You’ve done the greatest hits compilation(s) and the farewell tour(s), so what left to do? Why the memoir, of course, to set the record straight – as you see it. If you’re really lucky, you’ll get several attempts at updating the autobiography to incorporate additional wives, band reunions, medical conditions, finding God, and so on.
I read all of these rock memoirs, which vary from hum-de-hum to absolutely gripping, so you don't have to. Although, in the case of most of them, you really should.
47. Steve Hackett: A Genesis in My Bed
Guitarist Steve Hackett has spent much of the latter part of his career giving the people what they want as he revisits classic Genesis albums on stage. And he does much the same in his autobiography – which concentrates, naturally enough, on those fascinating early Genesis years. Shame it couldn’t be a bit longer, mind.
46. Bill Wyman: Stone Alone
Written with all the panache of a rather pedantic accountant, Bill’s autobiography is an ideal read for anyone who wants to know how much was in his bank account in any given month in 1964. Actually, that’s not entirely fair, as Bill’s eye for detail is rare among rock musicians and there are plenty of good yarns here amid the cantankerousness. Shame it ends in 1969 with the Hyde Park gig, mind.
45. Ron Wood: Ronnie
Ron’s memoir is as lovable as the man himself. It's just a pity that it ends with a portrait of the contented old rock star, surrounded by his kids and a loving wife, given that we know he promptly left his wife for a younger woman, entered rehab and was subsequently diagnosed with lung cancer. Time for an update, surely?
44. Ian Gillan: Child in Time
Originally published way back in 1993 and surely due a proper update, Gillan’s autobiography demonstrates his flair for a funny story as it recounts details of his eventful life and career in Deep Purple and beyond.
43. Donovan: The Hurdy Gurdy Man
The Zelig of rock makes much of his presence at many a key moment in the genre’s development in this entertaining if somewhat self-important autobiography.
42. Duff McKagan: It’s So Easy (and Other Lies)
The Guns’n’Roses bassist who drank so much that his pancreas exploded spills the beans on his eventful life and career and even alleges that Duff Beer in The Simpsons is named after him, though this had been denied by Simpsons creator Matt Groening.
41. Steve Howe: All My Yesterdays
The famously clean-living Yes guitarist was never going to deliver a no-holds-barred take of sex, drugs and rock’n’roll, but this succeeds on its own terms by offering the insights into his life and music that fans crave.
40. Dee Snider: Shut Up and Give Me the Mic
One of the most articulate men in metal, the former Twisted Sister frontman tells his story in a funny and honest way that gives fans the gossip they crave, although this does mean that his post-TS bands get short shrift.
39. Donald Fagen: Eminent Hipsters
Of course you wouldn’t expect a conventional autobiography from the Steely Dan mainman. Instead, he weaves his slim memoir around essays about the ‘eminent hipsters’ who influenced him as he was growing up in suburban New Jersey during in 1950s and 1960s.
38. Pete Townshend: Who I Am
Not as much fun as other books on The Who, but still a good read, Townshend’s memoir was taken Very Seriously Indeed by cultural commentators, as one might expect of the Voice of a Generation. There are plenty of good yarns along the way, including how he heard the voice of God on a vibrating bed in Illinois and nearly died several times (acid, alcohol, cocaine . . .).
37. Suzi Quatro: Unzipped
The pioneering Suzi Quatro became the first female bass player to achieve major international rock stardom. After fronting the all-girl band The Pleasure Seekers, she moved to England in 1971, launching a solo career that defined the glam rock era.
Back in the U.S., she gained fame as Leather Tuscadero on Happy Days. The woman who held her own partying with the likes of Alice Cooper, Iggy Pop and, um, Noddy Holder tells it like it was in a pleasingly no-holds-barred autobiography.
36. David Lee Roth: Crazy From the Heat
Ol’ Bigmouth tells it like it was – possibly with some exaggeration – in these rollicking tales of adventure with Van Halen and beyond.
35. John Illsley: My Life in Dire Straits
Bassist and founder member of Dire Straits, Illsley tells the inside story of how the band went from playing pubs to stadiums, becoming one of the biggest acts of the 1980s. It’s wryly told and remains the only autobiography by a member of the band.
34. Phil Colins: Not Dead Yet
Phil grabs one of the best titles for a rock memoir as he recounts this epic story of his life and career (he was in A Hard Day’s Night, you know) with wit and candour. There is, inevitably, a lot about his solo career, but also enough early years/Genesis stuff to keep long-term fans entertained.
33. Roger Daltrey: Thanks a Lot Mr Kibblewhite
It’s not freighted with as much cultural import as Pete Townsend’s autobiography, but if you want to get the full picture of The Who, you need to read Daltrey’s book as well as Tony Fletcher’s splendid Keith Moon book Dear Boy and Paul Rees’s The Ox. Sir Roger’s book is suitably humorous and irreverent. The Mr. Kibblewhite of the title is the headmaster who threw him out of grammar school, leading him to embark on a career in rock. So yes, thanks a lot, Mr K, from all of us.
