Wilkinson, Paul 1962-

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Wilkinson, Paul 1962-

PERSONAL:

Born May 19, 1962. Education: Obtained degree.

ADDRESSES:

Home—England.

CAREER:

Arts and entertainment manager and musician. Manager of an arts center in East London, England.

WRITINGS:

Rat Salad: Black Sabbath, the Classic Years, 1969-1975, Thomas Dunne Books (New York, NY), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

Paul Wilkinson is an arts and entertainment manager and a musician. He was born on May 19, 1962, and raised in the Peak District of northern England. Wilkinson studied psychology at the university level before entering a career in the arts and entertainment industry. He performed with a number of pop bands in England that copied the Beatles' style, including the Originals and the Stallions of Love, a close-harmony, cabaret joke-band. He eventually became the manager of an arts center in East London.

In 2007 Wilkinson published his first book, Rat Salad: Black Sabbath, the Classic Years, 1969-1975. The book looks at the success of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath around the early 1970s, going beyond commentary on the heavy guitar riffs and heavy drum and bass beats and looking into the technical and cultural aspects of the band and its music. The band owed its initial popularity to teenagers who saw in the band's lyrics a dark view of the global political economy of the time. Wilkinson examines each of the band's six albums and highlights various aspects of the songs included in each album. He also looks at personal events in the lives of band members, particularly lead-singer Ozzy Osbourne, to see what external events were shaping the music and performance styles. For readers with some musical training or background, Wilkinson also gives some harmonic analysis of the music as well.

A contributor to Kirkus Reviews found that "at times, the book buckles under the weight of minutiae." The same contributor also noted that non-musicians would think that Wilkinson's analysis of each song is "a tad on the geeky side," despite appreciating the glossary included. The critic concluded that the book "reads like an enthusiastic (often fun, but rambling) 200-page college newspaper article." A contributor to Publishers Weekly described the book as "witty and musically sophisticated appreciation." The critic contended that the detailed accounts of each album and the short biographical chapters "will entertain his stated audience," a group Wilkinson says are grown-up now but remember living through those days. The same contributor remarked: "Best of all, Wilkinson is never dull in his assessments." Steven Rosen, writing on the Curled Up with a Good Book Web site, commented that the book is "a trifle heavy-handed but right on the button harmonically speaking." Rosen observed that "he has cited many prominent sources," and highly detailed sections of the book are balanced "with colorful passages." Rosen summarized that Rat Salad is "a very workmanlike effort."