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Post by Mevrouw Bee on Aug 4, 2021 12:04:20 GMT
I started at the end. New to me was that Allan Clarke is diagnosed with prostate cancer. Luckily it might be a mild form. That was when he was 75. He's fine apparently. And it's what motivated him to start writing again. The doc said "take it easy" and so he did... |
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Post by The Dude on Aug 4, 2021 18:32:27 GMT
The Dude, in the Netherlands, ordered ours to avoid shipping costing more than the book itself! He'll read, then ship it over to me in Canada in a box with a bunch of other stuff. So it will probably be winter reading for me! That’s a good idea. Sad this is evidently one of the fallouts from Brexit I guess. It used to be cheaper for me to buy British/European releases straight off Amazon UK instead of as an import on the US site, but now like you say the shipping is more than the product. I hope it doesn’t hurt the people who create in the long run but it’s really tough on the buyer now. Mark It arrived in the mail this Monday... |
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Post by rokinrobinoflocksley on Aug 5, 2021 13:48:54 GMT
Of course, the shipping charge depends on who you buy an item from, where it's sent from, and where it's going. The postage and packing charge for Amazon UK to ship this book to me here in the States was £9.84.
Pre-Brexit, Amazon UK's standard book shipping charge to me was £6.98. 3rd party sellers vary higher and lower...
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Post by Malc on Aug 5, 2021 15:13:42 GMT
Obviously I’m delighted to see folks buying and enjoying the book, although I must add that companies the size of Amazon and Book Depo can afford to take a hit on postage. Sadly, little old me has to pay standard rates for shipping on such a minimal print run. The catch 22 is that I have fully financed this entire project myself and have self published the book so if I let Amazon and co retail it to their heart’s content it will take me a goodly few years to recoup my initial outlay, given their minimal royalty returns. Subsequently, I can only let the big boys have a few copies in order to generate interest - whilst the bulk of the run I have to retail myself in order to earn the full returns, to justify a second print to wider market…
Anyways, that’s my take on it all. It was a project I figured was deserving of the costs … but it’s a vicious cycle and I’d like to think wasn’t all in vain 🤗
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Post by Mevrouw Bee on Aug 5, 2021 23:00:49 GMT
Of course, the shipping charge depends on who you buy an item from, where it's sent from, and where it's going. The postage and packing charge for Amazon UK to ship this book to me here in the States was £9.84. Pre-Brexit, Amazon UK's standard book shipping charge to me was £6.98. 3rd party sellers vary higher and lower... Yeah, it never ceases to amaze me that Canada is treated as if we're not on the same bloomin' continent as the US. |
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Post by Mevrouw Bee on Aug 5, 2021 23:01:55 GMT
Obviously I’m delighted to see folks buying and enjoying the book, although I must add that companies the size of Amazon and Book Depo can afford to take a hit on postage. Sadly, little old me has to pay standard rates for shipping on such a minimal print run. The catch 22 is that I have fully financed this entire project myself and have self published the book so if I let Amazon and co retail it to their heart’s content it will take me a goodly few years to recoup my initial outlay, given their minimal royalty returns. Subsequently, I can only let the big boys have a few copies in order to generate interest - whilst the bulk of the run I have to retail myself in order to earn the full returns, to justify a second print to wider market… Anyways, that’s my take on it all. It was a project I figured was deserving of the costs … but it’s a vicious cycle and I’d like to think wasn’t all in vain 🤗 Not your fault of course. You don't set the costs! |
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Post by sandy on Aug 6, 2021 16:35:31 GMT
Postage charges everywhere are bonkers right now😵So frustrating for you, because there's obviously a lot of interest over the pond. Fingers crossed the first run sells well, and might you be able to think of e-book after that,or is that just not financially viable? I presume you have to format it for all the big guys like Kindle etc?
.....but it certainly was all worth it!!!! The detail is amazing.Learning lots.And so good to have been able to bring it bang up to date.👌You must feel a bit lost now it's all out there!!!
