Chris Salewicz ( ) is a journalist, broadcaster and novelist who lives in London.

Career

Salewicz was as a senior features writer for the ''

New Musical Express ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a " rock inkie", the ''NME'' would become a maga ...

'' (''NME'') from 1975 to 1981, where, under tutelage of editor Neil Spencer, he and other journalists were said to have "re-written the book on

music journalism Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary o ...

". The period Salewicz spent at ''NME'' is regarded by some as a 'Golden Age of Music Journalism', where, fuelled by the

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

explosion, the whole genre changed into a complex revolutionary socioeconomic critique rather than the fan club–style journalism of the previous decades. Along with other ''NME'' alumni (notably Tony Parsons and

Julie Burchill Julie Burchill (born 3 July 1959) is an English writer. Beginning as a staff writer at the ''New Musical Express'' at the age of 17, she has since contributed to newspapers such as ''The Daily Telegraph'', ''The Sunday Times'' and ''The Guardi ...

) of that period, Salewicz's work was soon featured in mainstream publications such as the ''

Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'', ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'', '' Conde Nast Traveller'', '' Q'', ''

Mojo Mojo may refer to: * Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in Hoodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Mojo'' (2017 film), a 2017 Indian Kannada drama film written and directed by Sreesha Belakvaadi * '' ...

'' and '' Time Out''; he also wrote for '' The Face magazine''. Salewicz's time at the ''NME'' allowed him to form close friendships with

Joe Strummer John Graham Mellor (21 August 1952 – 22 December 2002), known professionally as Joe Strummer, was a British musician. He was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist, and lead vocalist of punk rock band the Clash, formed in 1976. The Clash' ...

the Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...

and

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981) was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, he fused elements of reggae, ska and rocksteady and was renowned for his distinctive voca ...

. His journalism covered some of the experiences he had with them, including the

Trenchtown Trench Town (also Trenchtown) is a neighbourhood located in the parish of St. Andrew, part of which is in Kingston, the capital and largest city of Jamaica. Today Trench Town is the location of the Trench Town Culture Yard Museum, a National He ...

Ghetto, Jamaican Gun Court, and Zimbabwean independence, and

Maida Vale Maida Vale ( ) is an affluent residential district in North West London, England, north of Paddington, southwest of St John's Wood and south of Kilburn, on Edgware Road. It is part of the City of Westminster and is northwest of Charing C ...

Squat, Groucho Club, and a search for Garcia Lorca's bones in

Andalucía Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

. Salewicz's writing and subsequent books on Strummer (''Redemption Song'') and Marley (''The Untold Story'') expanded beyond their musical impact into what made them political and cultural icons. In 1995, he and film director Don Letts moved to

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

for two years to develop film ideas. Drawing on extensive research, Salewicz wrote '' Third World Cop'', which became Jamaica's highest-grossing film ever when it was released in 1999. Salewicz is the author of fifteen books, including ''Rude Boy: Once Upon a Time in Jamaica''; ''Redemption Song: the Definitive Biography of Joe Strummer''; and ''Bob Marley: The Untold Story''. He was the on-screen narrator in 2010's ', a documentary feature film, released cinematically in Poland, about how Polish rock and roll helped bring down

communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...

. The same year, Salewicz went into

Tivoli Gardens Tivoli Gardens, also known simply as Tivoli (), is an amusement park and pleasure garden in Copenhagen, Denmark. The park opened on 15 August 1843 and is the third-oldest operating amusement park in the world, after Dyrehavsbakken in nearby Kla ...

in Kingston to report on the " Dudus affair" for ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

''.

Bibliography

* ''Bob Marley: The Untold Story'' (2010) * ''Redemption Song: The Definitive Biography of Joe Strummer'' (2012) * ''Reggae Explosion'' (2013) - with Adrian Boot * ''Dead Gods: The 27 Club'' (2015) * ''Jimmy Page: The Definitive Biography'' (2018)

References

External links

* *
Articles by Chris Salewicz
for '' Sabotage Times'' (2012 archive) {{DEFAULTSORT:Salewicz, Chris British male journalists British writers Living people Year of birth missing (living people)