Clean Living Under Difficult Circumstances
A Life in Mod – From the Revival to Acid Jazz
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Clean Living Under Difficult Circumstances
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Narrated by:
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Eddie Piller
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
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Damien G.
- 03-10-23
Fascinating read. Amazing Detail.
As an individual who embraced ‘Entry Level’ Mod during the second wave of the Mod Revival, this book is an encyclopaedia. I’m going to have to read it again. I had similar experiences to Eddie whilst being what I thought was Mod. The 1980’s were violent times! People forget. Just when I thought I new a lot about my version of Mod Culture, this book has made me realise how much more there is to learn.
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- Mark Jones
- 27-09-23
Captivating and true to the Mod culture
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
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- David Roberts
- 29-08-24
Good times
Enjoyed it all. I don’t want to write fifteen words so this is all you get.
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- Gordo
- 27-04-23
A Very Compelling Story
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.
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- Jon Myhill
- 26-04-23
Modern life is...
I'd recommend this to anyone who was part of the mod revival and continues to hold onto the mod sensibilities. Excellently read by Eddie.
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- BRIAN MCDONOUGH
- 03-09-23
Great listen ,parkas ,scooters and shotguns included .
born in the 60s ?this book /audible version is a fun account of a boy /teenager trying to make his mark in life ,great stories on the way ,the modern worlds Peter Meaden .
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- Gary Sullivan
- 16-09-23
Eddie Piller simply brilliant.
Clean Living Under Difficult Circumstances is more than a story; it's almost a history of being a mod and what it means to be a mod. The detail is unreal, and the knowledge you learn about the music industry in some parts is fascinating. It is a most read and I have used it many times now to refer to a seek new bands that until reading the book never heard of.
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- Sophie Cook
- 19-11-23
Better memory than I
I remember Eddie from the early 80s Mod scene. This book took me right back, so many names, bands and stories that were part of mybteenage years. Beautifully told, with charm and humour.
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- Amazon Customer
- 18-06-23
Eddie’s dreaming…
I approached the book with trepidation, fearing I wouldn’t learn anything new. But after partly reading and partly listening to it on Audible, I had a better understanding of the author, Piller. This has left me energised, confirming what I have always believed and optimistic for Mod culture and all its babies. Bedders (Chichester)
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- Darren Rowan
- 18-05-23
Takes my back
I constantly found myself nodding and smiling as I listened to this book. This reflected so much of my own mod journey but also give an insight into a true music entrepreneur.
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