32. Wayne Kramer: The Hard Stuff
Given the MC5’s reputation for politically charged anthems and a raw, confrontational sound, you wouldn’t necessarily expect Wayne Kramer’s memoir to be quite such fun. It is, though: and it's also a genuinely clear-eyed account of his life and career with one of the key bands of the 1970s, from psychedelia to punk and beyond.
31. Lemmy: White Line Fever
The authentic voice of the late Motörhead frontman shines through in this account of how the vicar’s son went on to become a roadie for Jimi Hendrix, joined and was chucked out of Hawkwind, and went on to found one of the greatest heavy metal bands of all time.
30. John Densmore: Riders on the Storm
Subtitled My Life with Jim Morrison and The Doors, just in case you didn’t geddit, drummer Densmore’s memoir is the best and most well written insider’s account of life with Jimbo and the other guys. Some colourful and mind-altering escapades within, as you can imagine.
29. Wolfgang Flür: I Was a Robot
Since we’re unlikely to get reclusive Ralf Hütter or the late Florian Schneider’s side of the story, this original drummer’s tale is probably the best we can hope for from inside the Kraftwerk camp. Fortunately, it’s a great read covering the Krautrockers’ key creative years.
28. Francis Rossi: I Talk Too Much
The Quo frontman opts for searing honesty as he charts his eventful life and career, and doesn’t stint on the sex, drugs and rock’roll. As the title suggests, he’s also eager to admit the many errors he’s made. A great read for anyone who’s fallen out of love with Quo’s music in recent years.
27. Frank Zappa: The Real Frank Zappa Book
As you might expect of a wordsmith like Zappa, this is an idiosyncratic autobiography that delivers Frank’s views on everything from televangelists to beer, groupies and marriage. It’s probably no coincidence that co-author Peter Occhiogrosso’s credits include ‘Inside Spinal Tap’.
26. Keith Richards: Life
It should come as no surprise that any Stones memoir told with anything approaching honesty is going to be a colourful read. And this is comfortably the best memoir to come from that camp. Keef’s Life is unflinchingly honest, even if it does seem a little calibrated to give a few juicy titbits to the tabloids alongside all the details that rock trivia hounds crave.
25. Paul Di’Anno: The Beast
The now late original Iron Maiden frontman, Paul Di’Anno (real name: Paul Andrews) was more of a punk rock kinda guy, which set him at odds with punk-loathing band founder Steve Harris. It wasn’t until he was replaced by Bruce Dickinson that the bend really took off, and he spent the rest of his career trading on his past. As the title implies, The Beast delivers plenty of sex, drug and rock’n’roll, as well as guns, violence and jail time. Hair-raising stuff.
24. Bernie Marsden: Where’s My Guitar?
More metal memoir. The late Whitesnake guitarist and songwriter was one of the most likeable musicians in rock, and that quality translates perfectly to the page in this highly entertaining memoir.
23. Scott Weiland: Not Dead and Not For Sale
Bit of a hostage to fortune, that title, as the former Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver frontman did, in fact, die on his tour bus in 2015 at the age of 48. Not Dead and Not For Sale is a searingly honest account of Weiland’s struggles with addiction, which seemed to sabotage the career of this talented vocalist.
22. Nikki Sixx: The Heroin Diaries
No point in sugar-coating the title, I guess. Even if you’re not a fan of Mötley Crüe, this eye-wateringly honest account of an eventful year in bassist Nikki Sixx’s life reveals that the band’s collaborative memoir (the evocatively titled The Dirt: Confessions of the World's Most Notorious Rock Band) told only part of the story.
21. Ray Davies: X-Ray
Subtitled ‘the unauthorised autobiography’, this is every bit as entertaining as that promise, being The Kinks’ frontman’s own idiosyncratic and highly entertaining account of his life and career.
20. Dave Mustaine: A Life In Metal
The bloke who was kicked out of Metallica for kicking James Hetfield’s dog and decided to seek revenge by forming an even bigger metal band – and almost succeeded with Megadeth – sure has a great story to tell. Happily, he tells it well in this amusing memoir, though the unsuspecting should be warned that he also becomes a Christian.
19. Ann and Nancy Wilson: Kicks and Dreaming
Women in rock are rare enough; memoirs by women in rock are even more rare. Sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson give an insiders’ account of the Heart story, revealing appalling tales of the sexism they experienced along the way.
18. Noddy Holder: Who’s Crazee Now?
The former Slade frontman, who was presumably able to retire on the annual royalties of That Christmas Hit, delivers a genuinely hilarious autobiography with plenty of glam rock, shagging and general lurid 1970s behaviour.
17. Neil Young: Waging Heavy Peace
A suitably huge, rambling and non-linear 2012 memoir in which ornery old Neil tells it as he sees it. Best read in conjunction with Jimmy McDonough’s biography Shakey.
