The real story of the man behind the bands - and a backstage pass to forty years of Australian rock music.Known to many as GODinski, Michael Gudinski is unquestionably the most powerful and influential figure in the Australian rock'n'roll music business - and has been for the last four decades.Often referred to as 'the father of the Australian music industry', he has nurtured the careers of many artists - Kylie Minogue, Jimmy Barnes, Paul Kelly, Skyhooks, Split Enz, Yothu Yindi, to name just a few. But his reach isn't limited to Australian artists. With his Frontier Touring Company, Gudinski has toured The Rolling Stones, Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, Sting ... pretty much a who's who of the arena level international music scene.A self-made multi-millionaire, Gudinski is the Australian equivalent of Richard Branson or David Geffen, but who is this tough, inspired, flamboyant and impassioned businessman who has shaped Australian popular culture? Where did he come from, and how has he stayed relevant for so long in an industry notorious for its fickleness? Rock journalist Stuart Coupe delves into Gudinski's life to find the answers - and in doing so gives us a backstage pass to forty years of Australian rock.

The real story of the man behind the bands - and a backstage pass to forty years of Australian rock music.Known to many as GODinski, Michael Gudinski is unquestionably the most powerful and influential figure in the Australian rock'n'roll music business - and has been for the last four decades.Often referred to as 'the father of the Australian music industry', he has nurtured the careers of many artists - Kylie Minogue, Jimmy Barnes, Paul Kelly, Skyhooks, Split Enz, Yothu Yindi, to name just a few. But his reach isn't limited to Australian artists. With his Frontier Touring Company, Gudinski has toured The Rolling Stones, Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, Sting ... pretty much a who's who of the arena level international music scene.A self-made multi-millionaire, Gudinski is the Australian equivalent of Richard Branson or David Geffen, but who is this tough, inspired, flamboyant and impassioned businessman who has shaped Australian popular culture? Where did he come from, and how has he stayed relevant for so long in an industry notorious for its fickleness? Rock journalist Stuart Coupe delves into Gudinski's life to find the answers - and in doing so gives us a backstage pass to forty years of Australian rock.

Cumming's collection of memoirish essays - anecdotes of his childhood, of traipsing the streets of Melbourne looking for life and music; of of getting older and developing back problems, of the internal politics of rock bands, and of the Countdown days. Cummings was lead singer with The Sports rock band of the 70

Australia's best music writer examines the life of the Australian music legend - honest, revealing and a must-have for any Paul Kelly fan. Until now, no one has written the definitive biography of Australia's best-loved singer, song writer and poet. Taking us from Paul Kelly's family life as the sixth of eight children in Adelaide, Stuart Coupe, with Paul's blessing and access to friends, family and band mates, shows us the evolution from a young man who only really picked up a guitar in his late teens, to an Australian music icon. As Paul's music career took off he had to juggle the demands of rock'n'roll with real life and it wasn't always pretty. As Paul's manager for a time, Stuart Coupe has seen or heard it all - the good and the bad (like Paul being told by an audience member that his was the worst band ever!). The book will look at Paul Kelly's personal relationships and the impact they have had on Paul's career and his storytelling. It will also highlight his generosity to other artists, like Archie Roach. In 2017 Paul Kelly received an Order of Australia acknowledging his distinguished service to the performing arts and the promotion of the national identity through his contributions as singer, songwriter and musician. At the foundation of it all is his storytelling. PAUL KELLY: The man, the music and the life in between will give us an unfiltered examination of it all.

'To me, you're not a promoter until you've lost a lot of money over a very short period of time. I've lost up to half a million dollars a day - and done it three days in a row' - Michael Coppel Most of us have been to see a major concert, but very few of us know what goes on behind the scenes. It's an astonishing, often frightening, sometimes exhilerating world of phenomenal risk-taking by a unique group of people. Amongst them are names like Michael Gudinski, Michael Coppel, Michael Chugg, Paul Dainty and Kevin Jacobsen. Amongst their clients are names such as U2, Madonna, Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones - and many more. They bring out the big names - and introduce us to the unknowns. They cope with the demands and tantrums of the stars, the nuts and bolts of putting on a big concert, and always gambling that they know a year in advance just what is going to make us, the audience, happy.