"This solid biography records in great detail not only the life of Jeff Buckley but also that of his father, Tim Buckley. This a book for anyone who wants to know everything about young Buckley. Apter has done his research." Bruce Elder Sydney Morning Herald
“This candid biography shows his many faces: a gifted impressionist, covers enthusiast, prankster and, most comically, an avid dog stalker . . . We get to see Buckley’s personality crack as relationships strain due to touring Grace (his drinking put him on ‘an emotional asteroid’), although he finds peace again cycling around Memphis shortly before that fateful swim.” Classic Rock 7/10
‘In A Pure Drop: The Life of Jeff Buckley, Australian Jeff Apter explores the nooks and crannies of Buckley's short life, from his California childhood through to his fledgling music career in New York and beyond, and includes a chapter, The Wizard of Oz, that draws on accounts of those who were around him in Australia to paint a picture of a multi-layered personality; a fun-loving, mischievous party animal who was also quiet, introverted, secretive and volatile, and a great musician.’ Iain Shedden The Australian
‘Apter resists mawkishness or sentimentality in this account of Buckley’s life and death, to reveal a difficult — if charismatic — man who doesn’t quite match the idealised image of the gifted lost boy destroyed by fame and family.’ Q
TOMORROW NEVER KNOWS / A NEW TOMORROW 'An engaging schoolkids-to-rockmasters odyssey, [it] brilliantly shadows Silverchair's career and pre-history... a riveting rockography.' Rolling Stone
'From the opening chapter of this excellent rock biography (a genre high on output, but generally low on quality), Jeff Apter makes a compelling case... The [Silverchair] adventure may yet continue. If not, this book will stand as a fitting finale.' The Bulletin
'It's an insider's account, by someone who understands how bands really work and recognises the many movers and shakers who assist the success of musically curious bands and their albums.' Rob Hirst, Midnight Oil
'Fantastic! I really like it ... much better and accurate than many others I have read about other bands I have worked with.' Nick Launay, producer Freak Show, Neon Ballroom, Young Modern as well as Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, Lou Reed, PiL, etc
FORNICATION: THE RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS STORY 'His exhaustive research has paid off handsomely — this is no quick cut 'n' paste job, rather a fascinating, well illustrated and well presented account of a band who, while not to everyone's taste (Don McLean regards them as 'trashy'), have been a major and innovative player in the music world for over two decades.' Record Collector
'Sydney rock journo-turned-author Apter has not only thoroughly done his research, interviewing numerous key figures in the Chili Pepper's yo-yoing 20-year career, he really understands both their music and evolving mentality. It's a terrific tale, a true roller-coaster of sex, drugs and rock'n'roll, told with wit, flair and fascinating - and sometimes refreshingly unflattering detail.' Sydney Morning Herald
'Fornication: The Red Hot Chili Peppers Story is a great story of one of the greatest bands ever! They are 100 times more interesting and talented than those dopey boys from Liverpool, the Beatles. www.amazon.com
'Apter rescues the truth from obscurity with a minimum of clumsiness and manages to get paid in the process. Jack Sherman, former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist
NEVER ENOUGH: THE STORY OF THE CURE 'A wry portrait whose edge is as sharp as any Charles Addams' cartoon.' Spin (A-)
'I wanted to write and thank you. As you know I waited many years for my side of The Cure story to be told and I am immensely pleased and relived that it has finally been reported in such an honest and reasonable manner. After reading the book I walked around with a smile on my face all day yesterday!
The Cure was (and still is to a certain extent) a very big part of my life and it was important to me to have my part of the story conveyed accurately without any bitterness or resentment because ultimately I am both humbled and grateful by what we did and I continue to be proud of that achievement. I cannot imagine how hard it is to get close enough to your subject to see the real story but I think you have done it admirably.
Thank you for telling the true story.' Lol Tolhurst (co-founder The Cure)
'The book is GREAT!! The book is brilliantly written, incredibly detailed (probably only for the massive Cure Fan, and for me the early years of struggle and strife were fascinating and Apter does his best to critisise and praise Robert where appropriate.' Mark Francombe, The Cranes
'I am a diehard Cure fan since about 1985, but this book told me so much info I really feel like I did my homework! Excellent stories, amazing detail, fairly balanced on controversial issues, great photos. If you wish you'd been in on The Cure during their teenage years, this book will fill you in to a serious level. A truly entertaining read.' www.amazon.com
Robert Smith, the leader and only constant in The Cure since the band formed in Britain in 1976, had his first tab of LSD while on tour in New Zealand in 1980. The Cure smashed up an Auckland hotel room while they were here too.
