Book review: Merseybeast by Ian McNabb

Oct 15 2008 Chester Chronicle

MERSEYBEAST/by Ian McNabb

BOOK REVIEW/by Grahame Rhodes

OVER the course of Liverpool’s rich musical heritage in the last three decades one man for me has remained the most underrated of the city’s songwriters – that man is Ian McNabb – and now we have his most awaited ‘musical memoirs’ in the shape of “Merseybeast”.

We fans have eagerly snapped up the tasters he posted on his MySpace site over the last 12 months or so, and now in all of 368 pages we have the full works – and what a story it is, without doubt the most open and candid autobiography of it’s kind I have read – at times shocking, sad, and often truly hilarious.

McNabb has documented his musical journey in a most forthright, yet honest manner, which must have upset people – which he apologises for at the end of the book, and even getting a withering comment from his dear mum Pat, a constant factor in his life since his father’s untimely death in 1980 – with reference to an excess of drugs and his treatment of the fairer sex.

The book is roughly split into half from his early musical adventures and forming The Icicle Works, who brought him great success and a most cherished appearance on “Top Of The Pops”; then his solo career, from first release “Truth And Beauty” up to virtually the present, ending with an ‘afterword’ from July of this year.

What is obvious throughout is his frustration at producing what he considered to be great albums and songs, many released with little or no airplay or record company promotion, when people he considered lesser talents were prospering – fair comment to these ears. Indeed, one of his few ‘champions’ on the airwaves, fellow Liverpudlian Janice Long, has written the foreword to the book.

The boy from Fairfield has certainly packed a lot into nearly 48 years, much of it sadly can not be mentioned here – but it’s all in the book – many graphic encounters with lots of ladies and drugs and rock and roll – with triumph mixed with sadness, and as previously mentioned, some comic moments of the highest order!

A chapter recalling a Sunday night in Liverpool chaperoning the great guitar player Joe Walsh, who was playing in Ringo Starr’s All Star Band at the time, simply had me laughing out loud. Zak Starkey is one of Ian McNabb’s old mates and rang him about looking after him prior to a gig at the Liverpool Empire – the unfolding evening is simply a hoot – eight pages of pure magic! The tale ending with him taking a pint the following day with three more heroes and rock legends.

The heady days of The Icicle Works’ quest for pop stardom are featured in much detail – cracks at the North American market, touring Japan and subsequent messy break-up – the hurt he felt about this is plain to see, with all the gory details here, but some fine music as a legacy of the band.

The release of his second solo album, the Mercury Prize-nominated “Head Like A Rock” saw him work with some of his heroes, Neil Young’s Crazy Horse – he sounds like a schoolboy in a candy shop as he recalls the trip to record in California, and later some lives dates in the UK – oh yes, and more drugs and alcohol. One of these dates eventually surfacing as a live bonus cd with his great “Merseybeast” release, with guitar on one track from a rather famous chap now, pretty unknown at the time.

A quite riveting read which will not only appeal to die-hard fans, but to all music fans, particularly maybe to those brought up on the music of the 80s through to today – and a lovely book to look at as well, generously illustrated with some fine photos of the various stages of his career, from his very first band Daybreak, up to The Icicle Works 25th anniversary tour in 2006.

Merseybeast is published by Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales, and produced by Trinity Mirror Sport Media, price £8.99.

The book is available on-line at www.merseyshop.com, or telephone 0845 143 0001, Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm.