Quick enjoyable read! I really enjoyed reading about his adventures in Alaska and would have enjoyed even more details on his daily life.

Champniss is not a well-known figure in my native Puerto Rico. Nonetheless, I enjoyed this ode to music disguised as a biography. I love how he is able to place readers in a specific time period through the use of pop culture references.

I remember Kim Clarke Champniss when he was a VJ for MuchMusic in the 1980s. This book is about his life in the 1970s.

Kim was raised in London, England. With no prospects and looking for adventure, he moved to Canada when he was 19 to work in the small community of Eskimo Point (now called Arviat) in the North for the Hudson's Bay Company. There his life was very different than what he left in London ... there were no fancy clothes or radio which must have been quite the adjustment for a young man used to dancing in clubs often. He was living among the Inuits who made their living hunting and fishing. He still has fond memories of his time there and the people he met. Once he fulfilled his year obligation, he moved to Winnipeg, Calgary, Vancouver and even Australia. He eventually settled back in Vancouver, enrolled in university and got a job DJing in clubs (disco was all the rage at the time).

I liked the writing style and found his story interesting. Not only is it about what was happening with the author in the 1970s but he also describes what was happening in the world at that time ... in music, TV, movies, fashion and politics. As a head's up, there is swearing.

Skinheads, Fur Traders, and DJs: An Adventure Through the 1970s by Kim Clarke Champniss is a biography and a bit of a musical history. Champniss is a Canadian television personality and musician, best known as a VJ for MuchMusic during the 1980s. This is his second book.

Champniss lived an interesting life over the time covered in this book. England wasn’t doing well. He didn’t do well in school. So he made a choice different than most. Instead of joining the military or taking up a profession that would be considered illegal, he took a job with the Hudson Bay Company and spends a year in Eskimo Point (now called Arviat), Nunavut (Formerly part of the Northwest Territories). Here the former biker/rocker turned disco fan finds himself in the wilderness isolated from music and the fashion of the times.

Champniss writes well and makes life sound exciting even in difficult times. Going from London to a town of 750 people of a radically different culture presents interesting adaptations and for the most part some humorous stories. After leaving the Hudson Bay Company he talks about other struggles of attending college and trying to hold a job in rather poor economic times. Through everything, he has his music and the music blends with his lifestyle. He follows his dreams of becoming a DJ in Canada. Champniss includes quite a bit of music history, but mostly of the disco and dance variety. Those looking for Lou Reed, Led Zeppelin, or even Rush will be disappointed. KC and the Sunshine Band is, however, mentioned more than a few times.

This is an engaging and well-written biography. Although a few years younger than Champniss, I remembered all the music and world events including the inflation and unemployment. To be completely honest, I had no idea who Champniss was but the subtitle “An Adventure Through the 1970s” was enough to hook me. Well done.

Going in I had no idea who this author was. Being from Australia I was not familiar with his sucesss as a DJ or television personality, but it hardly mattered, this is a journey of a man who's passage through the 70's is a real trip, it begins with his early days describing life in London of being a bit of a knockabout lad, not really having any real academic aspirations, he describes hitting the club scene while still under age and thus beginning a love affair with music and the whole night life, of clubbing and the procuring and sourcing of vinyl to add to his vast catalogue, his music collection becomes one of his most prized possessions even carting crates of it from place to place even sending it all the way to Australia only to return back to Canada before the crate had a chance to arrive! While still in London he identifies himself as a rockabilly rocker getting into the style of "Teddy Boys" with a penchant for music from the late 50's, he describes how he would have to avoid the skinhead set as they didn't embrace the look too kindly and they were known for their aggression and violence, eventually he became known around the clubs as he frequented them so often. At the age of 19 he decides he wants out of England and on the recommendation of his father takes a job with the Hudson's Bay Company spending a stint in a remote Canadian village away from complete civilisation. He then decides to move to Vancouver after a year in almost complete isolation from the world and eventually decides to enrol in university to continue his education, it's during this time at Uni where he takes on part time work as a DJ to make ends meet (amongst other miscellaneous part time jobs) and ultimately becoming a well known Canadian DJ during, before and after the 70's disco explosion. It's a fascinating story as he moves around quite a bit, all over Canada including a short but sweet relocation to Australia and imparts lots of musical trivia from the the music that was so prominent during the early 70's to the early 80's up until where the books trails off. As a child born of the late 70's I felt like I was able to relive a bygone era that I just missed and got a speed crash course of all the best bits.

It's clear by the end that the author has only scratched the surface of this most interesting life and you are left hanging and wanting more as he is still in his early 20's when the book finishes off so you know there will most probably be a part 2 of his story to come and I for one am interested in hearing more of this story. Can't wait for the next installation..hopefully!

Skinheads, FurTraders and DJs, An Adventure Through the 1970's by Kim Clarke Champniss was received direct from the publisher. The author is a well known media figure....in Canada. I had never heard of the author but the storyline sounded intriguing to me, a person bringing themselves up, not asking for anything to be handed to them and eventually doing well in life. The author was born and raised in London, so he speaks of his love of listening to music, such as the Rolling Stones and the Beatles, in the clubs of a rough and tumble London. From London to a job at the Hudson Bay of Canada, which to me, having lived in Alaska, sounded much like our 49th state. From the Hudson Bay to some of Canada larger cities to eventually Much music, which was Canada's version of MTV, when MTV was relevant. If this sounds like something you would like, or you like the Arctic, or 70's to 80's era music, this may just be the book for you to read.

4 Stars

I haven't the foggiest notion who Kim Clarke Champniss is, but he has certainly lived one interesting and very readable life. I enjoyed every page of this book. From getting a beat down from skinheads, and roughed up at football matches in England. Working for Hudson's Bay Company in the Northwest Territories of Canada, fishing and seal hunting with Inuits, to staying overnights in an igloo! Dang, I'd love that! Through it all is music. Ask me what I was doing at any age, or in the year of whenever and I couldn't tell you. Ask me about a song, and I can tell you what town I was in, how old I was, and where I first heard it. That's the main theme of this book...music. Kim eventually becomes a D.J., then a V.J., then? I couldn't tell ya'! The book ends when the author is only in his early 20's. Im hoping for another book. I'd recommend this book as a fun read. It sure brought back a lot of memories for me. My thanks to Dundurn Publishing and Netgalley for this gratis copy.