Category Archives: Books

Jimi Hendrix: Where the Wild Thing Was

Posted on July 13, 2021 by Bob Ruggiero

Wild Thing: The Short, Spellbinding Life of Jimi Hendrix By Philip Norman 400 pp., $28.95, Liverlight Publications When veteran music journalist Philip Norman turns his attention to a musician, the word “definitive” is not an understatement. For while many of … Continue reading →

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America’s Book of History

Posted on June 2, 2021 by Bob Ruggiero

If you’re a fan of the band America – the trio behind the classic rock warhorses as, well, “A Horse with No Name” along with “Sister Golden Hair,” “Ventura Highway,” “Tin Man,” “Lonely People,” “Sandman,” “I Need You,” and “You … Continue reading →

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Chris Frantz Remembers Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club, and – of course – Tina!

Posted on May 28, 2021 by Bob Ruggiero

Chris Frantz remembers very vividly the first time he ever laid eyes upon one Martina Weymouth. It was September of 1971, and was lounging on a grassy park with a fellow student at the Rhode Island School of Design. When … Continue reading →

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Peter Frampton Shows the Way to His Past in Memoir

Posted on May 6, 2021 by Bob Ruggiero

Do You Feel Like I Do?: A Memoir By Peter Frampton with Alan Light 352 pp., $28, Hachette Books If rock star careers were measured in terms of their level of roller coaster-ness, then Peter Frampton’s would be a ride … Continue reading →

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Who is He? The Silent, Stoic Bassist’s Story is Finally Told

Posted on November 8, 2020 by Bob Ruggiero

The Ox: The Authorized Biography of John Entwistle by Paul Rees 384 pp., $30, Hatchette Books Every member of the Who has been the subject of a number of biographies and autobiographies save one: bassist John Entwistle. Known as “The … Continue reading →

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Ted Templeman’s Tales: Doobies, Van Halen, and…Frank Sinatra??

Posted on October 25, 2020 by Bob Ruggiero

Ted Templeman: A Platinum Producer’s Life in Music by Ted Templeman as told to Greg Renoff 450 pp., $19.95, ECW As an introduction to the often misunderstood art of record production, young Ted Templeman could not have found a better … Continue reading →

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Janis Joplin Finally Gets the Book She Deserves

Posted on May 24, 2020 by Bob Ruggiero

Janis: Her Life and Music By Holly George-Warren 400 pp., Simon & Schuster, $28.99 Rock’s first female superstar has already been the subject of a numerous biographies, memoirs by those who loved and worked with her, documentaries, and even a … Continue reading →

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Authors Offer a Texas Flood on the Life and Music of Stevie Ray Vaughan

Posted on April 9, 2020 by Bob Ruggiero

It’s October 3rd, 2019 when Alan Paul and Andy Aledort – co-authors of the new bio Texas Flood: The Inside Story of Stevie Ray Vaughan – are on the phone. The date is appropriate because it would have been the … Continue reading →

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Led Zep’s Fearsome Manager Gets a Book of His Own

Posted on June 19, 2019 by Bob Ruggiero

Bring It On Home: Peter Grant, Led Zeppelin, and Beyond – The Story of Rock’s Greatest Manager By Mark Blake 304 pp., $27, Da Capo Press As any Led Zeppelin fan who has thumbed through Hammer of the Gods, seen … Continue reading →

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Classic Rockers Turn the Page

Posted on December 29, 2012 by Bob Ruggiero

A lot of classic rockers got booked this past year. Except instead of facing a police camera for dabblings in heroin, underage groupies, or questionable artistic moves (who else wants to “go country?”), 2012 was the year that many put … Continue reading →

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