SPILL BOOK REVIEW: CHARLIE HARPER – AN ANARCHY OF DEMONS

CHARLIE HARPER – AN ANARCHY OF DEMONS

EARTH ISLAND BOOKS

BOOK REVIEW BY JOHN PORTER

There’s already a mystique around Charlie Harper, ever-present member and founder of the U.K. Subs – after all, there are few punks from his era around, and even less still performing in their 80s. Whoever convinced the man to put pen to paper and to write these exhaustive memoirs deserves great credit, because this is the kind of document any sort of music historian should love.

The book is a digestible but detailed read, weighing in at over 400 pages, but also broken into over a hundred chapters. That makes it nicely fast-paced, in many ways reminiscent of the many songs Harper’s produced over his career, and very enjoyable. The big strength of the book, honestly, is Harper’s longevity – such are the many years he’s been on the earth and part of the industry, he’s able to lead us, via his own story, through the travails of growing up post-war, through the Swinging Sixties in London, through the punk explosion in the 70s, and everywhere in between. To be honest, some of the best stuff has nothing to do with music – his journey growing up is fascinating, and a tale of a period long ago. For once, the ‘preamble’ is as much a part of the story as the ‘hits’ are. The hits land too – his tales of the U.K. Subs, and his quite incredible recalling of all the members (a fine effort, given the number!) is entertaining. You’re hearing a man in love with making art, but perhaps more importantly, in love with punk rock.

Throughout, he’s a tremendous storyteller, and as is the strength of all good writers, you can hear his voice in every anecdote, and even picture yourself there with him. Some stories are hilarious, some are sad, some provoke anger, but all of them are compelling, honest, and real. You understand just how and why Harper is still around to tell the tales of this era, because he is a true survivor. Not just that, but he’s an old-school musician, believing in the cycle of write-release-tour that has kept him going for many decades.

There’s not a ton of in-depth musical analysis here, if you were expecting it, although Harper is blunt about the various members and eras, and ups and downs of his bands. Perhaps it could’ve been cleaner or more focused in areas, and you can expect to flit about a bit, but such is its ‘dip in, dip out’ quality that that might not matter. Rather than a sterilised, clean book, this book is punk rock, and perhaps more of a fireside chat than a detailed analysis. Regardless, the book does Harper enormous credit, and I suspect I’ll be rediscovering him and the Subs off the back of it.

ISBN-10: 1916864732
ISBN-13:‎ 978-1916864733

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