Bob Stanley
Bob Stanley wrote for Melody Maker and Mojo, before going on to form Saint Etienne. He has had a long parallel career as a music journalist writing for amongst others NME, Melody Maker, Mojo, The Guardian and The Times. After leaving school, Stanley worked in various record shops. While working at Virgin Records in Peterborough he met Andrew Midgley, who later fronted the 1991 side-project Cola Boy. Stanley and Midgley produced a fanzine called Pop Avalanche in 1986. They then produced their own fanzines; Stanley wrote four issues of Caff with childhood friend Pete Wiggs. In 1987 he sent one to James Brown, then live reviews editor for NME. This led to Stanley's first commissioned work, a review of a Johnny Cash show in Peterborough. After two years he moved to Melody Maker, where he wrote regularly until Saint Etienne became a full-time occupation in 1991. He wrote occasionally for The Face and Mojo in the 1990s. In the 2000s he has returned to journalism and contributes regularly to The Times and The Guardian. He has also written liner notes for many reissues, including box-sets by Joe Meek, Sandie Shaw and The Searchers. In 2007 with Paul Kelly he edited Match Day, a book of football programme artwork. Yeah Yeah Yeah, Bob's epic history of modern pop, was published in 2014.
66 articles
List of articles in the library
2 Unlimited, Clock, N Trance: Europop: Young, Dumb and Full of Hum
Report by Bob Stanley, The Face, February 1996
YOUR MUM LOVES the catchy melodies and your little brother fancies the singers. It's not Britpop, it's Euro technotechnotechnotechno and it's in the top ten ...
Adam & The Ants: Stand And Deliver by Adam Ant (Sidgwick & Jackson)
Book Review by Bob Stanley, The Times, 16 September 2006
STUART GODDARD attempted suicide, aged 21, in 1975. He woke up in Friern Barnet hospital and discharged himself. When he got home to his wife ...
The Beach Boys: Mike Love: Good Vibrations
Book Review by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 13 October 2016
Love lacked the sensitivity of his cousin Brian Wilson, but he kept the band going after their fall from grace. He tells his side of ...
Guide by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 16 December 2010
From Elvis to Shakey, from Cliff Richard to Mark E. Smith, every pop star worth their salt has sung a song of Santa at some ...
Bearded Lady, The Glitter Band, Iron Virgin, Mud, Slade, Brett Smiley, Sweet: Glam rock shines again
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Times, 21 March 2003
Thirty years on, the forgotten stars of glam rock are shining again. ...
The Beatles: Fandom of the pop era
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Times, 14 January 2003
As we bid farewell to Beatles Monthly, our writer discusses how fanzines come and go - but they have always been vital to the music. ...
The Boo Radleys: Ichabod And I (Action)
Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 30 June 1990
FORGET THE sub-Uriah Heep title and think "further re-invention of the dreampop whirl". Sound interesting? Read on. ...
Interview by Bob Stanley, The Times, 15 April 2003
Cult singer Vashti Bunyan vanished 30 years ago — now she's back ...
Johnny Cash: Peterborough Country Music Festival
Live Review by Bob Stanley, New Musical Express, 12 September 1987
THE WHOLE town seems to have been waiting for this moment all week... "Hello. I'm Johnny Cash." ...
Crazyhead: Abbey Park Festival, Leicester
Live Review by Bob Stanley, New Musical Express, 29 August 1987
BEER CANS ahoy! It's festival time in Leicester and a decent sunny day has brought all the young dudes out of their houses. After a ...
Interview by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 19 January 1991
"I KNOW THAT this is the right time for Denim — I've spent a year plotting. It has to happen now." ...
Denim: The Boardwalk, Manchester
Live Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 12 January 1991
JEAN GENIUS ...
Lynsey de Paul "stood out like a cut-glass decanter among milk bottles"
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 2 October 2014
Author Bob Stanley pays tribute to singer-songwriter Lynsey de Paul, who has died from a suspected brain haemorrhage. ...
Digital Underground: Sex Packets (BCM)
Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 31 March 1990
WOSSIS? A hip hop concept album? It most certainly is, but before you reach for the barf bag get a load of this concept. Sex ...
Report by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 15 September 2011
The extension in copyright law is hailed as a victory for musicians. But while it will surely benefit Cliff, the Beatles et al, it will ...
Doves: Some Cities (Heavenly) *****
Review by Bob Stanley, Uncut, March 2005
Wings of desire: Deeper excursions into melancholy from Manchester's most adventurous ...
Review by Bob Stanley, The Times, 1 March 2008
BEHIND THE BLONDE BANGS, you get the feeling there might have been more than the odd moment of self-doubt for Duffy. You can almost see ...
Mark Eitzel: Dark Side of the Loon
Interview by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 26 January 1991
"YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER JUST LEFT. He made me laugh, he said Americans don't like having their photo taken and I'd better act for the camera. I ...
The Faces: Booze Brothers: The Faces
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Times, 28 March 2003
The Faces liked their fun, but our correspondent discovers a darker side. ...
