The stylish, exuberant, and remarkably sweet confession of one of the most famous groupies of the 1960s and 70s is back in print in this new editio...
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Aug 14, 2011
mark
rated it: 
the main thing that i remember about this book is the image of timothy hutton leaving a bathroom with a trail of toilet paper emerging like a banner from between his asscheeks. oh the humanity. this short bit acts as a capper on the basically contemptuous timothy hutton sequence. the tone throughout the rest of this sexual travelogue is less contemptuous and almost wry, deadpan. but if you are looking for any actual insight into the various celebrities, look elsewhere - this book is not for you.
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Mar 12, 2009
Andy
rated it: 
The best rock books about the Sixties are ironically not written by the musicians themselves but all the people peripheral to the action, and Pamela Des Barres of the GTO's is one. I like the stories about the legendary Hollywood Teen Fair, the early glam rock days at the Continental Hyatt House and The GTO's. There's not a boring page in this one!
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Oct 22, 2007
Eileen
rated it:
This book was unexpectedly inspirational for me in my formative years, I think because I hadn't heard of many women who managed to participate in the world of rock without losing their voices. Does that sound odd? It isn't when you think how many women are treated as accoutrements or decorations in that world. Pamela des Barres may have participated in that, but she did it on her own terms and created a unique and interesting identity.
This isn't a feminist text, but it isn't act More...
This isn't a feminist text, but it isn't act More...
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Nov 23, 2007
Mark
rated it: 
Miss Pamela is actually a fun, insightful writer (she calls her early bra-stuffing "bewitching fraudulence" for example), and little did any of the boys she bedded and fellated know that she'd use her experience to reframe rock history. Here, we begin with Captain Beefheart (after an interval in which she must write down Beatle Paul's name every time she farts) and go on to Iron Butterfly, the Byrds, the Doors (ugh), Frank Zappa (barf), the Flying Burrito Brothers, Led Zeppelin... um..
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Jan 27, 2008
Tatiana
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This book was so great I plowed through it in less than 24 hours after getting it. Miss Pamela was a true rock n roll courtesan and glided with ease through the lives of legends like Frank Zappa, Jimmy Page, and Mick Jagger. At the heart of it all, she is a true super fan and she never "grew out" of the ability to go stark raving mad for a guy rocking out on a guitar. I could have done without so much of the straight-from-the-diary introspection, but it also made the memoir more acc
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Feb 21, 2009
Bunny
rated it:
This was a seriously neat book to read. As a music junkie, I loved the extreme name dropping Miss Pamela does. I cannot lie, I oozed jealousy at all of the rock stars she took floor/bed/vehicle rolls with.
She comes off as really sweet, and very sincere, and I think that's what makes it so enjoyable to read. When trying to explain to a co-worker who she was and what the book was about, he said, "She sounds like a slut." And I actually took offense! It's the 60's, dammit. YO More...
She comes off as really sweet, and very sincere, and I think that's what makes it so enjoyable to read. When trying to explain to a co-worker who she was and what the book was about, he said, "She sounds like a slut." And I actually took offense! It's the 60's, dammit. YO More...
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Nov 04, 2007
Ann
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I read this book by the pool one summer - scandalous, slutty and impossible to put down. A groupie's memoir of backstage adventures with Mick Jagger, Jimmy Page, Keith Moon, Waylon Jennings, and Jim Morrison, among others. She traveled with Led Zeppelin; lived in sin with Don Johnson; turned down a date with Elvis Presley; and was close friends with Robert Plant, Gram Parsons, Ray Davies, and Frank Zappa. Warm, witty, and sexy, this kiss-and-tell–all stands out as the perfect chronicle of one of
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Sep 08, 2008
Mary
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Any book that involves knocking boots with Jimmy Page is alright by me. Always chose him over Robert Plant, myself.
Seems Ms. Des Barres didn't knock out nearly as many brain cells as she lets on, as this is a very densely detailed (down to Rod Stewart's outfits and Mick Jagger's half-smiles) account of her many summers of love. Best line: "I was turned inside out, pulsating with creamy pink desire for the most coveted hunk of drool material." Read the book to find out just wh More...
