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Which book about Guns N Roses do you recommend?


Renato23

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Hello, I have been researching and I have found a group of books about GNR or Axl, so what would you recommend me, I look for one that contains besides reading, photos and also talk about the recordings of Chinese Democracy and that, some of the books that i found were these:

Guns N' Roses: The Life and Times of a Rock ’n’ Roll Band  by Paul Elliot

Last of the Giants: The True Story of Guns N' Roses by Mick Wall

Watch You Bleed: The Saga of Guns N' Roses by Stephen Davis

W.A.R.: The Unauthorized Biography of William Axl Rose by Mick Wall

Slash by Slash

 

I hope you answer me, thanks and greetings!!! :headbang::lol:

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Watch You Bleed is shit.  It's cobbled together from magazine articles you've read a million times.

The one by Danny Sugerman sucked ass also.  I remember pulling the color pics out and tossing the book.


Reckless Road is riddled with typos but it's essential for any GNR fan's collection.  ESSENTIAL.

I quite liked the Rolling Stone special edition from a year or two ago too that reprinted all their GNR stuff over the years, but some of the articles were abridged so that sucked.

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30 minutes ago, rocknroll41 said:

Does anyone know if either of Duff's books are any good? And Steven's book?

I haven't read Duff's second book, but his first book is good... not so much about GnR as Slash's book from what I remember, but still interesting.

I've read Over the Top the True Story of Guns N' Roses by Mark Putterford a lot of times as a kid and was really into it, but I don't know if I would still like it today. 

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2 hours ago, rocknroll41 said:

Does anyone know if either of Duff's books are any good? And Steven's book?

I really liked Duff's first.  Thought it was a great story told well and in a very personal/engaging way.  So much so that when I had finished and was no longer reading it each day, I kind of 'missed' him in a way (not to sound too weird).  I think anyone could enjoy that one whereas Duff's second wasn't anything special - but a fan might still like it.  Haven't read Steven's.

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1 hour ago, Blackstar said:

In my opinion, if one has the time to read all the interviews by band members and other people around the band (e.g. ex managers, people from the members' other bands etc.) in chronological order and unfiltered (as the vast majority of unauthorised biographies out there is based on stuff drawn from interviews and filtered by those books authors), it's the best way to approach the history of the band. @SoulMonster has done a great job at creating an interview database on http://www.a-4-d.com/ as well as databases on other stuff like the shows, and new stuff is added daily; there is also a new thread about the history of the band, a work in progress, which I think, when finished, will be the best and most comprehensive history out there.

And Chinese Whispers is a great work on the CD era that can't be found in any book.

-------

My opinion on the books I've read:

1. Reckless Road by Marc Canter (2008). I agree with others that it's the essential GnR book, at least for the period it covers (up to the AFD era, which was the most important in the band's history). Great pictures from Marc's archives. Highly recommended, a must read for every GnR fan.

2. Slash's autobiography by Slash and Antony Bozza (2007). Slash tells his story and the story of GnR from his POV, which alone makes it an exciting read. Band members' memoirs are always more valuable than any book written by a journalist (more so by one who wasn't close to the band) even if they misremember things or project their current views to past events. Highly recommended.

3. Duff's autobiography, It's So Easy And Other Lies (2011). Highly recommended for the same reasons as Slash's book. It contains less info on GnR than Slash's, much about Duff's personal struggles (very interesting) and it's well written (better compared to Slash's). Very enjoyable read overall. I haven't read Duff's other book, so I don't have an opinion on that one.

4. My Appetite For Destruction by Steven Adler (2011). I haven't managed to read all of Steven's autobiography yet, only large parts of it. Not as good as Duff's and Slash's, but still interesting as Steven's perspective. Recommended.

5. The Days of Guns, & Raz's, by Raz Cue (2017). Raz Cue was the manager of L.A. Guns, as well as GnR's manager during the short period of the formative days of the band. Not a GnR book, as it's the author's autobiography. It fills some blanks about the pre-GnR and early GnR eras and provides insight on the members' personalities during those days, especially Axl's. Also very good insight on the 80s Sunset Strip scene by someone who lived it. Recommended.

