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Coal Black Mornings

By: Brett Anderson
Narrated by: Brett Anderson, Matt Thorne
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Summary

Listen to the end for an audiobook exclusive: Brett Anderson in conversation with Matt Thorne, author of Prince.

Brett Anderson came from a world impossibly distant from rock star success, and in Coal Black Mornings he traces the journey that took him from a childhood as 'a snotty, sniffy, slightly maudlin sort of boy raised on Salad Cream and milky tea and cheap meat' to becoming founder and lead singer of Suede.

Anderson grew up in Hayward's Heath on the grubby fringes of the Home Counties. As a teenager he clashed with his eccentric taxi-driving father (who would parade around their council house dressed as Lawrence of Arabia, air-conducting his favourite composers) and adored his beautiful, artistic mother. He brilliantly evokes the seventies, the suffocating discomfort of a very English kind of poverty and the burning need for escape that it breeds. Anderson charts the shabby romance of creativity as he travelled the tube in search of inspiration, fuelled by Marmite and nicotine, and Suede's rise from rehearsals in bedrooms, squats and pubs. And he catalogues the intense relationships that make and break bands as well as the devastating loss of his mother.

Coal Black Mornings is profoundly moving, funny and intense - a book which stands alongside the most emotionally truthful of personal stories.

©2018 Brett Anderson (P)2018 Little, Brown Book Group
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What listeners say about Coal Black Mornings

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Loved it

So raw and beautiful. I liked how it jumped back and forward just like the mind wanders when reliving the past.

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  • Overall
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beautifully read and written memoir

Anderson's Memoir is lyrical, honest and unusual. He has an artist's eye for detail- finding beauty in the mundane and weaving descriptions of desperate poverty into vignettes of growing up, family tragedy and ambition.

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nice

Really well put together. It feels almost like a coming of age story. Really good listen too

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Excellent memoir

An excellent memoir capturing the early years of Anderson and the band before they take off. It’s beautifully written, funny and moving. My criticism is that it was a little bit short

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Enchanting

I tried to pace myself but couldn't. Brett's descriptive prose is difficult to tear yourself away from and I wanted more.

In terms of story it's an account of childhood, youth and band formation. But it's Brett's worldview that really captivates. The way he crystallises a certain time in a certain place that seems familiar in many ways and yet in others markedly distinct from my own youth.

A real accomplishment.

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First audiobook I’ve finished

Wonderfully written and narrated, a real joy and I hope Brett writes more. Really enjoyed this.

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Exceptional

More Charles Dickens than Ian Hunter. Everything you hoped the Morrissey book would be. Probably the best music artist memoir ever written

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Brilliantly written

Really enjoyed this audible book. I felt like I was there witnessing Brett's experience, it was so well narrated. A must for any Suede fan

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Fascinating story

Great read, and achieves its aim of not being a stereotypical rock star memoir. Brett Anderson's family sound fascinating and he describes them honestly and generously. The language is as flowery and pretentious as you'd hope and it's a great story.

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Excellent

Beautifully written account of Brett’s early frustrations and failures. Loved every minute. You will enjoy it too!

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