Badfinger - by Robert Day-Webb (Paperback)

About the Book

Generally regarded as one of the most tragic tales in the history of rock music, the story of Badfinger does indeed make for an impressively sombre Hollywood-style film script. A Welsh and Liverpudlian musical hybrid, the band was signed to Apple Records, became protégés of The Beatles, produced four global hit singles and two of its members co-wrote the now perennial pop standard 'Without You' (covered most notably by both Harry Nilsson and Mariah Carey). Yet, despite all this and having the music world seemingly at its feet, the band found itself plagued by ruinous misfortune and through a combination of unscrupulous business management, record label neglect and just plain bad luck, the dream soon lay in tatters with the band's story ultimately culminating in the suicides of two of its members, Pete Ham and Tom Evans. However, there is a lot more to the band's story than just the obvious tragedy and the aim of this book is to help redress the band's legacy and refocus some much-needed attention on the brilliance of their music, rather than just the trials and tribulations that perpetually dogged them. Badfinger on track ... casts a keen critical and analytical eye over the band's entire musical output - albums and singles - recorded and released during its lifetime. This detailed and definitive guide will not only examine and assess the recordings but will also provide valuable background history and context for each album. Whilst not ignoring the managerial, financial and legal machinations and issues that blighted the band, this book will ultimately focus the spotlight on the band's musical legacy.

Book Synopsis

Generally regarded as one of the most tragic tales in the history of rock music, the story of Badfinger does indeed make for an impressively sombre Hollywood-style film script. A Welsh and Liverpudlian musical hybrid, the band was signed to Apple Records, became protégés of The Beatles, produced four global hit singles and two of its members co-wrote the now perennial pop standard 'Without You' (covered most notably by both Harry Nilsson and Mariah Carey). Yet, despite all this and having the music world seemingly at its feet, the band found itself plagued by ruinous misfortune and through a combination of unscrupulous business management, record label neglect and just plain bad luck, the dream soon lay in tatters with the band's story ultimately culminating in the suicides of two of its members, Pete Ham and Tom Evans. However, there is a lot more to the band's story than just the obvious tragedy and the aim of this book is to help redress the band's legacy and refocus some much-needed attention on the brilliance of their music, rather than just the trials and tribulations that perpetually dogged them. Badfinger on track ... casts a keen critical and analytical eye over the band's entire musical output - albums and singles - recorded and released during its lifetime. This detailed and definitive guide will not only examine and assess the recordings but will also provide valuable background history and context for each album. Whilst not ignoring the managerial, financial and legal machinations and issues that blighted the band, this book will ultimately focus the spotlight on the band's musical legacy.

About the Author

Robert Day-Webb graduated from the University of Birmingham and subsequently worked in the publishing industry for sixteen years, undertaking a wide variety of editorial and writing roles. A self-confessed music, movie and TV buff, Robert has also had several personal reflection essays published in a number of music and TV-related anthology books. He currently lives in Gloucester, UK, with his wife, Marie, their two children, Joshua and Lauren, and an extremely oversized CD collection.