Brian Case by Joe Ciardiello

As announced on this site last week we have a new book coming out. Unlike our previous publications (Words on Water, On Nature, Water and Sky) the subject of this one, On the Snap, errs more on the side of human nature with an emphasis on the great indoors.

On the Snap is a collection of conversations with Brian Case – a man of impeccable taste and a finely tuned bullshit detector – where he discusses some of his most memorable journalistic encounters – from Chet Baker and The Sex Pistols to Jack Nicholson to Michael Caine – it’s a snapshot of an intoxicating and disappearing world.

The book is published in hardback on 18 June and we are taking advance orders for a signed copy in the Caught by the River shop. You can also listen to Brian reading a few of the chapters over on our Soundcloud page and, treat of all treats, Brian has created a playlist of his favourite jazz numbers which can be listened to on Spotify.

As his ex-editor Richard Williams writes in the foreword: Like a great improviser, Brian Case veers away from the changes in order to find the phrase he needs. He’s listening to Johnny Griffin burning off the opposition at a ludicrously fast tempo. ‘Re-entry goggles all round!’ That’s all you need. You’re there, senses heightened. For his readers, Brian made the bar in Ronnie Scott’s feel like the Algonquin round table.