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In the All-Night Café
In the All-Night Café

In the All-Night Café

A Memoir of Belle and Sebastian's Formative Year

MUSIC

208 Pages, 6 x 9.25

Trade Paper, $15.95 (US $15.95)

Publication Date: May 2015

ISBN 9781613730782

Rights: US

Chicago Review Press (May 2015)

Sorry, this item is temporarily out of stock
 

Overview

Belle and Sebastian have been making music to critical acclaim since their formation in 1996. They have played hundreds of gigs and won a Brit Award; their music has been featured in popular films; and their unsettling, often surreal songs, delicate melodies, and alternative approach to pop stardom have earned them fans worldwide. In the All-Night Café is founding member Stuart David’s charming and evocative memoir of Belle and Sebastian’s first year, an as-yet-undocumented period of the band’s history. Beginning with the fortuitous meeting of Stuart Murdoch and Stuart David at a course for unemployed musicians in Glasgow, it tells—in David’s eminently readable and understated style—of their adventures in two early incarnations of Belle and Sebastian, culminating in the recording of the band’s much-loved and highly praised debut album, Tigermilk. But this is not just a book for Belle and Sebastian fans: it’s a universal story about being young, out of work, and trying to make something of your life—about discovering something you love, being fortunate enough to find similarly minded people, and making a go of it.

Reviews

"This slim, charming memoir...brings warmth and wit to tales of mixtapes, house shows and their haphazard path to becoming one of indie rock’s greatest acts." —Rolling Stone


"David takes a magical meander down memory lane to the early years of Belle and Sebastian... a lovely look at a lost world" —Charlotte Heathcote, Sunday Express


"Masterful and often-moving" —Sukhdev Sandhu, The Guardian


“David’s naiveté and honesty, though it surely brought him pain in those days, serves him well as a writer...The quality that makes In the All-Night Café great is the sophisticated way David treats his lingering feelings toward his former bandmate.” —Paste Magazine


“David has discovered what eluded him during the period he is writing about: his own creative identity, one that is made manifest in the memoir’s calm, observant voice. The end product is a funny and unpretentious meditation on finding your own shambolic magic, probably best enjoyed with a cup of (thick Scottish) tea.” —Los Angeles Review of Books


"Stuart David was the cofounder and bass player of the band, and the memoir he has written here is much like Belle and Sebastian’s music: gentle, delicate, and wistful." —Booklist


"David possesses a whimsical narrative voice that balances optimism and realism with a clear-eyed, easy grace...It’s well-written, personal, friendly, and quirky – just like a good Belle and Sebastian song." —Houston Press


“David’s prose, light and airy but blessed with a wonderful eye for detail and nuance, interestingly mimics the feel of a Belle and Sebastian song.” —Consequence of Sound

Author Biography

Stuart David is a Scottish musician, songwriter, and writer. He cofounded the band Belle and Sebastian (1996–2000), in which he played bass guitar, and then went on to front Looper (1998–present). He is the author of the novel Nalda Said.