Tales of a RATT: Things You Shouldn't Know

[shamus]

Curious to hear what other readers thought about Blotz's autobiography.

 

Also soliciting recommendations on other interesting rock autos and bios.

[LV KIX]

I'd say my favorite is "Neon Angels: The Cherie Currie Story".

 

I'm sure I'm a bit biased as The Runaways is the band that I believe influenced my taste in music more than any other.

 

A very historical look at a band who never did taste success in the States. Most other books deal with bands that made it big.. That is what makes this my favorite.. the fact that as far as the band goes it was not a happy ending.

 

I guess it's a pretty typical type of following your Rock n' Roll dreams story. But on top of facing the standard problems a male band faced... The Runaways faced much much more. And of course there are the drugs and the sex as well as fights within the band.

 

It is NOTHING like the movie "Cherry Bomb".. The book is way less "Hollywood" and more straight to the point. The book contains the real story.

[Captain Howdy]

The recent Steven Adler book is very good, as is Motley Crues book, The Dirt.

I really enjoyed the recent Ozzy one as well.

 

I think the only one I gave up on was the Nikki Sixx one, as it was just too weird and came across as somewhat made up in my opinion.

[Geoff]

Thanks for the thread, will check this one out asap. Already on my wishlist. I also bought the Steven Adler one recently and I'm looking forward to reading it.

 

Slash's one is also a good read.

 

I don't know if it'll be any good, but also on my wishlist is: 'A Shot of Poison: An Insider's Tales of One of Rock's Most Outrageous Bands.' It's not written by one of the members of Poison but rather by someone very close to the band for their entire careers. I'm pretty keen to read it as it gets good reviews.

[Clutch]

Being a huge Motorhead fan, I read Lemmy's White Line Fever a couple of years ago and was not too impressed. I know the guy has to have some crazy f'ing stories but I really felt like he held back. Still pretty good overall.

[T-BONE]

From what I've read about this book, only about 10% of it is true according to people that were there (aka band members). Basically, he just threw a bunch of shit on paper and swiped the title from a book that Stephen Pearcy has been working on for a long time called Ratt Tales.

 

Here's one article about it

 

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=148402

[zrock63]

I got Tales of a Ratt for Xmas, still have not started to read it yet,

 

Alder's book was pretty good,

 

Snake Eyes's "Confessions of A Replacement Rockstar" by Stacey Blades of LA Guns was also very good, I didn't even know, who the guy was until I started the book and I really enjoyed it.

 

The BEAST BY PAUL DI'ANNO.....Big disappoinment, the guy sounds totally full of shit, he's the toughest, takes the most drugs etc. Sold all his Iron Maiden rights for a lousy $50,000, because he want a fresh start..gimme a break..

[Fat Freddy]

Dave Mustaine's autobio "MUSTAINE" was a good read... I've blown thru it twice now!

[heaven&hell]

I've never read Tales from the Ratt but have wanted to it but it seems to be kind of expensive.

 

I've read the following:

 

Motley Crue - The Dirt(the bible of these books IMO 10/10)

 

Nikki Sixx - Heroin Diaries(Loved it and couldn't put it down - Some very sick shit just like the dirt)

 

Steven Adler - My Appetite For Destruction(just finishing this one now and didn't care for the format at first and the crazy style and out context or timeline stuff from time to time but over time I've learned to love this book and part of me feels so sorry for this guy and the other hand I want to strangle him for throwing away his talent)

 

Dave Mustaine - Mustaine(Very good book but part of me was hoping for more but I still liked it a lot)

 

Anvil - The Story of Anvil(Similar to the documentary but maybe not as moving but in more depth with much more to the story)

 

Iron Maiden - Run to the Hills(one of my fav rock books ever love it)

 

Slash - Slash(Great book with some great stories that made me wonder how Steven was kicked out of GNR and Slash wasn't - The edited did suck at times in this book)

 

Gene Simmons - Kiss and Makeup(Liked the book but it read as "Gene is God and everyone else is inferior to me" type story. Plus the constant bashing of Ace and Peter made me sick especially the inclusion of a drunken Ace kissing another man - I mean did Gene really need to include that. Sometimes I wish Kiss was back to being mysterious)

 

Guns N Roses - Watch You Bleed(Very good book but not band authorized but I still enjoyed this one a lot since it wasn't from one band members point of view and it pointed out all of their flaws)

 

Lonn Friend - Life on Planet Rock(Loved this book as I always dug Lon's writing but at times felt for the guy for believing that some of these bands were actually his friend)

 

Sound of the Beast - The Complete Headbanging History of Heavy Metal(By Ian Christe this book is killer and really focuses on the early days of HM including the NWOBHM and the influence on the US Thrash scene - This book should be required reading)

 

AC/DC - Maximum Rock N Roll(not the best book but it covered the entire history including all of the albums and was a pretty good book about band that doesn't have all that much written about them - I did wish they would of discussed the 80's years more)

 

Bang Your Head - By David Konow(very average history of the hard rock and metal scene. Good and interesting but average.)

