Product Description

Customer Reviews (7)

Wow ... impressive and fun book!
Look, I'm a totally critical punk hardcore guy.I've read just about every "punk" book.And I gotta say I really like this book!

It is the ultimate coffee table book for cool people.It is so insanely thick and large it won't fit on your book shelf.But the short, fun little pieces on major punk and hardcore people, bands, scenes and movements were well-done, I think.

You know how most books are about punk totally ignore hardcore?And most books ignore things after 1986?And how when dudes weite about straight edge they seem compltetly ignorant of early punk rock?Well, this book lets it all come together in one big happy family.

I could not imagine the amount of time and effort that went into this.

A vivid, graphic survey of the music scene
Punk music stripped rock to its basics and injected danger into the rock scene, focusing on anti-establishment themes and ideas. Punks formed their own bands, record labels and zines - and THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PUNK charts this movement in an A-Z encyclopedia of the movement. From summaries of 500 punk bands, zines, clubs and labels to archive photos, and a timeline of events, THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PUNK provides a vivid, graphic survey of the music scene key to any collection strong in rock and alternative music history.

Should have verified facts and done some proofreading...
The book "the Encyclopedia of Punk" by Brian Cogan is ambitious , comprehensive, and overall fairly informative to the casual punk rock fan.The book is worth purchasing for the rare photos and flyers alone.Unfortunately, however, there are numerous errors throughout the book, and those who are reading about certain bands for the first time will find some of the inconsistencies confusing.In addition to the flat out errors, the author shows too much bias and personal opinion, which detracts from the historical reference aspect of the so called "encyclopedia".In other words, is the book intended to be an encyclopedia or a critical review?Overall, buy the book, but buyer beware, proceed with caution.

Most readers will likely question the inclusion of certain bands (Lost Locker Combo?) and the exclusion of others.Several glaring ommisions of note include: Antiseen, Backyard Babies, Jeff Dahl, Electric Frankenstein, the Hellacopters, L7, the Lazy Cowgirls, the Lunachicks, the Lords of the New Church, the Nomads, Sloppy Seconds, Sonic's Rendezvous Band, Sympathy For the Record Industry, and Turbonegro.

The following is a list of errors, inconsistencies and questionable statements found in "the Encyclopedia of Punk":
Pg. 2- The Accused: The Accused were not a "grindcore" band and did not play "at the speed of light". The term "grindcore" did not come about until the band Napalm Death released albums that did feature songs that were played at the speed of light and these "grindcore" songs were virtually indistinguishable from one another. The Accused coined the term "splatter rock" themselves to describe their own brand of hook laden hardcore songs which featured crunching metal riffs, abrasive vocals and lyrics which could have been lifted directly from the script of a classic splatter flick. The songs had plenty of structure and were in no way considered grindcore. Oddly, under the Accused entry, the book omits any reference to "splatter rock", the very term used by the Accused to describe their own sound.
Pg. 21- Battalion of Saints: The book is confusing regarding the circumstances of Battalion of Saints' guitarist Chris Smith's death. Under the Battalion of Saints entry on page 21, he is said to have died of an overdose after leaving Battalion of Saints to play in the band Kraut. Later, page 162 under the entry for Kraut states that Chris Smith died in a "tragic drowning". A search on line reveals "The story was that he slipped in the bathtub and cracked his head open, proceeding to drown. They actually had found him lying dead in the bathtub with syringes laying all over the place from shooting up heroin and speed". While the exact cause may be uncertain, the book should address the inconsistency.
Pg. 28- Black Flag: The lineup entry for Black Flag contains numerous errors. Dez Cadena did play guitar, however, he did not play bass as indicated. Dez was also one of several Black Flag vocalists, which is omitted in the lineup listing, however, is correctly noted later in the entry. The lineup list at the beginning shows both Keith Morris and Ron Reyes as having played bass, however, it is well known that they were both singers for Black Flag and were never bass players. The book gets the lineups correct in the band description and history, so it is inexcusable and extremely confusing to the reader for so many errors to be recorded in the lineup section at the top of the entry.
Pg. 38- Broken Bones: The book inexplicably describes Broken Bones as mixing "horror and splatter rock", however, Broken Bones sound is standard hardcore thrash with speed metal influence becoming increasingly present in later years. The label "splatter rock" should be reserved for that genre's founders, the Accused, which, as mentioned previously, was omitted entirely from their entry in the book.
Pg. 40- Butthole Surfers: The book correctly states that the Butthole Surfers were formed in San Antonio, TX by Gibby Haynes, and that Haynes is the son of children's TV show host "Mr. Peppermint". For the record, the Mr. Peppermint show was local to Dallas, TX where Haynes grew up, and not San Antonio as implied. Haynes formed the Butthole Surfers while attending Trinity University in San Antonio. In the discography section, the Surfers' own label which released several of their records is incorrectly called "Latino Beggerveil" when it is actually "Latino Buggerveil". The entry states that "one early song was composed almost entirely of snorting and spitting". This is not accurate and does the Surfers a disservice in that the song that the book refers to, Lady Sniff, is actually a thoroughly arranged piece of music with instrumentation and lyrics, and the snorting and spitting is used as a type of "sample". The song Lady Sniff is highly listenable, and, as is all of the Butthole Surfers' music, is groundbreaking and totally original.
Pg. 48 & 49- The Circle Jerks: The Circle Jerks entry contains several major inexcusable errors. The book states that the Circle Jerks singer Keith Morris "appeared only the Jerks' first 7" single", however, he was the Circle Jerks one and only singer throughout their existence. Later, the book states "The best remembered lineup of the band appeared on the Golden Shower of Hits album and subsequent tour, which featured Earl Liberty on bass and Chuck Biscuits on drums". The Golden Shower of hits lineup was actually Roger Rogerson on bass and John Ingram on drums. The book states that bass player Zander Schloss was "from the Weirdos", however, Zander Schloss was with the Circle Jerks for many years and several albums before playing bass with the Weirdos for their reunion shows beginning in 2004.
Pg. 52- The Clash: The Clash entry contains a rather egregious error for such an important and well documented band. Their first LP, 1977's self titled punk classic, is credited in the book as having been produced by former Blue Oyster Cult producer Sandy Pearlman. However, the first album was in fact produced by former 101ers roadie and Clash soundman, Mickey Foote. Sandy Pearlman was the producer for the Clash's sophomore LP, "Give 'Em Enough Rope", which, technically was their first LP released in the US, as the self titled debut was available in the US as an import only. Strangely, legendary Mott the Hoople producer Guy Stevens goes unmentioned as the producer of the Clash's masterpiece "London Calling".
...contd.

Almost the book I've been waiting for for 25 years
Beautifully put together, well written, this is a must-have for all who were in the scene back in the 80s (as well as the little neopunks running around today.)The Descendents received proper respect, as did other bands, both big and small.I'd have given it 5 stars, but I thought a few bands were left out that should have been included, and a couple of bands were included that really didn't deserve it.I also would have liked a mention of the smaller scenes that helped seed the hardcore world -- that would have made it perfect.

Thanks for a great, well-priced book.Worth every penny.

Cock Sparrer NOT Slaughter & the Dogs !!!
Some Great, otherwise unavailable photos make this book worth a space on any punk's homemade, hand built coffee table...

two complaints;

Too many unnecessary bands stinking up the pages...the biggest beef being that the Photo intended to represent "SLAUGHTER & the DOGS" is actually an early photo of "COCK SPARRER", who didn't even get proper mention. ... Read more

Product Description
This is the first and only book on the last great wave of punk rock. Musician and journalist Eric Davidson (Village Voice, CMJ, SF Bay Guardian) was there as this scene unfolded, tracking the inspiration and beautiful destruction of this largely undocumented movement. The Black Lips, the late Jay Reatard, The Dirtbombs, the White Stripes, the Reigning Sound, and the Hives (to name but a few) all sprang from an underground music scene where similarly raw bands, enjoying various degrees of success and hard luck, played in venues ranging from dive bars to massive festivals, but were mostly ignored by a music industry focused on mega-bands and shiny pop stars. They reveled in 50s rock n roll and 60s garage rock as much as they did Iggy Pop, the Ramones, and Black Flag, while creating their own wave of gut-busting riffs and rhythm. The majority of bands that populate this book, the Dwarves, the Gories, the Supersuckers, the Mummies, the Oblivians, Billy Childish, Rocket From The Crypt, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Cheater Slicks, Teengenerate, and the Donnas among them, gained little long-term reward from their nonstop touring and brain-slapping records. What they did get was free liquor, good drugs, guilt-free sex, and a crazy good time, all the while building a dedicated fan base that extends across America, Europe, and Japan. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Takes me back, and makes me want to see the new kids play gunk punk!
I saw the New Bomb Turks (the author's band), Gaunt, Thomas Jefferson Slave Apartments, and Cheater Slicks countless times when I lived in Columbus, Ohio, from 1992 to 1999. This book takes me back and reminds me how fantastic and essential those groups were, along with their compatriots from, well, everywhere. And where the book really helps me is seeing how big the picture really was: The book roams all across the States, to Europe, Japan, and Australia. Davidson's book is packed with details, and has some important asides about how hard it was to pay your electricity bill given the constant demands of touring and the difficulties of keeping feeble gig payments in your pocket until you got home. But he also explains how it was a different era: Before you could check the web ahead of time to verify directions, bookings, etc.; before CDs and downloads messed up the vinyl market; before "garage rock" got mainstreamed in the form of the Strokes and the White Stripes (god love 'em, but they're not what this book is about). But despite those trends, Davidson shows it was all worth it, because the music and the performances were so great. Great stories, great photos, great index, great list of singles to find . . . A+

Ya Wish It Was a Little Longer
I finished this baby in about 4 days. Honestly, content-wise, I give it a 4.5 (stars), but Eric's effort to get the word out on these bands cannot be appreciated enough. The dude spent over two years gettin' the story of hundreds of unbelievable bands -- the only trouble with that enthusiasm is that you'd have to make a 2000-page book to please every reader. Anyway, instead of spending hours of "wikipedia-ing" these lords of lo-fi rock, Eric patches together everybody's story with his very entertaining, clever, "this dude went to college" writing. My favorite element of the book, though, was actually the interviews with the heads of the various record labels (Sympathy for the Music Industry, Crypt, Matador, In the Red, etc). I also like how a lot of people hate Jack White. That is another cool element. Two thumbs up!

