One was called, The Bus We Loved: London's Affair With the Routemaster
Some people enjoyed it...
'Here is a jaunty but thorough history of the much-loved (and very dead) Routemaster bus... All the book needs is a set of detachable plastic wheels.' - Iain Sinclair, The Guardian
'Travis Elborough is perfect. His name is good, for a start. It actually sounds like a make of bus... he writes so affectionately and wittily... Elborough has written what could be the first moreish bus book.' - Andrew Martin, New Statesman
There's no accounting for taste, obviously.
And more recently The Long-player Goodbye , a history of the LP record.
No buses featured in that one.
Cliff Richard, however, did put in an another appearance, which might have please some people who liked the last one. Or not. Who knows.
Here are a few choice bits from the hardback reviews.
'Elborough has the passion of a true enthusiast. . . But he's also an indefatigable researcher, who has somehow seen a clear path through the vast amount of material he has accumulated to write a book that reads not only easily and well and wholly coherently.. . . richly enjoyable.' Marcus Berkmann, the Mail On Sunday
'Pleasingly compelling... Elborough is a charming, funny and frequently fascinating guide.' Andy Miller, Daily Telegraph
'An absorbing study of the life (and death) of vinyl... with a reassuring air of cultural authority [and] an impressive depth of perspective.' Ben Thompson, Independent on Sunday
'Wagnerian epics to triple quadrophonic concept albums: the LP brought it all home. A smart history of listening, from 33 beating 78, up to the iPod uprising. Great details – his charity shop theory of tastelessness, the scandalous first edit (an operatic high C), even the well-worn pop stories feel fresh.' DJ history.com
'Elborough is no musical snob and dutifully records how Hot Hits LPs of crummy covers outsold serious-minded acts. He collects some cracking quotes (Cliff Richard on a genderbending Bowie: "He upsets me as a man" ... punk-inspired hack Mick Farren's kiss-off to the prog-rockers: "The Titanic sails at dawn"). And best of all, he sends you back to the original albums, or onto Amazon to fill in the gaps in the digital DNA of your very own pop life.' Aidan Smith, Scotland on Sunday
'Elborough is a genial guide and voraciously knowledgeable about his subject... Most importantly, though, this [book] should become crucial (though secret) reading for the iPod generation – a necessary dose of context for their brave new world.' Jonathan Gibbs, Metro
'.... easily digestible to anyone who already has a record collection, especially if it's on vinyl, is Travis Elborough's The Long-Player Goodbye. On the 60th anniversary of the first LP, Elborough covers groundbreakers such as Glenn Gould, Frank Sinatra and Lou Reed's Metal Machine Music with English reserve and bemused pleasure; it reads like a P.G. Wodehouse guide to pop history.' Bob Stanley, The Times, Music Books of 2008
'... entertaining to read, plenty of nostalgic comment, irresistible snippets of history and great good fun.' Publishing News
A new and slightly improved paperback is out now.
And an American edition with a swanky new title, The Vinyl Countdown , is also available from the marvellous Soft Skull Press .
My words sometimes crop up in The Guardian and they have been known to appear in New Statesman, The Sunday Times, The Oldie and Slightly Foxed .
And there have been some moments on BBC Radio 4 , 2, Five Live and Resonance FM.
One of my Lomo photos made it into Smoke . Here are some of them on Flickr .
DJ-ing is also not unknown.