AutoFellatio: A Memoir

Apart from herpes and Lulu – everything is eventually swept awayJust one shimmering pearl of wisdom from popstar and polymath James Maker, whose worldly observations will (like herpes) once again be on everyone’s lips thanks to his award-winning memoir, remastered with new chapters.If you hadn’t heard of rock bands Raymonde or RPLA – fronted by James in the 80s and 90s – you might be forgiven for mistaking AutoFellatio for fiction. But here fact is more fantastical than any novel, as we follow our hero from Bermondsey enfant terrible to Valencian grande dame, a scenic journey that stops off variously at Morrissey confidant, dominatrix, singer, songwriter and occasional actor, and is literally littered with memorable bons mots and hilarious anecdotes that make you feel like you've hit the wedding-reception jackpot of being unexpectedly seated next to the groom's flamboyant uncle.According to Wikipedia, very few men can perform the act of autofellatio. We never discover whether James is one of them but certainly, as a storyteller, he is one in a million.WINNER OF THE POLARI FIRST BOOK PRIZE 2011‘Bloody Brilliant’ JULIE BURCHILL‘Glitteringly epigrammatic, it’s a glam-rock Naked Civil Servant in court shoes. But funnier. And tougher.’ MARK SIMPSON‘Pistol sharp, loaded with witty one-liners and peppered with Maker’s scatter gun observations on life, music and the meaning of good hair.’ PAUL BURSTON

James Maker first trod the boards in 1982 as a dancer and backing vocalist with The Smiths, and was erroneously known as “The Fifth Smith”. He subsequently became lyricist and lead singer with the 1980s Indie group, Raymonde, and 1990s “gay” Hard Rock group RPLA, releasing the albums Babelogue and Metal Queen Hijack respectively. In 2004, he supported the New York Dolls on their comeback show at the Royal Festival Hall. He also appeared opposite Ian Dury and Billy Connolly in the feature film Middleton’s Changeling. AutoFellatio won the inaugural Polari First Book Prize in 2011.