Memories

Rolling Stone’s 25 Greatest Rock Memoirs makes for, um, an interesting read.  It points out that the plot is mostly the same (big dreamer makes good, lives the life, then the world comes crashing down), then gets you thinking about Elizabethan revenge tragedies.  Hmmm …

Their list includes:

Steven Tyler: Does The Noise In My Head Bother You?

Boy George: Take It Like A Man

Anthony Kiedis: Scar Tissue

Ronnie Spector: Be My Baby: How I Survived Mascara, Miniskirts, and Madness

Tommy James: Me, The Mob and the Music

Chuck Berry: The Autobiography

David Bowie: Moonage Daydream: The Life and Times of Ziggy Stardust

Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now

Slash: Slash

Keith Richards: Life

Bob Dylan: Chronicles, Volume One

And the winner of the longest title goes to …  Ronnie Spector.  Bowie should have tried harder.

Shortest title:  Keef.  Most obvious:  Slash.

2012 was a busy year for rock memoirs, so a year from now this list might look different (a few are on my ‘to be read” pile).

Some people will be surprised to learn that rockers can read and write, but I’ve read a few of the books listed, and enjoyed them.  Actually, there’s one exception; Chuck Berry’s book was disillusioning.  Mortal folk don’t dig it when their heroes turn out to be jerks.   

Then again, that’s all part of the Elizabethan revenge tragedy thing.  Like, the article compliments McCartney by saying he did less to f**k up his good luck than any rock star who ever existed.  Glowing praise, indeed.

Anyway, a few new reading suggestions.  Hopefully there are no pie recipes.