*Out now in paperback*
Alan Edwards is the godfather of modern music PR, whose stellar list of clients has ranged over the years from David Bowie to Amy Winehouse via the Rolling Stones, Blondie, Prince and the Spice Girls and, outside of music, David Beckham and Naomi Campbell – now he tells his story.
‘A jaw-dropping memoir.’ – The Times
'An absorbing read . . . Raw, warm and packed with incident' – The Observer
‘[a] hugely entertaining memoir’ – The Independent
‘Gossipy, insightful and a whole lot of fun.’ – The Telegraph
‘Deliciously candid…[an] extraordinary new memoir’ – The Express
‘If Edwards played at Glastonbury, he’d be in the Sunday afternoon ‘legends slot’’ - Number 1 Entertainment PR in the ‘UK Power Book 2024’, PR Week
I Was There:
Dispatches from a Life in Rock and Roll
By Alan Edwards
Simon & Schuster / PB / 15 February 2025 / £9.99
I Was There traces Edwards’ career from the thriving punk scene of ’70s London, which inspired him to set up his own PR company, through his work with acts such as Blondie and the Rolling Stones, his collaboration with David Bowie over nearly four decades, his move into the pop world with the Spice Girls, and beyond.
Along the way, we’re treated to all the entertaining tales of debauchery and rock-star antics you might expect, but more uniquely we’re privy to Edwards’ fascinating observations about the brilliant artists he has worked with, and what makes them tick. We also get a front-row seat to the rise of PR as a major force in British society, from the seven-figure media deal Edwards brokered for the Beckhams’ wedding, to the role of spin in the New Labour government.
Even as Edwards grows into the consummate PR, playing a crucial background role in the lives and careers of some of the world’s biggest stars, he retains a powerful sense of being an outsider – never forgetting how lucky he is to look back on decades of music and culture and say, ‘I was there’.
Feature ideas and talking points:
Entertainment PR in the beginning - a cottage industry that used Hollywood publicists as a blueprint
The British media then, now and the future
On the road with celebrities – being mentored by Mick Jagger; touring the Sistine Chapel with David Bowie; playing football with Beckham; dealing with the Mob in the US; playing Russian roulette with a Hells Angel in Amsterdam; introducing Shakira to Tony Blair and chatting about Bowie with Bill Clinton
Working with some of the biggest black music legends of all time - Teddy Pendergrass, Luther Vandross, Janet and Michael Jackson and Prince - and racism in the media
Involvement with reggae, and playing football with Bob Marley
The influence of Punk
Pioneering the worldwide stadium tour - how The Rolling Stones, and then Bowie, created a whole new industry
Finding a ‘family’ with the Spice Girls, and brokering the famous £1million OK deal for Posh and Becks’ wedding
Alan Edwards is the founder and CEO of public relations firm The Outside Organisation which has represented an eclectic range of clients including the biggest music stars on the planet, corporations and brands, government, royalty, celebrities, charities, events, sports legends and clubs.
Edwards’ 45 year career has seen him work with David Bowie (for nearly four decades), the Who, Victoria and David Beckham, Bon Jovi, Led Zeppelin, Amy Winehouse, Shakira, P Diddy, Britney Spears, Naomi Campbell, the Rolling Stones, Prince, Michael Jackson, Lin Manuel Miranda, Sir Paul McCartney and the Spice Girls, among many others.
Edwards was the third ever inductee to PR Week’s Hall of Fame in 2017, and as of March 2023 has been named the magazine’s number one entertainment PR for ten years running. He is a regular contributor to TV and radio, and has fronted programmes in the Music Moguls and Hits, Hype and Hustle series for the BBC. In 2015 he staged his own show at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, called “Always Print the Myth: PR and the Modern Age”. Among the contributors were Bob Geldof and Alastair Campbell.
“At times in my career I’ve felt like a foreign correspondent, bag packed and always ready to fly off to the next conflict zone. I realised early on that I was a witness to rock and roll history – I was always writing notes on scraps of paper, airline tickets or the backs of my hands. But it was only years later, when I finally sat down to make sense of it all, that I realised I had wandered through some of the most incredible moments in the last half-century of culture.”
‘A brilliant book by a brilliant man.’ - Dylan Jones
‘A beautiful, warm, jaw-dropping, once-in-a-lifetime, lifting-the-stone guide to a secret world…I loved it.’- Tony Parsons
‘Alan is a master of intrigue and suspense . . . An absorbing read’ - Hugh Cornwell
‘Frank, fascinating and funny.’ - John Niven
‘For anyone interested in the workings of the media and celebrity, from the 70s the present day, this book is a must read.’ - Roger Daltrey
‘Far more than just another music book. It gives a real insight into media and PR, what really happens as opposed to what we may think happened!’ - Alastair Campbell
‘Alan Edwards [is] a wonderful storyteller!’ - Debbie Harry
‘An exhilarating account from the man who shaped modern music PR as we know it. Entertaining and educational in equal measure.’ - Yomi Adegoke
‘Alan Edwards is a class act: observant, attentive, always in the right place at the right time: I Was There tells you how.’ - Jon Savage
‘Thank you for the smiles, the laughs, the flood of memories… and the soul you put into I Was There. I felt such warmth in your book. The rush and challenges of working with your heroes is such a wonderful and sometimes heartbreaking roller-coaster. You brought it all back to me in technicolour.’ – Cameron Crowe
‘A fascinating book… such interesting stories…If you love music you should definitely read this book…’ - Nihal, BBC Radio 5
‘a master of page-turning readability ... an insider's view of operating inside the world of David Bowie, Michael Jackson, Amy Winehouse, Paul McCartney and a gaggle of A+ listers' **** - Mojo
‘A giddy, gleeful ride through five decades of working with some of the biggest names on the planet.’ - The Sunday Post
‘PR guru Alan Edwards has myriad fascinating tales of an eventful life…[He] is a consummate storyteller with some insights into what makes rock stars tick.’ – The Ham & High
‘fascinating… loaded with showbiz…strongly recommended… Fans of Bowie, Blondie, Prince and The Stones in particular won’t want to miss this for insight into what made those acts tick and how they relate to the media.’ – Louder Than War
For further information or to request an interview or event, please contact:
EMMA FINNIGAN PR
07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk
