Max: Hymns & Arias: The Selected Stories, Songs and Poems of Max Boyce

Few entertainers epitomise the term ’national treasure’ like Max Boyce. From his humble early years touring the clubs of his native south Wales, to his sell-out performances before thousands at some of the world’s most iconic venues, to British prime-time stardom, Max has firmly cemented himself as one of these shores’ most endearing comedians and singers. A multitalented, charismatic artist, his words, infused with Welsh lifeblood-- mining, Valleys community life, rugby union-- have lost none of their potency, and continue to echo around pubs and stadium terraces to this day. Compiling-- in some instances for the first time in print-- the very best songs, poems, and stories from across his celebrated career, Max: Hymns & Arias - The Selected Stories, Songs and Poems of Max Boyce is the definitive selected work of a major cultural figure, who through his inimitable humour, uniquely Welsh pathos, and masterful wordcraft has defined a nation and its people for more than half a century.

Max Boyce, singer-songwriter, poet and entertainer, was born in the village of Glynneath in south Wales, where he still lives. Despite the fact that his father was killed in a mining explosion a month before Max was born, Max went on to work underground in the local colliery at the age of sixteen. In 1973, he recorded his breakthrough album, Live at Treorchy, and followed it with 1975’s We All Had Doctors’ Papers - still the only comedy album to top the UK Albums Chart. His BBC television series attracted over twenty million viewers and merely confirmed Max’s popularity among young and old. Maxwell Boyce, MBE (born 27 September 1943) is a Welsh comedian, singer, and entertainer. He rose to fame during the mid-1970s with an act that combined musical comedy with his passion for rugby union and his origins in the mining communities of south Wales.