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Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers

The Rise of Motörhead

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Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers

Written by: Martin Popoff
Narrated by: A. T. Chandler
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Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers is the first book to celebrate the classic-era Motörhead lineup of Lemmy Kilmister, "Fast" Eddie Clarke, and Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor. Through interviews with all of the principal troublemakers, Martin Popoff celebrates the formation of the band and the records that made them legends: Motörhead, Overkill, Bomber, Ace of Spades, No Sleep 'til Hammersmith, and Iron Fist. An in-depth coda brings the story up to date with the shocking recent deaths of Taylor and Kilmister.

Motörhead comes to life in this book as bad-luck bad boys - doused in drink and drugs, most notably speed - incapable of running their lives right save for Fast Eddie, who is charged with holding things together. Popoff also examines the heady climate of music through the band's rise to prominence during the New Wave of British heavy metal, with detailed reflection on Motörhead's unique position in the scene as both originators and embattled survivors who carried on the renegade spirit of those times.

©2017 Martin Popoff (P)2017 Tantor Entertainment & Celebrities Music Celebrity

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What the critics say

"Martin has the most thorough knowledge of heavy metal of anybody I've ever met." (Dee Snider, Twisted Sister frontman)
All stars
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This book is clearly a labor of love for Canadian Rock Writer Martin Popoff. He does an adequate job weaving retrospective commentary from band members & satellites into a straightforward chronological documentary of Motörhead's professional career but does it with an obvious goal of portraying the band as iconic "Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll" gods.. but relatable. The result is a series of straight transcripts that is variably successful: expository but without much insight.

As to performance: on the one hand, I appreciate A.T. Chandler's decision to not try accents/impersonations when channeling Lemmy Kilmister, Eddie Clarke, Phil Taylor, and friends/producers/roadies/engineers.. but on the other, every quote sounds pretty much exactly the same. Chandler's professional diction, cadence, and pacing (and pleasant baritone timbre) make this an enjoyable listen - but the indistinctive aspects of the reading render the narration "average" overall.

Altogether, 'Beer Drinkers And Hell Raisers' merits 5.5 stars out of 10. It was a fine distraction (for a headbanger like me) as a 'Plus' selection - but spend your Credit elsewhere should they ask for one.

Passable Contextualized Interviews

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Always loved hearing the journey of these bands. This is a great one and so really enjoyed it. Thx again

Loved it! Always been a big fan. The most honest band ever! Thanks again

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There was an old wives tale that Charles Dickens was paid by the word for his work. While this has since been debunked, I suspect it may be true for Martin Popov.. I downloaded this book because I am a Motörhead fan and think Lenny is one of the coolest guys to ever walk the earth. This book chronicles the early days of Motörhead which you would think would be interesting, but these stories have absolutely no substance. There are very short anecdotes that are repeated at nauseam. “They toured with girl school..” SO WHAT?! There is no tales that are associated with this, but it is stated about 2 dozen times through the first half of the book.. overall I can’t and wouldn’t recommended this book to a Motörhead fan, or even a music fan in general. Truly a disappointing listen.

All sizzle, no steak.. Actually no sizzle, no steak

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A very journalistic approach to the story of the early days of Motörhead, lots of interesting details about the personalities of the bandmates , studio sessions, and historical moments
Maybe missing a couple of juicy party stories, but overall a great breed 

You can’t go wrong with Motörhead… or can you?

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