Lyrics: The definitive collection of the Roxy Music frontman’s iconic lyrics
£17.10£19.00 (-10%)
**THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER**
Celebrate the 50th anniversary of Roxy Music’s iconic first album with this collection of Bryan Ferry’s evocative lyrics of aspiration and romantic longing, introduced by the author.
‘Lyrics is a book any Roxy fan would be proud to have on their shelf’ The Telegraph
Bryan Ferry’s work as a singer and songwriter, both as a solo artist and with Roxy Music, is legendary.
Lyrics collects the words written for music across seventeen albums, from the first iconic Roxy album of 1972 via the masterpiece of Avalon to 2014’s reflective Avonmore, introduced by the author, and with an insightful essay by James Truman.
All the classic Roxy anthems are here – ‘Virginia Plain’, ‘Do the Strand’, ‘Love is the Drug’ – songs in which the real and the make-believe blend in a kaleidoscopic mix, shot through with cinematic allure.
Also included are the evocative lyrics of romantic longing and lost illusions for which Ferry is rightly revered: ‘Slave to Love’, ‘Mother of Pearl’, ‘More Than This’. As he writes in his preface, ‘The low points in life so often produce the most keenly felt and best-loved songs.’ And, it might be added, some of the best poetry.
Discover this unforgettable collection of Bryan Ferry’s work today.
Read more
Additional information
| Publisher | Chatto & Windus, 1st edition (5 May 2022) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Hardcover | 336 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 1784744832 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1784744830 |
| Dimensions | 15.24 x 3.05 x 22.23 cm |
by Mary McDonagh
The book is a must for Bryan Ferry fans of his great work of lyrics . The introduction to the book was very nice and a bookmark enclosed inside it. Very beautifully done.
by Derek Mason
Excellent. Sorry, cannot agree with the earlier review. Bryan Ferry’s early lyrics in particular were always innovative and way above most if not all of the competition – David Bowie was probably his closest rival. After such a glittering career it is good to see some of the nuance I missed e.g. Oy Vey on The Thrill of it All. I would give it five stars BUT Is Your Love Strong Enough? has been omitted.
by Phil
Great to be able establish actual lyrics as opposed to those assumed in certain songs for the last 50 years. Reflects the brilliance , depth & diversity of Ferry’s artistic literacy. Takes me right back when we were young.
by Mikkel Ostberg
Great value for money cheaper here than other retailers fast delivery
by James C.
Just love this book. Fantastic buy. If as me you love Bryan then buy it.
by jgp1991
It’s wonderful to have a nice book of BF’s lyrics isn’t it. There is the nice touch of an introduction by a writer/Roxy fan James Truman and then BF pens a short introduction. Then come the lyrics, on nice paper set in a nice font.
But that’s it. It’s such a shame that for such rich lyrics which are clearly so layered and imbued with meaning, there is no accompanying piece beside the songs. Even if some of the bigger songs had this treatment, it would improve the book significantly and make it a must-have for BF/Roxy Music fans.
The standard for lyric books has really been set by Neil Tennant’s 2018 book ‘One Hundred Lyrics and a Poem’, because Neil and his team took the time to write an accompanying remark for each song to explain its origin and context – even if it was brief.
Because of the lack of effort given to the book’s writing and production, it feels like an obvious cash-spinner, rather than a genuine gift to fans.
by ALAN NAYLOR
Considering this is ‘the definitive ‘ collection, the first album I looked at , The Bride Stripped Bare, listed the lyrics of 5 tracks , strange when there were 10 tracks on the album.
by davidk
Wonderful lyrics sometimes poetic one of the best singer songwriters ever