Echoing the Positive Reviews
I think the first two reviewers have nailed it, great book and definitely fills in some rock history gaps. Should be required reading in the history of rock and roll class. Well worth the effort, even if you don't agree that Blag Jesus is the best songwriter to ever pen a lyric. There is an awesome downloadable, MP3 playlist that is worth the price of the book. Get it,read it, hear it!

an excellent compendium for records with no information
Having tried to suss information about many of these bands (ex: The Mummies, The Makers, The Oblivians, et al) with no luck, this fine book fills in many biographical and historical gaps while uncovering many great bands I didn't know fit into the pantheon of dirt rock (or Gunk Punk or whatever).I was always mystified by much of what came out of this era (pre-internet, you know?).Really a great read (that comes with free MP3 featuring many bands discussed) which runs right up to the beginning of 2010 and covers not only many bands but labels (Crypt, Sympathy, Estrus), magazines and zines, gripes, grudges, and rip-offs (and the Rip-offs, who kinda cover all the aforementioned).Probably best for the converted but may do well for fans of Black Lips, Jay Reatard (mentioned there-in), Demon's Claws, etc. etc. etc. to sharpen their teeth on the bones of the bands who came before.And there is pictures...

Never mind the gunk punk moniker, it's all just rock n' roll
I've seen the New Bomb Turks live a dozen times or so and when I caught wind of this book from a former Teengenerate member's blog, I had to check it out. Davidson's got a great turn of phrase and his writing style is both polysyllabic and accessible. Not quite a thinking man's Please Kill Me, just more intelligent sounding. Collegiate, if you will. Am I even allowed to say that? Dilligaf.

In reading, you might find yourself reference checking the way a record collector's "record collector" knows more than you ever will and you just pick up some new stuff as you go along. A lot of the honorable mentions and also-rans in this book are scattered about in my own record collection so it's good to know you weren't the only loser feverishly mailing in money orders or cash (pre-Ebay & Paypal) to grab up some low-pressing copy of some inept, 3-chord noise from a band no one's ever heard of and probably never will unless they read this book. But there were these niches within niches and that gets a good deal of fleshing out here which is good. Many of the bands that Davidson mentions toured many places and countries long before more famous bands were around for even a year. Even the Mummies know that a reunion show will only work in Japan ([...]). Who else would see them in the 21st century that's even heard of them?

I recall many of the stories in this book during the time of I would call the 2nd wave of garage rock influenced by people too young to have "been there" when punk exploded on the scene during the mid-70s but old enough to have started their own bands and been influenced by the 1st-wavers. Gunk punk? Maybe, I don't know. I'm no expert but I know what Davidson means by it. It was sloppy, hardly had any production to it, but damn it sounded good and got you movin' and wanting more.

There were tons of bands during the time this book attempts to elaborate upon that would make it probably 10 times its size but it does a good job of gathering, without cherry picking, the cream of the crop and forerunners of the ilk. Teengenerate, New Bomb Turks, Devils Dogs, Mummies, the list goes on but they were all household names to those who were LIVING in that house, or at least in the same neighborhood.

So, in a nutshell, for you garage rockers who wanted to know the whole spew on the Tim Warren / Crypt record thing and other nuggets of 2nd-wave garage rock history, this will be up your alley. There's some decent stuff in terms of bands I didn't know about scattered among the stories that have already made a lot of these bands and related people legends in our own minds. Well researched and follows the chronology faithfully if only just summarily. I enjoyed it immensely. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (8)

As usual, you had to be there.
Thurston Moore and Brian Coley,No Wave. Post Punk. Underground. New York. 1976-1980. (Abrams Image, 2008)

While I was writing up the (insanely good) doco We Jam Econo: The Story of the Minutemen for an article earlier this year, I opined that in most cases, pieces of art that attempt to document a moment in music history tend to be of the "you had to be there" variety (because We Jam Econo is such a glorious exception to that rule). It doesn't matter what the genre is you're looking at, such books and films tend to be overviews made by someone so entrenched in the scene that they forget the rest of the world doesn't speak the language. This is true in all cases of geek-produced material, of course, but it always seems much more prominent to me in the music world for some reason.

No Wave is right in line with such other tomes as Steven Blush's American Hardcore and Moynihan's Lords of Chaos in this regard; you kinda had to be there. With Blush's and Moynihan's books, though, I actually was, whereas I was still a bit on the young side for No Wave (though more commercial bands running in the same vein, such as Talking Heads, penetrated by aggressively-AM radar in the late seventies; I didn't discover there was music outside the mainstream until someone said "you gotta hear this band called Black Flag!" to me in 1982...). I've read a lot about the period over the intervening years, and I'm as big a fan as any of a lot of bands who were spiralling around New York back in the day (and an even bigger fan than most of Poe and Kral's document, The Blank Generation). But still, I wasn't there, unlike Moore and Conley. I can grasp the atmosphere, but I never breathed it.

In another write-up for that same article (I can't remember which new Eurocrime film I was talking about, possibly 13 Tzameti), I talked about the new breed of European crime films and how much I loved them, then compared and contrasted to critics who were so blown away by Godard, Chabrol, Melville, etc., who were making the same sort of low-budget crime films in the fifties and sixties. I've never seen the appeal of Godard, honestly, but watching movies by Babulani and Tarr and all the rest of the bunch I can understand why it is that people like Ebert and Rosenbaum and Phillips are so bowled over. I feel the same way about No Wave, except that I like these bands a lot more than I do Godard and Melville's flicks. But I still feel like I'm missing something, and this book, while being another good overview, didn't quite fill that hole. I suspect, quite strongly, that someone who's a few years older than me, who was actually listening to this stuff at the time, maybe even going to the gigs, will be a lot more affected by this than I was. Which is not to say in any way that it's not worth getting; if you weren't, there, you'll probably hear of at least three or four bands you'd never heard of before. *** ½

Lesgal...
Legal o livro... um pouco chato o lance de ter um monte de entrevistas no meio da narrativa. Vc está lendo no fluxo, de repente um sujeito começa a dar um depoimento e passam 2 ou 3 páginas de fotos (incríveis, por sinal)... aí vc já não sabe exatamente onde, quando, etc... E podia ter mais free jazz (esse rótulo é um lixo, mas da pra entender do que estou falando). Não é o foco, mas as duas cenas estavam mais do que conectadas e isso é apenas mencionado.

Vale pelas fotos e o texto é lesgal... Se vc usar ele como "coffee table book" na sua sala de estar e uma menina chegar lá e não te achar um cara sensacional por vc ter ele ao invés de um do Matisse ou um de decoração de interiores é porque ela não vale a pena!!!

The scene that never was
Basically if you were listening to music at the end of the 70's, beginning of the 80's, you had heard of all these people. Their records were available in most record stores world-wide, but nothing really became directly of it. This record documents this scene very well: we see a NY underground scene that intermingled with then and future celebrities (Iggy, Blondie, etc) but somehow did not connect. The whole scene centered finally on the Eno-produced No New York LP containing music by the more prominent acts in this book. While Eno seemingly had an eye on the future appraisal of the scene and merely wanted to document it (which shows as I wrote that EVERYBODY had heard of this scene, even my mom...). This book is surprising because while most of the rock books especially the ones covering this era tend to use mostly the same material and sources, this is fairly original stuff. It is based mostly (a little like PLease Kill Me) on personal recollections but without necessarily having a storyline. This does not matter since Moore and his collaborator get the vive of this underground scene beautifully. It is more a photo bookwith some essential anectdotes. Retrospectively alot of intellectual bs has been put on the music that was really partly unlistenable and really hilarious stuff to annoy your parents or friends in the 70's who might like their rock music to be listenable. Mars and DNA is particularly atrocious as is some of the Lydia Lunch stuff (she was at the time the arhetypical indie queen and seems to have been a bad influence on everyone). Arto Lindsay ended up doing almost commercial stuff nowadays and Lizzy Mercier Descloux (God Bless her) had a huge afro-beat hit in France with "ou sont passees les gazelles". James Chance was more interesting and apparently still tours France. Anyway this is a splendid book, lovingly done by two people involved in a scene that existed while I was a teenager. I still have all these records and they are to be cherished because they really pushed some (not always artistic} boundaries by being simply too extreme. It was a scene that took itself way too seriously but which had some really very colourful characters. The book does indirectly explain on the one hand why they were extremely influential on the people who heard them, bought their records but failed to go beyond that for recognition. Anyway, it is also quite cheap for the work they have put into it and this kind of work must be supported.

Pretty neat.
It's a pretty good book with good pictures, etc. Musically, i'll stick with the Pistols, Clash, Dead Boys, etc.