When they play Auckland's Vector Arena on August 14, one suspects Smith will have mellowed during the intervening 30 years. Those two early incidents, and other deviant behaviour of the musical and non-musical variety, are revealed in Never Enough - The Story of The Cure, the meandering soap opera of one of modern music's most enduring bands.
The Cure story has it all: drugs, band break-ups, bullying, lawsuits, superstardom, and then of course the diverse musical tangents Smith has taken the band along over the years.
Author Jeff Apter is thorough, be he outlining Smith's control-freak tendencies; tracking the bands progression from post-punk amateurs to their drugged-up gothic period that culminated in the eternally dour Pornography album from 1982; and on to the light-hearted pop of Let's Go To Bed. In typical dismissive Smith fashion, he labels that track a demented and calculated song he wrote as a reaction to people's presumption he was depressing and pessimistic.
Apter's interviews with past band members and The Cure contemporaries, of which there are many, offer a juicy look at the turbulent times in The Cure's history. Smith comes across as not the dark, cuddly goth idol many fans probably think he is.
The court case between Tolhurst and The Cure, over unfair division of recording profits, is also well documented. In short, Tolhurst, an alcoholic who left the band in 1992, lost the case. However, it's the former Cure drummer and keyboardist who comes off best from Never Enough. He was often maligned, yet Apter's interviews with him reveal a likeable chap who remembers his time in The Cure mostly with fondness.
It's Tolhurst who provides the most intriguing insight into the history of this band.
www.nzherald.com.nz July 2007
THE DAVE GROHL STORY
'Given that Dave Grohl’s had an extraordinarily lucky career in music—first in the groundbreaking Nirvana, then finding sustained commercial success in his own Foo Fighters—it’s no surprise that after rehashing The Kurt Cobain Story innumerable times, journalists would move on to covering Cobain’s bandmate, the guy who’s been dubbed “the nicest man in rock.”
That niceness doesn’t extend to cooperating with biographers, however—it’s striking that among the plethora of Nirvana and Foo Fighters books out there, Grohl’s only deigned to speak with Michael Azerrad for Come As You Are. Which has been a hindrance to some; last year’s other Grohl book, Michael Heatley’s Dave Grohl: Nothing To Lose is basically a glorified clip job. But the Australian-based Apter digs deeper, gets interviews of his own, and serves up the most comprehensive look at Grohl’s career to date.
The book’s first section is the most interesting, particularly the detailed look at Washington, D.C.’s underground music scene of the 1980s, a time when Grohl honed his musical skills in bands like Freak Baby, Mission Impossible, Dain Bramage, and Scream, an apprenticeship that goes a long way to explaining his musical versatility, not to mention how he can create an entire album virtually on his own (aside from a guitar track on one song, he wrote and performed everything on Foo Fighters’ debut album).
The Nirvana years are covered quickly, leaving Apter to sort out the myriad projects Grohl’s been involved with since then. Apter’s prose style is straight-ahead and to the point, even when he’s dealing with the more controversial areas of Grohl’s life and career (the dismissal of Foos drummer William Goldsmith; Grohl’s penchant for womanizing that led Veruca Salt’s Louise Post to denounce him as a “shag hound”). In this book, its strength is its devotion to detail.' Harp March 2007
'Apter's biography is well-written and well-balanced.' Rock Sound
'The Dave Grohl Story is thoroughly entertaining and informative.' Play Music
'He has clearly done his research and provides plenty of interesting details.' Q
'The Dave Grohl Story is cobbled together from afar but flows quite well through the drummer's Nirvana years and his Foo Fighters' frontman era by talking to some useful people.' Classic Rock
'Magazine writer and rock 'n' roll enthusiast Jeff Apter presents The Dave Grohl Story, the first comprehensive, illustrated biography of rock icon Dave Grohl from Nirvana and the Foo Fighters. A handful of black-and-white photographic plates dot this chronicle of how Grohl, a suburbanite by birth, taught himself drum playing in his bedroom beating pillows with stolen marching sticks, lied his way into a drummer's spot in the late 80's outfit Scream, and happened to be spotted by Chris Novoselic and Kurt Cobain. Although Grohl considered leaving music after Cobain's tragic suicide, his solo project, the Foo Fighters, rekindled his spirit and contribution to the music world. An in-depth, highly accessible biography offering a one-of-a-kind glimpse into the rock-'n'-roll scene.' Midwest Book Review, Oregon
Gwen Stefani & No Doubt: A Simple Kind Of Life 'Vogue's music reviewer Jeff Apter latest biography, Gwen Stefani & No Doubt: A Simple Kind Of Life (Omnibus Press $49.95) is a smartly-told tale of an icon-in-the-making.' Vogue
