I have read dozens of rock and roll memoirs and autobiographies in my life. As a youth I fell into the grip of a very bad glam metal addiction. It is quite embarrassing and all attempts have been made to destroy the evidence. Luckily Hurricane Sandy found my mulleted photographs in my mother's garage and washed them out to sea. My favorite band as an 11-year old was Motley Crue. I am not sure that is cool to say anymore and at 41 years it has really stopped mattering. I voraciously read Motley Crue's "The Dirt" - it was written from the points of view of all the members. What was striking most was how much they hated one another. It's been a long time since I read it... maybe should find a new copy. And that brings me to Nikki Sixx's "Heroin Diaries" - it is beautifully designed probably by someone who liked the art associated with Hunter Thompson. It is also not great for anyone who is color blind (not to mention near-sighted like me. If you were a huge fan of the Crue then it's a must have for an in depth look at - guess what?! A narcissistic rock star in the midst of heroin addiction. Still, it's a great portrait of hair metal icon and Hollywood. If you ever wondered what it was like to be rich and famous and somehow a completely insecure nutbag this is it. I kinda felt bad for Nikki's bandmates. As much as he was a hero of mine, you have to ask yourself, "How can anyone tolerate such an asshole?" Luckily for us all, Nikki cleaned up from heroin and when you see him in inteviews he is pretty chilled out, articulate and introspective yet still edgy and charismatic. Another cool thing about the book is how much he shares the knowledge that "Girls, Girls, Girls" was a sham of an album! No teenage boy was going to complain about an album seemingly dedicated to the band's love of strippers yet tenderly also featuring a song about Sixx's grandmother. Grandma must have been fucking proud. "My grandson plays in a rock band. He loves heroin and lapdancers!" OK, enough cynicism - you can listen to "Home Sweet Home" and play air guitar and air drums til your arms fall off. I have this book in hardcover. It was 995 baht - it will go to a very special Crue fan for 500 baht or 400 if you also buy me a Beer Lao Regular or Dark at Fatty's. Yes, this rock philosopher trades books for food and beer.
I am pretty sure all GNR fans have read this Slash book. Steven Adler and Duff McKagan both have books out but after seeing Steven the disgraced and fired GNR on Celebrity Rehab i passed on it - can Steven even write? Maybe I will read Duff's book some day. Anyway, my copy of Slash's book "Slash" is up for sale along with my copies of Marc Canter's "Reckless Road: Gun's N Roses and the making of Appetite for Destruction" as well as Stephen Davis' "watch You Bleed: the Saga of Guns N' Roses." Reckless Road is an absolute must have for a GNR fan. Anyone that knows GNR lore will know Marc Canter, the author, was best friends with Slash and his family runs the famous restaurant Canter's. This is the place where Slash and Steven met Seattle-native Duff McKagan for the first time. Canter's book is a collection of old GNR photos before they got famous, ticket stubs, flyers - the guy apparently documented everything about Slash and GNR and there are lots of interview snippets and backstage photos. The Davis book is generally a retelling of all the commonly known lore of GNR and is a great refresher on GNR history. I am gonna sell this as a collection. The Reckless Road book is an absolute work of art - it was pretty expensive. The entire GNR collection is yours for 1000 baht and includes all three books. Note that the Slash book is a hardcover, reckless Road is basically a small and heavy softcover with all vivid color photos. If you can answer my GNR trivia I can possibly be talked down to 800 baht for the entire collection.
The Rock Philosopher