Life: Keith Richards by Keith Richards (audio)

Book Description:
As lead guitarist of the Rolling Stones, Keith Richards created the riffs, the lyrics, and the songs that roused the world. A true and towering original, he has always walked his own path, spoken his mind, and done things his own way. Now at last Richards pauses to tell his story in the most anticipated autobiography in decades. And what a story! Listening obsessively to Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters records in a coldwater flat with Mick Jagger and Brian Jones, building a sound and a band out of music they loved. Finding fame and success as a bad-boy band, only to find themselves challenged by authorities everywhere.  Dropping his guitar's sixth string to create a new sound that allowed him to create immortal riffs like those in "Honky Tonk Woman" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash." Falling in love with Anita Pallenberg, Brian Jones's girlfriend.  Arrested and imprisoned for drug possession.  Tax exile in France and recording Exile on Main Street.  Ever-increasing fame, isolation, and addiction making life an ever faster frenzy. Through it all, Richards remained devoted to the music of the band, until even that was challenged by Mick Jagger's attempt at a solo career, leading to a decade of conflicts and ultimately the biggest reunion tour in history.  In a voice that is uniquely and unmistakably him--part growl, part laugh--Keith Richards brings us the truest rock-and-roll life of our times, unfettered and fearless and true.

A little known fact about me, that probably none of you are remotely aware of is I was once a complete Rolling Stone junkie.  I was obsessed as a young teenager.  Posters all over my room, the Stones insignia -that giant red mouth with the shiny lips on my bedroom door...  a lifesize poster of Mick Jagger leering over my bed for everyone driving past our house to see.  What can I say?  I've been in love with the Rolling Stones for over 35 years.  I didn't just love them, I grew up with them, I learned how to play the guitar with them - by them.  Playing Rolling Stones songs as a kid, listening to the songs constantly and then becoming obsessed with them solidified my Stones mania.  Mick and Keith in particular.  I read up on them all I could - is it any wonder I'd drop everything and get this audiobook of Keith's - with Johnny Depp narrating?  Come on - it's a no brainer!

This was an amazing autobiography, love, love, loved it! Keith's story is superbly told. One of the best autobiographies I've read (or listened to).  An in depth view of life from the the resilient, indefatigable Keith Richards. Maestro, backbone, creative heartbeat and soul of the Rolling Stones.  Never would I have imagined that the stoned out, heroine addicted, dark rhythm guitarist had been a choir boy and a boy scout! Tons of revelations on life, on the road, touring, drugs, his relationship with (and without) Mick, his girlfriends, children - even his pets!  But most of all, the heart of it is the ever expanding love of his craft - the guitar and his music.

There are parts that get bogged down a bit in their early years.  If you're not already aware of who the blues and jazz greats of Chicago were at the time, your eyes may glaze over as Keith extols over the greatness of these musicians.  I remember reading  their names way back when during my Stones obsession when I was thirteen or so: Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Bo Diddley, playing at the Crawdaddy Club.  The early Stones were into rhythm and blues, that was their shtick.  They then morphed into rock n' roll later.

One of the most amazing things Keith reveals is the fact that he was actually a choirboy - and a Boy Scout! It's almost a joke - as if he's putting us on heh, heh, "Let's fuck with their heads and make them think I was a choir boy and a Boy Scout - you think they'll believe it?"  Well, let me raise my hand - I can't help but wonder, "Is he putting us on?"  He was a soprano in a boy's choir in Dartford where he grew up and actually sang before the queen in the 1950's.  On top of that he was really into scouting! He was even a patrol leader and to this day remembers it all - Keith remembers everything!  I was really surprised and loved the accounting of his life. 

In case you're not sure who Keith is, he's the dark horse, mangy, scary looking Stone who plays rhythm guitar while Mick struts across the stage, always in the limelight.  Keith sings, but his speaking voice is gravelly, sexy, nearly incomprehensible.  Yet his singing voice sounds so different!  High and somewhat weak in the early years, he rarely sang except in harmony vocals with Mick.  Never solo.  Many of his songs, particularly on the "Steel Wheels" album are my favorites.  "Can't Be Seen With You" and "Slipping Away" are great.  His voice is good on them too.  He really got into singing more in his later years and it shows.  I can barely stand to listen to Mick on that album now, Keith is so much better and his songs are soulful with some beautiful melodies.  Who'd have thought?  Many of the Stones' great songs were written by Keith, they're his music, while Jagger mostly wrote lyrics, but later on wrote some big hits as well, such as "Miss You."