Another POV
Its by Sonic Youth, enough said. The photographs are awesome and the documentation of a whole other part of New York music is fresh. These kinds of books are great because we're getting the story straight from the people that lived it. ... Read more

Product Description
“The mid-1970s was England’s darkest, dreariest hour. The UK was sliding deeper into unemployment, reeling from strike after strike, power cuts, the three-day work week, and IRA bombs. It was time for a new order and in London’s restless streets a handful of snotty young men, feisty females, and first generation Jamaican musicians created the UK’s punky revolution. They made it up as they went along and it touched every corner of the Disunited Kingdom. For a few glorious years the UK was the center of the cultural universe.”
—Vivien Goldman

When punk first rocked, the rough and rugged style on the streets was a world away from the super-slick music videos and corporate stylists that were to follow. And photographer Janette Beckman was on the front line of that hyper-energized time, capturing “the look” of the musicians and kids who were loudly defining an era. Collected for the first time in Made in the UK, Beckman’s powerful portraits celebrate the music and the attitude of Punk, Mod, Skinhead, 2 Tone, and Rockabilly culture in the UK.

Made in the UK: The Music of Attitude, 1977–1983 documents a time when British music pushed every boundary. Beckman began her career working for Melody Maker, one of London’s premier weekly music papers. She soon had extraordinary access to the musicians topping the UK charts—icons of an era when music had an agenda—including The Clash, The Sex Pistols, The Jam, The Undertones, The Specials, The Beat, The Police, The Ramones, The Rockats, The Raincoats (Kurt Cobain’s inspiration), Billy Idol, and Echo and the Bunnymen. Among these groups, this generation still had the radical idea that each and every punk, skin, mod, rude boy, and ted was just as important as the bands. Janette Beckman’s gritty aesthetic placed her on good footing among the kids on the street—and the portraits she made prove that attitude never dies. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Ah, those were the good old days!
If you loved punk when it was then this is the nostalgia picture book for you! ... Read more

Product Description
The first compilation of the riveting and provocative interviews of Punk Planet magazine, founded in 1994 and charging unbowed into the new millennium. Never lapsing into hapless nostalgia, these conversations with figures as diverse as Jello Biafra, Kathleen Hanna, Noam Chomsky, Henry Rollins, Sleater-Kinney, Ian MacKaye, and many more provide a unique perspective into American punk rock and all that it has inspired (and confounded). Not limited to conversations with musicians, the book includes vital interviews with political organizers, punk entrepreneurs, designers, film-makers, writers, illustrators, and artists of many different media. Punk Planet has consistently explored the crossover of punk with activism, and reflects the currents of the underground while simultaneously challenging the bleak centerism of today's popular American culture. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Interesting
There's some good stuff in this book. One day, if the human race is still around and its historians are remotely interested in popular music of the late twentieth century, it may prove extremely valuable. For the time being, however, it's only indispensable to followers of the people interviewed or dyed-in-the-wool punks or punk fans -- and if you fall into one of the two categories, you'll be glad you bought it. Too bad Punk Planet is gone.

ehhh...
there are a few good interviews in here (jello biafra, ian mackaye, etc.). other than that it's pretty boring, unless you really dig corporate indie rock. there really isn't much on pre-90's punk and there's a section dedicated to chumbawamba. get this and read the good interviews then pass it along to someone else.

One of the most inspiring books I've ever read
This is a truly amazing and inspiring collection of interviews.From Kathleen Hannah, Noam Chomsky, Jello Biafra, Thurston Moore, and many more known and unknown personalities, this book should work to revitalize your spirit to live, to dare, to create.Aside from Frank Kozik (who, while interesting, is not very inspiring) the people included in this anthology are vital, engaged artists, writers and just regular people who share some remarkable stories, fascinating insights.If your interested in real life political issues, what it means to create and sustain a culture, to be involved in communities or just interested in the human experience, I highly recommend this book.

If you are into all of the "I'm so hip and crusty" stuff that the guy who trashed the book is into, then no, you won't like this, I suppose, because you have your own microscopic view of "punk" and will dislike anything that doesn't fit into it, but maybe you should still read this collection anyhow.It might help.

Bland
The majority of interviews are with performers and bands that established themselves in the 1990's. More importantly, the majority of interviews are with bands that were already circling the perimeter of corporate-sponsored "indie-rock". With the exception of Jello Biafro were never given any real insight into the workings of truly underground, hardcore political punk. Where were the interviews with MDC, Nausea, Toxic Reasons, Youth Brigade, Lydia Lunch, Foetus, Filth, Gangrene, the Squat or Rot crowd etc.? Daniel Sinker does a good job covering middle-class University-friendly phenomenona like the Riiot Grrl movement - but does little in the way of real research. Sinker missed the boat by about a decade and what we're given is his interpretation of what "punk rock" is.

Better than This Band Could Save Your Life
Where the (corporate published) This Band takes a narrative approach to telling the story of punk (and thusly giving us more of an insight into the author himself instead of the bands and people he's "profiling"), We Owe You Nothing lets the bands and people speak for themselves. What emerges is an honest, filter-free look into the punk underground.

Additionally, while This Band stops at the early 90s, creating an artificial feeling of "it ended", We Owe You Nothing looks forward into the present and future of punk (while still remaining rooted in its history) by talking with contemporary bands and non-musical figures whose continued influence make punk a growing, dynamic, changing entity. Azzerad's book doesn't even come close. ... Read more

Product Description
Dub reggae and the techniques associated with it have, since the late-1980s, been used widely by producers of dance and ambient music. However, the term was originally applied to a remixing technique pioneered in Jamaica as far back as 1967. Recording engineers produced reggae tracks on which the efforts of the producer were often more evident than those of the musicians these heavily engineered tracks were termed versions. The techniques used to produce versions quickly evolved into what is now known as dub. The term, in this sense, arrived in 1972 and was largely the result of experiments by the recording engineer Osbourne Ruddock/King Tubby. Over the decades, not only has dub evolved, but it has done so especially in the UK. Indeed, much contemporary music, from hip hop to trance and from ambient soundscapes to experimental electronica and drum 'n bass is indebted to the remix culture principally informed by dub techniques. However, while obviously an important genre, its significance is rarely understood or acknowledged. Part One of the book examines the Jamaican background, necessary for understanding the cultural significance of dub, and Part Two analyses its musical, cultural and political importance for both African-Caribbean and, particularly, white communities in the United Kingdom during the late-1970s and early 1980s. Particular attention is given to the subcultures surrounding the genre, especially its relationship with Rastafarian culture the history and central beliefs of which are related to reggae and examined. There is also analysis of its cultural and musicological influence on punk and post-punk, the principal political music in late-1970s Britain. Finally, moving into the period of the decline of post-punk and, indeed, British dub in the early 1980s, there will be an examination of what can be understood as the postmodern turn in dub. In summary, the book is a confluence of several lines of thought. Firstly, it provides a cultural and musical history of dub from its early days in Jamaica to the decline of post-punk in early-1980s Britain. Secondly, it examines the religio-political ideas it carried and traces these through to the ideologies informing the subcultures of the late-1970s and, finally, to their transformation and, arguably, neutralisation in the postmodern pastiche of post-punk dub. Thirdly, with reference to these lines of thought, it looks at dubs and roots reggaes contribution to race relations in 1970s Britain. Finally, it analyses the aesthetic and arguably spiritual significance of dub, looking at, for example, its foregrounding of bass and reverb. ... Read more

Product Description
A visual history of the 1970s musical trend that remains popular today collects several previously unpublished photographs and traces the rise of punk as both music and a worldwide sociocultural movement. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A so so book
Plenty of pictures, but I doubt about the idea when the author thought punk movement is more important than Dada and surrealism. Since I am an art student, I respect all thegreats, I would not jump to a conclusion likethat, although punk is definitely my favorite. ... Read more

Product Description
The definitive story of punk-the music, the culture, the icons-now available in a compact paperback edition. Packed with interviews from the pioneers of punk, a dazzling photo archive, and features on the venues and memorabilia that helped define the generation, PUNK takes you behind the scenes of rock's most irreverent genre. Includes interviews and photographs originally published in MOJO magazine, together with new specially photographed spreads on memorabilia. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

"Whole?"No."Story?"Yes.
An unfortunately myopic look at punk rock, making sure we hear the same old mantras and canards: "The Sex Pistols invented punk...well, I mean, after The New York Dolls did...er, that is, after The Stooges did... uhh, MC5... uh, dang those New York guys were arty! And the British were so working class!" And the wind-up focus on Green Day is just disappointing, as they quickly departed the punk camp and evolved into a Modern Rock radio band, nothing more.

But this is the old dogma; the genesis of punk is understood to be far more complex than this simplified tale, by anyone who's done more than dipped their toe into the idiom. The preoccupations with punk as a youth movement or a fashion subculture or a political stance have all been discredited one way or another. That thinking was the birthplace of goonery of all types -- punk's right to swing it's nihilistic fist ends abruptly at the tips of our complicit noses. What remains when the bones are boiled isn't nearly as romantic or wish-you-were-there, but it has the advantage of letting the actual music triumph over the admittedly colorful personalities that make for better photo spreads and journalistic pieces to be compiled into coffee table books. Even "Punk" (the book) can admit that Sid Vicious is a punk rock icon for all sorts of non-musical reasons, and certainly not due to his contributions on wax.

Certainly, rebellion against extant aesthetics is a major ingredient...but this rebellion did not suddenly appear in 1971, it's been with us a long time. It's really only the method of delivery that changed. Similar rebellious movements have occurred in classical music, jazz, art, social movements, etc., only to be absorbed into academic revisionism - and it'll happen to punk rock too. Punk desperately doesn't want to become Classic Rock. But this codex is just the sort of think that romanticizes the generic looks and sounds of punk without transmitting any of the visceral or artistic push behind the spectacle.

