Craig's Hlist just cracked into his copy of Life, by Keith Richards. It's the first time that the Rolling Stones guitarist and god among men has taken time to document his rock and roll journey for anyone. Sure there have been Stones oral histories from the band, but this is Richards' chance to speak out.
As far as rock autobiographies go, it's one of the most sought-after tomes in a long, long time. The book is almost two inches thick and filled with two sections of rare pictures, in addition to the tell-all passages where Richards laments the fractured relationship he has with singer Mick Jagger.
The druggy sections are unapologetic, with no moral or lesson to not do them. Richards merely states that doing drugs worked for him but may not work for you. Sort of like, "Don't try this at home, but if you do, it can be pretty fun and you may enjoy it,"
Rock memoirs encompass a good 75 percent of what we read for fun, so we know good ones when we see them. Some are mostly spotty, like Vince Neil's recent Tattoos & Tequila, where he is constantly selling something in between telling the Motley Crue tales you already heard in The Dirt.
Joey Kramer's recent book, Hit Hard, is a good window into the life of the timekeeper behind Aerosmith. You also find out how much of an asshole Steven Tyler was to the drummer early on in the band's formation, and Kramer's own coke addiction is a prominent motif.
Patti Smith's recent Just Kids is up for a National Book Award next week. The book traces her early career and her friendship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, and should be an excellent gift for the sullen teenage girl in your family who needs a fire lit under their creative melting pot.
Some make you become obsessed with the supposed depravity of the author for years on end, until you grow up and realize that it's probably not all that true and was a part of a marketing scheme, like Marilyn Manson's Long Hard Road Out of Hell. It's still entertaining, if not a little comical now.
What are your favorites? Here are ours.
