Exit Stage Left
The Curious Afterlife of Pop Stars
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Exit Stage Left
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Narrated by:
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Matt Bates
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By:
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Nick Duerden
About this listen
For fans of music books from David Hepworth, Pete Paphides, Bob Stanley and Craig Brown, as well as thought-provoking human interest stories like Moondust by Andrew Smith, and books by Jon Ronson, Louis Theroux and Stuart Maconie.
A quirky, thought-provoking look at the curious afterlife of pop stars.
Nick Duerden has spent many years interviewing the most famous musicians on the planet. Without exception, they are at their most interesting when they've peaked, and when they are on their way down. In many ways, this is when these former idols are at their most heroic, too, because they reveal themselves not only to be humane and sensitive, but also still driven to create, to fulfil their lingering dreams, to refuse to live quietly.
Some sustain themselves on the nostalgia circuit. Others continue to beaver away in the studio, no longer Abbey Road so much as the garden shed. The desire for adulation is a light that never goes out. We live in a culture obsessed by the notion of fame—the heedless pursuit of it, the almost obligatory subsequent fallout. But what's it like to actually achieve it, and what's it like when fame abruptly passes, and shifts, as it does, onto someone else?
These are tales of heroin addiction, bankruptcy, depression, divorce—but also of optimism, a genuine love of the craft, humility and hope. All of which makes Exit Stage Left a fascinating, laugh-out-loud funny and often shocking look at what happens when the brightest of stars fall down to earth.
Featuring brand-new interviews with the likes of: Bob Geldof, Shaun Ryder, Robbie Williams, Roisin Murphy, Stewart Copeland, Billy Bragg, Wendy James, Alex Kapranos, Joan Armatrading, Leo Sayer, Gary Lightbody, Lisa Maffia, Tim Booth, Bill Drummond, Rufus Wainwright, David Gray and Justin Hawkins.
©2022 Nick Duerden (P)2022 Headline Publishing Group LtdListeners also enjoyed...
Critic reviews
"Exit Stage Left is the book I've long wanted to read about the PTSD-like after-effects of pop stardom—and Nick Duerden is the perfect writer for the job. The pop star's bittersweet lot—the mass adoration that comes with pop stardom, followed by the bathetic comedown of what inevitably follows—is represented with flair and empathy." (Pete Paphides, author of Broken Greek)
"Fame is the brightest candle, but in this brilliant collection of interviews, Nick Duerden answers the question: what does a candle do after it's burned out?" (David Quantick)
What listeners say about Exit Stage Left
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Nicky Ramone
- 14-10-22
Few escape!
I watched a Mary Spender you tube video that mentioned this book and two weeks later it turned up in the Audible sale. Nit only that, the first musician in the book was one of my all-time favourites, the Only Ones’ Peter Perrett (pronounced here as PerrETT, not as PERrett as my mind had always said it)…. So I was off to a good start. So many artists have essentially the same story to tell, though Perrett’s is unique. I should have listened to it one chapter per day and not more or less non-stop.
I’m glad I bought and listened to it.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Mr Jules Toogood
- 22-11-22
Better in Text
Generally enjoyable, but the actors portrayals put me off. There’s no lineage or narrative, which it suffers for. Instead, if starts, then stops. I can’t say my life is any richer for having read it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- rob
- 07-02-23
Compelling
Amazing interviews with a really wide range of pop stars. Incredibly well read as well. Very good
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Matt Churchill
- 06-08-22
Thoughly enjoyable
Well worth a listen if you're a fan of 80/90s pop/rock music. Well narrated, funny and interesting.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- M
- 15-01-23
All Tomorrow’s Stories
A great collection of many of those ‘Where are they now?’ artists, too numerous to mention .
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Robert Green
- 18-09-23
A great listen
If you were not into into your rock n roll but into the people who made it then this is a great listen. It's not all downhill afterwards, there are some success stories too.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Paul Tomkins
- 13-05-24
Superb array of stories
Great interviews with a wide array of characters, and all kinds of varying experiences in life after success as a music star. Narration superb - lots of difficult accents handled very well.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rhod
- 20-08-22
Compelling and entertaining
The music industry isn’t something I’m really interested in, but Nick Duerden’s writing just carries you along from sweaty stages to drug filled hotel rooms and all the crashing egos in between. Really compelling insight.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 13-01-23
Interesting story that could be trimmed
Interesting anecdotes, slightly too many, could be cut by about 20%. Questionable accents from the narrator.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- National Hunter
- 10-11-22
really pleasantly surprised...
it was a really interesting book actually, a bit of Robbie, some Terence Trent, Cee lo Green and a smattering of great stories... well worth a listen
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