There is a lot of perfectly nice, first-person source material here, though those sources are occasionally dubious. I read "Punk" cover-to-cover, with a salt shaker nearby. Punk rock's Us-vs.-them ethos translates into an Us-vs.-us stance: many of the musicians interviewed spend a great deal of time contradicting eachother - everyone wants to be the one who initiated the most significant events of punk legend. McLaren even gives himself credit for creating "the infrastructure for an alternative society" in the afterword!

More importantly...

How can you take a book on punk that claims to be "the whole story" seriously when it makes no mention at all of The Dicks? Bikini Kill? The Electric Eels? The Screamers? Scratch Acid? Mission Of Burma?? Crass? The Crucif**ks? These are not obscure bands, they are glaring omissions. The American South and West Coast are treated as virtually nonexistant. Hardcore is hinted at, but otherwise fairly absent. The years from 1982-1996 are largely skipped. If you are interested in American bands that aren't Patti Smith, The New York Dolls, Television, Black Flag, Blondie, or The Ramones, you won't find much information in this book!

The British bands that are highlighted include The Buzzcocks, Generation X, The Damned, The Stranglers, The Clash, and Siouxsie & The Banshees. The whole thing is strung together with the story arc of the Sex Pistols, beginning with their nascent flounderings and ending soon after Sid's death. The conceit that the Pistols were the apotheosis of punk is persisted throughout "Punk: The Whole Story." The fact that The Boomtown Rats and Wreckless Eric receive more than the single-sentence treatment afforded by some of the bands mentioned in the next paragraph really seals the verdict on this book: it is light.

Certainly, since it was culled primarily from MOJO, the Anglocentric bias and myth-making are inevitable, but fleeting mentions (often one solitary album review or name-drop) of the Germs, Dead Kennedys, The Minutemen, Husker Du, Pere Ubu, Minor Threat, and Wire do nothing to support the book's pose of being definitive.

Forget these bands, listen to bands from your own time. If you were there, you don't need this book. If you weren't, this will just dilute the education you can give yourself by going to some basement shows or a dingy owner-operated record shop. If you're obsessed with these personalities, save your money and buy a guitar.

Great Book
Very nice book, lots of pictures that I have not seen before, the collection of biographies were also good, although short.This makes a great "coffee table book"

A book that every punk lover must have
It's a very intersting book.
Rich of wonderfull photo, offer a very completed review of Punk scene.

Kent Still Sad but Book Excellent
This is a terrific book.

The only unfortunate aspect is the "offering" by Nick Kent.Mr. Kent, I was there and you were not even a blip on the radar screen.Nick Kent seems to have the same sort of difficulty with the truth that Malcolm McClaren has always had.So in that, his self-aggrandizing claim of being on the scene before there was one is at the very least, documentation of how he considered himself way more important than he actually was to the whole thing.There's a bit too much Blondie as well.She just wasn't what we thought was punk at that time.

The whole movement was thanks to the Sex Pistols and there is plenty of focus on the group and their brief career.The book gives time to their come-back a few years ago which is also very interesting and relevant.

All in all, a good book.Just don't be fooled by Kent.

Essential for any student of contemporary music.
PUNK: THE WHOLE STORY celebrates some thirty years of a movement which embraced musical and social anarchy and produced not just revolutionary music, but outrageous street fashion. It was born in 1976 and Punk Magazine embraced the music, movement and personalities: PUNK details the years leading up to punk's beginning and offers a color photo-laden survey of the genre essential for any student of contemporary music.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch ... Read more

Product Description
Thirty-plus years ago a dark rumble of noise gurgled up from the Lower East Side of New York City, made its way across the Atlantic to Great Britain, zigzagged back over the pond to the West Coast, and exploded. Its name—Punk. InPunk 365, the most provocative photography documenting the performances, the looks, and the attitude has been gathered together, revealing reverberations that continue to shake up the status quo.

Here we see it all: Pre-punk pioneers, the Stooges, the New York Dolls, the MC5. New York’s harbingers of change, the Ramones, Patti Smith, Richard Hell & the Voidoids. London’s anarchists, the Sex Pistols, the Clash, the Slits. The West Coast’s anti-Beach Boys, X, the Germs . . .the list goes on. By the mid-1980s, from the Replacements to Bad Brains, the sound transmogrified into everything from garage punk to hardcore. Punk 365 has them all, including more than 300 different artists by the most talented photographers who captured the scene, including Bob Gruen, Roberta Bayley, Jill Furmanovsky, Stephanie Chernikowski, Godlis, Janette Beckman, and more. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Excellent photo book, not at all definitive though
PROS: This book has many highlights, including a really great layout - the book is longer than it is tall, lending really well to a lot of the photos, and a nice long 365 pages with photo on each right page and a short description and interesting facts of the band/musician featured on the left. Many of the photos are excellent, including a lot of obscure ones and some featuring too often overlooked, obscure bands and musicians. It also includes a lot of what have become to be known as "proto-punk" bands from the 60's such as The Velvet Underground, The Stooges, MC5, etc, and even some of those that attached themselves to the punk genre in one way or another but never played punk music, such as Elvis Costello.
While of course included, it doesn't at all over-kill The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Ramones, etc. It has an index, as well as a great introduction by Richard Hell, and it leaves the editorial content at that, i.e. the rest of the book is about the musicians of (mostly early) punk, not a textual novel about punk as a pop-culture element, its sociological ramifications, sometimes strict ethics, etc.; which there are plenty of other offerings if you're looking for that.

CONS: The book mostly highlights early punk, and while it does include its share of overlooked, obscure bands from that era, it also fails from being anywhere near definitive of early punk. One example of a jaw-dropping oversight is THE MISFITS (!?!?!?!) formed in 1977, perhaps the books most colossal blunder. And while the book makes other mentions of west coast punk, and also goes temporally as far as Nirvana, it fails to feature mention of Operation Ivy anywhere, as well as the legendary Gilman Street.
It also completely disregards early significant and influential Chicago punk such as Naked Raygun (formed 1979), Steve Albini (frontman for Chicago's Big Black (formed 1981) who later went on to be one of the most noteworthy producers of our time, including Nirvana's Nevermind and In Utero), Screeching Weasel as well as others.
Despite some of its obscure offerings, this all unfortunately puts it in the category of many other books about punk that remain narrow focused on the UK and NYC and the glory days of CBGBs, but not much else.
But, if you're looking for a great "coffee table" punk book with great photography that touches on a lot of the bands that made its early days and some of its roots, as well as something that is not over-textual, this is a decent one. I purchased this new on a bargain table for $5, which was totally worth it, while its cover price is $29.95: totally not worth it. You can get it cheap here on Amazon though, which is nice.

PUNK this *#**>
I purchased this book in the bargain bin at a local book store. I am not disappointed.

This volume does a great job documenting this era of music. It gives credit where credit is due (to some obscure bands).

Visually this book gives history to a movement that I almost missed out on(I was born in 1970, so I did hit the 80's part of this movement). It has mostly candid black and white photo's, with few color photos.

The written information (commentary usually by the photographer that took the photo) is not as detailed as I would like to have (although the index is a great reference to find what you need quickly), but overall this is a great book giving credit and place to a movement that influenced the future of music.

excellent photo selection
An excellent selection of photos with great text. This book was edited perfectly and it kept my attention throughout.

Brings A Era to life
I bought this book for someone who was probably bouncing up and down at many of the shows depicted in this fine collection (which hardly does it justice) of performance and candid photographs of the seminal figures of Punk.Even though they are the epitome of a music snob and punk aficionado, they were delighted with the book.Now I'll have to go back and get one for myself.

A Book & It's Cover
Despite being yet another book titled PUNK this-or-that (how boring) accompanied by yet another picture of the overexposed Pistols, what we have here is a rare and fine contribution to the small flock of top rate punk documentation. For the lost-in-space stalwarts of the "punk died in '77" variety, you will find ample obscure photos and tentalizing quotes/factoids about your beloved NY scenesters (Patti Smith, Richard Hell, Ramones; the usual suspects) and your typical UK actors (Pistols, Clash, Buzzcocks, et al). But what is truly exceptional about this book is the wide territory it covers for the true punk listener. Not only does it include proto-punk legends (13th Floor Elevators, Stooges, MC5) but it ackowledges the crucially influential yet overlooked groups from both the US & UK such as the Avengers, Dils, Weirdos, Stiff Little Fingers, Angelic Upstarts, Dead Boys, Undertones, Black Flag, Germs, and on and on. As a bonus it includes the salt and pepper of much loved hangers-on who used punk to become rich and famous while not ever really being punk (Elvis Costello...you get the idea). This book is great and can be looked through over and over again without boredom. Highly recommended for every punk or jaded old rocker who has ever picked up a photobook on punk only to be bored to tears with 50 pages on Patti Smith/Talking Heads and another 50 pages of Sex Pistols/Clash and little else. And its cheap! ... Read more

Product Description
This is a fascinating guide to a critical time in music and cultural history. "A Cultural Dictionary of Punk" is a bold book that examines punk as a movement that is best understood by placing it in its cultural field. It contains myriad descriptions of the sounds of the time, but also places those sounds in the context of history. Drawing on hundreds of fanzines, magazines, and newspapers, the book is - in the spirit of punk - an obsessive, exhaustively researched and sometimes deeply personal portrait of the many ways in which punk was an expression of defiance. The format consists of distinct entries on everything from Lester Bangs to The Slits, from Jimmy Carter to Minimalism, from 'Dot Dash' to Bad Brains. Both highly informative and thrillingly idiosyncratic, the book takes a fresh look at how the malaise of the 1970s offered fertile ground for punk - as well as the new wave, post-punk, and hardcore - to emerge as a rejection of the easy platitudes of the dying counter-culture. The organization is accessible and entertaining. Rombes upends notions that the story of punk can be told in a chronological, linear fashion. Meant to be read straight through or opened up and experienced at random, "A Cultural Dictionary of Punk" covers not only many of the well-known, now-legendary punk bands, but the obscure, forgotten ones as well. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

"In your dream, punk stayed a secret forever"
Why did punk implode so rapidly? Why did its bands flare up and fade out? And, how did this movement resist yet revamp the hippies they rushed to replace?

