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Best Non Fiction About Music
Best non-fiction about music: biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, histories...
Tags: biography, history, music, and non-fiction

4
Chronicles: Volume One
Chronicles: Volume One
by Bob Dylan 11 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
5
Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung: The Work of a Legendary Critic: Rock'N'Roll as Literature and Literature as Rock 'N'Roll
Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung: The Wo...
by Lester Bangs 11 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
6
Shakey: Neil Young's Biography
Shakey: Neil Young's Biography
by Jimmy Mcdonough 11 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
7
Songbook
Songbook
by Nick Hornby 10 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
8
Let it Blurt: The Life and Times of Lester Bangs, America's Greatest Rock Critic
Let it Blurt: The Life and Times of Lester Bang...
by Jim Derogatis 10 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
10
Lipstick Traces: A Secret History of the Twentieth Century
Lipstick Traces: A Secret History of the Twenti...
by Greil Marcus 8 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
11
Redemption Song: The Ballad of Joe Strummer
Redemption Song: The Ballad of Joe Strummer
by Chris Salewicz 8 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
12
The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century
The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth C...
by Alex Ross 7 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
14
Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain
Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain
by Oliver W. Sacks 7 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
17
The Beatles: The Biography
The Beatles: The Biography
by Bob Spitz 7 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
19
Rip It Up and Start Again
Rip It Up and Start Again
by Simon Reynolds 6 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
20
Rotten: No Irish, No Blacks, No Dogs
Rotten: No Irish, No Blacks, No Dogs
by John Lydon 6 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
21
Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley
Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley
by Peter Guralnick 5 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
22
Bound for Glory
Bound for Glory
by Woody Guthrie 5 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
23
Heavier Than Heaven : A Biography of Kurt Cobain
Heavier Than Heaven : A Biography of Kurt Cobain
by Charles R. Cross 5 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
24
England's Dreaming: Anarchy, Sex Pistols, Punk Rock, and Beyond
England's Dreaming: Anarchy, Sex Pistols, Punk ...
by Jon Savage 5 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
25
The Replacements: All Over But the Shouting: An Oral History
The Replacements: All Over But the Shouting: An...
by Jim Walsh 5 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
26
Cash: The Autobiography
Cash: The Autobiography
by Johnny Cash 4 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
26
The Beatles Anthology
The Beatles Anthology
by George Harrison, Paul McCartney 4 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
28
Faithfull
Faithfull
by Marianne Faithfull, David Dalton 4 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
29
Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley
Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley
by Peter Guralnick 4 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
30
Dino: Living High in the Dirty Business of Dreams
Dino: Living High in the Dirty Business of Dreams
by Nick Tosches 4 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
31
The Art of Practicing: A Guide to Making Music from the Heart
The Art of Practicing: A Guide to Making Music ...
by Madeline Bruser 3 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
32
Positively 4th Street: The Lives and Times of Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Mimi Baez Farina and Richard Farina
Positively 4th Street: The Lives and Times of J...
by David Hajdu 3 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
32
'Scuse Me While I Kiss This Guy and Other Misheard Lyrics
'Scuse Me While I Kiss This Guy and Other Mishe...
by Gavin Edwards 3 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
34
Love, Janis
Love, Janis
by Laura Joplin 3 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
35
Where Dead Voices Gather
Where Dead Voices Gather
by Nick Tosches 3 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
36
Five against One
Five against One
by Kim Neely 3 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
37
White Line Fever: The Autobiography: The Autobiography
White Line Fever: The Autobiography: The Autobi...
by Lemmy Kilmister, Janiss Garza (Goodreads author) 3 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
37
Britpop!: Cool Britannia and the Spectacular Demise of English Rock
Britpop!: Cool Britannia and the Spectacular De...
by John Harris 3 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
39
Laurel Canyon: The Inside Story of Rock-and-Roll's Legendary Neighborhood
Laurel Canyon: The Inside Story of Rock-and-Rol...
