I’ve been a huge fan of Ed Sheeran’s work for years, since
before “+” came out. What’s always impressed me is how true he’s stayed to
himself, he’s not perfect, but he’s always been open about that and it shows.
So when I saw that he wrote a book with the help of a
childhood friend of his, I figured that I’d check it out.
It’s a nice read, gives a good overview of all of his
influences and experiences from when he started making music at 13 to making
“+” and “x” more recently. I find that it’s nice to hear right from the artist
what they’re thoughts are, gives you the feel of their voice (Ed’s involves
some swears, haha). You also get to see what his influences are and the process
of him developing his own sound. It also includes how he started using the loop
pedal, which is pretty cool and unique for an artist like him.
There’s not much about his personal life, he keeps it
focused on the music primarily. I appreciated that, it shows that he wants to
maintain some privacy, and if you aren’t interested in his music then why on
earth would you want to read the book anyways?
Of course, there’s also numerous drawings of Ed done by
Phillip Butah, his childhood artist friend. He’s also done the art for many of
Ed’s album covers, so recognizing his handiwork was pretty cool. He has a
gorgeous style, very raw. Seeing the drawings of Ed was nice, and gives a
different perspective on him than just the paparazzi photos that you could find
on Google.
It’s very much a joint effort between the two of them,
Phillip includes a section on his life and work at the end of the book, which
is also a nice read by itself. And I think it’s really cute that the two of
them grew up together and are now writing about their art and work. Good job
guys.
So yeah, it’s not the most intense novel, but it’ll probably
be more rewarding and interesting than “The Wiggles Sing About Vegetables” or
whatever.
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