Rombes, a professor of English, assembles a collage in the spirit of Walter Benjamin, a "montage and passageway of quotes" alphabetically arranged. He integrates primary sources, illustrations, his own fictional and factual stories. He constructs an alternative history: "In your dream, punk stayed a secret forever." He emphasizes punk's ephemeral arc, which failed to sustain its own outbursts of anger, shards of melody, and frustration with the malaise of the "post-Watergate, pre-Reagan" years when its earliest audience grew up.

Punk's outbursts reacted to the failure of the Sixties. Asked in 1977 "What do you want?" Johnny Rotten replied: "Freedom, I think they call it. The hippies used to call it that. But I bet there's a better word for it." (122) Rombes stresses the split nature inherent in those born slightly too young for the Aquarian Age. This cohort resented the idealism turned commodification and complacency of the hippie era, but it yearned for the period prior, the clean nostalgia and pop sensibilities of the Fifties. The cartoonish poses of the Dictators and Ramones signaled this reversion to melodic, aggressive, and funny messages. These bands, Rombes suggests, produced songs that spoke for TV-party, couch potato slouches: "that's me." However, politically charged bands such as Avengers or Gang of Four challenged the listener to wonder: "maybe that could be me."

Rombes pinpoints the problem. The Clash hectored with slogans, but "politics always suggests 'right ideas,' doesn't it? And punk, at its dirty heart, was always about escaping the tyranny of authority, the tyranny of right ideas, the tyranny of those who would say, Here is how you are supposed to think." (23) The Jello Biafras and Joe Strummers of the scene forced the message above the medium. Songs suffered.

Rombes' argument filters through dozens of his hundreds of entries. What I highlight here is the tone I tuned into. It remains one among many channels upon which this book broadcasts, in an alphabetized playlist of subjects. I scoured these pages as I once did--and still do--scrutinize my Wire, Suicide, PiL, The Fall, Throbbing Gristle, Gun Club, Buzzcocks, Undertones, Husker Du, or Joy Division records. That is, in this best music that for me does not date itself, I seek meaning. Punk rants by lyrical fragments, snippets of rage, passages from pain and raves into ecstasy.

Rombes mixes in his own reactions to his own favorite records. These spin into imaginary tales, autobiographical reminiscences, and critical exegeses. This seems right. Fans respond similarly to punk, for it reminds them of a time when a stack of vinyl and a lonely room more likely meant more than a club or a scene when, scattered across the world desperate for bits of information about releases, what to hear next, who to seek out, its community depended on fanzines, a radio show or two, the common interests with another malcontent out of a school of hundreds or at a college among thousands.

I plowed straight through, but sampling this compendium may be equally rewarding. I note, sharing as I do his profession if at a less lofty level, that he has a couple of verb usages that may have passed his spellcheck but not my grammatical detector. Small slips surface: for example, William Hurt appeared in "The History of Violence" not "The End of Violence," but given the range of Rombes' references and devotion to detail, errors proved few.

Illustrations, in monochrome, capture the photocopied, cut-and-pasted aesthetic, but artists such as N.Y.C.'s Legs McNeil and John Holmstrom and L.A.'s Raymond Pettibon merited their own examples, alongside the welcome inclusion of Linder (Sterling) who created iconic record sleeves for the Buzzcocks. The illustrations chosen often seemed random. While this added to the ambiance, for a reference work, I expected more substance. I'm not sure if everybody will enjoy Rombes' short stories, but they enrich this eclectic book's expansion into art, poetry, novels, politics, and films. Rombes offers a treatise on cultural theory that avoids jargon or snobbery.

As the author of a book on the Ramones, Rombes notes in one entry on them: "great/trivial." I lean towards the latter, but to be fair, Rombes addresses their prominence as a case study. Did punk need to shout its message as a political one, or an aesthetic one? What happens when, as with the Clash, you mix the two intentions into a single delivery? Does the song wilt, or does it rise above?

The alternative to Sixties-inspired consciousness-raising emerged from entertainers. Rombes incorporates totally obscure Midwestern garage bands. He champions with his Detroit loyalties the heartland's response as subtly Calvinistic, as if those Cleveland cadres knew that their "third-gen" rock revision would be overrun by a New York-led label, a marketer's remake, remodel. Seymour Stein of Sire Records peddled the "New Wave" category circa 1978 to widen the appeal of his punkier, artsier roster for that Middle America, that cautious heartland.

Why did punk burn out, and not fade away like the hippies? The Clash reacted against punk, "reintroducing the old sixties notions that music needed to be politically engaged." (183) For the Sex Pistols, Slits, or Wire, Rombes asserts that "a tyranny of sound" allowed "no room for the old ways of thinking." (183) Punk rallied against politics. As with The Jam, punk attempted to reclaim pop melody, a purity of motive before "Going Underground" by 1980.

What replaced this brief breakout? Hardcore took over the dispersed U.S. scene. L.A. spread the Germs; Henry Rollins from D.C. hoisted Black Flag. Hardcore, birthed by the violent sound inherent in the American reaction to punk-as-New Wave, nullified the New York-art school or London polytechnic aesthetic. It substituted rigor and conformity for gender-bending and sonic experimentation. "It is both anarchy and fascism, freedom and control." (101)

Punk wore itself out. As early as late 1976, critics lamented its demise. Rombes muses why journalists appeared so determined to write off the nascent movement, and why his fellow scribes still seem so clueless as to understanding its tensions. He reasons that punk sped up the cultural and musical pace faster than the hippies did. It sold itself out within a few years, as Sire Records shows. Black Flag rejected "hippie softness" as did their predecessors from "classical punk," ca. 1975-77. Rombes accounts for their psychotic reaction: a dogmatic negativity. What happened to punk by the early 1980s? Rombes defines the backlash as "an almost militant orthodoxy enforced, dutifully and sometimes pitilessly, by its fans." (152)

Perpendicular to this hardcore assault against non-conformity, the Clash refashioned their image. On the cover of "Combat Rock" (1982), they dressed as if in the Fifties. Rombes tries to explain why. Not that the Clash's "Sandinista!" agitprop changed, but even they courted a broader pop audience. While Rombes speeds past the rockabilly spin-off from punk (he also overlooks the nascent goth movement's reclamation of the subversive ambiguity within the middle-class audience's confrontation with the postmodern, the macabre, and the technological), he does court attention by a provocative claim.

"What matters and is worth saying is that Reagan had things in common with the punk imagination: a return to the basics; a rejection of the excesses of the counterculture and the hippies; a mastery of performance; a do-it-yourself work ethic." (229) This clarified, if at long remove, some of my own unstated but persistent ambivalence about coming of age in the Ford-Carter years, when America's political and military power had been weakened, and in which the somewhat more socialist alternatives of Britain and Western Europe faced their own attacks by discontented youth, full of confusion and restive for answers neither leaders nor gurus, rock stars nor mystery trends, could provide.

If the hippies could not solve the world's problems by the 1970s, their little brothers and sisters, the punks, failed to come up with a better plan. In their impotence and in their intensity, they did forge a weapon of sound, image, and fashion with which to bludgeon, for a few years scattered around the world, a brutal, but puritanical manifesto of reclamation, revenge, and renewal. Perhaps in both the 1960s and 1970s, the tender, yearning, stalwart visionaries suffered.

Rombes cites surprising predecessors. Richard Hell sent a letter in 1970 to Robert Bly: "still bewildered by the death-machine." (272) In 1962, Anne Sexton to Tillie Olson's cited: "I waste hours keeping my soul out of the cauldron, but near enough the edge to hear any important messages." (127) In 1978 at the Sex Pistols' show at San Francisco's Winterland, Rotten spoke the final words of their final concert: "Ever feel you've been cheated?" (245) The intellectuals and the street poets agreed: the odds were stacked against the counterculture, clawing out of and then slipping back into the grasp of boredom.

Like the hippies, the punks (the book's subtitled 1974-1982) hurriedly broadcast themselves as the avant-garde. This couldn't happen today, Rombes insists. When (and I can attest to this as an hour ago my teenage son told me via a click to "Pitchfork" the upcoming releases for my favorite, some classified once as, "alternative" bands) families share the Net and crowd the same media, cultures cannot evolve out of the mainstream, more slowly, to gain subcultural traction. The public can leap upon a trend and turn it viral overnight, without time lag. Because punk could stay ahead of pop as the subcultural vanguard, it represents the last avant-garde.

Rombes asks "what social threat does alt-country pose? Or lo-fi? Or trip-hop?" My older son, nearly eighteen and raised on my record collection, thinks that electronica's the future, not rock. My slightly younger son listens to hip-hop; few of his urban classmates here in L.A. bother with rock at all. They may hear "new wave" via Judd Apatow's archly chosen soundtracks or reruns of "Freaks & Geeks".

The thudding thump of hardcore, as Rombes hears it, pummeled literate misfits. Rombes digs out unheard music from basement tapes that the most obsessive of fans has never heard. He credits each player from each unsung band. His humanism infuses this work, half-reference to complement Jon Savage's "England's Dreaming" or Clinton Haylin's studies, like his own compendium half-fan letters to this genre.

