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[ Welcome to www.jovanovic.co.uk version 6.0 ]
Hola!
Welcome to my website, a den of musings, news and info from the desk of a freelance writer, author and all-round good egg. To the uninitiated I’ve written nine books, helped out with a couple more and contributed to numerous music publications around the world.
This autumn saw the publication of two new books and there’s been quite a bit of activity related to these new titles. Continue on dear reader . . .
December 2005 After a long wait, The Velvet Underground manuscript is now finally revamped and being sent to the various interviewees for their comments. New material from Moe Tucker, Doug Yule and a first major interview with Sterling Morrison’s widow, Martha, is included. Look for a 2006 publication date.
December 3rd 2005 My football card collecting article is due in the new issue of that cracking footie mag, When Saturday Comes.
November 29th 2005 A couple of comments on reviews and reviewers:
You can’t please all of the people all of the time and some people you can’t please any of the time, apparently. Some of my books have been picked upon for being uncritical of their subjects, some have been picked on for being too critical.
For a writer the advent of Amazon and it’s reader review sections have been double edged. Like all reviews it’s nice to see nice things written about your work, but it’s always difficult to read negative comments. Of course the thing with Amazon is that the reviews sit there, seemingly, for ever more. When you feel that a negative review is unfounded or personal you do get fed up with seeing it every time you log on to see how your books are doing. I think I can take constructive criticism, where it’s warranted, but rants by the likes of Susan Moorse at my Kate Bush book are just irritating.
Ms. Moorse explains that Kate Bush is a notoriously private person and so it should come as no surprise to her that neither Kate nor her family agreed to be interviewed. Claiming that the book is poorly researched and that most of Kate’s quotes “seem to have been lifted from ancient copies of 'Q' magazine” is just lazy and inaccurate on her part. Hundred’s of sources were used to give as wide an overview of Kate’s work as possible. Ms. Moorse continues “As a biographer, Mr Jovanovic does not seem to have grasped the fact that it is not enough merely to list the names of his subjects . . . it is his job to get out there and try to interview them as well.” Well Ms. Moorse you are quite welcome to come and see how much effort went into obtaining the new interviews that were carried out, and the failed attempts to speak to lots more people. Kate’s shadow obviously looms large over many people she’s worked with and they didn’t want to talk. But it certainly wasn’t for a lack of effort on my part. As readers of Big Star, Perfect Sound Forever, Adventures in Hi-Fi, etc, will know, I ALWAYS put in the hours when it comes to research and interviewing, if anything I usually go too far!
Finally Ms. Moorse has to have a personal pop, and her great insight into me and my life is summed up by claiming that “I rather get the feeling that he is the kind of bloke that gets a bigger kick from arranging his cd's alphabetically rather than actually listening to them !”. Hey, Ms. Moorse, please feel free to criticise my work if you see fit but you don’t know jack about me so I have just two words for you and the second one is “off”!
(PS. Mmm, I fell better now. Anyway, my eleven books listed on Amazon have been given 4 or 5 stars in single every reader review until this one . . )
November 28th 2005 Big Star – the movie!
Star Lane’s INVision movie compnay have acquired the rights to make the big screen version of the Big Star story. Work has already started on the screenplay and things will really get going in the new year. Take a look at their website here and see their new project Angels with Angles.
November 25th 2005 The Yorkshire Post featured Swap Yer!
November 24th 2005 I made a guest appearance on The Danny Kelly show, BBC Radio London, talking about Swap Yer! An enjoyable half-hour was spent with callers sharing their card and sticker collecting stories and memories.
November 22nd 2005 The Card Times magazine is to feature Swap Yer! In it’s new issue.
November 12th 2005 The Belfast Telegraph reviews Kate Bush – The Biography.
"Timed nicely to coincide with the release of Aerial this week, Bush's first album in 12 years, this is actually as thorough an account as you could hope, given the obsessively private nature of its subject. From her upbringing as a doctor's daughter in middle-class Essex and her unforgettable debut, Wuthering Heights, to motherhood at 40, Jovanovic traces the career of British popular music's most outstanding female performer. Including interviews with studio musicians, choreographers and others who have worked with Kate, this is about as much info and thoughtful analysis as you're going to get on Bush."
November 2005 Real magazine reviews Kate Bush – The Biography.
“Kate Bush has proven herself to be a charismatic dancer, actress and director, and this biography provides a guided tour of her entire career. A fabulous insight into an enigmatic performer.”
November 2005 The Sunday People features Swap Yer!
November 7th 2005
I took part in a one hour Kate Bush special with presenter Alan Clifford for BBC Radio Nottingham’s afternoon show.
November 6th 2005 Kate Bush – The Biography had a great book launch evening and signing session in Norwich at the Puppet Theatre in association with Kulture Shock the area’s leading independent book store. Lisa Redford stole the show with great performances of her own material and Kate Bush covers. Check out her new album here.
November 3rd 2005 December 2005 issue of 442 magazine featured Swap Yer! in glorious colour.
October 29th 2005 The Times reviewed Kate Bush – The Biography, via the pen of the lovely Sarah Cracknell from St. Etienne.
October 27th 2005 Publication of Kate Bush – The Biography
HMV have now signed a deal to give discount when you buy the book and Kate’s brilliant new double album, Aerial.
October 26th 2005 Publication of Swap Yer! – The Wonderful World of Football Cards and Sticker Albums
When not playing Subbuteo or rearranging the Shoot League Ladders on a Saturday tea-time to take in that afternoon's results, the rest of the week for your average 1960s or 70s schoolboy was largely given over to amassing the football card collection, and, later, its successor the sticker annual. The cards were eagerly purchased at the newsagent's, complete with luminous stick of pink gum; they were 'skimmed' against a brick wall in some complicated game in the playground, swapped with school mates, fought over, more were purchased...yet somehow you still ended up with only the Birmingham City first team. They were the Pokemon cards of the Wilson governments; and today they are as collectable as their modern-day Japanese equivalent. In this (first ever) history of the football card and sticker annual Rob Jovanovic traces the history of the playing card right back to the golden age of the cigarette card (in turn a development from nineteenth-century French business cards), charting its development through the decades upto the modern-day sticker album. In doing so, the book provides a nostalgic, photographic history of the game.
October 2005
Nirvana – The Recording Sessions My Nirvana book has just won the “Association for Recorded Sound Collections” Certificate of Merit for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research in the USA.The award ceremony takes place in Seattle in May 2006.
Some general notes to newcomers....At present, our web site is always under construction. In the meantime you can reach us at robj@innotts.co.uk
All site content is (C) Copyright Rob Jovanovic 2005 unless otherwise noted. No site content may be reproduced in any form without first obtaining written permission.
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