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128th out of 699 books
—
479 voters
Diary of a Rock N' Roll Star
by
Ian Hunter
This classic book is now re-published by Independent Music Press and is available for the first time in 15 years. 'Diary of a Rock 'n' Roll Star' was probably the first ever rock autobiography and is universally acknowledged as a classic.Mott The Hoople were one of the leading lights of the world rock scene in the early 70's and were David Bowie's favorite group (he produc...more
Paperback, 160 pages
Published
January 1st 1996
by Independent Music Press
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I first read this book in high school in the late 70s when I tripped upon a record by Mott The Hoople. The lead singer in the band, Ian Hunter, detailed an American tour when the band was at their apex of commercial success after the release of "All the Young Dudes." I decided to pick it up off the shelf when I saw a trailer for a new documentary called The Ballad of Mott the Hoople
Hunter is a relatively objective, centered narrator as 70s rock decadence swirls around the band. With one band me...more
Hunter is a relatively objective, centered narrator as 70s rock decadence swirls around the band. With one band me...more
Ian Hunter is a very much underrated songwriter and made some great records solo as well as with the fab Mott The Hopple. And what we have here is his diary/journal in the very key year when they are breaking into a bigger audience via the help of David Bowie. The book is very much of Hunter expressing his joys, anger, and frustration of touring America circ. 1972. "All The Young Dudes" is in the air, and Mott is riding on the wave via that song. I think any person who picks up a guitar or snare...more
I bought this book when it came out back in 1974, when I was in 10th grade, and was just captivated by Hunter's backstage and onstage tales of an often turbulent band that always seemed to fall just short of superstardom (at least in America). Of course I may not be the most objective person to recommend this tome. I've always worshipped both Ian Hunter and Mott The Hoople to such a degree that if they reunited and recorded a cover album of Alannis Morrisette songs, I'd probably buy it. A near-p...more
One of the best rock-n-roll memoirs I've every read. It's a day-by-day accounting of a Mott the Hoople tour in the Fall/Winter of 1972. Funny, down to earth, and unflinching. What makes this great is that Hunter (and his publisher) decided to leave his on-the-run observations largely unedited (or at least not over edited). It really makes you feel like you were them with him and the boys as they finally knock on the door of music success. Good fun with a surprising amount a meaning too. Great st...more
As an aficionado of Mott The Hoople / Ian Hunter for the past 35+ years, I greatly anticipated what I thought would be a full disclosure diary of life on the road for a young up-and-coming Rock 'N Roller coming to the USA from the UK on his first tour. This book delivered little more than a journalistic itinerary of flights, hotels stayed at, pawn shops visited and gigs played. It provided insight to the not-so-glamorous side of how grueling life on the road can be, but I felt it held back, or p...more
One of the best rock'n'roll books ever written. Great inside baseball about early 1970s rock'n'roll. The author's voice is as clear as it is in his songs. Highly recommended.
Read this book!
This is one of those classic rock books thats always recommended,the funny thing is its not all Led Zeppelin style debauchery.Its actually a true picture of an English band on tour in the States,Ian Hunter misses his wife and doesn't get up to much besides shopping for vintage guitars, and I seem to remember a visit to Graceland.But it definitely paints a vivid picture of a certain time and place, The Seventies!
A classic in the genre of rock star "on the road" books. Even for someone like me, who's not a huge Mott The Hoople fan, the picture painted of a 1972 tour - the places and the characters - is fascinating and Hunter is an unusually eloquent, insightful and occasionally poetic writer. Perhaps most interesting is his depiction of the sheer boredom and loneliness inherent in a tour like this.
A real warts and all documentation of a five week tour of America - glamorous it is not!
funny, but kinda sad, I kept wanting to tell him to relax and let his hair down, great read though.
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