Rombes' tone softens as he looks back thirty years. I closed this wondering what Professor Rombes would make of "American Idiot" by Green Day in its Broadway run. I suspect, like many of those who love punk as our older friends do the hippie efflorescence we were too young to fully enjoy or mock, that he's an idealist despite himself. "That's Entertainment" by The Jam earns this plaudit: "Like the best punk-era songs, this one is, at its heart, old-fashioned and tinged with regret." (284)

Not what I expected... Better!
From the title I expected a comprehensive list of bands and perhaps some essays. Many of the bands I expected to find were absent and the list is far from comprehensive. HOWEVER, THIS BOOK IS MUCH BETTER THAN WHAT I EXPECTED. Instead of a dry listing of bands and influences - the contents of the book are woven together around the authors experience. He is very honest about it being his experience and it reminded me of my own discovery of punk in the 1980's. Those first songs, delivered via crappy cassette tape, changed my world. The author has spent enough time thinking about those early days to offer some fascinating insight.

Forget about reading this book from cover to cover in a linear fashion - it's impossible. I found myself jumping from topic to topic which seems appropriate for the subject. Strangely enough there is no glossary in the back which forces you to explore the book without a road map. I believe this was the authors intent and it works. The deeper I went the more hooked I became.

Punk is getting old. The early music isn't discussed much these days and it's time to go back a take a second look. The late 70's and early 80's were a strange time. I was young when I was introduced to punk music and I wasn't aware of many of the cultural events that nurtured the explosion of sound and emotion that emerged. But like so many others I instantly understood the music and connected with the energy.

This is an excellent book. I was reminded of many great bands and I discovered a handful of bands I had never heard of. Never saw that coming... ... Read more

Product Description

Although its origins and definition are hotly debated among scholars and fans alike, punk rock music has an ever-evolving but always loyal fan base. The British punk movement is thought to have begun in the mid-1970s with bands such as the Clash and the Sex Pistols, and the American punk movement in the early 1970s with bands such as the Ramones, Patti Smith, and Television playing at CBGB's in New York City's Lower East Side. The punk subculture continues to evolve today, with new bands, fashions, politics and zines embodying the spirit of its founders while also influencing mainstream culture. This inclusive encyclopedia chronicles the history and development of punk, including sub-movements such as Hardcore, Post-punk, Queercore, and Emo, to provide readers with an extensive overview of the music, fashion, films, and philosophies behind it. Entries for musicians include a discography for those wanting to start, or develop, their music collections.

Entries include: Advertising; Anarchy; David Bowie; CBGB's; The Clash; Movement; Drugs; Flyers; Gender and punk; Hardcore; London; The Ramones; Johnny Rotten; Malcom McLaren: The Sex Pistols; Sid Vicious; Straight Edge and Vivienne Westwood.

Customer Reviews (4)

Fantastic Punk Resource
Do you need a resource to let you know about the depth and breadth of punk rock?Yes you do.And the Encyclopedia of Punk Music and Culture is it.It's jam-packed with info.The entries remind me of Richard Hell talking about the Ramones "it was just hit song after hit song after hit song."Just like a great punk album is one short blast after another, the entries are direct and to the point.It covers all the styles and mutations of punk.I was surprised by amount of stuff that was in here.I half expected to look up Christmas Eve, 1993 and find the time Joey Ramone climbed over a mountain of snow to wish me "Merry Christmas."

A great, great book.

I read about PUNK in a book...
"Hey! Ho! Let's go!"While this isn't the first book I've read about punk rock, it is by far the best and most complete!I love this book!Not since Joan Jett sweat on me in a mosh pit have I had such a meaningful punk rock moment as I had the first time I plowed through this book.The author brought back major memories for me, but he also made me realize that yes, even *I* still have a lot to learn about punk and punk culture.My second reading was even better because I covered myself in pig's blood first.I would have given this book 5 stars but there's not enough stuff about the Plaster Commandoes and Ditchwitch.Awesome!

Everything I would have expected and a heck of a lot more.
Sure, the book covers everything you would expect.There's The Velvet Underground, Stooges, CBGB's, Sex Pistols, Ramones and the whole British class of '77.But what really knocked me out was the breadth of the author's knowledge of the punk/hardcore scene of the 80's, 90's and today.He realizes that a lot of vital punk music occurred between The Clash and Nirvana and he doesn't ignore it like 99% of the books, films and TV shows on the subject have.So we get Minor Threat and Black Flag and The Descendents and The Replacements and Dag Nasty...you get the point.Inclusive, respectful without being reverent and a lot of fun to read.If you care at all about punk, pick it up.

on life's list of required texts
I thought I knew it all, but the author has taken me places I thought I had been before in new ways.If you care about punk and are smart, here you are.This book is readable, and scholarly.I think I'm gonna be online buying about 25 CD's that this book made me realize I need.I want to drink in a bar that uses this book to settle arguments and bar bets. Why haven't I seen these pictures before?
Every detail is right, and I have consumed punk for 20+ years. ... Read more

Product Description
On the road with a punk rock band. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Skip the First Half, Go Straight to the Band Diary
The first part of this book is an attempt at a history of punk rock with a sociological slant, with many of the worst features of academic prose prominent (as well as the fuzziness that tends to accompany attempts at dealing with sociology as a hard science). Readers who are unfamiliar with the histroy of punk rock are likely to find it tedious, as well as excessively dry.

The second portion is an account of the author's involvement with the False Prophets in the latter part of their career, taken from his diaries with personal recollections and portions of another member's diary filling gaps. There is, fortunately, no attempt to maintain the academic tone of the first part of the book, and the ongoing dramas and crises of the band will be of interest to those who, like myself, find band dynamics amusing.

Band Expenses
Steven Taylor joined the band "False Prophets" in the late 80s and before you can say "Never Again, Again," he was a full-time member and central player; a band with both a fanatical cult following and a general disregard for the market.Much of Taylor's extravagantly detailed memoir is based on a diary he kept for several years of one night stands and vivid encounters in the capitals of Europe--the seedy underbelly of several dozen cities on the edge of a revived Common Market.He has the eye of a born poet and will always see something odd and picturesque in whatever squat he happens to land in; he makes even the individual currency of these blurred nations sharp and glittering, like a newly minted penny.And the characters he meets are uniformly colorful and individuated--in fact I wonder how he gets away with such frankness about his fellow human beings--it made me wonder, well, maybe she's dead, or maybe he's a composite.

The adventures of False Prophets are inlaid into a general history of the punk scene in London, Paris, and New York, so we always have access to a broader social landscape as well as individual gigs, i.e, the book sports a political dimension and is never satisfied until no further questions can be wrung from the material.Negotiation and the engineering of process occupies band members more than they do the individual artist, yet even the most solo among us has to recognize and handle the pressures and desires of the other, no matter how configured, and this is where Taylor really shines.Well, and on the CD that accompanies this book, a lovely and unexpected addition to a book that gives on so many levels.

Okay, from time to time I got weary of lists and letters of the endless detail of band touring, for my own travel problems bore me and nothing's worse than reading about someone else's.Yet looked at in another light, these calculations and restrictions are mere analogues for the fundamental problems Taylor is on about--the difficulty of communication, the strength needed to break through into another place of consciousness, the increased shadow of globalization.I recommend this book to everyone interested in the places where economy and power clash with the human need to know and perform.

False Prophet Rings True
Steven Taylor's "False Prophet: Fieldnotes from the Punk Underground" succeeds on multi-levels. As anthropology, it is a comprehensive cultural study, as musical history it is a much needed document and as personal memoir it is wholly compelling. Taylor is a singular artist. While most rockers can't write about music and most rock critics can't tune a guitar, Taylor has the intellect, theoretical chops and the musical cache to cover all the bases. The story alone is riveting: accomplished musician signs on with band during Lower East Side punk explosion; band runs up against American corporate music biz and tours Europe while that part of the globe is undergoing intense upheaval. I can't recommend this book enough and it should prove riveting to not only a national, but an international audience. ... Read more

Product Description
The punk explosion of the mid-1970s unleashed an amazing wave of creativity, both musically and graphically. As punk’s DIY, cut-and-paste ingenuity gave rise to groundbreaking designers like Jamie Reid and Neville Brody, the picture sleeve became an essential aspect of any new single. Featuring a wealth of data and over 700 color photos of sleeves of the era — from heavyweights like the Clash and the Buzzcocks to influential unknowns like Subway Sect — Punk On 45 is not just an invaluable reference but a visual feast, capturing the artistic zeitgeist of this dynamic era. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A Godsend For Punk Record Collectors & Fans
As someone who was 14 years old in 1977, when Punk music first began becoming a new style of music that would wind up changing the music scene from that of the boring 70's rock scene (and the 10 minute drum solos) to one that had high energy, originality, and a voice for the disgruntled youth of the day, I instantly fell in love with the sound and the scene, becoming the 1st one of my group of friends to grasp Punk by the balls, and run with it...leaving behind the 70's arena bands and their "tiring sound".
For others like me, who loved the Punk scene as soon as it came out, and who went to their local record stores weekly to buy the latest releases from the new Punk bands that began to emerge in (and after) 1977, especially with the success of bands like the Ramones and Sex Pistols, this book is one that any punk fan can truly admire and cherish. There's been hardly any books published that are devoted to the actual punk record (especially 45's). These terrific records are what put a lot of punk bands on the map. They's get up a few hundred buck, press 500, 1,000 or 2,000 copies, and that's how the kids would often find out about a new band. Costing from $1.00 to $2.00, it was a cheap way for
someone to pick up a record from a new band and give it a listen to.

The artwork on many of these records, which often goes overlooked and underappreciated, tells a collective story of what Punk is all about.
Often printed and glued together by the bands themselves, they were truly a work of love and dedication. The picture sleeves alone, as artwork, is something special that had never been done before, or duplicated since.