Keith was pretty cute in his early days of the '60's and '70's, you'd never know it now, with that leathery look about him.  Check out his eyes, they've seen a lot over the years.  I've seen the Stones twice in concert, first time was in 1981 on the "Tattoo You" tour. Keith looked very muscular onstage, I was surprised, I thought he'd look like a wasted heroine addict.  He was off the stuff by then.  Wearing a black leather vest and nothing underneath.  Even from where I was, somewhere back in the crowd on an outdoor day in Philadelphia, he was someone to watch and follow.  Keith was steady, much more than Mick, who was doing all his gyrations and turns and bumps and grinds with  "Start Me Up" blasting.  Keith held my attention, he looked focused and strong.  Mick just looked, well... stupid.  Ah, memories.  The second time I saw them was on their "Steel Wheels" tour around 1989 at the Meadowlands at Giant Stadium.  I remember it was a good concert, but not nearly as memorable as the Philadelphia gig.  I don't even remember what Keith or Mick were wearing at that one - it was at night, outdoors, but I was older and more sedate by then.  We actually had seats at that concert. *grin* I was married, but no kids yet.

Growing up an only child in a poor post-WWII Dartford, Keith got into scouting and singing in the school choir.  But when his voice changed at around age 13 he was booted out of the choir and he was lost.  He became a rebel after that, but still kept with the scouting until he heard Elvis' Heartbreak Hotel and began playing the guitar.  That was it.  His advice on guitar playing really interested me, for his advice is almost exactly what I did growing up.  If you want to learn how to play the guitar, start with the basics and learn on an acoustic.  Then work your way up to steel string and electric.  I only got as far as acoustic with the gut strings (steel hurt my tender fingers too much) but I played and played constantly developing the much needed callouses.  Luckily my older brother was just as into it as I was and he taught me alot.  We'd jam together up on our third floor blasting "Sticky Fingers" and playing "Sway" and "Wild Horses," I was singing and wailing away on  "Dead Flowers" over and over until we got it right.  I was rhythm and my brother was lead.  Hard to believe nowadays.  I was very interested in Keith's trick by tuning his guitar with just five strings to get that quintessential sound.  I play by ear most of the time nowadays and can learn a song simply by hearing it and playing it over and over - the same way Keith learned in his early days playing the guitar!  Lots of craftmanship and hints and instruction abounds throughout his book.  As he says at one point, musicians are always happy to help fellow musicians get it right.  I haven't picked my Yamaha up in years - but I still have the same one I had from 1973-unbroken, no less!  (I think it needs new strings - but that's about it.)  I think it's about time I took that baby out of it's case - I'm so in the mood to jam again!

Everything you've ever wanted to know about the Stones you can probably find out in Keith's book.  He pulls no punches and tells is like it is. 

Keith was the real leader of the Stones.  He rounded people up and got them to do stuff.  Of course, during his heroine years, he might keep them waiting around for hours and hours, but he'd make up for it by not going to sleep for days to finish recording a track!  He managed his heroine addiction to a tee, it was quite an art when you think about it.  He's very open about it, I feel like, if the need ever arose, which I don't think it ever will thank-you-very-much, I would know just how to cut heroine - but it would have to be the good stuff.  He lived with heroine for over 10 years, both he and his wife/girlfriend Anita Pallenberg were junkies -what an existence - but they managed it.

Keith's not malicious or spiteful, you can tell, he's just telling the truth about how he saw things.  He's candid about Brian Jones and Mick Jagger - he doesn't hold his feeling back.  He tells you exactly what he thought and still thinks of them.  He basically hated Brian who had a mean streak.  It was refreshing and clear - despite the 10+ years of when he was a heroine addict.  Keith basically comes across as a great guy, a nice guy, a decent guy who just wants to play music and doesn't want to have to deal with egos and one particular member's LVS (lead vocalist syndrome) attempt to branch off to a solo career and undermined a record deal to do it.  Keith is loyal and a friend for life but Mick's subterfuge really pissed him off.  A must for any Stones fan, I cannot recommend it enough.  I also liked the way the audio was set up.  Johnny Depp did most of it as Keith before heroine, and then after heroine.  During the heroine years, the voice is different, narrated by Joe Hurley, a fellow musician.  He's more like Keith's real voice, slurry, sloshy, very British and just plain ... cool.