[shamus]

I've never read Tales from the Ratt but have wanted to it but it seems to be kind of expensive.

 

I've read the following:

 

Motley Crue - The Dirt(the bible of these books IMO 10/10)

 

Nikki Sixx - Heroin Diaries(Loved it and couldn't put it down - Some very sick shit just like the dirt)

 

Steven Adler - My Appetite For Destruction(just finishing this one now and didn't care for the format at first and the crazy style and out context or timeline stuff from time to time but over time I've learned to love this book and part of me feels so sorry for this guy and the other hand I want to strangle him for throwing away his talent)

 

Dave Mustaine - Mustaine(Very good book but part of me was hoping for more but I still liked it a lot)

 

Anvil - The Story of Anvil(Similar to the documentary but maybe not as moving but in more depth with much more to the story)

 

Iron Maiden - Run to the Hills(one of my fav rock books ever love it)

 

Slash - Slash(Great book with some great stories that made me wonder how Steven was kicked out of GNR and Slash wasn't - The edited did suck at times in this book)

 

Gene Simmons - Kiss and Makeup(Liked the book but it read as "Gene is God and everyone else is inferior to me" type story. Plus the constant bashing of Ace and Peter made me sick especially the inclusion of a drunken Ace kissing another man - I mean did Gene really need to include that. Sometimes I wish Kiss was back to being mysterious)

 

Guns N Roses - Watch You Bleed(Very good book but not band authorized but I still enjoyed this one a lot since it wasn't from one band members point of view and it pointed out all of their flaws)

 

Lonn Friend - Life on Planet Rock(Loved this book as I always dug Lon's writing but at times felt for the guy for believing that some of these bands were actually his friend)

 

Sound of the Beast - The Complete Headbanging History of Heavy Metal(By Ian Christe this book is killer and really focuses on the early days of HM including the NWOBHM and the influence on the US Thrash scene - This book should be required reading)

 

AC/DC - Maximum Rock N Roll(not the best book but it covered the entire history including all of the albums and was a pretty good book about band that doesn't have all that much written about them - I did wish they would of discussed the 80's years more)

 

Bang Your Head - By David Konow(very average history of the hard rock and metal scene. Good and interesting but average.)

 

 

Totally agree with The Dirt being the bible of rock autos. Fantastic read!

 

Are the Adler and Slash books worth reading if I've read Watch You Bleed? Or do they kinda repeat what's already been said?

[Captain Howdy]

I have no idea what the Watch you bleed book is like, but the Adler one obviously covers a lot of his story before and after GNR, so it depends on whether it covers that.

It also goes into a lot of detail of how he was screwed over by the band.

 

The thing I liked about it is Adler realises how badly he fucked up, and is the first to take the blame for things he has done, so when he tells a story about how he was screwed over, you tend to believe him rather than anyone from the other side.

[Ali Rock]

The Dirt is great. Hammer of the gods, an autobiography about Led Zeppelin is almost as good as the dirt. Simular story but it take place 1-2 decades earlier.

[heaven&hell]

I've never read Tales from the Ratt but have wanted to it but it seems to be kind of expensive.

 

I've read the following:

 

Motley Crue - The Dirt(the bible of these books IMO 10/10)

 

Nikki Sixx - Heroin Diaries(Loved it and couldn't put it down - Some very sick shit just like the dirt)

 

Steven Adler - My Appetite For Destruction(just finishing this one now and didn't care for the format at first and the crazy style and out context or timeline stuff from time to time but over time I've learned to love this book and part of me feels so sorry for this guy and the other hand I want to strangle him for throwing away his talent)

 

Dave Mustaine - Mustaine(Very good book but part of me was hoping for more but I still liked it a lot)

 

Anvil - The Story of Anvil(Similar to the documentary but maybe not as moving but in more depth with much more to the story)

 

Iron Maiden - Run to the Hills(one of my fav rock books ever love it)

 

Slash - Slash(Great book with some great stories that made me wonder how Steven was kicked out of GNR and Slash wasn't - The edited did suck at times in this book)

 

Gene Simmons - Kiss and Makeup(Liked the book but it read as "Gene is God and everyone else is inferior to me" type story. Plus the constant bashing of Ace and Peter made me sick especially the inclusion of a drunken Ace kissing another man - I mean did Gene really need to include that. Sometimes I wish Kiss was back to being mysterious)

 

Guns N Roses - Watch You Bleed(Very good book but not band authorized but I still enjoyed this one a lot since it wasn't from one band members point of view and it pointed out all of their flaws)

 

Lonn Friend - Life on Planet Rock(Loved this book as I always dug Lon's writing but at times felt for the guy for believing that some of these bands were actually his friend)

 

Sound of the Beast - The Complete Headbanging History of Heavy Metal(By Ian Christe this book is killer and really focuses on the early days of HM including the NWOBHM and the influence on the US Thrash scene - This book should be required reading)

 

AC/DC - Maximum Rock N Roll(not the best book but it covered the entire history including all of the albums and was a pretty good book about band that doesn't have all that much written about them - I did wish they would of discussed the 80's years more)

 

Bang Your Head - By David Konow(very average history of the hard rock and metal scene. Good and interesting but average.)