6. Welcome to My Jungle by Craig Duswalt (2014). Craig was Axl's personal assistant during the UYI tour, so he's a proper insider. His book provides insight on the tour and a few funny/crazy stories. It's not, however, an exclusively GnR book, as it's also about the author's life. And he makes it clear in the preface that the stories are filtered and that he has left the "darkest" and most controversial stuff out of the book. Recommended only as a complementary read and only if one is particularly interested in the kind of stuff it contains.

---------

7. Watch You Bleed: The Saga of Guns N' Roses by Stephen Davis (2008). As already pointed out by others, it's nothing more than stuff taken from interviews and articles most of which can be found online. The author hasn't talked to any band members or people close to the band, apart from Vicky Hamilton iirc. Moreover, it has blatant factual mistakes. Bad book, overall. Not recommended.

8. W.A.R.: The Unauthorized Biography of William Axl Rose by Mick Wall (2009). I've read only two chapters I found online. Judging from those, it's utter garbage. Embarrassingly bad for someone who wants to present himself as a valid rock journalist and author. I'm not even talking about the anti-Axl bias (which I guess could be even an advantage for a portion of GnR fans :lol:) that reaches ridiculous levels, but about the way he presents facts. In one of the chapters I read there's an average of two mistakes per paragraph. I'd say that this book justifies Get In The Ring retrospectively. I suggest to avoid it.

9. Last of the Giants: The True Story of Guns N' Roses by Mick Wall (2016). Certainly better than his W.A.R. one. Wall tried to be less biased and more accurate. The book covers all the history till the reunion, which could be a pro, but it's clear that the author doesn't have sources on the NuGnR era. As far as the rest of the stuff goes, it is based mostly on interviews that can be found online, on autobiographies and on other books, and there are still mistakes. Moreover, Wall's way of writing can be annoying and he has the habit to merge things said by someone in different timelines into one quote or in one "sequence". It's worthy only for the interviews he did with Alan Niven and Doug Goldstein for the book; imo this is the only reason for someone to read this book. So, recommended only after one has read all the interviews and the first 6 books of my list.

I recently picked up two books by Mark Putterford and the book by Danny Sugerman (all out of print, but can be found second hand via Amazon):

10. Guns N' Roses: In Their Own Words by Mark Putterford (1992). It consists exclusively of selected quotes by band members up to the point of the writing of the book. Good collection of quotes, but most of them, if not all, can now be found online.

11. Over the Top: the True Story of Guns N' Roses by Mark Putterford (Omnibus, 1994). I guess it was a good read in its time, as there weren't many other books out there. Good quality pictures. I noticed some mistakes in the first part of the book. The second part, mostly about the UYI tour, is a mix of some events the author had witnessed first hand, stuff selectively drawn from show reviews, gossip from the crew/articles of the era and the author's personal opinions/bias (including a cringeworthy description of Axl's "homoerotic" stage attire). The latter elements make the credibility of the insight questionable. Also most of the stuff can be found online now. Overall, I don't think the book has much to offer nowadays.

12. Appetite for Destruction: The Days of Guns N' Roses by Danny Sugerman (1991). Personally I found it to be a very interesting read. It's not for everyone though and not a book to read if you're looking for information about the band. Recommended only if you're interested in a "philosophical" approach to GnR and in a comparison between Jim Morrison and Axl.

-------------------

I haven't read any of the two books by Paul Elliot (the 1989 one and the recent Guns N' Roses: The Life and Times of a Rock ’n’ Roll Band), the first Mick Wall one from 1991, the Vicky Hamilton one and Guns N' Roses: The Band That Time Forgot by Paul Stenning, so I don't have an opinion on those. I suspect the recent Paul Elliot one is better compared to the latest Mick Wall one.