Seems Ms. Des Barres didn't knock out nearly as many brain cells as she lets on, as this is a very densely detailed (down to Rod Stewart's outfits and Mick Jagger's half-smiles) account of her many summers of love. Best line: "I was turned inside out, pulsating with creamy pink desire for the most coveted hunk of drool material." Read the book to find out just wh More...
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Dec 03, 2011
Ana
rated it: 
I'm With The Band / 9780450506376
I really wanted to like this book, but I couldn't get much past the first third of the book. Somehow, impossibly, this fascinating life story just could not hold my interest.
"I'm With The Band" is maybe a cautionary tale of the difficulties of writing an autobiography and the importance of a good editor. Pamela tells her life-story chronologically, but the chapters of her book have nothing to tie them together, no high highs or More...
I really wanted to like this book, but I couldn't get much past the first third of the book. Somehow, impossibly, this fascinating life story just could not hold my interest.
"I'm With The Band" is maybe a cautionary tale of the difficulties of writing an autobiography and the importance of a good editor. Pamela tells her life-story chronologically, but the chapters of her book have nothing to tie them together, no high highs or More...
Oct 23, 2011
Anne
rated it: 
I wanted to read about the rock'n roll life from a woman's perspective after The Dirt, but reading this is like reading a girl's journal or teen magazine, only the boys are rock stars. And if I ever wondered: A girl's true dream & ambition is to marry and have kids. Only these husbands/fathers are rock stars.
So disappointed. Or to write in Pamela's style: Sooooo DISAPPOINTED. I can't believe she's pursued a career in journalism, this book is not well written. Maybe it's by choice, I ju More...
So disappointed. Or to write in Pamela's style: Sooooo DISAPPOINTED. I can't believe she's pursued a career in journalism, this book is not well written. Maybe it's by choice, I ju More...
Jun 02, 2011
Caitlin
rated it:
I have so many thoughts about this book, I'm not even sure where to begin. Let me start with the fact that it was way enjoyable to read. Des Barres has a writing style that isn't terribly polished yet is very fun and enthusiastic and even has moments of literary brilliance. I can see why she was so drawn toward performing, because she's got the spark of an artist in her soul. And it's a very juicy read, with lots of sex with rock stars (which is exactly what you would expect from a book like
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Oct 15, 2010
Kaarin
rated it:
I’ve gone to many many concerts over the last 15 years and not once have I ended up backstage. The way Pamela tells it she went to concert and then suddenly she was in the green room giving out blow jobs. What gets you from enjoying the show to being part of the show in back? Where’s the disconnect there? Don’t get me wrong, that’s not what I would want for myself, but what is it about certain people that crazy things just happen to them? As for the writing, I kept diaries as a teenager as
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Sep 28, 2010
Joanne
rated it:
“Desperate for attention and affection” (page 261) pretty much sums up Miss Pamela’s story in I’m With the Band: Confessions of a Groupie. While I enjoyed the story infused with lots of famous names and excerpts from diaries she kept at MZ’s (Mr. Zappa aka Frank Zappa) urging, she kept looking for Mr. Right expecting he would sweep her off her feet in adoration amidst the sex, drugs and rock and roll. Not the right combination for a long-standing workable relationship by any means. Probably
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Sep 23, 2010
Sarah
rated it:
I'm ashamed to admit I read this book, but it's nearing the end of the year, people, and I need to knock out the rest of my Gilmore Girls list! This book was horrible. Absolutely horrible. I came into it with high hopes. I was expecting it would be like "Almost Famous," and was excited to read about the real-life Penny Lane.
Nope. It was just gross. First of all, Pamela Des Barres can't write to save her life. She would throw in random quotes from rock songs (i.e. "Girl More...
Nope. It was just gross. First of all, Pamela Des Barres can't write to save her life. She would throw in random quotes from rock songs (i.e. "Girl More...
May 17, 2010
Surreysmum
rated it:
[These notes were made in 1989:]. As one might expect, it's a bit flat and a bit flip. And, with Pamela, we have to wade our way through a fair number of semi-celebrities before we get to the meaty stuff about Keith Moon and Mick Jagger, neither of whom appears to have captured Pamela's heart. The men she fell for in a big way were names which may have been famous in the L.A. region, but a rock dilettante like myself has never heard of them, including Michael des Barres, whom she eventually ma
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Sep 21, 2010
Lisa
rated it:
So, having had this one passed on to me by mum who was finding it a little self-deluding and sleazy, I wasn't expecting to like Pamela as much as I did.
