CITY FUN: Vol. 2 No. 17

Salford: City Fun Publications, 1981. First edition. Very good.. Early issue (May 29, 1981) of this hugely influential Manchester-centric post-punk zine, under the editorial tenure of Carroll and Naylor. John Peel called CITY FUN the most important zine of the period. It is an indispensable reference for the Manchester scene and the bands and labels that grew around it: Joy Division and New Order, The Smiths and The Fall, Factory Records and the Hacienda nightclub, etc. Founded by Andy Zero and Martin X in 1978, CITY FUN increasingly expanded its reach beyond the local music scene to the larger cultural landscape after its takeover by "classic feminist children of punk" (Fletcher) Naylor and Carroll.Of this issue's cover and its discontents, David Wilkinson writes: "The cover makes me laugh, but I think its tone is an indication of different times and expectations. When a city has produced bands like Buzzcocks and Magazine, The Fall, Joy Division and New Order [...] yet the scene is described as apathetic, you get the feeling they really didn't realise how good they had it musically." 12'' x 8.5''. Original pictorial self-wrappers. Offset in black-and-white throughout. 19, [1] pages. Moderate edgewear, a few small stains to front wrapper.