 

Excellent guide@Blackstar☺

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  • 1 month later...
On 31/3/2018 at 11:48 AM, Blackstar said:

In my opinion, if one has the time to read all the interviews by band members and other people around the band (e.g. ex managers, people from the members' other bands etc.) in chronological order and unfiltered (as the vast majority of unauthorised biographies out there is based on stuff drawn from interviews and filtered by those books authors), it's the best way to approach the history of the band. @SoulMonster has done a great job at creating an interview database on http://www.a-4-d.com/ as well as databases on other stuff like the shows, and new stuff is added daily; there is also a new thread about the history of the band, a work in progress, which I think, when finished, will be the best and most comprehensive history out there.

And Chinese Whispers is a great work on the CD era that can't be found in any book.

-------

My opinion on the books I've read:

1. Reckless Road by Marc Canter (2008). I agree with others that it's the essential GnR book, at least for the period it covers (up to the AFD era, which was the most important in the band's history). Great pictures from Marc's archives. Highly recommended, a must read for every GnR fan.

2. Slash's autobiography by Slash and Antony Bozza (2007). Slash tells his story and the story of GnR from his POV, which alone makes it an exciting read. Band members' memoirs are always more valuable than any book written by a journalist (more so by one who wasn't close to the band) even if they misremember things or project their current views to past events. Highly recommended.

3. Duff's autobiography, It's So Easy And Other Lies (2011). Highly recommended for the same reasons as Slash's book. It contains less info on GnR than Slash's, much about Duff's personal struggles (very interesting) and it's well written (better compared to Slash's). Very enjoyable read overall. I haven't read Duff's other book, so I don't have an opinion on that one.

4. My Appetite For Destruction by Steven Adler (2011). I haven't managed to read all of Steven's autobiography yet, only large parts of it. Not as good as Duff's and Slash's, but still interesting as Steven's perspective. Recommended.

5. The Days of Guns, & Raz's, by Raz Cue (2017). Raz Cue was the manager of L.A. Guns, as well as GnR's manager during the short period of the formative days of the band. Not a GnR book per se, as it's the author's autobiography. It fills some blanks about the pre-GnR and early GnR eras and provides insight on the members' personalities during those days, especially Axl's. Also very good insight on the 80s Sunset Strip scene by someone who lived it. Recommended.

6. Welcome to My Jungle by Craig Duswalt (2014). Craig was Axl's personal assistant during the UYI tour, so he's a proper insider. His book provides insight on the tour and a few funny/crazy stories. It's not, however, an exclusively GnR book, as it's also about the author's life. And he makes it clear in the preface that the stories are filtered and that he has left the "darkest" and most controversial stuff out of the book. Recommended only as a complementary read and only if one is particularly interested in the kind of stuff it contains.

---------

7. Watch You Bleed: The Saga of Guns N' Roses by Stephen Davis (2008). As already pointed out by others, it's nothing more than stuff taken from interviews and articles most of which can be found online. The author hasn't talked to any band members or people close to the band, apart from Vicky Hamilton iirc. Moreover, it has blatant factual mistakes. Bad book, overall. Not recommended.

8. W.A.R.: The Unauthorized Biography of William Axl Rose by Mick Wall (2009). I've read only two chapters I found online. Judging from those, it's utter garbage. Embarrassingly bad for someone who wants to present himself as a valid rock journalist and author. I'm not even talking about the anti-Axl bias (which I guess could be even an advantage for a portion of GnR fans :lol:) that reaches ridiculous levels, but about the way he presents facts. In one of the chapters I read there's an average of two mistakes per paragraph. I'd say that this book justifies Get In The Ring retrospectively. I suggest to avoid it.

9. Last of the Giants: The True Story of Guns N' Roses by Mick Wall (2016). Certainly better than his W.A.R. one. Wall tried to be less biased and more accurate. The book covers all the history till the reunion, which could be a pro, but it's clear that the author doesn't have sources on the NuGnR era. As far as the rest of the stuff goes, it is based mostly on interviews that can be found online, on autobiographies and on other books, and there are still a lot of mistakes. Moreover, Wall's way of writing can be annoying and he has the habit to merge things said by someone in different timelines into one quote or in one "sequence". It's worthy only for the interviews he did with Alan Niven and Doug Goldstein for the book; imo this is the only reason for someone to read this book. So, recommended only after one has read all the interviews and the first 6 books of my list.

