Ian MacCormick (known by the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

Ian MacDonald; 3 October 1948 – 20 August 2003) was an English

music critic '' The Oxford Companion to Music'' defines music criticism as "the intellectual activity of formulating judgments on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres". In this sense, it is a branch of m ...

, journalist and author, best known for both '' Revolution in the Head'', his critical history of

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

which borrowed techniques from art historians, and ''The New Shostakovich'', a study of Russian composer

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...

Education and career

Ian MacDonald was born in London on 3 October 1948. He studied at

Dulwich College Dulwich College is a 2-18 private, day and boarding school for boys in Dulwich, London, England. As a public school, it began as the College of God's Gift, founded in 1619 by Elizabethan actor Edward Alleyn, with the original purpose of ...

before briefly attending

King's College, Cambridge King's College, formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, is a List of colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college lies beside the River Cam and faces ...

, at first to study English, then archaeology and anthropology. He dropped out after a year; while at Cambridge, he was distantly acquainted with the singer-songwriter Nick Drake. From 1972 to 1975 he served as assistant editor at ''

NME ''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 music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

''. MacDonald began a songwriting collaboration as a lyricist with the band

Quiet Sun Quiet Sun were an English progressive rock/jazz fusion band from the Canterbury scene consisting of Phil Manzanera (guitars), Bill MacCormick (bass), Dave Jarrett (keyboards) and Charles Hayward (drums). History Having originated from a Dul ...

, which included his brother Bill MacCormick and future

Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry (lead vocals/keyboards/principal songwriter) and Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson (bass). By the time the band recorded their Roxy Music (album), first albu ...

guitarist

Phil Manzanera Phillip Geoffrey Targett-Adams (born 31 January 1951), known professionally as Phil Manzanera, is an English musician, songwriter and record producer. He is the lead guitarist with Roxy Music, and was the lead guitarist with 801 and Quiet Sun. ...

. The collaboration resumed in the late 1970s, with MacDonald providing lyrics for the album ''Listen Now''. Later,

Brian Eno Brian Peter George Jean-Baptiste de la Salle Eno (, born 15 May 1948), also mononymously known as Eno, is an English musician, songwriter, record producer, visual artist, and activist. He is best known for his pioneering contributions to ambien ...

assisted MacDonald in producing ''Sub Rosa'', an album of his songs released on Manzanera's label. In his 1994 '' Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties'', MacDonald carefully anatomised each recording by

, examining the broad themes and sources of inspiration. The book contains detailed song-by-song analysis, but is often subjective and critical.

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

has stated his dissatisfaction with its accuracy. Access to the original Beatles master tapes was allowed during research. The book also includes his essay "Fabled Foursome, Disappearing Decade", an analysis of the social and cultural changes of the 1960s and their after-effects. The entries about the Beatles' singles that topped the singles chart were released in a separate book in 2002. The edit featured a new, shorter introduction and featured only the essays on the songs on the Beatles' chart-topping album, '' 1''. His ''The New Shostakovich'' (1990) attempted to put the works of the Russian composer in their political and social context, leaning heavily on Solomon Volkov's ''

Testimony Testimony is a solemn attestation as to the truth of a matter. Etymology The words "testimony" and "testify" both derive from the Latin word ''testis'', referring to the notion of a disinterested third-party witness. Law In the law, testimon ...

''. MacDonald's insistence on creating a cinematic scenario for every major piece polarised opinion sharply. In 2006 a heavily revised and updated version undertaken by the British pianist Raymond Clarke, also incorporating some of MacDonald's later writings, addressed some of these issues. The success of ''Revolution in the Head'' motivated MacDonald to resume popular music writing, and he began contributing to Classic CD, '' Mojo'' and '' Uncut'' music magazines. ''The People's Music'', an anthology of these writings, was published in July 2003 just weeks before his death. He had been working on a book titled ''Birds, Beasts & Fishes: A Guide to Animal Lore and Symbolism'', and another about

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

. Neither has been published.

Death

On 20 August 2003, MacDonald died by

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

at his home in Wotten-under-Edge, following a lengthy period of

clinical depression Major depressive disorder (MDD), also known as clinical depression, is a mental disorder characterized by at least two weeks of pervasive low mood, low self-esteem, and loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities. Intro ...

; he was 54. The track "Wish You Well" on

's 2004 album ''6PM'' is a tribute to MacDonald.

Discography

, '' Mainstream'' (1975) acking vocals*

, '' Diamond Head'' (1975) agpipes*Phil Manzanera/801, '' Listen Now'' (1977) ocals

Publications

*''The New Shostakovich'' (1990). (reprinted & updated in 2006) *'' Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties'' (1994). *'' The People's Music'' (2003)

Notes

External links

*
MacDonald's essay on Nick Drake

a website of documents and photographs collected by McDonald that relate to Shostakovich {{DEFAULTSORT:Macdonald, Ian 1948 births 2003 suicides 20th-century English male writers 20th-century pseudonymous writers 21st-century English male writers 21st-century pseudonymous writers Alumni of King's College, Cambridge Beatles historians British classical music critics Canterbury scene English lyricists English music critics English writers about music NME writers People educated at Dulwich College People from London Shostakovich scholars Suicides in England