Terri Hooley & Richard Sullivan - Hooleygan book
Terri Hooley & Richard Sullivan: Hooleygan - Music, Mayhem, Good Vibrations
Publisher: Blackstaff Press; Year: 2010; Format: Book
I would assume that anybody reading this review with an interest in DIY labels and the history behind them will be familiar with Good Vibrations and the man behind the label and the various stores associated with, Terri Hooley. Richard Sullivan, who has been an avid follower of Terri's fortunes since he was a teenager visiting the Good Vibrations store in Belfast, is the co-author of this book and with having said this it certainly seems like the right choice has been made in regard to Terri's collaborator for this book with the result being a fantastic account of Terri's life with all its highs and lows, and there has been many of them. It should come as no surprise that personally I highly enjoyed Terri's memories of discovering the Undertones, Rudi and countless other great punk rock/powerpop acts of the Northern Ireland scene, but I specifically loved the early parts of the book and the stories of Terri as a young kid and teenager growing up in Belfast, being a hippy and standing up for what he believes in, something he has been doing throughout his entire life. Needless to say that he hasn't just made friends, and this book also talks about arson, the paramilitaries and their brutal and senseless actions against Terri, the many different locations his shop has been forced to take as a result of that, and so on. This is a fascinating read from cover to cover!