I recently picked up two books by Mark Putterford and the book by Danny Sugerman (all out of print, but can be found second hand via Amazon):

10. Guns N' Roses: In Their Own Words by Mark Putterford (1992). It consists exclusively of selected quotes by band members up to the point of the writing of the book. Good collection of quotes, but most of them, if not all, can now be found online.

11. Over the Top: the True Story of Guns N' Roses by Mark Putterford (Omnibus, 1994). I guess it was a good read in its time, as there weren't many other books out there. Good quality pictures. I noticed some mistakes in the first part of the book. The second part, mostly about the UYI tour, is a mix of some events the author had witnessed first hand, stuff selectively drawn from show reviews, gossip from the crew/articles of the era and the author's personal opinions/bias (including a cringeworthy description of Axl's "homoerotic" stage attire). The latter elements make the credibility of the insight questionable. Also most of the stuff can be found online now. Overall, I don't think the book has much to offer nowadays.

12. Appetite for Destruction: The Days of Guns N' Roses by Danny Sugerman (1991). Personally I found it to be a very interesting read. It's not for everyone though and not a book to read if you're looking for information about the band. Recommended only if you're interested in a "philosophical" approach to GnR and in a comparison between Jim Morrison and Axl.

-------------------

I haven't read any of the two books by Paul Elliot (the 1989 one and the recent Guns N' Roses: The Life and Times of a Rock ’n’ Roll Band), the first Mick Wall one from 1991, the Vicky Hamilton one and Guns N' Roses: The Band That Time Forgot by Paul Stenning, so I don't have an opinion on those. I suspect the recent Paul Elliot one is better compared to the latest Mick Wall one.

 

I want to ask you about this book:

Last of the Giants: The True Story of Guns N' Roses by Mick Wall (2016)

That book contains some photos?? Or no?? I hope your answer and thanks for the reviews, it helps me so much :D 

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On 5/2/2018 at 4:25 AM, Renato23 said:

I want to ask you about this book:

Last of the Giants: The True Story of Guns N' Roses by Mick Wall (2016)

That book contains some photos?? Or no?? I hope your answer and thanks for the reviews, it helps me so much :D 

It has 25 photos, all of them widely know, nothing rare.

Since you brought this back, after my review I found out that parts of Last Of The Giants are copy/paste from Mick Wall's other book, "W.A.R.", with the same mistakes, of course. So I think I was too lenient in my review.

I also watched the podcast with Paul Elliot and had a look inside his book. It looks like a good and honest effort (with good quality pictures too).

 

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  • 1 year later...
  • 2 years later...
11 minutes ago, WendiRosei said:

Cosigned ugh.  @estrangedtwat

I did the absolute same haha  with quite a few actually.. <_<

Yeah...... going to add  Low Life in The Fast Lane by Mcsquire. P  is pretty decent. Um both versions... get 1993 if possible. I was a very spoilt child . my daddy bought me absolutely everything back in the day..

 

The Life and Times of a Rock N Roll  Band by  Paul Elliot   to me ,  Is worth it. Got that twice. 

An old  personal fave is probably  naughty  but  .. Over  the Top by Mark Ruthersford. ....&  Guns N Roses In their own words -:rolleyes: Mark Putterford.  

 

I would prob recommend this pictured  though , Guns n Roses Photographic History ,if OP is  looking for pictures~ and because it has the foreword by Axl  doesn't  it. The photography is by Robert john.

 

Oh , and The Language of Fear by Del James , is essential  if you want to understand  the magnetic , Mayne Mann..mmmmm.

I appreciate that book very much. Pages 314 .. Without You , right at the back.  The whole book is wild though , Beyond expectations... if you are appreciative of an explicitly,  painstakingly  intense  horror writer,  It will certainly be a fantastic read for you. 

 

 

91K9bpHFA2L.jpg

 

Edited by WendiRosei
..
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