A few of my favorite books on rock'n'roll...

[MikeL]

"Glam: Bowie, Bolan, and the Glitter Rock Revoluion" by Barney Hoskyns.

"Please Kill Me: The Uncensored, Oral History of Punk Rock" by Legs McNeill.

"Let it Blurt: The Life and Times of Lester Bangs" by Jim Borgatis.

"KISS and Sell: The Making of a Supergroup" by C.K. Lendt.

"Stairway to Heaven: Led Zeppelin Uncensored" by Richard Cole.

"Bang Your Head: The Rise and Fall of Heavy Metal" by David Konow.

"On the Road with the Ramones" by Monte Melnick.

"Diary of a Rock'n'Roll Star" by Ian Hunter.

Has anyone else here read any of these books? If so, please feel free to share your comments.

[Rockin Rod Strychnine]

I read "On the Road with the Ramones". Wasn't that an oral history? Great book. It's amazing that without this group, they all would have been just a bunch of individual misfits(except Tommy the original drummer, who could of got by just on producing records if he had wanted to and Marky who could have been a session drummer). Joey Ramone would have been on SSI basically. Dee Dee probably would have died sooner and would have never got to show what a great writer he was. It probably would have never occured to him to be like William S. Burroughs or Jack Kerouac. As for Johnny, probably would have been in construction, a factory, or a criminal. Thank goodness for the Ramones just for saving this guys from destroying themselves.

I really liked Sweat:The Story of the Fleshtones as well. Did you read that yet? I think you'd really like it.

[MikeL]

Thanks for reminding me about that book on the Fleshtones. No, I haven't read it yet, but I've been meaning to do so.

Maybe Johnny would have become a commentator on Fox News, or he would have had his own syndicated radio show, considering his right wing political beliefs. It would have been amusing to watch him give his guests that cold glare.

Rockin Rod Strychnine said:

I read "On the Road with the Ramones". Wasn't that an oral history? Great book. It's amazing that without this group, they all would have been just a bunch of individual misfits(except Tommy the original drummer, who could of got by just on producing records if he had wanted to and Marky who could have been a session drummer). Joey Ramone would have been on SSI basically. Dee Dee probably would have died sooner and would have never got to show what a great writer he was. It probably would have never occured to him to be like William S. Burroughs or Jack Kerouac. As for Johnny, probably would have been in construction, a factory, or a criminal. Thank goodness for the Ramones just for saving this guys from destroying themselves.

I really liked Sweat:The Story of the Fleshtones as well. Did you read that yet? I think you'd really like it.

[Rockin Rod Strychnine]

Well, without the Ramones as a springboard or being in any band for that matter, I don't know if Johnny would have thought about going into broadcasting. There's that possibility, though. He could have started as a DJ (probably would have looked for an oldies format to begin with since there wasn't really anyplace for the other stuff he liked) if the band hadn't started, but it doesn't seem like anyone was encouraging that. BUT if he had found work as a DJ (which I do find totally believable, don't get me wrong), he totally would have moved on into a Rush Limbaugh sort of forum, but he's a lot smarter than a lot of other conservatives, but that's probably because a little bit of liberalism from his friends rubbed off on him.

[Mardy Pune]

Velvets to voidoids is my favourite Rock n roll book. I also picked up one called Punk, it was the only book in the whole book store that I could find to buy with the book vouchers I got given, it's surprisingly good.

[sleazy]

I need to read any of those books yet......probably the next on my wishlist is "Stairway to Heaven: Led Zeppelin Uncensored" by Richard Cole.

Thanx :)

[G.G.Plant]

Please Kill Me. Best writer in the bunch.
If it ain't country, it ain't George Jones' I lived To Tell It All. Best R&R Auto Bio Ever?

[MikeL]

I'd also like to add "Neon Angel: Memoir of a Runaway" by Cherie Currie, which I just finished this past weekend, and "Rotten" by John Lydon.

[MikeL]

BTW, another one I just thought of was "Full Moon" by Dougal Butler, an incredibly hilarious account of the antics of Keith Moon, written by his personal roadie.

[Ray Mangum]

Essential Reading:

"Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung" and "Mainlines, Bloodfeasts, and Bad Taste" by Lester Bangs

"Unsung Heroes of Rock and Roll: The Birth of Rock in the Wild Years Before Elvis" by Nick Tosches

"Unknown Legends of Rock and Roll" by Richie Unteberger

"Stairway to Hell" by Chuck Eddy

On my Reading List:

"Hellfire" and "Country" by Nick Tosches

"The Aesthetics of Rock" by Richard Meltzer

"Lipstick Traces" by Greil Marcus

"Black Monk Time" by Eddie Shaw

[MikeL]

I did read both of those compilations of Lester Bangs' work. My favorite piece out of all of them was the one on the Clash.

Ray Mangum said:

Essential Reading:

"Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung" and "Mainlines, Bloodfeasts, and Bad Taste" by Lester Bangs

"Unsung Heroes of Rock and Roll: The Birth of Rock in the Wild Years Before Elvis" by Nick Tosches

"Unknown Legends of Rock and Roll" by Richie Unteberger

"Stairway to Hell" by Chuck Eddy

On my Reading List:

"Hellfire" and "Country" by Nick Tosches

"The Aesthetics of Rock" by Richard Meltzer

"Lipstick Traces" by Greil Marcus

"Black Monk Time" by Eddie Shaw

[Matthew Nykodym]

The first music book i ever read was No One Here Gets Out Alive during my Doors Faze. Several other books on music that i recomend would be.
Tattooed on their tongues- a journey through the backrooms of american music- Colin Escott
Fargo Rock City- Chuck Klosterman
Rockabilly- Billy Poore
Hound Dog: The Leiber & Stoller Autobiography

[MikeL]

BTW, another recommendation I would like to make is "I Slept With Joey Ramone," which is a very upclose and personal look at Joey Ramone, written by his brother and Legs McNeil. Sadly, you're going to find out that Joey could be a real asshole too in his own strange way, although a lot of it was due to his OCD.