Category Archives: Books

Book Dissects the Music—and Madness—of A-List Classic Rock Drummer Jim Gordon

Posted on April 10, 2024 by Bob Ruggiero

He was arguably rock’s greatest drummer, or at least on the short list. An inventive percussionist who lifted about everything he played on, he often came up with his drum licks, beats and fills on the spot in the studio … Continue reading →

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A Beatles Insider Gets His Own Story in a Titanic Tome

Posted on January 13, 2024 by Bob Ruggiero

Non-Beatlemaniacs who saw Peter Jackson’s 2021 Beatles documentary Get Back may have wondered just who the large, bespectacled gentleman was often in the background. He can be seen setting up equipment, writing down lyrics for bandmembers, or even fetching tea. … Continue reading →

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A Half Century of KISStory is Celebrated—Loudly—in New Book

Posted on December 22, 2023 by Bob Ruggiero

If you’ve got a KISS fan on your upcoming gift list and don’t know what to possibly get for he or she (though it’s probably a he…), fear no more! Your shopping stress just got a little easier with the … Continue reading →

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Mark Volman of the Turtles is Happy—Forever!

Posted on December 18, 2023 by Bob Ruggiero

He wasn’t the lead singer—that would be his lifelong partner in music and comedy, Howard Kaylan. He didn’t write any of his band’s many ‘60s hits like “Happy Together,” “It Ain’t Me Babe,” “Elenore,” “You Showed Me,” “You Baby,” “She’d … Continue reading →

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Geezer Butler’s Lifetime of Sabbaths—and the Days of Metal In Between

Posted on December 17, 2023 by Bob Ruggiero

The song opens unlike anything else that had been heard in rock music to date. The sounds of a howling wind, drizzling rain, thunder, and then the slow, repetitive tolling of a bell. Just when you think it’s a Halloween … Continue reading →

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Celebrating Quadrophenia—The Who’s “Other” Rock Opera

Posted on December 14, 2023 by Bob Ruggiero

It’s not the Who’s most famous rock opera—that would be the one about the deaf, dumb and blind kid with great flipper action, Tommy. Nor is it the great “What If?” never-assembled rock opera—that would be Lifehouse, most of which … Continue reading →

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Book Charts Eagles’ Soaring Heights and Plummeting Crashes

Posted on December 13, 2023 by Bob Ruggiero

As esteemed rock journo Mick Wall writes in his introduction, Don Henley hates books about his band, Eagles (there is technically no definite article in the group’s name—so you’ve been saying it wrong all these years. See also: Talking Heads). … Continue reading →

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The Allman Brothers & Their Family Ways

Posted on December 11, 2023 by Bob Ruggiero

In the fall of 1972, the Allman Brothers Band found themselves at a crossroads—one with more ominousness and uncertainty than the one Robert Johnson went down to. A year earlier, they had lost Duane Allman, the group’s founder, leader and … Continue reading →

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The Mamas and the Papas’ Book of Dreamin’

Posted on December 8, 2023 by Bob Ruggiero

The Mamas and the Papas were the epitome of California-based sunshine hippie pop and folk-rock, blending their voices to create two huge anthems of the ‘60s in “California Dreamin’” and “Monday, Monday.” They also had a string of other hits … Continue reading →

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Book Spotlights Women the Stones Rolled With—and Sometimes Over

Posted on December 7, 2023 by Bob Ruggiero

In their music of the ’60s and ‘70s, the Rolling Stones weren’t exactly paragons for promoting gender equality and women’s issues. Songs like “Under My Thumb,” “Mother’s Little Helper,” “Stupid Girl,” “Brown Sugar,” “She’s So Cold,” and “Bitch” were rife … Continue reading →

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