 

 

Totally agree with The Dirt being the bible of rock autos. Fantastic read!

 

Are the Adler and Slash books worth reading if I've read Watch You Bleed? Or do they kinda repeat what's already been said?

 

I'd say yes their both worth reading since their much more stuff in their books that wasn't covered in Watch You Bleed but it's from their point of veiw.

[zrock63]

I'm in the Band....by Sean Yseult....from White Zombie.....pretty good, more like a scrapbook, tons of photos, old posters, record artwork, etc. just short stories, not much to read...

[phaffas]

I've never read Tales from the Ratt but have wanted to it but it seems to be kind of expensive.

 

I've read the following:

 

Motley Crue - The Dirt(the bible of these books IMO 10/10)

 

Nikki Sixx - Heroin Diaries(Loved it and couldn't put it down - Some very sick shit just like the dirt)

 

Steven Adler - My Appetite For Destruction(just finishing this one now and didn't care for the format at first and the crazy style and out context or timeline stuff from time to time but over time I've learned to love this book and part of me feels so sorry for this guy and the other hand I want to strangle him for throwing away his talent)

 

Dave Mustaine - Mustaine(Very good book but part of me was hoping for more but I still liked it a lot)

 

Anvil - The Story of Anvil(Similar to the documentary but maybe not as moving but in more depth with much more to the story)

 

Iron Maiden - Run to the Hills(one of my fav rock books ever love it)

 

Slash - Slash(Great book with some great stories that made me wonder how Steven was kicked out of GNR and Slash wasn't - The edited did suck at times in this book)

 

Gene Simmons - Kiss and Makeup(Liked the book but it read as "Gene is God and everyone else is inferior to me" type story. Plus the constant bashing of Ace and Peter made me sick especially the inclusion of a drunken Ace kissing another man - I mean did Gene really need to include that. Sometimes I wish Kiss was back to being mysterious)

 

Guns N Roses - Watch You Bleed(Very good book but not band authorized but I still enjoyed this one a lot since it wasn't from one band members point of view and it pointed out all of their flaws)

 

Lonn Friend - Life on Planet Rock(Loved this book as I always dug Lon's writing but at times felt for the guy for believing that some of these bands were actually his friend)

 

Sound of the Beast - The Complete Headbanging History of Heavy Metal(By Ian Christe this book is killer and really focuses on the early days of HM including the NWOBHM and the influence on the US Thrash scene - This book should be required reading)

 

AC/DC - Maximum Rock N Roll(not the best book but it covered the entire history including all of the albums and was a pretty good book about band that doesn't have all that much written about them - I did wish they would of discussed the 80's years more)

 

Bang Your Head - By David Konow(very average history of the hard rock and metal scene. Good and interesting but average.)

 

 

Totally agree with The Dirt being the bible of rock autos. Fantastic read!

 

Are the Adler and Slash books worth reading if I've read Watch You Bleed? Or do they kinda repeat what's already been said?

 

I'd say yes their both worth reading since their much more stuff in their books that wasn't covered in Watch You Bleed but it's from their point of veiw.

Is the Anvil one worth reading? Im as lazy as they get... but ive seen it for a few bucks at bookstores around here..

[heaven&hell]

I've never read Tales from the Ratt but have wanted to it but it seems to be kind of expensive.

 

I've read the following:

 

Motley Crue - The Dirt(the bible of these books IMO 10/10)

 

Nikki Sixx - Heroin Diaries(Loved it and couldn't put it down - Some very sick shit just like the dirt)

 

Steven Adler - My Appetite For Destruction(just finishing this one now and didn't care for the format at first and the crazy style and out context or timeline stuff from time to time but over time I've learned to love this book and part of me feels so sorry for this guy and the other hand I want to strangle him for throwing away his talent)

 

Dave Mustaine - Mustaine(Very good book but part of me was hoping for more but I still liked it a lot)

 

Anvil - The Story of Anvil(Similar to the documentary but maybe not as moving but in more depth with much more to the story)

 

Iron Maiden - Run to the Hills(one of my fav rock books ever love it)

 

Slash - Slash(Great book with some great stories that made me wonder how Steven was kicked out of GNR and Slash wasn't - The edited did suck at times in this book)

