Paul Kelly: The Essays
Edited by David Leser.
One of Australia’s most gifted singer-songwriters, Paul Kelly has been marking out the Australian landscape and its people through words and music for almost 40 years. The sixth of nine children, a former altar boy, dux of his school, sports champion and grandson of two famous opera singers, Kelly began playing guitar at the age of 12. Since then, he has penned over 350 songs on themes of love, sex, death, family, friends and places, drawing on an enormous number of heroes – literary, musical, artistic and sporting – for his inspiration, and begging, borrowing and stealing from all of them. His songs are landscapes; charting not just the physical terrain but the emotional landscapes he and his contemporaries have walked through. He is a storyteller, a poet, and has the unique ability to communicate with Australians, across all age groups and gender. Collaborating with indigenous musicians, young performers, and artists of all genres, Kelly has created some of the most important songs of our times.
Paul Kelly – The Essays brings together some of Australia’s best writers to reflect on Kelly’s relationship to music, family, friends, God, Sport, love and literature. The book comprises 10 essays by individuals whose lives Kelly has touched – from fans to family members colleagues and collaborators.
My Cousin the Songwriter by Alex McGregor
The Songs were the Problem by Richard Guilliart
Paul Kelly and God by Nicholas Tonti-Filippini
Words Matter by Sophie Cunningham
Over the Bridge to the MCG by Martin Flanagan
A Music Lesson by Jordan Leser
Jukebox Baby by Toby Creswell
Songman by Rachel Perkins
Who is Paul Kelly? by Ian Darling
Love is the Law by David Leser
Available in paperback and in digital format; the digital book includes more than 60 images, videos clips and songs.
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