A Sharp Left Turn: Notes on a life in music, from Split Enz to Play to Strange - Hardcover

Chunn, Mike

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 198854713X ISBN 13: 9781988547138

Publisher: Allen & Unwin, 2020

Synopsis

This is a gripping read that works on several levels. It's the sliding-door story of someone who might have become a world-famous pop star had he not suffered from a severe phobic disorder.

It's the story of an assortment of young musicians trying to find their feet as bands in the late 70s and early 80s with the associated euphoria and craziness of that life.

It's Mike's story of struggling with agoraphobia and eventually finding a way through.

Told in Mike's own words this is also a loving evocation of a 50s and 60s New Zealand childhood, and a beautifully written memoir that will resonate with anyone who loves a well-told story.

About this title

About the Author

Mike Chunn is a music legend who has been involved at almost every level of the New Zealand music industry for decades. Along with Tim Finn and Phil Judd, he was a founding member of Split Enz, playing the bass on their first three albums. Though he loved the stage, he had to reluctantly leave the band after five years. Unbeknownst to the rest of the band, he suffered frequent panic attacks and debilitating anxiety, triggered every time he left Auckland. It was after eight years that he discovered what this illness was: the phobic disorder, agoraphobia.

He co-founded Citizen Band with his brother but left that band after three years for the same reason. He went on to be General Manager of Mushroom Records NZ, where he signed DD Smash and The Dance Exponents, and was the General Manager at Sony Music Publishing NZ. From 1991-2003, Mike was the Director of NZ Operations for the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), where he was instrumental in setting up NZ Music Month which was an integral factor in the increase of Kiwi music played on commercial radio.

In 2004, he co-founded Play it Strange, a highly respected and successful charitable trust which supports young New Zealanders in their songwriting ambitions. He is currently CEO of this trust.

Mike was awarded the Companion of NZ Order of Merit for services to NZ music and men's mental health in 2013. He is an observer trustee of the Sir John Kirwan Foundation. He lives in Auckland.

Edition details

• Publisher: Allen & Unwin
• Publication date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 198854713X
• ISBN 13: 9781988547138
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 384