 

Gene Simmons - Kiss and Makeup(Liked the book but it read as "Gene is God and everyone else is inferior to me" type story. Plus the constant bashing of Ace and Peter made me sick especially the inclusion of a drunken Ace kissing another man - I mean did Gene really need to include that. Sometimes I wish Kiss was back to being mysterious)

 

Guns N Roses - Watch You Bleed(Very good book but not band authorized but I still enjoyed this one a lot since it wasn't from one band members point of view and it pointed out all of their flaws)

 

Lonn Friend - Life on Planet Rock(Loved this book as I always dug Lon's writing but at times felt for the guy for believing that some of these bands were actually his friend)

 

Sound of the Beast - The Complete Headbanging History of Heavy Metal(By Ian Christe this book is killer and really focuses on the early days of HM including the NWOBHM and the influence on the US Thrash scene - This book should be required reading)

 

AC/DC - Maximum Rock N Roll(not the best book but it covered the entire history including all of the albums and was a pretty good book about band that doesn't have all that much written about them - I did wish they would of discussed the 80's years more)

 

Bang Your Head - By David Konow(very average history of the hard rock and metal scene. Good and interesting but average.)

 

 

Totally agree with The Dirt being the bible of rock autos. Fantastic read!

 

Are the Adler and Slash books worth reading if I've read Watch You Bleed? Or do they kinda repeat what's already been said?

 

I'd say yes their both worth reading since their much more stuff in their books that wasn't covered in Watch You Bleed but it's from their point of veiw.

Is the Anvil one worth reading? Im as lazy as they get... but ive seen it for a few bucks at bookstores around here..

 

I enjoyed it quite a bit especially the stories from the early days in the early 80's when they were playing bigger shows.

[Captain Howdy]

From what I've read about this book, only about 10% of it is true according to people that were there (aka band members). Basically, he just threw a bunch of shit on paper and swiped the title from a book that Stephen Pearcy has been working on for a long time called Ratt Tales.

 

Here's one article about it

 

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=148402

Pearcy comes across as a hypocrite or a liar in that interview.

Firstly he says that he and the other band members have no interest in putting their lives out there, then says he has been writing a book and Blotz stole the title.

Well either he was already writing a book, thus wanted his life out there, which shows him to be a liar. Or he has made up the fact he is writing a book just to take a swipe at Blotzer, making him look like a double liar.

 

I know Croucier has a bad rep, which is why he never returned to the band, but from my understanding over the years, Pearcy has always been the main reason behind Ratt splitting or going on hiatus.

 

Also, I have to say that he also comes across as a hypocrite when he starts moaning about Blotzer pushing the book, when its obvious by his statement that he himself cares more about all the irons he has in the many fires, than he does about Ratt.

 

From rumours I have read as well, if they do reform, Robbie Crane will not return.

[heaven&hell]

From what I've read about this book, only about 10% of it is true according to people that were there (aka band members). Basically, he just threw a bunch of shit on paper and swiped the title from a book that Stephen Pearcy has been working on for a long time called Ratt Tales.

 

Here's one article about it

 

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=148402

Pearcy comes across as a hypocrite or a liar in that interview.

Firstly he says that he and the other band members have no interest in putting their lives out there, then says he has been writing a book and Blotz stole the title.

Well either he was already writing a book, thus wanted his life out there, which shows him to be a liar. Or he has made up the fact he is writing a book just to take a swipe at Blotzer, making him look like a double liar.

 

I know Croucier has a bad rep, which is why he never returned to the band, but from my understanding over the years, Pearcy has always been the main reason behind Ratt splitting or going on hiatus.

 

Also, I have to say that he also comes across as a hypocrite when he starts moaning about Blotzer pushing the book, when its obvious by his statement that he himself cares more about all the irons he has in the many fires, than he does about Ratt.

 

From rumours I have read as well, if they do reform, Robbie Crane will not return.

 

Whoa that sucks about Crane not returning. He's been a monster live everytime i've seen them with just endless energy. It was a sight with him and Kerri Kelli in the band with both of them never staying still.

 

The thing with Croucier that I always read was that he had his studio and he had joint custody of his kids so always turned down the reunion back in 97 but didn't want them to do it without him so he was always outspoken about them playing without him and Crosby.

[Captain Howdy]

back on the subject of biogs, I just got the recent Vince Neil book in the post this morning, so will have to see how that one is.

have to say I feel somewhat let down by Amazons pricing though.

Dont get me wrong, it was very well priced (rrp £18.99) at £6.65 but I wish they had added another 1p.

[Fat Freddy]

Has anyone mentioned NO ONE HERE GETS OUT ALIVE, the story of Jim Morrison and the Doors, yet?

 

If not, now I have. Great book.