Felt: Bubblegum Perfume (Creation)
Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 30 June 1990
WHEN IT COMES TO individuality and wilful peversity, Lawrence's only rival is Prince. In ten years he guided Felt through ten LPs and ten singles, ...
Felt: Too Much Monkey Business
Interview by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 9 December 1989
THE RECENT ME AND A MONKEY ON THE MOON LP WAS FELT'S LAST SHOT, THE COMPLETION OF A 10-YEAR PLAN, THE PRE-DESTINED END OF THE ...
Five Thirty, World Of Twist: The perils of being ahead of your time: World of Twist and Five Thirty
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 16 December 2013
IF YOU VISIT TOPSHOP this week, you'll see that the high street is readied for a mid-'90s revival: 2014 will mark the 20th anniversary of ...
Jackson C. Frank: The tragic tale of Jackson C. Frank, forgotten legend of the '60s
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 9 January 2014
He was one of the great singer-songwriters of the '60s folk scene, more highly regarded by some than Paul Simon. But he only recorded one ...
Billy Fury: Breaking Down The Walls Of Heartache
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, MOJO, February 1995
"There's only ever been two English rock'n'roll singers – Johnny Rotten and Billy Fury." – Ian Dury, 1978 ...
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Times, 20 January 2003
Billy Fury, who died 20 years ago, was a perfect but vulnerable pop star, says this lifelong fan. ...
Girls Aloud: What Will the Neighbours Say?
Review by Bob Stanley, Uncut, January 2005
THE 'LOUD'S FABULOUS run of hits to date is as close to a 21st Century Blondie as we're likely to come: two of them — ...
Go-Kart Mozart: Instant Wigwam And Igloo Mixture (West Midlands)****
Review by Bob Stanley, Uncut, January 2000
No reservations: Former Felt and Denim singer Lawrence presents unsettling novelty electronica ...
Ellie Greenwich: Leader Of The Pack
Obituary by Bob Stanley, MOJO, November 2009
BARRY MANN and Cynthia Weil were the social conscience, Gerry Goffin and Carole King the most tortured, but it was Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry ...
Bill Haley: 'Rock Around the Clock' – the world's first rock anthem
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 22 May 2014
The 1950s made stars of Elvis, Little Richard and Fats Domino, but Bill Haley & His Comets are rock'n'roll's forgotten pioneers. ...
Live Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 6 May 1989
IT WAS weird enough choosing Greenock to begin a tour in, but THIS place is ridiculous — mirror balls, purple flashing lights, tacky plastic finishing ...
Inspiral Carpets: Surface Tensions
Interview by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 20 May 1989
IF THE WEDDING PRESENT ARE SMITHS' FANS SECOND FAVOURITE GROUP, THE INSPIRALS ARE PROBABLY THIRD ON THE LIST. EARLIER THIS YEAR, THE MANCHESTER BAND LOST THEIR SINGER ...
Inspiral Carpets: Zap Club, Brighton
Live Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 9 September 1989
SPIRAL TAPS ...
Inspiral Carpets: The Inspiral Carpets: You Batter You Bet
Interview by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 16 September 1989
WITH THEIR NEW SINGLE 'FIND OUT WHY' AT NUMBER ONE IN THE INDIE CHARTS, THE INSPIRALS' BID TO RIVAL FELLOW MANCUNIANS HAPPY MONDAYS AND THE ...
The La's: Interview with the La's
Interview by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 10 June 1989
THE LA'S ARE NOTHING if not perfectionists. After two years work they've just completed their debut LP - no wonder they look knackered as they ...
Interview by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 13 October 1990
With rave reviews greeting their debut album release you'd think THE LA'S would be dead chuffed. So how come BOB STANLEY encounters a band drinking ...
LL Cool J: Walking With A Panther (Def Jam)
Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 1 July 1989
RUMOUR HAD it that this was a bad record — as in crap, not bigger and deffer. Rumour was wrong. ...
Beverley Martyn, John and Beverley Martyn: Been Gone So Long: Beverley Martyn
Retrospective and Interview by Bob Stanley, MOJO, June 2001
After 30 years away from it all, Beverley Martyn is making music again. She speaks to Bob Stanley about her music, friends, enemies and looking ...
Kylie Minogue: Body Language (Parlophone) ****
Review by Bob Stanley, MOJO, December 2003
Cosmetically enhanced pop icon believes there was more to the '80s than Level 42 and stonewashed denim. ...
The Monkees: This Boy Band Never Monkeyed Around
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, Daily Telegraph, 1 March 2012
Fact and fantasy were intertwined in the Monkees, but we'll never see their like again ...
Morrissey: A Lost World: Morrissey: Maladjusted (Island) ***
Review by Bob Stanley, Uncut, September 1997
WHEN I WAS first introduced to the grimy world of record fairs at the start of the Eighties, the places were almost entirely populated by ...
Ocean Colour Scene: The Boardwalk, Manchester
Live Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 8 September 1990
OCEAN REIGN ...
Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 11 August 1990
ONE THING that's always bugged me about The Pixies is the universal acclaim for their LPs – how come no one ever gripes about the ...