Thankfully, living in Northern NJ and only 20 minutes from NYC, I was lucky enough to be in an area that caught on right away to the Punk scene, and even luckier to have a local, family owned record shop that carried all the latest punk releases, only 5 minutes from my house. And the world famous Bleeker Bob's (in NYC), was a short drive away, and if my local shop was sold out of their limited copies of records they had, or couldn't get an import I was looking for, Bleeker Bob's was always their to aquire those rare, low pressing, records I coveted.
Throughout the years, I've continued my passion of collecting Punk records (and the even rarer 8-Track tapes), amassing a personal collection of over 2,500 45's, and over 600 LP's.
Thankfully, my taste in Punk music wasn't shared by the majority of the record buying masses, causing many of my favorite records to be pressed in very low numbers (from 100 for a Clear #'d Gang Green "Sold Out") record, to those of the Misfits, which had pressings for their 45's ranging from a few hundred to 7-10,000.
Because not that many were originally pressed, they were never common items and were almost immediately rare and hard to get.
And, as the years passed, 10 years, 20, even 30 years later, many of those punk 45's are now near impossible to find (especially in the conditions I kept all my records in..excellent, near mint, and even mint
and unplayed. So now, all these years later, and with people interested in aquiring old punk records (as an investment or just to remember their youth), as least my buying of all those records wasn't a waste. I've sold many of my favs (from $200 to $800 for a $1.00 record) on eBay,
and continue to do so. Thank god I wasn't a huge Styx fan...ouch....records worth $1.00 if you're lucky.
So, as such a fan and collector, it's GREAT to see a book like this FINALLY in print. It's been a long time overdue, and VERY appreciated by the fans. Just looking at all those pics of those 45 picture sleeves brings back a flood of memories for nearly every one. You can remember, like it was yesterday, a place and time, that looking at a certain picture sleeve can take you. I've even recalled smells when seeing a few (like purchasing a 45 at Bleeker Bob's and walking to the corner to get a slice of pizza after it..like it was yesterday...but it was really 25+ years ago. Amazing book, great pictures, nice selection of bands and some 45's they put out. I wasn't disappointed at all.
FOr others looking for Punk Record books, I'd highly recommend getting a copy of "FLEX - US Hardcore Discography"The 3rd edition, called BOOK 3, is the latest edition printed and is about 800 pages. It's a labor of love that took years of compiling, and is done by a German guy named Burkhard Jaerisch, it sold out quickly after it was published. Aother book, related to punk records is the Goldmine Price Guide To Alternative Records (by Neely). And lastly, the "International Discography of The New Wave" (B.George & M. Defore). The last 2 should be available from Amazon, but note that the last book, long sold out, goes for over $200 from Merchant Seller's on Amazon.
But as far as a comprehensive book dealing with just Punk 45's (both from the US and UK), this book "Punk on 45" is unquestionably one of the best, if not the best ever published. You won't be disappointed!!

Too short but in a good way
An excellent source for some pretty obscure records. The cover may show pretty popular records but the inside of the book has some amazing (and not-so-amazing) rare and hard to find records. A lot of the covers are very punk and DIY which is the good and bad of the book. If you like punk and the image that goes/went along with it, pick up the book. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

UK Punk Companion to US Please Kill Me!
With Please Kill Me!(NYC) & We've got the Neutron Bomb!(LA) Everyone complained that there was Very little, if Anything, like those about the UK punk scene. John Robb's Oral History of the UK punk world puts those Complaints to sleep!
Lots of Great interviews, great Stars & Scenesters with Real Insight to what is was Like back then in the UK in the Early to Mid seventies. Seems like Everyone gets a Say, but Very little Repetition of Key Facts, Dates & Milestones. The Best known bands are covered(Sex Pistols, Clash, Buzzcocks) But Great info about Other (unfairly) lesser known Forces of Nature: Like The Stranglers, The Damned, X-Ray Spex, Dr. Feelgood, & More!
Dive in & Then Dive into what you've been missing out on!
Always Nice to get a Good Book!
... Read more

Product Description
A Comprehensive A-Z of over 100 rap-rock, rap-metal and funk-metal bands, including acts from the hop-hop and hardcore punk branches of metal. Features exclusive info on Primus, Faith No Nore, Rage Against the Machine, Limp Bizkit, The Deftones, At The Drive-In, Marilyn Manson, Tool, Linkin Park. Plus cutting-edge new bands including: Orgy, Alien Ant Farm, and Godsmack. The essential reference book for the 21st century metal fans. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

wow....
i looked at the date on this mother. it says 2002. thats back when it was still okay to suck at guitar. its a fun read if you like remembering that era. some of these bands i've forgotten about actually. and at the drive ib isn't nu metal. nor is tool or primus. but what ever. it glorifies a fallen genre. but like i said, it was done in 02. if it were written a few years later it would have turned out differently...

The nu-metal guide
If you want to know where this music come from, the influences, the pioneers, the most important bands, the most important people, and an incredible amount of bands that play this music, this is your book.
You can agree or not with the author in some things like classified or not some groups as nu-metal (Nickelback a nu-metal band? hummm...), but anyway is a good guide to learn a lot about the new school metal.
The only compliment is that is from 2001, so if you buy it now (like I did) it's 2 years old and this is a lot of time in a so young music style like nu-metal is. Maybe Joel McIver is working in a update to this great book?

Nu-Metal, Nu-Outlook
I only read this book due to the fact that I enjoyed Mr. McGivers 'Extreme Metal' book so much. I do not care for Nu-Metal but despite this fact, I found this book to be a very enjoyable read as well as informative. It contains an excellent section on the origin of this genre & pays respect (or blame) where it's due. Through the pages of this Nu-Metal guide of sorts, I actually discovered several bands that I now listen to on a regular basis. Thanks for such an informative tool, Mr. McGiver. I don't believe anything else like this even exists.

The best nu-metal book I have seen!
This book rules! So many bands I never heard of, great pictures too. Long but helpful introduction telling us where nu-metal comes from. Ya gotta get this if you like any new rock band. ... Read more

Product Description
Punk--the thriving movement in the '70s that rebelled against boring, sterile culture--was captured by one revolutionary 'zine. This book examines the finest moments from the pages of "Punk". Photos & illustrations. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Nice collection from the original magazine
since the original Punk magazines are hard to find and very expensive if you do,this book is a nice alternative. It's a real time capsule of the punk scene as it was happening from the guys who coined the term Punk,which perfectly described the new music scene they were covering.
My only complaint is that they did not include the entire issues,which they easily could (and should) of.
Oh well,get it if you can...the originals will cost you $500+ for the set

Zep

a Bible for all ages
Nothing gets better then the crazy yet brillant minds of John Holmstrom and Legs McNeil. Every word in this compolation will make you laugh, I promise!!!!It is history in the making and they opened the doors for so many other magazines. In fact they have a new issue out now too! 25 Years later!!

Will Flex Your Head
As a lit scholar, this is one of my favorite books!I was in grade school when this material first appeared, but still I can see why it sparked a whole movement.Holmstrom's blend of irreverence, honesty, and sheerenthusiasm must've seemed radical during the self-indulgent, PC Seventies. But for all its hilarity and straightforward charm, Punk's material workson several levels.Just check out the famous interview/comic book story onLou Reed from the first issue--the punks' attitudes turn what would havebeen a disaster for any other journalist into a telling victory.Like theRamones, this magazine showed that you can be brilliant and not make a fussabout it; humor, common sense, and a no-bs attitude show more wisdom thanany number of convoluted Jethro Tull lyrics.All this, and an exclusiveinterview with Boris and Natasha!

It's not often that a magazine fromalmost 25 years ago seems as fresh now as it did back then.We are stillin need of Holmstrom's and Legs' rakish sense of fun, although their workhas left obvious imprints on our culture--the Simpsons, for one, could nothave been without Punks' art & attitude.Buy one for yourself, andmore for all of your friends; they will be your friends for life. ... Read more

Product Description
Recreating the complete story of the punk phenomenon — including where it came from and what it turned into — Punk is a massive and visually stunning record of five years that changed the world: from 1975 to 1979. Collecting the testimony of more than 260 artists, record producers, designers, and journalists — including John Cale, Debbie Harry, Joe Strummer, Maureen Tucker, Gerard Malanga, Lou Reed, Johnny Rotten, Danny Fields, Legs McNeil, Bob Gruen, David Byrne, Iggy Pop, Tommy Ramone, William S. Burroughs, Terry Southern, Cherry Vanilla, and Malcolm McLaren, former manager and ringleader of the Sex Pistols — Punk brings to life the profound effect punk music had on global popular culture in the words of those who created it. With reverberations in style, fashion, attitude and philosophy, the birth of punk music released the greatest shockwaves in the popular culture since The Beatles. Punk tells the story through the words of the people who were closely tied to the mania and through hundreds of contemporaneous color and black-and-white photographs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (20)

a moment in time
Found it on sale at Half Price Books yesterday when I was having a pretty bad day. Perked me right up! This book is HUGE, full of gorgeous pictures and telling quotes, from people who were there, driving the punk movement. It's a great coffee table book for people who aren't the sort of people who have coffee table books. Or coffee tables, for that matter. I am enjoying this book so much! I wish I could have been there for all of this as it happened, but the book almost makes you feel as though you were.

Fair and balanced?
A flashy compendium, but way lopsided. It's so Pistols heavy it about topples off my coffee table. Not that I really have one. It's always great to see the Pistols, but how many pages do the Clash get? About 2. This is the kind of book that promotes Cherry Vanilla and Wayne County as punk. Wayne did give us a memorable show at London's Roxy in 1977 -- but he ain't punk. "Definitive record"? What a joke. Say something nice? . .hmmmm. Nice photographs. Some of them.