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Post by Malc on Aug 7, 2021 6:20:14 GMT
I wouldn't say I'm lost for things to do ! if anything, the pressure is now greater to sell the books I still have !! There's a limit to how much I can flood the FB pages and forums without pissing folk off, I've got to tackle it in stages... (which is why word of mouth and reviews from you guys are so important) FYI - it's selling through well so far, so I hope to be in a position early next year for a second run with wider distribution, and maybe with an e-book to accompany it. But, if these don't shift then all such plans come to a grinding halt and my garage stays full of unsold paper ! Any help to spread the word amongst your own personal Hollies and music circles is greatly appreciated - and, along with upcoming reviews in Shindig! and Record Collector, I'm also 'hoping' for a further raised profile in that particular area soon !  |
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Post by anthony on Aug 7, 2021 7:04:14 GMT
I wouldn't say I'm lost for things to do ! if anything, the pressure is now greater to sell the books I still have !! There's a limit to how much I can flood the FB pages and forums without pissing folk off, I've got to tackle it in stages... (which is why word of mouth and reviews from you guys are so important) FYI - it's selling through well so far, so I hope to be in a position early next year for a second run with wider distribution, and maybe with an e-book to accompany it. But, if these don't shift then all such plans come to a grinding halt and my garage stays full of unsold paper ! Any help to spread the word amongst your own personal Hollies and music circles is greatly appreciated - and, along with upcoming reviews in Shindig! and Record Collector, I'm also 'hoping' for a further raised profile in that particular area soon ! From everything i have heard about the book is great, hey I'll be giving it a boost on the facebook pages I'm in when I get a chance to see my copy. Just so thankful someone has gone to the trouble to put a book like this together. |
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Post by Malc on Aug 7, 2021 7:36:59 GMT
I wouldn't say I'm lost for things to do ! if anything, the pressure is now greater to sell the books I still have !! There's a limit to how much I can flood the FB pages and forums without pissing folk off, I've got to tackle it in stages... (which is why word of mouth and reviews from you guys are so important) FYI - it's selling through well so far, so I hope to be in a position early next year for a second run with wider distribution, and maybe with an e-book to accompany it. But, if these don't shift then all such plans come to a grinding halt and my garage stays full of unsold paper ! Any help to spread the word amongst your own personal Hollies and music circles is greatly appreciated - and, along with upcoming reviews in Shindig! and Record Collector, I'm also 'hoping' for a further raised profile in that particular area soon ! From everything i have heard about the book is great, hey I'll be giving it a boost on the facebook pages I'm in when I get a chance to see my copy. Just so thankful someone has gone to the trouble to put a book like this together. Thanks ! I know you guys are on the other side of this globe... but why DOES it take so long for postage to get there I wonder ?! Many US copies started arriving within just over a week...  |
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Post by Mevrouw Bee on Aug 7, 2021 14:08:45 GMT
From everything i have heard about the book is great, hey I'll be giving it a boost on the facebook pages I'm in when I get a chance to see my copy. Just so thankful someone has gone to the trouble to put a book like this together. Thanks ! I know you guys are on the other side of this globe... but why DOES it take so long for postage to get there I wonder ?! Many US copies started arriving within just over a week... I'm on the same continent as the US, but Book Depository delivery from the UK takes at least 10 days longer! Figure that one out...My theory, Canada and Australia are just as sparsely populated so don't have the immense delivery infrastructure that the US has... |
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Post by rokinrobinoflocksley on Aug 7, 2021 17:37:20 GMT
Just for the heck of it, I looked on the UK Royal Mail website, to study the shipping prices from the UK to the US. I found an 'economy rate' for small packages (that seem to fit the package that I received from Amazon UK), and this Royal Mail rate was just under £10. With the caveat it could take 2 to 12 weeks to arrive here. This could be helpful though, if US readers were to save £16 on the shipping. I didn't check for Canada, ha. Just a thought...
Edit: OK, I just looked up Canada, and it was basically the same, £9.50 shipping, 'international economy', 1 kg small parcel, 2 to 12 weeks delivery time.
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Post by knut on Aug 7, 2021 18:33:23 GMT
I ordered two books. I will donate one copy for a radio competition. I will also promote it via the Norwegian Hollies Facebook site. It has 3650 followers.
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Post by Malc on Aug 8, 2021 10:16:13 GMT
I ordered two books. I will donate one copy for a radio competition. I will also promote it via the Norwegian Hollies Facebook site. It has 3650 followers. That's amazingly generous of you Knut. Thank you for the suppprt.. |
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Post by Mevrouw Bee on Aug 8, 2021 13:49:29 GMT
Just for the heck of it, I looked on the UK Royal Mail website, to study the shipping prices from the UK to the US. I found an 'economy rate' for small packages (that seem to fit the package that I received from Amazon UK), and this Royal Mail rate was just under £10. With the caveat it could take 2 to 12 weeks to arrive here. This could be helpful though, if US readers were to save £16 on the shipping. I didn't check for Canada, ha. Just a thought...
Edit: OK, I just looked up Canada, and it was basically the same, £9.50 shipping, 'international economy', 1 kg small parcel, 2 to 12 weeks delivery time.