Always boy-crazy, Miss Pamela started hunting down her favourite rock stars as soon as she was able and was soon very much a staple of the scene during rock's hey-day, becoming one of the original and best known groupies around as well as one of the GTO's - a girl group masterminded by Frank Zappa, making her even better placed to str More...
Always boy-crazy, Miss Pamela started hunting down her favourite rock stars as soon as she was able and was soon very much a staple of the scene during rock's hey-day, becoming one of the original and best known groupies around as well as one of the GTO's - a girl group masterminded by Frank Zappa, making her even better placed to str More...
Feb 11, 2012
CiderandRedRot
rated it:
Although it loses it's momentum somewhat towards the end, this 'confession' by the infamous Miss Pamela is a remarkably sweet and candid memoir. It follows the emergence of her powerful sexuality during her teenage years through her obsession with pop music, which she discusses with frank honesty and a great sense of humour.
Dis-bunking the idea that all the groupies were just disposable sex toys for the big men in music, Pamela shows how her love of the music and, yes, the sex creat More...
Dis-bunking the idea that all the groupies were just disposable sex toys for the big men in music, Pamela shows how her love of the music and, yes, the sex creat More...
Apr 12, 2011
Michelle
rated it:
This book is a very interesting read and you can definitely hear Pamela's voice all the way through it. Half of me is in awe of the time she had with the most influential people rock through the 60s and 70s. She really did have the most amazing time, met the most awe inspiring people and lived the life I have always dreamed of. The GTOs weren't just groupies they were trail blazers and think of them as slags or not (depending on your liberal views or not as the case may be), they changed so m
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Feb 21, 2010
This has been on my "to read" list for a very long time. Time to just buy it already!!
The stylish, exuberant, and remarkably sweet confession of one of the most famous groupies of the 1960s and 70s is back in print in this new edition that includes an afterword on the author's last 15 years of adventures. As soon as she graduated from high school, Pamela Des Barres headed for the Sunset Strip, where she knocked on rock stars' backstage doors and immersed herself in the dru More...
The stylish, exuberant, and remarkably sweet confession of one of the most famous groupies of the 1960s and 70s is back in print in this new edition that includes an afterword on the author's last 15 years of adventures. As soon as she graduated from high school, Pamela Des Barres headed for the Sunset Strip, where she knocked on rock stars' backstage doors and immersed herself in the dru More...
Jul 16, 2007
Kerstin
rated it:
This was my bible for a long time. Despite how it is marketed, it is less name-dropping, gossipy chick lit and more the unapologetic, heartfelt diary of one teenaged girl's sexual awakening. Granted, this particular teenaged girl happened to find herself in circumstances vastly favorable to your run-of-the-mill, zitty-boy-next-door scenarios during said awakening, but still--it's a thoroughly engaging, lovely story. Involving penii of famous dudes.
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Aug 29, 2010
Darren
rated it:
After reading a music industry book and then Ozzy Osbourne's autobiography, I fancied something a bit more focussed on the halcyon days of the 60s and 70s LA rock scene. This is certainly that, with the author charting her days as a young teen obsessed with the Beatles through to her numerous rock star liaisons and ultimately her marriage to rocker-turned-actor Michael Des Barres. Once upon a time this was viewed as quite a controversial book, but these days it just seems rather quaint in many r
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Aug 16, 2010
Chantel
rated it:
"Miss Pamela" attached herself to absolutely anyone on the rock scene, so there is some good gossip here. She brags about her sexual exploits with Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, Jim Morrison, Mick Jagger, among many, many, many others. The narrative is interwoven with excerpts from her diary, the parts of the book I found it hardest to read. In them she just seems like such an insecure, immature idiot. Absolutely anything a musician would do, no matter how disgusting, degrading or idiotic,
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Jul 31, 2011
Kerrie
rated it:
Vicarious thrills and spills abound!
