the Manics' early years. A previous reviewer mentioned factual inaccuracy, but even as a slightly obsessive Manics fan myself I didn't notice anything wrong - with the exception of a bizarre contradiction regarding the recording of Everything Must Go, and a couple typos. I'm guessing anything incorrect would be in terms of specific dates and other stuff I don't pay any attention to.

I thought the author was fair in his assessment of their work, even if he wasn't singing its praises. Gold Against the Soul and Generation Terrorists are far from perfect, after all. The book has decent interpretations of the lyrics, well chosen quotes and photos, a sense of humour without skirting around the very serious issues the Manics dealt with, and good formatting. It also avoids being exploitative or bombastic, and stays respectful, which is a quality sadly lacking in a lot of writing about the band, and Richey Edwards in particular. And obviously, I found the material fascinating.