Something Quite Peculiar : the Church. The Music. The Mayhem

Come inside the world of Steve Kilbey singer-songwriter and bassist of one of Australia's best-loved bands, The Church. From his migrant ten-pound pom childhood through his adolescence growing up during the advent of The Beatles, Dylan and The Stones to his early adventures in garage bands and neighbourhood jams. His misadventures with a full-time job and a 9 to 5 life and wild adventures with The Church as they conquer Australia and then the world. The tours. The records. The women. And then the heroin addiction which enslaved him for ten long years. Then the two sets of twins he fathers along the way and branching off into acting, painting and writing. From snowy Sweden to a cell in New York City, from Ipanema beach to Bondi, Kilbey stumbles through his surrealistic life as an idiot savant that will make you smile as well as want to kick him up the arse. After coming out the other side his tale is simply too good not to be told. Narrated with unusual and often pristine clarity and with much focus on his considerable musical talent."As rockmusic autobiographies go, this offering by The Church’s frontman Steve Kilbey is a standout." - Canberra Times, Panorama"A must-read account of more than 40 years in the music business." - Weekend WestSteve Kilbey was born in England in 1954 and came to Australia with his family at the age of 3. Kilbey began his professional music career at the age of 17 and after playing in several bands formed The Church in the late '70s. After some early success, Kilbey and The Church went onto international fame when "Under the Milky Way" from the 1988 album, Starfish, achieved success in the top selling charts both in Australia and the US. Kilbey has collaborated with a vast number of other Australian musicians on various projects and has produced a number of solo works as well. Steve is also a painter, poet and music producer. In 2010 The Church was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame. Step inside the world of the enigmatic Steve Kilbey - frontman of The Church, one of Australia's best-loved and most successful bands, and 40-year veteran of the music industry, in his memoir, Something Quite Peculiar. Singer, songwriter and bassist. Ethereal, psychedelic and indefinable. Journey through his migrant ten-pound pom childhood and garage-band adolescence during the hey-day of the Beatles, Dylan and the Stones. Laugh at his failed attempts at the 9-to-5 life. Jump aboard his wild adventures with The Church as they conquer Australia, and then the world. The tours.;Cover Page -- Title Page -- Table of Contents -- Introducing -- PART I -- 1 It's a Boy, Mrs Kilbey, It's a Boy! -- 2 The Difficult Second Chapter -- 3 That Awkward Age -- 4 A Summer Holiday -- 5 Becoming a Groan-Up -- 6 The Four Track, London and Sydney -- 7 The Church of Man, Love -- 8 The First Blush of Success -- PART II -- i sing the infernal eternal tour -- 9 The Church Invades the Northern Hemisphere -- 10 Smorgasbords and Ombudsmen and Malibu -- 11 Cruising Down this Shuddering Highway -- 12 Poems and Tantrums -- 13 Starfish and Chips -- 14 A Hundred and One Gigs. Come inside the world of Steve Kilbey singer songwriter and bassist of one of Australia's best loved bands, The Church. From his migrant ten pound pom childhood through his adolescence growing up during the advent of The Beatles, Dylan and The Stones to his early adventures in garage bands and neighbourhood jams. His misadventures with a full time job and a 9 to 5 life and wild adventures with The Church as they conquer Australia and then the world. The tours. The records. The women. And then the heroin addiction which enslaved him for ten long years. Then the two sets of twins he fathers along the way and branching off into acting, painting and writing. From snowy Sweden to a cell in New York City, from Ipanema beach to Bondi, Kilbey stumbles through his surrrealistic life as an idiot savant that will make you smile as well as want to kick him up the arse. After coming out the other side his tale is simply too good not to be told. Narrated with unusual and often pristine clarity we and with much focus on his considerable musical talent. Step inside the world of the enigmatic Steve Kilbey – frontman of The Church, one of Australia's best-loved and most successful bands, and 40-year veteran of the music industry, in his memoir, Something Quite Peculiar . Singer, songwriter and bassist. Ethereal, psychedelic and indefinable. Journey through his migrant ten-pound pom childhood and garage-band adolescence during the hey-day of the Beatles, Dylan and the Stones. Laugh at his failed attempts at the 9-to-5 life. Jump aboard his wild adventures with The Church as they conquer Australia, and then the world. The tours. The records. The women. And the heroin addiction that enslaved him for a decade. From snowy Sweden to a cell in NYC, from Ipanema Beach to Bondi, stumble through Kilbey's surreal life – his foolish ways will make you want to smile ... then give him a big kick up the arse. ebook Cover Page -- Title Page -- Table of Contents -- Introducing -- PART I -- 1 It's a Boy, Mrs Kilbey, It's a Boy! -- 2 The Difficult Second Chapter -- 3 That Awkward Age -- 4 A Summer Holiday -- 5 Becoming a Groan-Up -- 6 The Four Track, London and Sydney -- 7 The Church of Man, Love -- 8 The First Blush of Success -- PART II -- i sing the infernal eternal tour -- 9 The Church Invades the Northern Hemisphere -- 10 Smorgasbords and Ombudsmen and Malibu -- 11 Cruising Down this Shuddering Highway -- 12 Poems and Tantrums -- 13 Starfish and Chips -- 14 A Hundred and One Gigs. 15 Everything Is Going Wrong, All My Songs Are Coming True -- 16 The Start of the Ash, the End of the Flame -- 17 More Songs about Krishna and Smack -- Outro -- Acknowledgements -- Copyright Page.