Long Players - Writers on the Albums That Shaped Them

Fifty great writers reflect on the albums that shaped them in this captivating collection curated by the New Statesman's Tom Gatti.

Our favorite albums are our most faithful companions: we listen to them hundreds of times over decades, we know them far better than any novel or film. These records don't just soundtrack our lives but work their way deep inside us, shaping our outlook and identity, forging our friendships and charting our love affairs. They become part of our story.

In Long Players, fifty of our finest authors write about the albums that changed their lives, from Deborah Levy on Bowie to Daisy Johnson on Lizzo, Ben Okri on Miles Davis to David Mitchell on Joni Mitchell, Sarah Perry on Rachmaninov to Bernardine Evaristo on Sweet Honey in the Rock.

Part meditation on the album form and part candid self-portrait, each of these miniature essays reveals music's power to transport the listener to a particular time and place. REM's Automatic for the People sends Olivia Laing back to first love and heartbreak, Bjork's Post resolves a crisis of faith and sexuality for a young Marlon James, while Fragile by Yes instils in George Saunders the confidence to take his own creative path.

This collection is an intoxicating mix of memoir and music writing, spanning the golden age of vinyl and the streaming era, and showing how a single LP can shape a writer's mind.

Featuring writing from Marlon James, Ali Smith, George Saunders, Bernardine Evaristo, Ian Rankin, Rachel Kushner, Ben Okri, Patricia Lockwood, Sarah Perry, Neil Gaiman, Tracey Thorn, Clive James, Eimear McBride, Neil Tennant, Daisy Johnson, David Mitchell, Esi Edugyan, Deborah Levy, among many others.

About the author

Tom Gatti is deputy editor of the New Statesman, where Long Players began life as a feature. He joined the magazinein 2013 as culture editor; before that he was Saturday Review editor at The Times of London, where he also wrote book reviews, features and interviews. From 1995 to the present, he has listened to Radiohead's The Bends more times than is strictly necessary.

Summary

'A captivating mix of memoir and music writing' IRISH TIMES
'A richly textured snapshot survey of artists on art' GUARDIAN
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Our favourite albums are our most faithful companions: we listen to them hundreds of times over decades, we know them far better than any novel or film. These records don't just soundtrack our lives but work their way deep inside us, shaping our outlook and identity, forging our friendships and charting our love affairs. They become part of our story.

In Long Players, fifty of our finest authors write about the albums that changed their lives, from Deborah Levy on Bowie to Daisy Johnson on Lizzo, Ben Okri on Miles Davis to David Mitchell on Joni Mitchell, Sarah Perry on Rachmaninov to Bernardine Evaristo on Sweet Honey in the Rock.

Part meditation on the album form and part candid self-portrait, each of these miniature essays reveals music's power to transport the listener to a particular time and place. REM's Automatic for the People sends Olivia Laing back to first love and heartbreak, Bjork's Post resolves a crisis of faith and sexuality for a young Marlon James, while Fragile by Yes instils in George Saunders the confidence to take his own creative path.

This collection is an intoxicating mix of memoir and music writing, spanning the golden age of vinyl and the streaming era, and showing how a single LP can shape a writer's mind.

Featuring writing from Ali Smith, Marlon James, Deborah Levy, George Saunders, Bernardine Evaristo, Ian Rankin, Tracey Thorn, Ben Okri, Sarah Perry, Neil Tennant, Rachel Kushner, Clive James, Eimear McBride, Neil Gaiman, Daisy Johnson, David Mitchell, Esi Edugyan, Patricia Lockwood, among many others.

Foreword

Fifty great writers reflect on the albums that shaped them in this captivating collection curated by the New Statesman's Tom Gatti

Additional text

An unusual and fascinating combination of essays, with each author's musical choices resonating in individual time and place

Product details

• Authors: Tom Gatti, Tom (Culture Editor) Gatti
• Publisher: Bloomsbury
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 30.06.2021
• EAN: 9781526625786
• ISBN: 978-1-5266-2578-6
• No. of pages: 224
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Music > General, dictionaries; Non-fiction book > Art, literature > Plastic arts; Prose: non-fiction, LITERARY COLLECTIONS / General, MUSIC / Essays