I’ve been thinking about this post for a while. The last few years have seen many aging rock icons putting out their memoirs. Some are quite good, and one makes it onto this list, while some are just awful (Clapton’s book was almost un-readable – quite a disappointment). This list also includes books about rock and roll by various non-musician insiders as well as books about artists written by other authors.
Frank Zappa still has the best quote about rock journalism: “People who can’t write, interviewing people who can’t speak, for people who can’t read.” Second best is from Philip Seymour Hoffman as Lester Bangs in the movie Almost Famous: “They’ll get you to write sanctimonious stories about the genius of rock stars and they will ruin rock and roll and strangle everything we love about it.”
Here’s the list:
Shakey (Jimmy McDonough) The quintessential book on Neil Young and way better than either of Neil’s two books. The author had access and the detail is incredible. I re-read sections frequently.
Life (Keith Richards with James Fox) The standard by which all rock memoirs will be judged. A little snarky about Mick but otherwise very well done with some great back story stuff e.g., how Keith invented his five string open tuning that created the “Stones sound” from the late 60’s on. The book opens with Keith, Ronnie Wood and others being pulled over by the cops in Arkansas with a trunk full of drugs during the 1975 Tour of the Americas. Somehow they get off and back to the tour. The rest is history.
Bill Graham Presents (Bill Graham and Robert Greenfield) A biography of this legendary impresario. My favorite parts (surprise) are the rise and fall of the Fillmores, which coincides with rock moving from being about the artists (and the Fillmore’s approach to presenting the rock show) to its focus on money and staging shows in arenas like Madison Square Garden (“that concrete box”). If you want to dig deeper into this period I recommend Live at the Fillmore East and West (John Glatt).
The Rock Snob’s Dictionary (David Kamp and Stewart Daly) My daughter gave this to me because I am a truly pedantic, rock snob. Lots of short, obscure minutia that only lunatics like me will appreciate like the organ on Procol Harem’s “Whiter Shade of Pale” was not a Hammond B3 but some other model. I don’t remember the organ model offhand proving that this guide outstrips even my grip on meaningless detail. Total lunacy. I love it!
LZ 75 (Stephen Davis) From the author of Hammer of the Gods (also a must read) the book provides a day-by-day account of Zeppelin’s 1975 Physical Graffiti tour. The notes were discovered 30 years after the tour and only recently published. The book paints a picture of the band at its creative and popular zenith with forebodings of the fall to come (e.g., the growing disintegration of John Bonham on the road).
Bumping Into Geniuses (Danny Goldberg) Goldberg’s been in the music business since the 60’s in various jobs (journalist, PR, management…). He was doing PR for Zeppelin during their 1975 tour (see above). He was also involved with everyone from KISS to Stevie Nicks and was involved in the MUSE no nukes concert and film.
STP (Robert Greenfield) Stands for Stones Touring Party and is the author’s firsthand account of the 1972 Exile On Main Street Tour. This is my favorite book about any Stones tour (Lisa Robinson’s series in Rolling Stone covering the Stones 1975 Tour of the Americas is a close second) capturing the action onstage and off. The tour culminates at the Playboy mansion in Chicago and it is probably the tamest section of the book. The Glimmer Twins at their 70’s decadent best. For a deeper dive into this classic album try Exile On Main Street (Bill Janovitz). Janovitz is the guitarist/singer from the Boston band Buffalo Tom and this book is a song-by-song deconstruction of the record.
Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung (Lester Bangs) The title says it all. This is a collection of writings from this infamous and outrageous rock critic. My favorite piece: “James Taylor Marked for Death.” The one and only.
High Fidelity (Nick Hornby) The book that the movie is based on and takes place in London not Chicago. The record store scenes and the philosophy of what makes a great mix tape are classic.
Robert Christgau’s new book has just come out to mixed reviews but he is one of the most influential rock critics of the past 40 years so this is probably worth checking out. He also has published a series of his reviews by decade that is another way to dip into his work. Also check out the recent book by another of the critical legends, Greil Marcus. I can never get enough of this stuff.
Zappa was mostly right but these books are some of the exceptions to his rule.
