Whether it’s fiction or accounts of their storied lives, check out some of these musician-written books from our collection
A Musician’s Life
You know the music but how well do you know he people behind it? For the last few decades, it’s become commonplace for aging musicians to reflect on their lives and put pen to paper. Autobiographies, memoirs and well-researched biographies have regularly climbed their way into The New York Times Best-Sellers List. Musician forays into authorship aren’t, however, limited to non-fiction. Many musicians are quite imaginative fiction writers, too. Keep reading to find out about the musicians who traded (if only briefly) their microphone for a notebook.
Great Writing, Great Reading
Many of our favorite musicians are entertaining and insightful. This isn’t a surprise — I mean, their heads are brimming with creativity. Not only that, but by the nature of their calling, many musicians lead interesting lives or have intriguing backstories. They often become icons in their own ways, and reading their stories gives many of us the opportunity to live vicariously through their adventures. Their trials and tribulations, triumphs, as well as their lives within the broader music community are all sources of endless fascination for us “outsiders.”
If you are a fan of “lists,” Paste Magazine named Patti Smith’s Just Kids as the best musician memoir, and Keith Richards’ Life appears as #5 on that list and #3 on Billboard’s Greatest Music Books. We can attest that both are fantastic reads for the hardcore or even the casual fan. Beyond autobiographies, there is John Lennon’s nonsensical prose In His own Write, Jim Morrison’s psychedelic-influenced The Lords and New Creatures, Nick Cave’s collection of short stories, plays, and lyrics from his recordings in King Ink and King Ink II, or perhaps Pete Townshend’s novel, The Age of Anxiety. Fiction, non-fiction, poetry, short stories…musicians continue to express themselves beyond their music, and we are better off for it. Yes, Rock Stars can write!
Music and Musicians @ Bynx
Rock stars, though, aren’t the only ones who’ve led wild lives. This is evidenced in books like Billie Holiday’s Lady Sings The Blues or Miles Davis’ Miles. And there are many more, a few of which we have in our collection. For example:
- Jay-Z Decoded
- Sammy Davis Jr. Yes I Can
- Leonard Cohen The Favourite Game
- Quest Love Music Is History
A small sample size to be sure. Whether it’s Greg Allman, Dave Grohl, Slash, Keith Richards, Sting, Viv Albertine, Bob Dylan, John Lydon (Rotten), George Harrison, Grace Slick, and more… our shelves are filled with musician titles like these — signed editions, too! Check out our site for more of these great reads.
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