16. Rob Halford: Confess
Judas Priest’s singer didn’t officially come out of the closet until 1998, though it’s astonishing that anybody ever imagined he was straight. The fact is, as Rob was delighted to discover, that the vast majority of fans didn’t care what he got up to in the bedroom.
Had he denounced heavy metal, however, things would have been very different. His entertaining autobiography whisks us from his working-class Walsall upbringing to the glamorous world of rock’n’roll, with its many temptations.
15. Rose Simpson: Muse, Odalisque, Handmaiden
Subtitled A Girl’s Life in the Incredible String Band, this perceptive and honest account details how the future Lady Mayoress of Aberystwyth carved out a place for herself in one of the greatest of sixties psychedelic folk bands, surviving both Scientology and Woodstock along the way.
14. Rick Wakeman: Grumpy Old Rock Star... And Other Wondrous Stories
Grumpy Old Rick has always been one of prog rock’s great raconteurs, and his two volumes of anecdotage (there’s ‘Further Adventures of a Grumpy Old Rock Star’ too) are laugh-out-loud treats. You’ll still be chuckling at the yarn about a mother and daughter in a queue for autographs (Rick fears he might be the girl’s father) months after reading it.
13. Neil Peart: Ghost Rider
Not a book about rock music, as you might expect from Rush’s drummer and lyricist, but a moving, emotional travelogue that charts how he re-evaluated his life through an epic motorcycle journey following the deaths of his wife and daughter.
12. Graham Nash: Wild Tales
Charting his unlikely journey from childhood in Manchester and The Hollies to Laurel Canyon superstardom with Crosby Still & Nash and romance with Joni Mitchhell, Nash’s honest memoir also takes in the politics of the time with great candour.
11. Elton John: Me
Elton’s bestselling autobiography is every bit as enjoyable and eye-opening as the reviews suggested, though rock nerds will particularly enjoy the ‘Zelig’ moments – such as the time he auditioned unsuccessfully for prog greats Gentle Giant. Imagine how different rock history would have been had he passed the audition.
10. Bob Dylan: Chronicles Volume One
Bob’s Nobel Prize-winning, insightful early years autobiography should need no introduction. We’re still waiting for Volume Two.
9. Richard Thompson: Beeswing
The guitar great spills the beans on his early days with Fairport Convention, surviving the car crash that killed his girlfriend and the band’s drummer, and much more, in a typically biting, informative memoir that reveals just how much he’s packed in to his eventful life.
8. Steven Tyler: Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?
Aerosmith’s story has been told many times, not least in their collective autobiography with Stephen Davis, but frontman Tyler’s first-hand account of a life of sex, drugs and rock’n’roll is genuinely astonishing.
7. Nick Mason: Inside Out
With Waters intent on feuding with Gilmour and Rick Wright no longer with us, drummer Nick Mason keeps the flame of Pink Floyd alive, both with his excellent Saucerful of Secrets touring live show and with this ‘personal history’ of the band, which is typically informative, funny and self-deprecating.
6. David Crosby: Long Time Gone
The late, great Cros delivers the warts and, well, more warts autobiography we crave in this extraordinary memoir, which tells how the man with the beautiful voice ruined his liver.
5. Ozzy Osboune: I Am Ozzy
He was indeed. As hilarious as the man himself, I Am Ozzy sees the Black Sabbath frontman marvelling that he’s still alive as he delivers the anecdotage we crave. You close the book wondering how he lasted so long. Fellow Sabbathmen Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler have also written enjoyable autobiographies, but the Ozzy one is the must-buy.
4. Robbie Robertson: Testimony
Robertson demonstrates his credentials as a storyteller with this riveting account of his life and career with The Band and Bob Dylan, up to and including the legendary Last Waltz.
3. Don Felder: Heaven and Hell
Subtitled My life in The Eagles 1974-2001, this explosive memoir lifts the lids on the rancour behind the Eagles’ public-facing ‘peaceful easy feeling’, especially Glenn Frey and Don Henley’s control freakery. It’s only part of the story, for sure, but what a story!
2. Ian Hunter: Diary of a Rock’n’Roll Star
Written way back in 1974, this is the one book that every aspiring rock musician should read. It strips away all the glamour as it chronicles the drudgery of Mott the Hoople’s 1972 US tour, during which Hunter kept a detailed journal.
1. Anthony Kiedis: Scar Tissue
With this astonishing autobiography, the Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman was justly rewarded with a bestseller that appealed well beyond his band’s fanbase. ‘Scar Tissue’ goes behind the ‘socks on cocks’ jollity to paint a genuinely hair-raising portrait of Kiedis’s early life with his errant father Blackie and includes formative moments in his band – such as the death of guitarist Hillel Slovak – of which fans of the breakthrough ‘Californication’ era may not be aware.
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