I read the Pink Floyd bio Saucerful of Secrets early this summer. Some interesting stuff about the creative process and the sad life of Syd Barrett, but it was limited by Roger Waters’ refusal to have anything to do with the book.
I’m now finishing the Aerosmith history Walk This Way. I found the band on MTV in the early 90’s, I had no idea that they had been playing together (and apart) since the early 70’s. The stories about life on the road, when touring was the only way to make a band, are incredible. On VH1 I have seen enough generic tales of the band which had it all and lost it to drugs, but the personal details from Perry and Tyler keep this one interesting. Some of the recollections from the early 80’s are like Spinal Tap material, e.g.
Everyone got stinking drunk and then went over to Mark Parenteu’s house to hang out. Mark starts blasting old Aerosmith songs. He puts on “You See Me Crying” from Toys in the Attic.
Steven says, “Hey! That’s great! We should cover this. Who is it?”
Joe Perry says, “It’s us, fuckhead.”
“No way.”
“Who the fuck do you think it is? It’s that song you made us get a 109-piece orchestra for!”
I’ve also read The Beatles Anthology several times, I love the story of how they took a crosstown bus to find a guy who knew how to play a 7 chord.
I suspect there have been threads on this subject, apparently I have feeble search skills.
The new Jefferson Airplane bio, Got a Revolution by Jeff Tamarkin is excellent. Hell of a story. (Full disclosure: Jeff used to be my editor when I was moonlighting as a rock “journalist.”)
Peter Brown’s The Love You Make is a good general bio of The Beatles. Brown worked in several capacities for them over the years and is mentioned by name in THE BALLAD OF JOHN AND YOKO. You’ll get tired of the phrase “except Pete Best” in the bits about the Hamburg years (“everybody got drunk that night- except Pete Best”, “everybody was on speed- except Pete Best”, Best was one of the main interviewees).
Danny Sugarman’s No One Here Gets Out Alive is so far the best account of The Doors (better certainly than the books put out by the surviving members). Sugarman was a hero worshipping gopher for Morrison who later went to work for ROLLING STONE.
I’ve yet to read a good biography of Paul McCartney, though there are lots of truly bad ones out there (the ones by Chet Flippo and Denny Doherty receiving special notice for godawfulness). Goldman’s The Lives of John Lennon is a long trashy gossipy indictment ala Kitty Kelly, but I recommend it thoroughly.
Most of these are available cheaply at half.com and other used book sites, incidentally.
American Hardcore is a great tribal history of the US punk scene from 80-86. Lots of stories from the bands, friends of the bands, people in the scene and all. A fascinating read.
I agree with Sampiro on this (so, do you think Ray Manzarek really ghost wrote a bunch of it–I’ve heard this claim, but don’t know how to prove or disprove it). Sugarman’s autobiographical Wonderland Avenue was also an interesting read.
A number of years ago I read Hammer of the Gods, which is about Led Zeppelin. Very informative and entertaining. I often wish I had a copy when the “Meaning of Stairway To Heaven” thread rolls around (the answer, according to this book, is not much). This book tackles all the rumors and legends. I remember enjoying it a great deal.
Stanley Booth’s “The True Adventures of the Rolling Stones” is a good read 'bout the band, written just after Altamont. It’s also a good companion to the film “Gimme Shelter”
Jeff Beck’s career is well documented in the book “Crazy Fingers”, by Annette Carson.
Al Kooper has written an autobio “Backstage Passes and Backstabbing Bastards” that’s pretty good. Interestingly enough, he’s virtually the same age a Jeff Beck, and reading about their rock ‘n’ roll journeys that went on at the same time, on either side of the Atlantic, is pretty cool.
Please Kill Me by Legs McNeil is a good 'un. It’s about the origins and the peak years of the NYC (and Detroit a bit as well) punk scene, starting with the Velvet Underground and ending with the death of Johnny Thunders, with Patti Smith, Blondie, the Ramones and Television in between, to name a few. It’s in ancedotal form and has some amazing stories and a lot of good pictures. I just can’t believe that people did so damn many drugs in the 70’s, but apparently, they did. I mean, they can’t all be lying about that, can they?
Also, The Dirt (Motley Crue biog told in their own words) is a wild read despite the questionable veracity of some of the stories contained therein. Even if half of it is true, it’s still quite a jaw-dropper.
Not so much about a band per se, but Pamela Des Barres covers quite a lot of them in her book, I’m With the Band: Confessions of a Groupie. It’s a real page turner, if ya know what I mean, and adds some insight into some really famous rockers (if you hadn’t already heard all the stories, that is). I mean, Zep, sharks (??) and Plaster Casting. Interesting.
Come As You Are, the Nirvana biography, is really informative though in my opinion WAAAYYY too biased towards the band. That’s what happens when you have authorized biographies, usually, oh well. Heavier Than Heaven is the best Kurt Cobain biography because it doesn’t elevate him and dispels some of the myths and errors in Come As You Are.
And I Don’t Want To Live This Life, the biography of Nancy Spungen, is interesting though sometimes irritating to read due to her mother (the author)'s opinion of youth culture. Well, Nancy Spungen wasn’t a musician, but she loved music and musicians so it still counts in my mind as a rock bio.
As a general rule, I’ve learned never read a band bio by an author from a different country than the band is from. There are always many errors for some reason. If an author thinks that Boise is in Washington, not Idaho, and that the first Pearl Jam cd was called “10” (rather than spelled out as Ten), how can you trust anything else that they wrote?
“Long Strange Trip,” by Dennis MacNelly, is a good read about the Grateful Dead. My only criticism is that nearly two-thirds of the book covers up to the year 1980, and the last 15 years of the band get pretty short shrift. Of course, it could be argued pretty successfully that the last 15 years of the band were their worst as far as creativity.
I really enjoyed Fleetwood: My Life and Adventures in Fleetwood Mac. Being a huge fan of the early incarnation of Fleetwood Mac (with Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, and Danny Kirwan), I found the story of that band and how it morphed from a solid blues band to the corporate mega-wonder of the 70’s fascinating.
Our Band Could Be Your Life - (good pick, Dr. Sexchange) - if you even remotely think you like indie, alternative bands, this book is essential reading - fascinating and well-written
Come As you Are - written by Michael Azerrad the same guy who wrote Our Band Could Be Your Life. acrossthesea, I haven’t read Heavier than Heaven, but I didn’t find Come… to be biased for the band - I thought it presented Cobain’s complexity, lack of personal skills, random lyric writing, conflicting issues with privacy and fame and drug problems with a pretty even hand…
Please Kill Me - An Uncensored Oral History of Punk - essential reading for anyone interested in Punk - either the original stuff or the new poppy punk. Well written, easy and interesting
I have read Hammer of the Gods and Walk this Way and found both to be informative and fun - if you like the bands in question, definitely worth the read.
I really want to read I’m with the Band…so far, I have only found it to be out of print…
The last R&R bio I read was Stone Alone by Bill Wyman.
It’s been out for about ten years, I think (my books are all in storage, can’t check), but was pretty detailed. He did, after all, fancy himself the band’s historian.