Elvis Presley: Live 1969: How Elvis Presley redefined Las Vegas
Review by Bob Stanley, The Times, 21 August 2019
A new 11-disc box set marks the 50th anniversary of Elvis Presley's shows at the Las Vegas International Hotel. ...
Primal Scream: The Hacienda, Manchester
Live Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 5 August 1989
LAST TIME I saw Primal Scream they seemed in their death throes, wheezing and spluttering like a fine vintage car struggling to get up a ...
Review by Bob Stanley, MOJO, November 1995
JARVIS COCKER, THE WORLD'S least likely sex symbol!" If I read that line one more time I'll scream. Give the man a break. He's svelte ...
Retrospective and Interview by Bob Stanley, MOJO, June 2004
TONY MEEHAN, 15, is kicking his heels in Kilburn one late '50s afternoon when his friend Dave Rees suggests a trip to Soho. He may ...
Del Shannon: Home And Away – The Complete Recordings 1960-1970
Review by Bob Stanley, MOJO, January 2005
Eight CDs tell the story of one of the '60s' most original rockers, a doomed romantic whose arrested adolescence made him a star but never ...
Frank Sidebottom: 13:9:88 (In Tape)
Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 13 May 1989
SO WHAT do you reckon will be the first significant movement in Pop Music in the Nineties? Dreampop? Crotchquake? Stone Rose Psychedelia? Nah. The one ...
Slowdive: Younger than Yesterday
Interview by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 2 March 1991
"A LOT OF BANDS are so precious about influences, thinking they're massively original. I don't think we are." ...
Sparks: Talkin' About My Generator
Interview by Bob Stanley, The Times, 11 June 2004
SPARKS PUT the fear of God into preteens with their debut Top of the Pops appearance. As pretty boy Russell Mael flashed his baby blues ...
Dusty Springfield: The Legacy of Dusty Springfield
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Times, 3 April 2009
The greatest girl singer of the Sixties would be 70 this month, but her legacy is evergreen ...
Tommy Steele: How Tommy Steele, Britain's biggest pin-up, was savaged by the teenage mob
Retrospective and Interview by Bob Stanley, The Times, 16 July 2018
Post-traumatic stress forced Tommy Steele to pass his rock'n'roll crown to Cliff Richard, he tells Bob Stanley. ...
The Stone Roses: Bad Loon Rising
Interview by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 8 April 1989
CHARTING A SIMILAR COURSE TO HOUSE OF LOVE, SINGER IAN BROWN NOW RECKONS HIS MANCHESTER-BASED BAND'S FORTHCOMING ALBUM WILL PROVE HIS BAND ARE THE BEST ...
The Stone Roses: Where Angels Play
Report by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 26 May 1990
It may not seem it to non-believers, but it's been a mighty long time since the Stone Roses last played a gig. That was at ...
Swing Out Sister: Kaleidoscope World (Fontana)
Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 20 May 1989
SWING OUT SISTER, not so long ago, were the ultimate cool chart act for the late Eighties. They had haircuts, melodies and polo necks with ...
Teenage Fanclub: A Catholic Education (Paperhouse)
Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 23 June 1990
TEENAGE LAMENT ...
Tanita Tikaram: The Sweet Keeper
Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 27 January 1990
THE CONNECTION between pop stars and new towns in the Eighties – someone should have done a thesis on it. We had Depeche Mode in ...
Tom Verlaine: The Wonder (Phonogram)
Review by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 31 March 1990
"COMING UP behind me like a high speed train was the New York City new wave, Verlaine and Hell," — Felt, 'Mobile Shack'. ...
Review by Bob Stanley, MOJO, April 2001
En route to the Carpenters, "boy" actor gets gorgeously baroque. ...
Interview by Bob Stanley, Melody Maker, 18 August 1990
MOST ENIGMATIC and downright peculiar of the 1990 Manchester shockwave are World Of Twist. All they have in common with their Manc contemporaries is that ...
List of genre pieces
Awopbopaloobop Alopbamboom: The book that declared pop music dead
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Observer, 6 February 2016
Nik Cohn thought John Lennon "self-pitying", Led Zeppelin "embarrassing" and rated Del Shannon's 'Runaway' above Van Morrison's entire career. Bob Stanley revisits his 1969 book. ...
Jon Savage: 1966 – The Year the Decade Exploded
Book Review by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 20 November 2015
THE POP MUSIC you hear in your teenage years affects you more deeply than at any other time in your life. People who don't go ...
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 13 November 2012
Sixty years ago on Wednesday, the first singles chart was published in Britain – turning pop music into a competitive sport. Bob Stanley on how ...
Retrospective by Bob Stanley, The Times, 20 October 2006
THE EIGHTIES HAVE – like the stack-heeled Seventies before them – been repackaged and filed away as an era of Duran Duran, Dynasty and mobile ...
Will the Indie Chart rise again?
Report and Interview by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 31 July 2009
In its 1980s heyday, the indie chart was a beacon of top alternative music. Then the majors took over. Now it may get a new ...
Essay by Bob Stanley, The Guardian, 17 December 2009
Can Bob Stanley listen to every No 1 song from the noughties and escape with his sanity intact? He recalls a musical decade that ranged ...
back to LIBRARY