5/5

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His Excellency: George Washington by Joseph J. Ellis

Book Description:
To this landmark biography of our first president, Joseph J. Ellis brings the exacting scholarship, shrewd analysis, and lyric prose that have made him one of the premier historians of the Revolutionary era. Training his lens on a figure who sometimes seems as remote as his effigy on Mount Rushmore, Ellis assesses George Washington as a military and political leader and a man whose “statue-like solidity” concealed volcanic energies and emotions.

Here is the impetuous young officer whose miraculous survival in combat half-convinced him that he could not be killed. Here is the free-spending landowner whose debts to English merchants instilled him with a prickly resentment of imperial power. We see the general who lost more battles than he won and the reluctant president who tried to float above the partisan feuding of his cabinet. His Excellency is a magnificent work, indispensable to an understanding not only of its subject but also of the nation he brought into being.

The basic premise of this book is the author wanted to write about Washington the man and what made him tick. Why did he do the things he did, what drove him on? Who was he really, did he have a heart? What were his thoughts and desires?

A tall order, considering all of Washington's private letters and correspondence were burned after his death by his wife, Martha. We'll never know for sure what sort of sweet endearments he wrote to her, or what his private thoughts and feelings were when he was commanding the Continental Army and watching his men die of smallpox and walk barefoot and bleading in the snow at Valley Forge. What did he really think of Thomas Jefferson when he found out Jefferson was scheming to make people believe Washington was growing senile and was under the thumb of Alexander Hamilton? We'll never know for sure, but this author did his best to come up with some pretty good assumptions and conjectures, but nothing concrete due to the lack of primary source materials.

Washington has been described as larger than life, stalwart, strong, a good soldier, majestic on his white destrier - leading his troops to victory and the final win of the American Revolution at the Battle of Yorktown. Yet, he was an enigma. He was close mouthed, quiet, a listener. He had never been one to shoot his mouth off and chatter on like a John Adams. He took in the scenery and listened to what his men told him. Then he made decisions. From some of his letters that were saved, which were from his war correspondence or dull letters to British merchants or tradesman, it is possible that Washington had quite a voluble temper and one of his greatest achievements was the fact that no one knew it. He was always in control in view of the public and his troops as a commander. It was to hide his fiery emotions that he kept in check. More than one acquaintance commented on the fact that they could see this is how he was. They could imagine the emotions brewing beneath the surface, yet Washington would never show his real emotions, because it was his honor and reputation at stake. He came across as cold and aloof - above the fray. He was perfect for the job of commander and the first president of the United States. If ever there was a man born for the job, it was Washington.

According to this book, Washington's driving force was how he meant to be perceived by all. His reputation and honor were crucial to him. Because of this, he kept all his regular correspondence dull and dry and to the point with no emotion or feeling. Just simply orders. If he did say or write something that he felt might come back to haunt him, he went back and edited it years later for posterity's sake. Many of his actions and orders during the Revolutionary War were based on how he felt it would show him in history and he did the same as president and even in his last will and testament in which he finally freed all his slaves. Probably the only ones who really knew him for who he really was were his close servants, Martha and his close personal friends. Not a sign of the living and breathing human George Washington with a passion or sense of humor comes across in any of his writing.

I can't say I really liked the man after reading this book. I got the feeling the author didn't either. It wasn't a very grandiose or flattering portrayal of Washington. He came across as often petty, opportunistic, holding a grudge and parsimonious. Land was a big issue with him and he didn't hesitate in taking the lion's share when it was offered. He married Martha Custis, a rich widow who owned a lot of land in Virginia, even though he loves another woman (albeit she was married.) His marriage is made to sound like a calculated move on Washington's part to raise him in status and wealth. It was a good marriage for both, although there were no children (it is believed that Washington was sterile since Martha had two children from her previous marriage.) Ironic since he is known as "the father of our country."

