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jferrell526's review against another edition
4.0
t first, I thought it was all Steven, but later in the book you learn about others in the band. You learn how the rise to fame affected them and their performances. You also learn the toll drugs and fame had on the band. Altogether an interesting book.
bent's review against another edition
2.0
I want to preface this review by saying that when I started it, I was also reading Joe Perry's autobiography at the same time, which I enjoyed much more and finished reading much sooner, so I had already read about a lot of the ups and downs of the bands. That may have colored my opinion of this book. And although I had all of their albums at one point (up to and including Pump). they were never my favorite band, and as time has passed, I find that I almost never listen to them. That said, I've read books about other bands that I liked/knew less and enjoyed them more, so the fact that I'm not their biggest fan shouldn't necessarily affect my enjoyment of the book.
I found this book overly long. I didn't really like Steven Tyler. And every time that Steve Davis (Aerosmith's co-writer) takes over from the band, he's really boring. He tends to ramble, trying to tie Aeromsith's story in with world events at the time, but it just comes off pretentiously. And he makes a Spinal Tap reference, getting it completely wrong. Did he ever see the movie? Or read a synopsis? A good editor could have made this much more readable. I really felt that the book crawled along, with only brief flashes of interest, and spent too much time on uninteresting anecdotes.
I found the fact that he basically adopted a 14 year old girl to have sex with rather upsetting, and the fact that nobody seemed to want to speak out about this. He basically blows it off by saying "well, I stole her childhood, but I was on drugs, so I don't feel guilty - you don't think clearly on drugs." Then he arranges for her to get an abortion and dumps her. Nice. I also think all the warm talk about when Liv Tyler finds out he's her father is kind of crap as well - he avoided taking any responsibility for her for the first 14 years, and then acts like it's a great moment when she figures out she's really his daughter and he lets her use his last name.
I come away with the impression that there are four decent guys in Aerosmith, and one scumbag. That does better than Motley Crue in The Dirt where you finish thinking "well, Mick Mars seems like a decent guy." I would recommend that Joe Perry book and give this one a miss.
I found this book overly long. I didn't really like Steven Tyler. And every time that Steve Davis (Aerosmith's co-writer) takes over from the band, he's really boring. He tends to ramble, trying to tie Aeromsith's story in with world events at the time, but it just comes off pretentiously. And he makes a Spinal Tap reference, getting it completely wrong. Did he ever see the movie? Or read a synopsis? A good editor could have made this much more readable. I really felt that the book crawled along, with only brief flashes of interest, and spent too much time on uninteresting anecdotes.
I found the fact that he basically adopted a 14 year old girl to have sex with rather upsetting, and the fact that nobody seemed to want to speak out about this. He basically blows it off by saying "well, I stole her childhood, but I was on drugs, so I don't feel guilty - you don't think clearly on drugs." Then he arranges for her to get an abortion and dumps her. Nice. I also think all the warm talk about when Liv Tyler finds out he's her father is kind of crap as well - he avoided taking any responsibility for her for the first 14 years, and then acts like it's a great moment when she figures out she's really his daughter and he lets her use his last name.
I come away with the impression that there are four decent guys in Aerosmith, and one scumbag. That does better than Motley Crue in The Dirt where you finish thinking "well, Mick Mars seems like a decent guy." I would recommend that Joe Perry book and give this one a miss.
lezeeticus28's review
adventurous
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse
Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Domestic abuse
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