Author: Ray Coleman
Year: 1994
ISBN: 1-85793-5861
Price: £16.99
Pavilion, UK
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COLEMAN'S
STATUS as Melody Maker editor in the early seventies made him
the perfect rock'n'roll author to handle a project on Rod. More
than anything, he always had time for the consumers of the music
and respected the views of the fans he was writing for. This
book was well underway to be the definitive Rod Stewart biography.
Ray was a clever writer, well respected in the business and
had all the necessary contacts. Most importantly, he was enthusiastic
and genuinely loved the music he was writing about. In other
words, Ray was no George Tremlett and would have never considered
a book about an artist whose work he did not admire.
Things went horribly wrong when Ray received a letter from Stiefel
/ Phillips Entertainment (Rod's manager) advising that his book
was unauthorised. The tone of the letter distressed and upset
Ray and consequently his enthusiasm for the book waned. This
was the man who was personal friends with some of the biggest
names in the rock business, including Paul & Linda McCartney,
Eric Clapton and Phil Collins. He had written books about them
all and found them not only supportive of his work, but proud
to be associated with such a distinguished biographer. The only
reason the Rod Stewart biography was not scrapped there and
then was because Ray had signed a legally binding contract.
The book was therefore cut in its prime and delivered to the
publishers.
In the event, the letter backfired. Arnold Stiefel was obviously
impressed by the book, so much so that he left a message on
Ray's answering machine congratulating him. Shortly after the
book was published, the BBC contacted Ray asking if he could
direct them towards Rod's management as they were keen to produce
a major documentary about Rod reaching 50 years old. When Ray
mentioned their attitude towards his book, they decided to take
their plan no further.
Despite the above setback, the book was a triumph. Any future
biography needs to build on this one.
John Gray
Smiler rating: A
Reader rating:  (36 votes)
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