If you like the Sex Pistols...
As other reviews have asserted, this book is heavy on Sex Pistols and associated content from the British Punk scene. However, it completely ignores vast amounts of punk history by ignoring what was going on with Punk music in other parts of the world.

Other than a few pages about the Ramones it largely ignores the growth and vitality of the American Punk scene. No Black Flag, no Minor Threat, no Dead Kennedys, no Bad Religion. Further it does not even address other hugely influential British bands like Conflict and Crass.

My advice: save your money. If you want to understand punk look for more definitive and interesting records of punk like The Philosophy of Punk: More Than Noise or Hardcore California: A History of Punk and New Wave.

Punk: The Definitive Record Of A Revolution
Punk: The Definitive Record Of A Revolution ****

It was a nice idea but it didn't deliver like I hoped. Using the Punk movement as a coffee table book is not only shocking but goes against everything the movement stood for. But with all that aside it was sort of cool. The kind of coffee table book I would love to have, right next to my Hippie, and Miles Smiles coffee table books.

Why not five stars? Well this is basically Legs McNeils Please Kill Me but bigger and with a different cover. The quotes are the same as the in Please Kill Me. It really just is the same thing but with more pictures. Though I must say the are some of the coolest pictures of the period I have ever seen, some of which I had never seen before, and I have quite a few books on the subject. In fact it is the pictures that make the book.

Also this really offers nothing new (other than some of the pictures) on the matter. There is no new information which is sort of a drag to read. Other than that it is informative if you are new to the subject and haven't read Please Kill Me. It is worth the price for the pictures though.

Stupid and boring, sidney, boring
The dust jacket of this book would have you believing it's a retrospective of all the great bands of the punk rebellion, but so many greats are overlooked or just not mentioned, even if one were content to look at the UK only, PLUS the massive pics make it look more like an ode to the Pistols PR machine than anything else.Great as a coffee table book, but low on substance and accuracy.Don't leave it out when your mom comes to visit, however, as the big black and white dildo photo might just send her over the edge...precisely the kind of sensationalist schlock that made punk so misunderstood in the first place.Are we certain Malcom McLaren didn't write this trite?Really, you could spend your money on a lot better, and you'd probably have a better chance at staying awake, too! ... Read more

Product Description
The Official Punk Rock Book of Lists features over 200 of the funniest, craziest lists from the Most Offensive Songs to Stupidest Band Names, from Punk Sell-Outs to Fashion Don'ts culled from historical archives and generated by celebrity guests. Contributors include rock stars and punk luminaries, from members of Guns N' Roses and the Ramones to Little Steven Van Zandt, Nick Tosches, Lenny Kaye, Debbie Harry, and every other big-name punk from the last 30 years of rock history. Wicked caricatures, by noted underground artist Cliff Mott, of punk rock stars are peppered generously throughout the book, which is already being hyped as the most fun music book of all time. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Too East Coast Biased
Manitoba & Wallace paid due respect to NYC Scene, but really gave short-shrift to the West Coast Scene. I found one measly entry on X, for instance, and nothing on Social Distortion- probably two of the three most important original California punk bands(the other being Black Flag, the coverage of which is heavily Rollins-oriented). Plus, there is a lot of nonsensical stuff, like so-and-so's favorite movie weapons, and crap like that. If you can get it used for 99 cents, then go for it, but take it all with a grain (or pillar) of salt.

Awesome for bathroom, but NYC biased
I picked up a copy of this about a month ago at the John Varvatos store (formerly CBGB's) in New York City. I needed a cool souvenir and this was sitting right on the front counter- last one! I skimmed through it a few times over the past month or so and there are some great lists, but yesterday I read it cover to cover and was a little disappointed for severeal reasons.

I'll start with the "Bad" first... (but there is lots of good stuff too- so please read all!!!)

One thing that stands out in almost every list is that it's very NYC biased. Don't get me wrong, some of the best punk rock of all time came from the Big Apple, but it's certainly not the only city to produce great punk music. They did mention "The Germs" quite a bit, but that's about the only California punk band that was represented in most of the book. Out of about 300 pages, I don't think they mentioned Social D or Operation Ivy once, and when they mentioned Rancid and NOFX, they mostly made fun of them. I'm not claiming these are the greatest bands of the genre by any means, and I'm from the midwest so it's not a personal thing- I just think there were so many obvious lists and stories that barely looked passed the Manhattan Skyline. (Please don't turn this into a EC vs WC punk feud- I just picked those bands b/c they were the first ones I thought of... and we saw what happened to Biggie and Tupac) The west coast bands they do mention, I think are more grunge / alternative than anything- the Butthole Surfers, Mudhoney, Pearl Jam, Nirvana and Dinosaur Jr are mentioned at least 50 times combined, but not one mention of Mike Ness?! Are you kidding me?

Another thing I noticed throughout the book is the massive amounts of quotes from other books. Some parts are almost literally pages from other's work. I've read "Please Kill Me" by Legs McNeil, and I felt like I re-read a quarter of the book when flipping through the lists. There are some great stories that are definitely worth re-reading (The NYDolls touring the south, Iggy's antics, Joey Ramone's hitchhiking), but again- it's very NYC biased. They also quote VERY heavily from Shane Magowan and John Lydon's autobiorgraphies, which are interesting, but might be old news for some readers. (One of the authors - Amy Wallace even confesses to the over-quoting toward the end of the book!)

At times the book is a little *too* obscure for the casual reader. Punk beginners probably would not know 85% of the bands they're talking about. And even people that are well-versed in the genre will undoubtedly have a few times while reading where they ask themselves "Wait? Who?!"

Now for the GOOD!

There are so many great stories told in the lists of this book. For someone like me, that absolutely loves random music trivia- it was perfect. One of the best lists was something along the lines of "12 things Steve Jones stole". The guy completely robbed Jagger, Bowie and Mick Ronson among others- plus stole clothes to look like Rod Stewart!

Another great thing about a book like this is that it makes you want to learn so much about the bands they're talking about. Half the time I was "reading" it, I was actually on YouTube looking up random Johnny Thunders or Dictators clips and on Wikipedia finding out about the Nihilistics. I'm sure this book will do the same for anyone that's a music fan. In fact, I would argue that price tag of the book and shipping can easily be justifies if the reader gets into even *one* band they didn't know about previously.

The Artwork. It's amazing. I can't think of his first name, but that last name is Mott and he truly is an awesome artisit! He even does one of the lists!

Overall, I'd give the book about a 7/10. As a bathroom book, it's perfect- cool pictures, lots of quick information, and you can just flip to another page if the list you're reading is too obscure, or uninteresting. After all, HDM moved his desk into this bathroom to write some of these. The downsides are that if you've read "Plesae Kill Me", "Our Band Could be your Life", "A Drink with Shane Macgowan" and Johnny Rotten's atuobiography- you've already got about half of the book covered. Also, they basically ignore the west coast.

I say, "Buy It". Plus - it will look super cool on the back of your toilet or on your coffee table. You never know - Aunt Mable might see it and start asking you "Now, who are these 'Dead Boys' fellas I was reading about?" - Totally Punk Rock.

Fun - what's great about books of lists
This book is fun. It makes me laugh. I was neither a punk rocker nor I am I familiar with 75% of the references. But merely perusing the Table of Contents is worth the price. Healthy Living: 21 Dietary Habits of Punks" - has the AMA opined on this? Btw colon cleansing finished number 17.

Did I use the word reference? I would hardly call it a reference book in the "using it to cheat on a college exam" sense because it is all opinion not authoritative. In fact, as is true of all books of lists, the best thing is disagreeing with them. For example, why is the Phil Ochs biography "Death of a Rebel" not even listed in Richard Meltzer's beatnik roots reading list? Manitoba HATES pepperoni on his pizza,? And most notably, Ray Davies and the Kinks are not listed in Nick Farren's "10 Founding Fathers of Punk" homage? Say what?

I'd give the book 5 stars except I was not enamored enough with the punk musical genre/lifestyle to do so. Having said that, given how the current generation of high schoolers and college kids have embraced old school punk rock and how the genre has grown in reputation through the decades, I wouldn't hesitate to give it to one as a holiday or birthday gift. They'll wonder how you knew about it and think you're pretty cool. Just be careful not to open it first because if you start reading it you may not want to give it away.

I gave it as presents to both my teenage son and his "50 something" uncle and they both enjoyed it.Neither are punk rockers.

The whole point of punk rock was how ridiculously irreverent it was and this book captures that spirit perfectly.

A FUN FUN FUN READER FOR YOUR BATHROOM BOOKSHELF
I put this book in my bathroom "bookshelf"...Each morning, while having my coffee, I read 2 or 3 or 5 or 6 pages, and have been highly entertained for months...The very accomplished writer Amy Wallace(from the orignal Book Of Lists family, The Wallaces), put this together with Punk Rock Icon, Bar Owner, Radio Host, Handsome Dick Manitoba.Along with GREAT drawings by Cliff Mott and a forward by Danny Fields, this is a steal in terms of how much pure fun it is, and how entertaining it is. Sometimes funny, sometimes silly, many times irreverant, and occasionally downright serious, The Official Punk Rock Book Of Lists is the "Feel Good Hit Of The Year"..And....An inexpensive XMAS present, to boot!

Not sure about the anger involved in the review :"Has Been-Never Was"....How angry can one get about a book this light?...A personal vendetta, perhaps?

Takes guts to actually publish this
Over-opinionated, mindless, senseless banter from has-been's as well as never was'.Some important material was found, but I threw this book away personally just to ensure no one else got their hands on it.You will also know the punk rock stars with the smallest [...] as well if you read this book, so take that into consideration, you cant unlearn that. ... Read more