I won't go into any more details, of which there were plenty, but the book was not the most entertaining read, I found it a bit of a chore, thankfully it was short. This was not like a David McCullough book, it reminded me more of something I had to read as a history major in college. High on fact and details. Washington is depicted as this great icon of the American Revolution and founder of the Nation, but at the same time, I had the unsettling feeling that we'll never know what he was really like. Most of this book was the author's impressions and not much on how Washington's contemporaries viewed him. I couldn't help getting the feeling this author had an axe to grind when it came to George Washington. Still, I do plan on reading his biography on Thomas Jefferson eventually. At least Jefferson's letters were saved which will shed more light on him than Washington.

2.5/5

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Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me by Pattie Boyd

Book Description:
An iconic figure of the 1960s and '70s, Pattie Boyd breaks a forty-year silence in Wonderful Tonight, and tells the story of how she found herself bound to two of the most addictive, promiscuous musical geniuses of the twentieth century and became the most famous muse in the history of rock and roll.

She met the Beatles in 1964 when she was cast as a schoolgirl in A Hard Day's Night. Ten days later a smitten George Harrison proposed. For twenty-year-old Pattie Boyd, it was the beginning of an unimaginably rich and complex life as she was welcomed into the Beatles inner circle - a circle that included Mick Jagger, Ron Wood, Jeff Beck, and a veritable who's who of rock musicians. She describes the dynamics of the group, the friendships, the tensions, the musicmaking, and the weird and wonderful memories she has of Paul and Linda, Cynthia and John, Ringo and Maureen, and especially the years with her husband, George.

It was a sweet, turbulent life, but one that would take an unexpected turn, starting with a simple note that began "dearest l."

I read it quickly and assumed that it was from some weirdo; I did get fan mail from time to time.... I thought no more about it until that evening when the phone rang. It was Eric [Clapton]. "Did you get my letter?"... And then the penny dropped. "Was that from you?" I said....It was the most passionate letter anyone had ever written me.

For the first time Pattie Boyd, former wife of both George Harrison and Eric Clapton, a high-profile model whose face epitomized the swinging London scene of the 1960s, a woman who inspired Harrison's song "Something" and Clapton's anthem "Layla," has decided to write a book that is rich and raw, funny and heartbreaking - and totally honest and open and breathtaking. Here is the truth, here is what happened, here is the story you've been waiting for.

I've always been fascinated about the story between these three, and ever since I heard about this book it's been on my TBR list. I have a guilty pleasure in reading these sort of biographies, and anyone who knows me, knows I'm a huge Beatles fan. This book has no huge revelations or accounts of Beatles and rock star sexual orgies, it's more of an account of who she knew and where she traveled to. Considering the amazing love songs written for her, she didn't come across as all that remarkable (as she admits herself), but she does appear to be a genuinely nice person, but without a lot of gumption. She had a tendency to go along with everything and makes excuses for those who abused her over her lifetime. She's a bit wishy washy.

Beginning with her background, which was upper middle class, she was sent off to boarding schools at age 8, her parents had affairs and unhappy marriages and re-marriages. She's close to her siblings (6 in all, including half-siblings) and has a good, kind heart. She meets George when they're both incredibly young and it's love at first sight. They are immediately an item and get married before long. Since I've already read a lot about the Beatles, there were no new revelations for me here, but I was really interested in how the whole Eric Clapton thing came about. Interesting how she barely talked about Paul and Linda, I suspect she wasn't all that crazy about Paul. She mostly socialized and vacationed with John and his first wife, Cynthia and Ringo and his two wives, Maureen (who had an affair with George that ended her friendship with Pattie, understandably) and Barbara Bach, the actress.

Her life with Eric was really kind of tragic. He had this passionate love for her, but he was at first a drug addict and then after he kicked the heroine he became an alcoholic. He told her if she didn't leave George he'd start taking heroine - which he did! Imagine the guilt and pressure he put on her! Eventually over time, she did leave George for him and she had to deal with all of his addictions and really became a doormat and went along with it for a long time, drinking alot too, though never becoming addicted herself. She had to put up with his alcoholic tantrums and moods, his infidelities and unexpected and irrational behavior. He didn't even propose to her directly, he got someone else to do it for him long distance and then found it was from a bet he made! Yet, she still said yes. At the time just before, she had left him, since they'd been living together and she found out that he was sleeping with a friend of hers! George was no saint when she was married to him, yet, apart from a few infidelities, most of his neglect was due to his spiritualism and chanting and preoccupation with the giant estate he bought - Friar's Park (it's on his "All Things Must Pass" album.) Eric, in my opinion was worse to her than George. He was always so messed up and drunk. They both cared for her and loved her, as is indicated in the love songs they wrote with her in mind (she recounts how Clapton wrote the song, "Wonderful Tonight", which I think any woman would find endearing), but after her modeling career ended (while married to George) she didn't really have anything to do with her life. She was a wifey that became a neglected wifey - for both of them! I felt badly for her that she was never able to conceive, what an ordeal, especially while married to Clapton and undergoing in vitro, she finds out that an affair of his in Italy produces a child, his son Conor, who is tragically killed falling out of a NYC window years later.