A wonderful contemporary account, very easy to relate to and compelling - because it perfectly straddles the roles of both the fan and the insider. The memoir is amusing, a little trashy and feels stream-of-consciousness-y at times, all of which nicely reflect the crazy times hanging with Captain Beefheart, Love, Led Zep, The Doors, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Stones, Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention...
Des Barres is into he More...
A wonderful contemporary account, very easy to relate to and compelling - because it perfectly straddles the roles of both the fan and the insider. The memoir is amusing, a little trashy and feels stream-of-consciousness-y at times, all of which nicely reflect the crazy times hanging with Captain Beefheart, Love, Led Zep, The Doors, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Stones, Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention...
Des Barres is into he More...
Dec 04, 2009
Cindy
rated it:
If you enjoy reading about sex, drugs and rock & roll, then this book will be to your liking. It's what I consider a "guilty pleasure" read - complete brain candy - filling, but with no lasting nourishing value. I occasionally like gossipy books about celebrities, as well as rock stars and this has both of each. I read it some years ago, but from what I remember there is a lot about Mick Jagger, Keith Moon and even more of Jimmy Page of the late 60's and early 70's. Free sex and love w
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Sep 03, 2011
Birgit
rated it:
ok, my first review on goodreads... and I sure picked an easy-to-read book for this :D
So the book is about Pamela Des Barres, self-proclaimed "Queen of the Groupies" and you know what the people say about groupies: they run from rockstar to rockstar looking for some bedroom action. Groupie books are my secret reading pleasure..not because of the sometimes detailed actions from the bedrooms of the rock gods. I enjoy them , and especially enjoyed this one, because you can get a ver More...
So the book is about Pamela Des Barres, self-proclaimed "Queen of the Groupies" and you know what the people say about groupies: they run from rockstar to rockstar looking for some bedroom action. Groupie books are my secret reading pleasure..not because of the sometimes detailed actions from the bedrooms of the rock gods. I enjoy them , and especially enjoyed this one, because you can get a ver More...
Jan 05, 2012
Mia
rated it:
I think I enjoyed this so much because I learned a lot about my family from this book - both how they used to be and how they could have been. My mom was part of Miss Pamela's circle and Miss Sandra (of the GTOs) was my aunt; my cousin was born in Frank Zappa's basement. It was fun hearing fuller versions of stories that had been hinted at and giggled about for years (Cynthia Plaster Caster!) around our house. It also was sweet to see what happened to "the others" who didn't settle dow
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Feb 14, 2011
Mariah
rated it:
Meh. It's really horrible, yet I keep reading it. If you ever used the phrase, "My fave mag" in your youth, or dotted your "i"s with little hearts, you might appreciate this. Perhaps I am just too young to appreciate why she is considered to be this groundbreaking, inspirational woman, but I'm missing it. It reads like an 18 year old girl's diary, because it is, it just happens that she is crushing out on Mick Jagger and Jimmy Page. Each guy she falls for is the epitome o
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Jan 09, 2011
meg
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This was awesome:
These are the first words I recall him [Gram Parsons] speaking to me: As he leaned over his pile of records, and put on an old George Jones album, a tear fell from his eye, and he spoke, "This is George Jones, the king of broken hearts." Imagine crying over a hillbilly with a crew-cut. Gram was on a battlefield to cross country over to rock and vice-versa, unfortunately "Okie from Muskogee" ruled the Palomino juke-box, and although Gram was rich through More...
These are the first words I recall him [Gram Parsons] speaking to me: As he leaned over his pile of records, and put on an old George Jones album, a tear fell from his eye, and he spoke, "This is George Jones, the king of broken hearts." Imagine crying over a hillbilly with a crew-cut. Gram was on a battlefield to cross country over to rock and vice-versa, unfortunately "Okie from Muskogee" ruled the Palomino juke-box, and although Gram was rich through More...
Apr 07, 2011
Brittles
rated it:
I loved the cover of this book! People started conversations on airplanes and buses. I really liked her choice of integrating narrative with personal journal. I am an avid journaler myself and thought it was so funny when she was in the back of Jimmy Pages limo and she wrote, "Oh here he comes now!" like she was just sitting around in the back of the car, writing and waiting for him to run some errand.
On a deeper level, this book is about giving love. While I read this book I More...
On a deeper level, this book is about giving love. While I read this book I More...
