Musicians autobiography recommendations?

zepp76

Iamnobody said:

This is pretty much the only type of book some not mentioned yet that I’d recommend:

Shakey - Neil Young
Man of The World - Peter Green
Dear Boy - Keith Moon

I have Man of the World signed by the man himself, it's my pride and joy of books.

shrinkwrap

Julian Cope - double volume of Head On and Repossessed - first volume is seriously mad and very funny. Kind of "The Young Ones" as a pop band (not Cliff's Young Ones!).

Thanks for reco of the Soft Machine book Blobb - I'll get that.

EDIT: oh..Out Bloody Rageous is out of print, but on Amazon at £150

ChuckManual

A bloody fantastic book - if you're interested in that era.

DrCornelius

Agree with most of the above and would like to add Dave Lee Roth's Crazy From The Heat too, its a bit autobiography and a bit of crazy rambling too but very very funny.

jonnyburgo

steven70 said:

Also, Steve Hanley's 'The big Midweek, life inside the fall' and Simon Wolstencroft's 'you can drum but you can't hide' book.

Steve Hanleys Book is great. I enjoyed Brix’s Book as well. At a festival a few years ago I went ta talk with Steve, his brother Paul, funky Si, And Mike Leigh the early drummer sadly no Karl Burns, the stories were hilarious.

EricTheWeary

ChuckManual said:

A bloody fantastic book - if you're interested in that era.

I just hit the wrong button bon Amazon and now have her book about singing on my Kindle app! If I get on with that I'll go back to Bedsit. 

steven70

...

Whistler

I picked up Mike Rutherford's autobiography on Tuesday and couldn't put it down (apart from sleep) and finished it the following day. Mike comes across exactly as he does in interviews and the reader gets a good idea of how it felt to be in Genesis' earlier days, writing and recording albums and touring but without any assurance that it won't all fall apart tomorrow. You get a good insight into the characters of all those who have played in Genesis. the main thing, because Mike presents his book this way, is the comparison of his life with his father's, pointing out the similarities and the differences. If you liked the song The Living Years then I am sure you will like the book.

ICBM

Whistler said:

If you liked the song The Living Years then I am sure you will like the book.

I found the song hideously trite and sentimental, unfortunately. It rather puts me off the book... and I'm actually quite a Genesis fan so it should otherwise be of interest to me. To be honest I dislike the vast majority of Mike + The Mechanics output, despite liking a lot of the songs he wrote in Genesis.

mart

ICBM said:

Whistler said:

If you liked the song The Living Years then I am sure you will like the book.

I found the song hideously trite and sentimental, unfortunately. It rather puts me off the book... and I'm actually quite a Genesis fan so it should otherwise be of interest to me. To be honest I dislike the vast majority of Mike + The Mechanics output, despite liking a lot of the songs he wrote in Genesis.

I can absolutely see where you’re coming from regarding the song. The book, fortunately, is much better, partly as it isn’t trying to compress everything into a catchy 3-minute singalong that anybody could relate to. If you’re at all interested in Genesis I’d give the book a try.

Whistler

Sorry if I put you off the book. What I meant was that the song is about his and B. A. Robertson's regrets about not having closer relationships with their fathers. Something of that is a thread that runs through the book, in a good way.

57Deluxe

Ronnie Wood's is quite a good in-filler for info on others in and around their time frame. In fact it is often someone elses AB that gives the gen that a preferred AB doesn't offer up. Cross referencing like this reveals little trinkets...

bacchanalian

Last Train to Memphis 
No one gets out of Here Alive 
Hotel California: Singer-Songwriters and Cocaine Cowboys in the La Canyons
Buddy 
Chuck Berry: The Autobiography is worth a read for Chuck's prose
The Dark Stuff: Nick Kent

Only one of these is an autobiography but good reads.

Any suggestions for 

James Taylor
Joni Mitchell

Snap

Shaun Ryder's is superb as well.

matdotcodot

Beneath the Underdog - Charles Mingus

Renegade - The lives and Tales of Mark E. Smith

Darker than the Deepest Sea - The Search for Nick Drake

Nitefly

bacchanalian said:

Joni Mitchell

@bacchanalian - I can't remember the title, but I had a good book on Joni that was essentially collected interviews with her across her career - I think I got it from The Works.

steven70

...

Bebopper

Peter Leitch's 'Off the Books' is the best autobiography by a jazz musician I've read. I think I'm on my fifth copy having given a bunch to friends to read and not getting them back!

A raw, honest look at the realities of a life in music, first in Toronto then moving to New York in the early '80s. 

Peter is a fantastic guitarist (and developed a second career in photography). He's no longer playing guitar due to health difficulties but is now composing music for a large ensemble.

Well worth your time.

Nitefly

Nitefly said:

bacchanalian said:

Joni Mitchell

@bacchanalian - I can't remember the title, but I had a good book on Joni that was essentially collected interviews with her across her career - I think I got it from The Works.

Ha, got it: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Reckless-Daughter-Joni-Mitchell-Anthology/dp/1472123522/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=0F3K91V2DMFA7307C27F

"Reckless Daughter: A Joni Mitchell Anthology".  NOT to be confused with David Yaffe's biography with a similar title.

The anthology is a collection of interviews and reviews of albums and concerts across her career, not all of them appreciative...

Highly recommended.

bacchanalian

@Nitefly ;
Many thanks, purchased on Kindle