This Searing Light, the Sun and Everything Else

Not only adds eye-witness intensity but brilliantly weaves together a parallel narrative in which a rubble-strewn, late '70s Manchester was revitalised by its discontented youth, with a little help from Factory impresario Tony Wilson. And even as the shadow of Curtis's personal tragedy deepens, Savage never loses sight of the band's rapid evolution as together they discovered a sound the would change modern music.

Savage is one of the best, and most renowned music journalists this country has ever produced [This Searing Light, The Sun and Everything Else is] not just about a band, but a portrait of a city, and of four young men discovering their own talent, and finding acclamation and success; and one of them unable to cope with it. It’s extraordinary.

The oral-history format lends a warmth and flexibility that prevents is becoming just another grim rattle of the ossuary [ ... ] Lets the life back into the story. It's all the more devastating for that.

This oral history has a definitive quality [ ... ] The book's ultimate validation is its concise yet vivid portrayal of a group whose music still inspires shock and awe 40 years on.

As definitive a telling of the band’s story as you’re likely to get.

Savage’s thoughtful orchestration of the band’s oral history is illuminating. It muddies the clean lines of their now mythical narrative [ ... ] These interviews are a precious archive.