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Clean Living Under Difficult Circumstances

A Life in Mod – From the Revival to Acid Jazz

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Clean Living Under Difficult Circumstances

By: Eddie Piller, Paul Weller - foreword
Narrated by: Eddie Piller
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About this listen

 ***

'Eddie was there very early doors. His story is of the many.' Paul Weller

'A total riot! Takes me right back to the 70s. A Superb book' Mani, The Stone Roses

'What a wonderful book. Mod isn't about what decade you lived in, it's about your attitude, and this book has tons of it' Kenney Jones, The Small Faces

'A charismatic storyteller, witty and unpretentious, he is at once an engaging protagonist and an indisputable authority, giving a live-wire, visceral perspective on mod life in that short flash of time. He manages to create a welcoming space in this rather exclusive world while never losing his formidable edge as a narrator' - The Big Issue

'Buy it on sight. You won't be disappointed' - Louder Than War

'Eddie's book is really good!' - Robert Elms

'Akin to being in the company of someone with plenty of entertaining tales to tell.... the comradery and spirit of like-minded souls is inspiring.' - Paul Ritchie, Shindig! Magazine

WITH A FOREWORD BY PAUL WELLER

This is the memoir of a teenage mod from the East End of London.

A journey of discovery for a schoolboy dabbling with punk, funk, record shops, discos and clothes, and then... WHAAAM! An unstoppable wave of like-minded kids fall headlong in love with 60s mod culture, revived and reformatted for the 70s and 80s generation.

Eddie Piller was one such kid. His life was changed forever. Written with humour, passion and attention to detail, CLEAN LIVING UNDER DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES is perhaps the ultimate mod memoir, taking us from meeting the Small Faces as a toddler, to the 1979 Mod revival, through the more purist 1980s mod scene and eventually to Acid Jazz.

A born storyteller, Eddie takes us evocatively into a world of scooters, clothes, and music. We run with the crowd to decaying seaside towns, East End backstreet boozers and sweaty teenage gigs, all fizzing with an uncontainable excitement and often exploding into violence.

Once mod touched your soul it changed the way you looked at life, unexpectedly broadening your horizons. In Eddie it awakens a can-do attitude that sees him setting up a fanzine, putting on club nights, hustling jobs in the music industry, and eventually setting up a record label. It even takes him to Ireland at the height of the troubles and to Australia where the local mods take him on a military exercise...

Visceral and always entertaining, CLEAN LIVING UNDER DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES is a stand-out memoir that relives the thrill of the 70s and 80s, and the movement that helped make mod the most enduring and successful British youth culture of all time.©2023 Eddie Piller and Paul Weller (P)2023 Octopus Publishing Group Entertainment & Celebrities Music Celebrity

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All stars
Most relevant
I absolutely loved this book, Eddie’s detail on the music and club life was so immersive. I was just gutted it ended in 1987, great shame that. Maybe that’s for a second book, I do hope so.

My only criticism would be the quality of the recording it felt patchy, like sentences or words needed to be patched into the recording and the volume wasn’t consistent either, which is a shame but it in no way detracts from the content.
I bought the book too because of the music listed in it.

A very interesting book

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If you were there in those early days of the Mod Revival, this book is such a gift to boost fading memories..... it takes you right back.
If you were not there, Eddie will take you along on the journey, and for a while, you will feel part of it.

A valuable source of information on the music, clubs, clothes, and recreational pastimes of those on the scene.
Even Punks, Soul Boys, and Casuals get a mention.

Having the audio book version narrated by the author adds to its authenticity.

A cracking piece of social history story telling.

If You Were There.....

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Eddie draws a vivid picture of the music scene and culture. Top class. Highly recommend.

What stories!

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Coming of age through the late 70s and 80’s I fully immersed myself in Eddie’s journey, knowing how the scene developed in London was fascinating and compelling to someone who lived in Rural N Wales

Captivating and true to the Mod culture

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you will be surprised how much E.P has influenced your life if you like music and fashion. Although I listened to the revival and liked it a lot I was never cool enough or had the money to invest in clothes or music. this is told in a way that sums up the feelings of being in a movement, the discovery of new things, new music and new friends. for me, that was acid house. however, I totally bought into acid jazz, gigs, and club nights. I bought the hardback for the pictures and the audio to listen to on my commute. so much better when the book is read by the person who wrote it.

A Very Compelling Story

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