Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk

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Summary: all punk music fans should read this
Review: This is a fascinating glimpse into what was happening in music in the mid/late '70's and where it came from. The names, the feel, the history - it's all there. The self-destructiveness of the cast of characters in this story is a little sad, but that's just part of the picture they paint.

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Summary: They shoulda been rich!
Review: This book is a who's who of the true spirit of American rock'n'roll--never mind that the average person on the street couldn't tell you who Johnny Thunders, Stiv Bators, Dee Dee Ramone or Richard Hell are. What a marvelous way of writing history--we see how the outrageous stories collide and intersect; we get to "hear" the youthful energy and enthusiasm first-hand; we gain fresh insights into folks we thought we'd learned all about years ago. People like Joey Ramone and Iggy Pop are, of course, heroes to me--to see them brought to such life here as real people is an absolute joy. I got to meet Legs and Gillian on their tour for the book several years ago and they are the epitome of COOL, as are the people in this book. Pix are good too, I especially dig the one of Johnny Thunders, Richard Hell and Sid Vicious out on bail. Poor kid. I don't care if the majority of music listeners don't know who these folks are--rock'n'roll wouldn've died out years ago if it hadn't been for their reckless, drug-fueled ferocity and their maniacal genius raw power. Buy this and "England's Dreaming" and that's punk baby! LAMF Forever!

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Summary: Just the facts,mam
Review: a major revisionist fact is in this book, stating that television was the first of the ny rockers to play cbgbs and thereby turn the world onto that club and the bowery. television played in march 74/wayne(now jayne) county played in dec, 73 when county was as popular as the ny dolls and wayne county gets the credit as first to play cbgbs and turn the world on to the bowery. fact check next time, ok?

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Summary: Hitting the nail right on the head
Review: Mcneil and McCain take it straight from the horse's mouth. Please Kill Me is the best and most entertaining book on American proto-punk and punk I have ever read. All the greatest are covered, in their own words.... Pages of great rare photos, classic quotes and stories from all that survived and from some who didn't. This is a must have for any fan of the genre.

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Summary: Fascinating look at punk in nearly all of its incarnations
Review: Growing up in the Chicago suburbs, the view I had of "punk" was the one supplied by the mainstream media--artless noise pumped out by mohawk-wearing girlfriend-murderers. It was years later that my eyes and ears were opened to the artists who are so brilliantly profiled in this book. This is essential reading for any fan of rock music. "Punk", as anyone who reads this book will see, was whatever people wanted it to be. The point was that anyone could do it if they had the heart. This book captures that spirit in the artists' own words and it's a book I'll turn to again and again.

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Summary: Ron Asheton doing coke with Miles Davis
Review: Whether one single word of this amazing book is true or not is irrelevant. The stories, told by the people who think they remember being there, are the stuff of pure folklore. Anyone interested in the rise and fall of the two greatest American bands -- The Stooges and the MC5 -- will not be disappointed. Along with "England's Dreaming" and "Velvets to Voidoids," "Please Kill Me" is essential reading for anyone who thinks they know something about punk.

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Summary: Its one of the good but not great books on punk
Review: Although this book is the definitive history on American Punk, the very reason that it is based on American Punk puts me off it. Come on, even though none of use punk lovers were even born before the first Punk was made, we all know that Brit punk is the best. haha....j/k :) Well actually, the reason i didn'tgive this book a 5 star rating was because of the rockstar ways of the early participants of the NY Punk scene. But that, I admit, can not be blamed on the writer, his only fault is writing on the all together boring early American Punk days. British Punk was one of the best forms, but im yet waiting forsomone towrite a definitive history on the recent worldwidepuk scene. oh well, im sleep and am going to bed, im guesing all this will come back as a nightmare for me tonight :)......ta ta all

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic
Review: This book is the ultiamte reason you should never do drugs. This was one of the best books I have ever read on the "Punk" movement. There should be more books like this one. It was interesting to see diferent versions of the same story through the mouths of the actual artists, managers, groupies etc. This is a fast read, one that you can't put down. It makes you feel that you actually know these people and that you were there for the start of what has become "Alternative music" Funny and sad at times, this book has it all, except the only drawback is there is not enough rare pictures. If only a photo version can come out.

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Summary: A great tell all book
Review: I thought this book was really good about getting to the bottom of things. It was quotes from the actual people and it wasn't some writer telling it how he saw it. It was how different people saw it.

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Summary: The people of punk tell the story -- not the author!
Review: The book tells the story itself. The book is not just a punk diary, it explains the psychology of a time and a place when it was cool to wither and waste away -- that's where it gets its name. The author does nothing but put quotations in an order to tell a story. It goes from the Velvet Underground to Iggy Pop to the Dead Boys to Blondie. Very well done and fun to read, not to mention great pics. This is the best punk history book I've ever seen, and very detailed. If you want to learn about punk -- this is where to get your edumahkashun.:)