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offbalance80's review against another edition
4.0
A terrific look back on the genuinely colorful life and career of my all-time favorite MTV VJ. Pinfield is candid about his successes and screw-ups, but the most enticing part of this memoir are his tales of celebrity encounters (there are some really great ones) and his tales of being a DJ in the days when that still meant something.
sadiesargar's review against another edition
2.0
Matt Pinfield has met a lot of famous people, and they’ve all had very nice things to say about him.
whizalen's review against another edition
3.0
Deserves 3 1/2 stars
So I know Matt Pinfield from 120 Minutes and his glorious day hosting Pointfest 9 (where deftones were relegated to the side stage and Gravity Kills headlined over Foo Fighters, Green Day and Creed). This was a quick read to kill time, nothing earth shattering or anything. I felt like he glossed over the real impact that drugs and alcohol had on his life and personal relationships, it was almost more like, "well this is part of the life" rather than a full introspection on how it shaped him as a husband, father, friend. etc etc. Not enough spent on who and what the soul of Matt Pinfield is whereas it focused on 'all these cool people I interviewed and these cool stories I have.'
So I know Matt Pinfield from 120 Minutes and his glorious day hosting Pointfest 9 (where deftones were relegated to the side stage and Gravity Kills headlined over Foo Fighters, Green Day and Creed). This was a quick read to kill time, nothing earth shattering or anything. I felt like he glossed over the real impact that drugs and alcohol had on his life and personal relationships, it was almost more like, "well this is part of the life" rather than a full introspection on how it shaped him as a husband, father, friend. etc etc. Not enough spent on who and what the soul of Matt Pinfield is whereas it focused on 'all these cool people I interviewed and these cool stories I have.'
shinychick's review against another edition
3.0
I see why he had a co-author, as he did meander a lot, and some parts don't logically lead to others, but I really enjoyed it.
msmichaela's review against another edition
1.0
Astonishingly self-involved memoir of Pinfield's life in music. He was a DJ and then the music director at FM106.3 (WHTG), the alternative station I listened to in the musically formative high school and college years. But that wasn't enough to overcome the terrible writing, lack of context and perspective and numerous factual errors in the Jersey Shore sections alone. It's astonishing to think there was a ghostwriter on this book; seems he didn't do much more than transcribe Pinfield's stories of the glory days.
luckyspark's review
3.0
I enjoyed this book. Pinfield's obsessive passion for rock and rock gods is definitely contagious and his knowledge is part scholar and part geek fanboy. I also read memoirs by Carrie Brownstein, Chrissy Hynde and Kim Gordon this year. What sets Pinfield's memoir apart from the pack (not in a good way) is that he seems to skim the surface of the role rock has played in his life. If you remove the word "life" from the subtitle and replace it with "career" you'd have a closer representation of the book. If you are looking for something deeper than his encyclopedic knowledge of rock or stories of having sex with groupies, you will be sadly disappointed with the occasional mentions of drug use and failed marriages. After the birth of his first child, she is never mentioned again, even when he is talking about fatherhood. However, it was a fun read for the back stories on certain bands and rock stars and learning how obsessed he was even as a little kid. It's interesting because he seems to see the only value in his memoir to be the moments he was in the presence of a rock star which are interesting and entertaining; but, I would have preferred more introspection. Maybe in 10 or 15 years, he'll write another one that digs deeper. I'd read it.
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