Words by WASTER Staff | Photo by Tom Hermans
As the Northeast braces for another week of frigid, icy hellscapes, it’s a great time to enjoy some art indoors. A good music memoir or biography will not only give you a reason to get under a blanket, but you’ll learn a thing or two about some of your favorite artists, too.
We’ve compiled a short list of must-read books for music fans, featuring Elton John, Questlove, Kathleen Hanna, and more. So get cozy, get reading, and, while you’re hibernating, store up some fuel for festival season this summer!
Music Memoirs
Me – Elton John
Elton John is the most enduringly successful singer/songwriter of all time. His life is extraordinary, packed with incredible highs and lows, from a troubled childhood to chart-topping super-stardom, from cocaine addiction to friendships with John Lennon, George Michael, and Princess Diana, from outrageous excess to finding happiness as a husband and father. Now, in his own words and with his usual honesty, he shares his story – every hilarious, heartbreaking moment.
Rebel Girl – Kathleen Hanna
Kathleen Hanna’s band Bikini Kill embodied the punk scene of the 90’s, yet her personal and feminist lyrics are more powerful than ever. In Rebel Girl, Hanna details the development of this transformative voice, from her tumultuous childhood to the formation of Bikini Kill and beyond. In an uncut voice all her own, Hanna explores the hardest times along with the most joyful – and how they continue to fuel her revolutionary art and music.
The Uncool – Cameron Crowe
The long-awaited memoir by Cameron Crowe – one of America’s most iconic journalists and filmmakers – The Uncool is a joyful dispatch from a lost world, a chronicle of the real-life events that became Almost Famous, and a coming of age journey filled with music legends as you’ve never seen them before. With its vivid snapshots of a bygone era and a celebration of creativity and connection, this memoir is an essential read for music lovers or anyone chasing their wildest dreams.
What’s Your Scene?
Music is History – Questlove
Music is History combines Questlove’s deep musical expertise with his curiosity about history, examining America over the past fifty years. Focusing on the years 1971 to present, Questlove finds the hidden connections in the American tapestry, whether investigating how the blaxploitation era reshaped Black identity or considering the way disco took an assembly line approach to Black genius. And these critical inquiries are complemented by his own memories as a music fan, and the way his appetite for pop culture taught him about America.
Meet Me In The Bathroom – Lizzy Goodman
From the clubs of New York’s Lower East Side to the warehouses of Williamsburg, a time that changed music, and the city, forever. In this riveting oral history told by those who were actually there, playing the music, pouring the drinks, signing the checks, and writing the cover stories, journalist Lizzy Goodman chronicles the rebirth of New York rock. Featuring all your favorite artists from the early 2000’s, including The Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Interpol, Moldy Peaches, LCD Soundsystem and more.
Goth: A History – Lol Tolhurst
Following his memoir Cured, it’s a fascinating deep dive into the dark Romanticism of Goth music, a misunderstood genre and culture, by co-founder of The Cure, Lol Tolhurst. From the pages of famed authors T.S. Eliot, Edgar Allen Poe, and Sylvia Plath to the records by ‘architects of darkness’ Joy Division and Bauhaus, the author tracks the expansion of Goth from England to New York, Los Angeles, and beyond. ‘A veritable garden of earthly delights for the long-time Goth fan and newcomer alike.
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