Proby and Me: A howling tale of a falling star

They couldn't believe it. He's alive. Big as the Beatles for a flash of rock 'n' roll time. But by 1990, decades MIA.

It had to be done. But the tour they set up, a voyage into lunacy. PJ Proby at the helm of this burning ship, recalling his life story midst the rolling mayhem.

Of fast times with giants, from Elvis to the pantheon of Sixties Britpop and movie stars. Forever wars with powerful foes. Frenzied stage shows called obscene. Of liquor and firearms. Arrests. Jail time. Fortunes blow. House fires, turbulent marriages. Bankruptcy and the long slow fall.

And a muse of fire, forever undimmed.

MJ Cornwall is a former cartoonist, a persevering musician, writer, songwriter, a jack of all arts. Australian by birth, of distant Irish heritage, convicts and other. Born in Brisbane, grew up in Benalla, Mytrleford, Swan Hill, Mt Gambier and Adelaide. Six beloved sisters. Recovering Catholic. Looks upon what has been done to his long term home of Sydney over recent decades and weeps. Makes a living as a teacher. Uses the proceeds to fund researching and writing books. To Be Frank is his first book, Proby and Me is his latest.