‘Superstar DJs Here We Go’ by Dom Phillips – book review
Just finished reading this book so thought I’d stick a few words up for prospective readers out there.
Written by former Mixmag editor Dom Phillips the book could almost be a plug for Mixmag as it constantly comes back and refers to it throughout and seems to folllow it’s editorial coverage throughout the period. A reflection of the times and editorial policy that was bang on or gratuitous plug and blowing one’s own trumpet – the cynic in me is undecided.
That aside…
I enjoyed the read – the book covers the late 80’s early 90’s acid house era and following explosion of UK clubbing off the back of those early illegal raves. It charts the move out of the fields and into legal club venues, the rise of the Superstar DJ, super clubs and even bigger brands and the eventual backlash that followed as greedy promoters and club owners lost touch with their audiences leading up to the Y2K millennium NYE. It also goes into the seamier side of the scene almost to the nth degree, covering the drugs and excess and many burnt-out (and worse!) casualties that followed.
The book dips in and out of following the likes of Sasha, Jeremy Healy, Fatboy Slim, Judge Jules, Pete Tong and other well known DJ names and characters from the 90’s. There’s a lot around Sasha and his early residencies and later excesses/successes with Dom saying he was the first real superstar DJ in the UK. The book also covers some of the bigger promoters of the time as well as the brands and clubs like Cream, Ministry of Sound, Renaissance and Gatecrasher.
So would I recommend it?
I think for anyone who has lived in the UK, or elsewhere and clubbed through that late 90’s period, is a mad clubber/dance music/DJ fan then you would enjoy it. There are loads of amusing stories and anecdotes in there. At times however it is almost one for the trainspotters in places as it reads like you listening to someone describing their latest big weekend out – if you hadn’t really been to those places or experienced it first hand, know the players involved you may not fully get it. Still from a history point of view and those interested where the scene has (in part as it is only UK focused and doesn’t cover the US) come from – it documents that era as only someone who was there could…
