Renegade: The Lives and Tales of Mark E. Smith

The only way to appreciate the legendary Mark E. Smith is to encounter the man in his own words.

"Ranting, raging, burning... relentlessly splenetic, a long and sustained rant... may also be the funniest music book ever written" - Observer

"Unutterably funny... a riot of aimings and blamings and score-settlings. Smith manages to have a right laff, and reveal himself as a figure of dazzling sociological import" - Independent on Sunday

The Fall are one of the most distinctive British bands ever. Their music—odd, spare, cranky, and repetitious—has been an acknowledged influence on The Smiths, The Happy Mondays, Nirvana, and Franz Ferdinand. And Mark E. Smith IS The Fall. Over the years, 66 members came and went, yet Smith remained its charismatic leader until his death in 2018.

"If it's me and yer granny on bongos, it's The Fall." - Mark E. Smith

Mark E. Smith was a professional outsider and an all-round enemy of compromise—a true enigma. While many biographies have been written about this legendary figure, Renegade marks the first time he opened up in a full autobiography.

In his own candid words, Smith shares the ups and downs of a band as notorious for its in-house fighting as for its groundbreaking music. He reflects on a life that endured prison in America, drugs, bankruptcy, divorce, and the often bleak results of a legendary thirst.

Praise for Renegade: The Lives and Tales of Mark E. Smith

"Remarkable, brilliant. A provocative joy. Smith's rant gushes like a furious fountain of razor-sharp invective over his childhood and the early days of The Fall, relationships/marriage, the record industry/musicians, and his views on everything from football to mobile phones, from drinking and drugs to driving, from books to bankruptcy, from Paul Morley to pubs. Unbeatable." - Time Out

"Engrossing, exhausting, dense with fascinating detail. As both memoir and cultural history, Renegade is a remarkable achievement." - Daily Telegraph