Current Writing situation
Thanks for all your support – the likes, comments, reviews and ratings are all very sustaining. It’s good to know that so many of you appreciate the writing.
The work of a writer is very insular and takes a lot of time.
Here’s where I am at:
Captain Beefheart On Track: Every Album, Every Song: (Published by Sonicbond publishing)
This book has been out for a couple of months now. So far it has received 11 ratings – all 5*. Which is very pleasing!
It has been well reviewed in Record Collector. It is hard to pick a ‘best’ review. They are all great in different ways.
‘This is such a brilliant book. I have been using this as a reference book to check which musician played on which album! A lot of research has gone into it and the book is very informative! The author loves the band, but isn’t afraid to speak out against something he doesn’t like (The Tragic band !)
It has me listening to the albums more intently now!
Nice to see some of the Captain’s lyrics about the state of our planet ! ( I wonder what he would think of mother earth in 2022!)
Highly recommended.’
‘Firstly, reader, I’ll tell you what this book is like: You know when you go into an art gallery or museum and have an accompanying guide book explaining a little about the art or artefacts? Well, this is very much like that.
A companion piece for every track.
The author has lovingly reviewed and described every song and it is also full of little facts and interesting information.
If, like me, you are a Beefheart and The Magic Band aficionado (and I’m guessing that you are) then you’ll appreciate this book.
We’ve all read John French’s definitive horse’s-mouth and meticulous account, Bill Harkleroad’s equally valid (but not so obsessively detailed) story and we’ve also read Mike Barnes’s fantastic and accurate outsider view. There are a couple of other tomes too but those three are the glorious triumvirate of Beefheartian history.
This book isn’t trying to be that.
What it does is makes you revisit the albums. Not with a different perspective – we all have our own, as does this, but with another incentive; to listen to the most original, influential, unique music in rock history.
It’s a book for Beefheart lovers, nerds and obsessives.
If you don’t agree with some of the author’s viewpoints on the music it really doesn’t matter.
The purpose of the book is as a companion to this vast and broad decade of sheer creativity, originality and music-as-art from a genius/tyrant/eccentric and the supremely dedicated and unique musicians who helped to realise the vision, even taking a backseat to his ego for the sake of the art.
I love it and so will you.’
Captain Beefheart On Track (burningshed.com)
Really cherish all those reviews!
Roy Harper On Track: Every Album, Every Song: (Published by Sonicbond publishing)
This has been out for over a year now and is also on a 5* rating with an incredible 58 ratings and some brilliant reviews.
‘still in the process of enjoying Opher Goodwin’s paperback book detailing Roy Harper’s most illustrious recording career, i have to declare that this is one heck of a read!’
‘Opher Goodwin is a great writer who knows Roy Harper and was present while important parts of Harper’s catalogue were laid down. The book is lovingly put together and is a very easy read. (It helps if you know at least some of the music of course). There are many snippets and insights that I, as a keen Harper fan, was not aware of. It forms an indispensible companion volume for Roy’s book of lyrics, The Passions of Great Fortune.’
‘Opher’s superb book is an absolute must for any Roy Harper fan.’
Roy Harper: Every Album, Every Song (On Track): Amazon.co.uk: Opher Goodwin: 9781789521306: Books
Roy Harper On Track (burningshed.com)
Bob Dylan in the 60s: On Track: Every Album, Every Song: (Published by Sonicbond publishing)
This is complete and is presently with the publishers being edited and set. It should be published early next year!
Unintended Consequences (A Sci-fi novel written under the Ron Forsythe name)
This is a Science Fiction novel that I have just brought out. It’s the sequel to The Pornography Wars. I enjoyed writing this. It has a touch of humour.
‘The politics and satire continues as our humans are set free from control and find themselves in a very different world.
While the aliens continue to argue about the future of pornography and the sentience of human beings, life for the unshackled humans is becoming very grim.
In the tridee film-making studio everything is fraught.
The populist Director General, with her advisers, is being devious.
The Minister for Arts is stoned out of her mind.
A campaign to give humans rights is being fought.
Will the humans find themselves controlled and back in the sex movie, or will they be free?’
Unintended Consequences: Amazon.co.uk: Forsythe, Ron: 9798356000638: Books
Words
This is a collection of short stories and writings from the last two years.
‘Words is a collection of short stories, anecdotes and writings accumulated over the last few years.
Some were written for fun; some have a more serious tone. Hopefully some will make you laugh, some will make you cry and others make you angry.’
Words: Amazon.co.uk: Goodwin, Opher: 9798358692046: Books
Broken Britain (A book of Poetry)
This is my latest book of poetry – a collection of poems gathered from my blog of a mainly political nature.
‘These are the poems of a madman. Politics makes me mad.
Everything is politics.
The establishment uses the media to control us.
The establishment is controlling politics.
My poems try to capture the mad thoughts that go through my head!
After twelve years of Tory greed and lust for power we are all broken. The country is broken. The public services are broken. Children are freezing and starving in Dickensian squalor while multitudes of billionaires and millionaires stuff millions off-shore tax-free.
All I do is write poetry.
Welcome to BROKEN BRITAIN!
Broken Britain: Amazon.co.uk: Goodwin, Opher: 9798358777781: Books
Futile Gestures (Yet another book of what I mistakenly call poems)
I am currently writing a new poetry book and am forty pages in. I imagine that it’ll be out early next year.
The Cabal
This is another Sci-fi novel that will come out under the Ron Forsythe name. I just took a peek. I have written 57 pages so I have a long way to go.
Right – I’m off back to do a little more work on The Cabal.
Thanks again for all your interest and support. Please keep the reviews, ratings, comments and likes coming. They give me a very necessary boost!! THANK YOU!!