I've had authors from the US ship me books here and it costs about the same in USD. So many little things I've wanted to buy online but the postage costs the same as the item. But most of the online stores are American so... |
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Post by Malc on Aug 12, 2021 17:56:57 GMT
Just received a lovely note from co-founder of the band, pre-Hicks, Vic Farrell, thanking me for my efforts with the book. What a nice guy... 😎
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Post by anthony on Aug 13, 2021 0:35:58 GMT
Just received a lovely note from co-founder of the band, pre-Hicks, Vic Farrell, thanking me for my efforts with the book. What a nice guy... 😎 thats brilliant |
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Post by Gralto on Aug 15, 2021 14:09:21 GMT
There are several good reasons why an extensive, in depth biography in the band has not previously materialised until now. The main one is that it is a very difficult and laborious task. The band has been in operation approaching 60 years - there are many, many people to track down and so much history to chronicle. The band themselves have been a barrier to genuine access with the inner sanctum of the group notoriously hard to infiltrate. And from the mid 1970s, as the new release hits dried up, and the industry started to change, the imageless band battled to get any traction whatsoever with the music press. Finding out what happened to The Hollies from 1975 onwards - publicly - was a challenging assignment. The general consensus with the music press was that there was nothing going on, and nothing to report. While much of their music may have been unremarkable from this time on, there was much happening with the personalities and relationships in the band unreported that does deserve greater scrutiny. Frequent member changes, court room dramas, a rebirth with a whole new lineup and sound, the Hall of Fame fiasco - actually there has been a lot going on. And Malc has done his best to cover all that right up to the present day.
Some of you may have already purchased and read the entire book but I can say that from reading the early draft the author has successfully undertaken tracking down many key people in the Hollies story, some of whom have never given any interviews. I was most impressed with Malc’s attempts to piece together all the pre-Hollies acts, an era that does require plenty of unpicking. This is a book which shows up Brian Southall’s earlier publication for that author’s distinct lack of key participant interviews and subsequent minimal efforts to indeed track said people down.
You will learn plenty of new Hollies information in this book. Andrew Pratley’s recollections of his father’s (Ron Richards) health and history will last long in the memory - I was similarly taken aback by his recollections when also fortunate to be in touch with him some years ago. It is in some ways a sad tale of a man afflicted with mental health battles who never received the kudos that he should have as a man of rare ability to spot a hit record.
What has been achieved here - even without me having read the published version as yet - is that the author has done his very best to tell the story with much research, fact checking with relevant parties, chasing up loose ends, and in general, really caring about getting things as right as he can. This book is in no way a “quota quickie”, to be finished in an unrealistic short deadline. And being self published is all the more admirable, requiring additional graft and determination to see the thing through.
Malc - I have yet to publicly thank you but my copy - signed and given the early numbered copy of #6 - landed in my PO Box the day before we went into yet another lockdown here in Melbourne. I look forward to reading the finished text in amongst the full time work and home schooling a 7yo juggle that continues unabated (sigh)!
This book absolutely value-adds to the existing known body of Hollies history and is a significant achievement in its scope and scale. It is highly recommended for those who wish to uncover the full 60+ year career of the band and its members.
Cheers
Simon
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Post by Malc on Aug 22, 2021 6:22:07 GMT
Just in case anyone wishes to stay atop promotion for the book, along with other associated goodies, I've kicked off a Facebook page - www.faceboook.com/hollies.biography - for the interested of you out there. It won't be a general mish-mash of the usual odds and sods, there are already enough of those - but I hope to post a few items over the coming months that may pique the curiosity... |
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Post by Mevrouw Bee on Aug 22, 2021 17:21:05 GMT
Just in case anyone wishes to stay atop promotion for the book, along with other associated goodies, I've kicked off a Facebook page - www.faceboook.com/hollies.biography - for the interested of you out there. It won't be a general mish-mash of the usual odds and sods, there are already enough of those - but I hope to post a few items over the coming months that may pique the curiosity... And it's already a better page than the "official" one! |
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Post by lulubell on Aug 22, 2021 18:47:03 GMT
Just received a lovely note from co-founder of the band, pre-Hicks, Vic Farrell, thanking me for my efforts with the book. What a nice guy... 😎 That's SOOO lovely to hear from Vic Farrell. I am loving the book. A really fascinating read with lots of facts that I have never heard before. Thank you for your hard work and commitment in writing the book. It is much appreciated. xx |
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Post by Malc on Nov 1, 2021 6:45:40 GMT
Stocks are starting to dwindle... but there's still time to grab a copy !
With thanks to a few familiar faces in the video !
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Post by Mevrouw Bee on Nov 1, 2021 13:27:23 GMT
Stocks are starting to dwindle... but there's still time to grab a copy ! With thanks to a few familiar faces in the video ! Come on, ladies! We're hardly represented in that video!!  |
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Post by sandy on Nov 1, 2021 15:31:22 GMT
Stocks are starting to dwindle... but there's still time to grab a copy ! With thanks to a few familiar faces in the video ! Come on, ladies! We're hardly represented in that video!! ......No, well,there are hardly any pictures of cute little Tony in there ......😜😂( Or maybe the chaps are more fond of selfies than we are ...🤔😂😂)x |
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Post by Mevrouw Bee on Nov 2, 2021 13:44:30 GMT
Come on, ladies! We're hardly represented in that video!! ......No, well,there are hardly any pictures of cute little Tony in there ......😜😂( Or maybe the chaps are more fond of selfies than we are ...🤔😂😂)x |
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