In the music industry a band or a musician seems to have a set time for fame, fortune and everything that goes with it, then beep a signal goes out, taste police show up and a person goes from the main stage at Glastonbury, to support set, to oldies tours or even reality television. We’re very good at self-deception bullshit, and we all have our blind spots, but the trick is not to walk away from, but rather to walk towards our weaknesses. The obsession with the new obviously leaves so many on dust heaps of various shapes and sizes, and this is their story.

But those who did agree to the interviews — a lengthy list that includes Don McLean, Bob Geldof, Robbie Williams, Stewart Copeland, Billy Bragg, Joan Armatrading, Leo Sayer and more — reveal much more than one might ordinarily read in a newspaper or magazine article. There are some revealing testimonies within the book from Shaun Ryder, Rufus Wainwright, Lisa Maffia, Lloyd Cole and many others from pop, rock, dance and indie, making Nick Duerden’s book an enlightening, humorous and extremely entertaining read. What does come across is that with rare exceptions most of them are want one more chance in the spotlight.This is a light, enjoyable read which gets a little samey as the author carefully avoids anything too dark or tragic. Each chapter covers one or more artist from their origin, details their time in the fame bubble, the come-down, and the whatever was next. The world’s smallest violin is playing somewhere as they mooch around recording studios, take up painting or become personal tribute bands - it must be great to have the luxury of a fat bank balance and regular royalties to navel gaze, gaff about in a studio and reminisce about the good old days. Still, considered as a collection of anecdotes rather than any kind of study, and despite everything, this was still an entertaining read. I liked the diverse range of artists featured; I don’t think there are many books that collectively feature Don Mclean, Chumbawumba and Paul from S Club 7!

I did a lot of my work for Q Magazine over here and in America, for Spin and Billboard, so I would get some access, but it would still be stage-managed by the PR teams, by management. However what happens to bands and musicians who suddenly find their afternoons not recovering from shows and interviews or signings, but just instead measured out in coffee spoons and getting the kids homwork done, and dinner on the table. A few artists covered include Billy Bragg, David Grey, Suzanne Vega, Adam Ant, Bob Geldof, Joan Armatrading and many many others. The book also touches on areas generally not touched with a ten-foot (Tudor) pole by the music biz – mental illness, poverty, shame, family estrangement, divorce, burnout.Exit Stage Left: The Curious Afterlife of Pop Stars by Nick Duerden is an entertaining look at what happens to pop stars after the hits stop coming. Exit Stage Left is a funny and poignant book, drawing on Duerden’s considerable experience as a journalist and interviewer . But if a career in pop music is so often about managed decline, what is wrong with gracefully managing that decline?

Duerden deserves a lot of praise for tracking down a diverse group or artists, and getting them to talk.Duerden does well to get so many interviews, let alone ones where the subjects speak so openly about their careers (or eventual lack of, in many cases). There is a sort of morbid curiosity turning the stone over and seeing where the likes of Hothouse Flowers, Terrance Trent D’arby and Moloko have crawled to.

In the end, these are all just people making their ways through their careers, and in some cases, the end of their careers, picking up the pieces and carrying on.This is a book for lovers of music, for children of the 80's and 90s, and for readers who are fascinated by bright stars that fade. Nick Duerden has written a fascinating exploration of what happens to most pop stars when the hits dry up. There was quite a lot to read in this book, and I think it was OK to skip over an artist you aren't particularly interested in. g. Don McLean and Leo Sayer) up to the 2010s, with the bulk coming from 80s pop, and 90s indie bands.