Winter Reads 2025

As the nights have closed in, I’ve found good company in three new music-related reads that cut across pop stardom, rock mythology, and gritty crime fiction. All three explore life through the lens of music, whether it’s ABBA’s seemingly endless legacy, the inside stories from ex J Geils frontman Peter Wolf, a real rock raconteur, or the great Adrian McKinty's Sean Duffy Belfast detective, whose vinyl collection says as much about him as his status in the early nineties Royal Ulster Constabulary .

 If you’re hunkering down this winter, I highly recommend diving into these pages with a good record spinning nearby.

The Book of Abba, Melancholy Undercover by Jan Gradvall

Even if you think you know ABBA, this expertly written and deeply personal book by Swedish journalist Jan Gradvall offers something far richer than the usual “they did this, they did that” format many rock biographies follow. Gradvall makes a compelling case that ABBA’s music is steeped in Nordic melancholy - born of long winters, cultural restraint, and a certain Scandinavian stoicism. He explores how the band wrapped heartbreak, doubt, and emotional complexity inside pristine pop production.

As a writer with decades of access to the band, Gradvall is uniquely placed to frame their journey against the social and cultural backdrop of 1960s and ’70s Sweden. Drawing on interviews, backstage observations, and deep musical insight, he brings texture to the familiar story and adds layers of interpretation that feel both fresh and definitive.

The opening chapter sets the tone with a close reading of the obscure synth-pop track The Day Before You Came, from ABBA’s final album The Visitors (1982). It’s a brilliant showcase for Benny Andersson’s experimental flair with early synthesizers and drum machines, paired with Björn Ulvaeus’s deceptively simple lyrics, Agnetha Fältskog’s crystalline soprano, and Frida Lyngstad’s shadowy backing vocals. Gradvall speculates with wry affection: “Benny could have written the song about his ex-wife Frida. Björn, the lyricist, could have written it about his recently divorced wife Agnetha. And as the singer, Agnetha could be forgiven for thinking it was about Björn.”

Gradvall weaves in memorable quotes that underscore the band’s legacy:

“ABBA was one of the first bands to deal with middle-aged problems in their songwriting. And the songs were obviously about them.” – Pete Townshend

“When you play their songs, you realise they’re far more complex than they first seem. Sometimes they have very unusual chords—you don’t tire of them.” – Max Martin, fellow Swede and the most successful songwriter/producer of the 2000s

Though non-linear in structure, the book remains focused. Gradvall scatters biographies of the band members among chapters highlighting the extraordinary musical textures they achieved. He rightly elevates the contribution of engineer Michael B. Tretow-“as important to us as George Martin was to the Beatles”-and the rhythm section of drummer Ola Brunkert and bassist Rutger Gunnarsson. Legendary manager Stikkan Anderson is given his due too, as distinctive a presence as Brian Epstein was to The Beatles or Peter Grant to Led Zeppelin.

We also get insights into the songwriting process, including the impact of writing in English-often “Tourist English” which led to some unintentional wordplay and phrasing.

Gradvall traces the band’s evolving legacy, from the ABBA Gold CD release in the ’90s to the Mamma Mia! movies and stage shows, and the current ABBA Voyage “Abbatars” concert experience-a collaboration with George Lucas’s Industrial Light & Magic. The catalogue shows no signs of fading, as each new generation rediscovers the band’s brilliance.

Waiting for the Moon by Peter Wolf

I first became familiar with Peter Wolf through reading about the Rolling Stones' 1981 U.S. tour-his group, the J. Geils Band, were the opening act, and they carried on in that role for the Stones' 1982 European tour. This coincided with my third form year at school, when J. Geils Band singles like “Freeze Frame” and “Centrefold” were everywhere. That period likely marked the peak of Wolf’s public visibility, though I also remember his solo albums Lights Out and Come As You Are from the mid-’80s getting some attention.

In this loosely chronological collection of character essays, Wolf proves just as charismatic and idiosyncratic on the page as he is on stage. Waiting for the Moon is a memoir told in riffs and snapshots, rich with encounters from an exhausting who’s who of poets, writers, actors, and musicians. There are chapters devoted to Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Van Morrison, Bob Dylan, John Lennon-and, of course, the Rolling Stones.

His 1970s marriage to actress Faye Dunaway opens a window into Hollywood, with behind-the-scenes access to films like Roman Polanski’s Chinatown and Richard Lester’s remake of The Three Musketeers. He writes about Dunaway with honesty but restraint-this is no kiss-and-tell.

Wolf’s dry wit and impressive eye for detail sketch out a life that runs from his Boston roots to the height of MTV-era fame. There’s a deep love of music on every page and this is no surprise, since he was a DJ before he was a frontman, and it shows.

The rock memoir market shows no sign of slowing down, but Waiting for the Moon hits a new high. I laughed out loud more than once and shook my head at the sheer range of characters he’s crossed paths with. "Freeze Frame", indeed.

Hang on St Christopher by Adrian McKinty

Adrian McKinty’s Sean Duffy series has long been a favourite of mine-equal parts murder, politics, and post-punk, set in Thatcher-era Belfast. But with Hang on St Christopher, McKinty moves the scene into the early ’90s. Duffy, now a part-time detective living across the Irish Sea in Scotland with a steady partner and young daughter, is pulled back into action to lead an execution-style murder investigation alongside his trusty friend Sgt. “Crabbie” McCrabban.

Soon, Duffy is going old-school on the case, forensically examining motorcycle tire treads one minute and quizzing boutique tailors in Belfast the next. His encyclopedic knowledge of rock, soul, and classical music - there’s even a hilarious digression into a Shostakovich symphony (!)-keeps the narrative buzzing.

There are all the familiar Duffy mannerisms too. By my count, there are at least ten references to “looked under the Beemer, checked for Mercury tilt bombs,” and plenty of sharp humor. When he runs into old nemesis Special Branch detective Harkness, Duffy can’t resist going full Paul Simon: “Hello Harkness, my old friend…”

The title-borrowed from the Tom Waits classic, hints at the novel’s tone: bruised, ironic, and slightly off-kilter. You don’t need to have read the earlier books (though you absolutely should), but for those of us who’ve followed Duffy’s journey from the start, this installment plays like a late-career masterpiece from a favourite band and just as compelling.

To Sum Up

Whether it’s unravelling ABBA’s brilliance, envying the life of Peter Wolf, or wondering where on earth the character of Sean Duffy will go next each of these books reminded me why music is such a powerful companion to storytelling.

Happy reading!

#abba #peterwolf #adrianmckinty #seanduffy #thedaybeforeyoucame #hangonstchristopher