Up Yours! A Guide to UK Punk, New Wave and early Post Punk – Vernon Joynson

Borderline Productions, London
IP Verlag, Dgz-Ring 7, 13086 Berlin

Wow, this is a monster! 552 pages (that’s 1,6 kg) including over 800 photos/cover/flyers. I was about to say this is a dictionary, but the better word would be encylopedia. The author Vernon Joynson documents the british Punk, New Wave and early Post Punk movement, that happend in Britain between 1976 – 1982, but also includes alot of Hardcore and Oi Bands that just started in the early eighties. You find everything in here (apart from alot of Ska), a A-Z listing (from U2 to Crass, from Depeche Mode to Chaos UK) it is all in here. Detailed information about all releases with catalognumbers, chart postions, bios of all the bands, a listing of the most important Compilations as well as a labeldiscography in the end.

The beginning of the book is a 12 page introduction/ foreword explaining how to use the book and giving a chronologic overview on the UK punk phenomenon, when it all started around the, as Joynson says – keyfigure Malcom McLaren. Interesting read is provided, with plenty of details. Of course this is a book one can not read, I did read the Intro/Foreword as well as the information on selected bands in the A-Z listing. If you are a crazy recordcolletor of that area or a really big fan of early UK punk in a format like this (A4, paperback), I highly recommend this book, since you find alot of info in here that is nowhere else provided. For „normal“ people the relativly high price (58.- Eur incl. postage from the german distributer listed at the end) might be deterrent – but the final decsion needs to be made individually. I’m glad I got it, even thou I know I will never read probably more then 20%. (dolf)

ISBN 3-931624-85-4

[Trust # 96 Oktober 2002]