A Playground Of Broken Hearts – The Progressive Rock Revival 1984 To 1989
by Andrew Wild to be published on July 3rd, 2025

Kingmaker Publishing is delighted to announce the publication of its latest book. A Playground Of Broken Hearts – The Progressive Rock Revival 1984 To 1989 by Andrew Wild will be published on July 3rd, 2025.

Following Wild’s acclaimed 2024 book A Mirror Of Broken Dreams – The Progressive Rock Revival 1981 To 1983, A Playground Of Broken Hearts is the second of two books which provide the definitive account of the intertwined stories of the six bands which led the progressive rock revival: Marillion, IQ, Pallas, Pendragon, Solstice and Twelfth Night.

For A Playground Of Broken Hearts, Wild interviewed over 80 musicians and other participants in the 1980s progressive rock scene. The book also includes in-depth profiles of many of the other bands involved in the era: Abel Ganz, Airbridge, Comedy Of Errors, Electric Gypsy, Galahad, Haze, It Bites, Jadis, Janysium, Lahost, The Lens, Liaison, Multi Story, No-Man, Pride Of Passion, Quasar, Tamarisk, Trilogy and Twice Bitten.

The book features over 300 photographs and illustrations, many of which have either been previously unpublished or are very rare, and a foreword by Progmagazine editor Jerry Ewing.

A Sunday lunchtime and afternoon event to celebrate the book’s publication will be held in association with London Prog Gigs on 6th July 2025 at The Camden Club, London NW1 8AN.

The afternoon will include a panel discussion with Andy Glass (Solstice), Martin Orford (ex IQ), Brian Devoil (Twelfth Night) and more to be announced, as well as an audience Q&A. There will also be some acoustic music from Andy Glass and Solstice lead singer Jess Holland and from Martin Orford. The book’s author will be attending and signing any books purchased at the event. Doors open at 1pm, with lunch and drinks available.

Tickets are available here: https://wegottickets.com/event/648841

Andrew Wild is an experienced writer, music collector and film buff with numerous books to his name including the official biographies of Twelfth Night, Galahad and Geoff Mann and recent publications about artists as diverse as Queen, Pink Floyd, Phil Collins, Dire Straits and the Allman Brothers Band. The first of two volumes analysing the songs of The Beatles, co-written with Big Big Train vocalist Alberto Bravin, will be published by Sonicbond in February 2025. Andrew lives in Rainow, Cheshire, UK. His website is: www.andrew-wild.co.uk.

A Playground Of Broken Hearts – The Progressive Rock Revival 1984 To 1989 is available for pre-order now from Burning Shed via https://burningshed.com/store/kingmaker and The Band Wagon USA via https://thebandwagonusa.com/en-gb/collections/kingmaker-publishing

All pre-orders received by 22nd June will be signed by Andrew Wild.

Genesis: 1975 to 2025 – The Phil Collins Years
by Mario Giammetti to be published on 17 April 2025

Kingmaker is delighted to announce the publication of Genesis:  1975 to 2025 – The Phil Collins Years by Mario Giammetti on 17 April 2025.

Originally published in 2021 as Genesis:  1975 to 2021 – The Phil Collins Years and out of print since late 2022, Genesis: 1975 to 2025 – The Phil Collins Years features fully revised text, new interview content and two additional chapters to bring the Genesis story completely up to date. As well as providing a detailed appraisal of The Last Domino? tour, the book also covers other recent events in the world of Genesis, including the sad loss of Richard Macphail and the forthcoming re-issue of The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway.    

Genesis: 1975 to 2025 – The Phil Collins Years is the definitive biography of one of the world’s greatest rock bands following the departure of Peter Gabriel. It contains numerous exclusive interviews with band members and all of the important personalities who were part of the story of Genesis from 1975 onwards, including Ray Wilson who fronted the band for 1997’s Calling All Stations album and subsequent tour before the return of Phil Collins in 2007.

The book provides a detailed account of Genesis post Peter Gabriel, taking readers through each album and tour. Genesis:  1975 to 2025 – The Phil Collins Years contains a wealth of information about Genesis’s career, much of which may well be unknown even to the most ardent fans of the band.

Genesis: 1975 to 2025 – The Phil Collins Years also serves as a sequel to Giammetti’s highly acclaimed book Genesis: 1967 to 1975 – The Peter Gabriel Years, which is also published by Kingmaker and remains available.  

Mario Giammetti is an Italian music journalist with over 35 years’ experience. He has written for numerous Italian music magazines (including Classic Rock, Rockstar and Jam). In 1991 he founded Dusk (www.dusk.it) the only printed magazine in the world dedicated to Genesis. He has written 15 books related to the world of Genesis.

Genesis: 1975 to 2025 – The Phil Collins Years is available for pre-order now from Burning Shed (UK/Europe) via https://burningshed.com/kingmaker and from The Band Wagon USA (North America) via https://thebandwagonusa.com/collections/kingmaker-publishing
 
 

Welcome to Kingmaker Publishing

Formed in 2019, Kingmaker is a book publisher dedicated to the rock music sector.

Kingmaker is run by Prog magazine journalist/Big Big Train manager Nick Shilton and Big Big Train founder Greg Spawton.

Kingmaker prioritises quality over quantity. We do not aim to become a mass market publisher or publish countless titles annually. Instead our mission is to devote ourselves to a handful of books each year, which tell the stories of various bands and artists to delight their fans, while providing books to treasure as works of art themselves. 

Kingmaker’s books are lovingly written and immaculately produced, with attention to detail in the text complemented by beautiful design and imagery. Kingmaker’s official store is Burning Shed . RSK is Kingmaker’s distributor.

News

A Mirror Of Dreams – The Progressive Rock Revival 1981 To 1983

Kingmaker Publishing  is delighted to announce the publication of its latest book. A Mirror Of Dreams – The Progressive Rock Revival 1981 To 1983 by Andrew Wild will be published on 21 June 2024.  A Mirror Of Dreams is the first of two books by Wild which provide the definitive account of the intertwined stories of the six bands which led the progressive rock revival: Marillion, IQ, Pallas, Pendragon, Solstice and Twelfth Night. For A Mirror Of Dreams, Wild interviewed no fewer than 85 musicians and other participants in the early 1980s progressive rock scene. These interviews

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