Still, it's amazing that she went straight from George to Eric without missing a beat (no pun intended) - how many women can say that? A lot of this book is more of a catalog of who she knew and hung out with in the 60's and '70's in the London fashion and rock scene. She has also traveled extensively and now has a career as a photographer. She seems happy with her life now (unmarried), though always regrets that she left George and feels she should have stuck it out with him and tried harder to make their marriage work - yet it's always easier to say in hindsight, "shoulda, coulda, woulda".

3/5

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Losing It: And Gaining My Life Back One Pound at a Time by Valerie Bertinelli

Book Description:
We all knew and loved Valerie Bertinelli as the girl next door cutie, Barbara Cooper, in the hit TV show "One Day at a Time." Now she is the divorced mother of a teenager and is conducting a very public -- and already successful -- campaign to lose weight as a spokesperson for Jenny Craig.

Losing It is Bertinelli's frank motivational story -- from her complicated family life to her struggles to maintain a healthy self-image while coping with celebrity, her tumultuous 20-year marriage to rock star Eddie Van Halen, and her difficulties with depression. She takes us behind the scenes in her acting career and marriage, recalling the stress and concerns of being a rock star's wife, the joys of motherhood, her lifelong battle with weight, and her determination to let herself feel loved again.

With courage and candor, humor and emotion, Bertinelli shares her fears and insecurities in ways that will appeal to the hundreds of thousands of women who face these same issues every day.

I didn't know what to expect in reading the book, I don't read celebrity autobiographies too often, but there's something about sweet little Valerie Bertinelli I've always liked and was curious to read her story - I'm glad I did.

I devoured this short book in one day. I was swept up in it and realized how much I had in common with her. We're just about the same age, so all of her memories of growing up and living in the 70's rang so true - I remember all of it, the hair, the music what life was like. Even though she was an actress, she was surprisingly well adjusted and down to earth, she's very lucky to have such normal parents and was raised with a moral backbone. Sure, she was no saint, and she did some drugs and went "all the way" before she was 18 with her boyfriend - but that's pretty tame considering what you read about with today's young starlets - there's almost no comparison. She wasn't a drug addict and it was interesting to get her take on what she thought about others around her who were (MacKenzie Philips for one).

I could totally relate to all her weight and self esteem problems over the years - I'm the same way! The different sized wardrobes, the binge eating, the yo-you diets, gaining all the weight back and more - emotional eating - it's like she was describing me! I found this book very motivational to get off my butt and do something about my weight right now. She was a bit gushy over Jenny Craig towards the end, but I know how it is when you're enthusiasic about a diet that is working and you want to tell the world "Do it! Try this diet - it worked for me!" I hope she keeps the weight off - that's the hardest part.

Her life with Eddie Van Halen was very interesting to read about. I don't know much about the group - I was never a fan of theirs, but I remember at the time reading that she married him - she was so young! Only 20 years old! As she says herself - "What were we thinking??" Frankly, I'm amazed she came out of the marriage so wise and well adjusted. Granted, she has weight problems, but with all the drugs and booze floating around for 20 years - she's surprisingly normal and well adjusted for being a rock star wife. This is not a tell all celebrity autobiography, she admits to infidelities, but doesn't go into great detail about them, and the way they are described we understand what her motivation was, it couldn't have been easy for her in her marriage, especially when faced with the knowlege that her husband had been having affairs through their whole marriage!

I really enjoyed this book, aside from her political rantings which I could have done without. Reading her story was like getting to know her and becoming her girlfriend and hearing all about what her life has been like for the past 46 years - I'd like to sit down with her over a bottle of wine and really get to know her - I think we'd click! *grin*

3.5/5

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