60 Years of Rock ‘n’ Roll – Talk and Book Signing

Indie publisher Aurora Metro/Supernova Books are taking us back to the Rock ‘n’ Roll era with a talk about the musical revolution, the Rolling Stones as well as the brand new authorised biography of the Stones’ drummer Charlie Watts, Charlie’s Good Tonight by Paul Sexton. He’s joined by musician and music writer David Sinclair (Pop Rock Icons), and Ralph Brookfield (Rock’s Diamond Year) for a panel discussion and book signing.

• Panel talk about the pioneers and legends of the Rock ‘n’ Roll era and their legacy
• Book signing of discounted books
• Refreshments available

THE SPEAKERS

Paul Sexton

Paul Sexton is an author, journalist and broadcaster who has covered The Rolling Stones, and interviewed all of the band extensively, for some 30 years. He started writing about music for the weekly pop paper Record Mirror while still a teenager in 1977, and his work has appeared in all of the quality UK press, most notably The Sunday Times and The Times, as well as in Billboard magazine and countless documentaries and shows for BBC Radio 2. His book Prince: A Portrait of the Artist in Music and Memorabilia was published in 2021. He lives in south London.

David Sinclair

David Sinclair has been a musician since the 1970s and a music journalist since the 1980s. As chief rock and pop correspondent of The Times of London and a contributor to Rolling Stone, Billboard, Q magazine and many others, he was fortunate to see and meet many of the bands and stars who came up through the London gig circuit of the 1960s. www.davidsinclairfour.com

Ralph Brookfield

Author Ralph Brookfield trained as a molecular physicist worked as a copy editor, software engineer, freelance writer, ran a software business, and was a director of technology in the digital television industry. Since 2012 he has pursued his muse as a tutor, writer, and musician. He is a founder member of the Hanwell ukulele group in West London and organises music events regularly. He wrote the introduction to Rock’s Diamond Year, celebrating the music venues that were the engine rooms for the musical revolution of the 60s. In 2021 his book On The Trail of Americana Music was also published by Aurora Metro/Supernova.

THE BOOKS

Charlie’s Good Tonight (2022)

The official and fully authorised biography of the world’s most revered and celebrated drummer, and mainstay of The Rolling Stones. Charlie Watts was one of the most decorated musicians in the world, having joined the Rolling Stones, a few months after their formation, early in 1963.

A student of jazz drumming, he was headhunted by the band after bumping into them regularly in London’s rhythm and blues clubs. Once installed at the drum seat, he didn’t miss a gig, album or tour in his 60 years in the band. He was there throughout the swinging 60s, the early shot at superstardom and the Stones’ world conquest; and throughout the debauchery of the 1970s, typified by 1972’s Exile on Main St., considered one of the great albums of the century. By the 1980s, Charlie was battling his own demons, but emerged unscathed to enhance his unparalleled reputation even further over the ensuing decades.

Watts went through band bust-ups, bereavements and changes in personnel, managers, guitarists and rhythm sections, but remained the rock at the heart of the Rolling Stones for nearly 60 years – the thoughtful, intellectual but no less compelling counterpoint to the raucousness of his bandmates Keith Richards and Mick Jagger. And this is his epic story.

More information here

Pop Rock Icons : London’s Swingin’ 60s and 70s (2022)

The fuse was lit by the Beatles with their Mersey sound in Liverpool. In London, the Rolling Stones played the blues as if their lives depended on it. Then came the Yardbirds, the Who, the Kinks, heralding inventive prog rock bands like Pink Floyd, Genesis and Yes, unleashing the fury of heavy metal with bands like Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. As the 70s progressed, the androgyny of David Bowie and bands like T-Rex launched glam rock to the world.

These two decades of freedom and creativity are captured in this book with photos by the best photographers, and text by top French music writer Philippe Margotin and David Sinclair.

More information here

Rock’s Diamond Year (2022)

Celebrating Rock’s 60th Birthday, from the formation of the Rolling Stones and the heyday of the British Invasion to the spawning of the Reading Festival, this book explores the music history of the London clubs that were the engine rooms for British rock n roll. The Rolling Stones, the Who, The Faces, The Yardbirds, Cream and the Bluesbreakers are amongst the many acts who performed on the London club circuit at venues such as The Ealing Club, The Crawdaddy Club, The Ricky Tick, The Half Moon, The Bull’s Head, The Marquee, The 100 Club, and the infamous Eel Pie Island Hotel. We revisit the days when Eric Clapton was God and Rock ruled the world. Play it Loud!