by Michael Walker 3 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
40
I Lived to Tell It All
I Lived to Tell It All
by George Jones 3 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
41
U2: At the End of the World
U2: At the End of the World
by Bill Flanagan 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
42
Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon--And the Journey of a Generation
Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carl...
by Sheila Weller 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
42
Deep Blues: A Musical and Cultural History of the Mississippi Delta
Deep Blues: A Musical and Cultural History of t...
by Robert Palmer 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
44
Miles
Miles
by Miles Davis 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
44
A Change Is Gonna Come: Music, Race & the Soul of America
A Change Is Gonna Come: Music, Race & the S...
by Craig Werner 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
46
To Be, or Not ... to Bop : Memoirs
To Be, or Not ... to Bop : Memoirs
by Dizzy Gillespie 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
47
Sweet Soul Music: Rhythm and Blues and the Southern Dream of Freedom
Sweet Soul Music: Rhythm and Blues and the Sout...
by Peter Guralnick 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
47
Guns, Cash and Rock 'n' Roll
Guns, Cash and Rock 'n' Roll
by Steve Overbury 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
49
Rhythm and the Blues: A Life in American Music
Rhythm and the Blues: A Life in American Music
by Jerry Wexler, David Ritz 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
51
White Bicycles: Making Music in the 1960s
White Bicycles: Making Music in the 1960s
by Joe Boyd 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
52
From the Velvets to the Voidoids: A Pre-Punk History for a Post-Punk World
From the Velvets to the Voidoids: A Pre-Punk Hi...
by Clinton Heylin 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
52
Transformer: The Lou Reed Story
Transformer: The Lou Reed Story
by Victor Bockris 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
54
Unsung Heroes of Rock 'N' Roll: The Birth of Rock in the Wild Years Before Elvis
Unsung Heroes of Rock 'N' Roll: The Birth of Ro...
by Nick Tosches 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
55
Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades Revisited
Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades Revisited
by Clinton Heylin 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
55
Pearl Jam: Place/Date
Pearl Jam: Place/Date
by Lance Mercer 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
57
Joy Division: Piece by Piece
Joy Division: Piece by Piece
by Paul Morley 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
59
Pearl Jam Vs Ames Bros
Pearl Jam Vs Ames Bros
by Ames Bros. 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
60
Most People I Know
Most People I Know
by Billy Thorpe 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
61
I'm With the Band: Confessions of a Groupie
I'm With the Band: Confessions of a Groupie
by Pamela Des Barres 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
63
It Came From Memphis
It Came From Memphis
by Robert Gordon 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
64
Riders on the Storm: My Life with Jim Morrison and the Doors
Riders on the Storm: My Life with Jim Morrison ...
by John Densmore 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
64
Japrocksampler: How the Post-war Japanese Blew Their Minds on Rock 'n' Roll
Japrocksampler: How the Post-war Japanese Blew ...
by Julian Cope 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
67
The Sell-in
The Sell-in
by Craig Mathieson 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
68
Dark Horse: The Life and Art of George Harrison
Dark Horse: The Life and Art of George Harrison
by Geoffrey Giuliano 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
69
No One Here Gets Out Alive
No One Here Gets Out Alive
by Daniel Sugerman, Jerry Hopkins 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
70
Lost in the Grooves: Scram's Capricious Guide to the Music You Missed
Lost in the Grooves: Scram's Capricious Guide t...
by David Smay 2 people voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
The Sound of the City: The Rise of Rock and Roll
The Sound of the City: The Rise of Rock and Roll
by Charlie Gillett 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
Hotel California: The True-life Adventures of Crosby, Stills, Nash, Young, Mitchell, Taylor, Browne, Ronstadt, Geffen, the Eagles, and Their Many Friends
Hotel California: The True-life Adventures of C...
by Barney Hoskyns 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
Marillion/Separated Out: The Complete History 1979-2002
Marillion/Separated Out: The Complete History 1...
by Jon Collins 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
The 27s: The Greatest Myth of Rock & Roll
The 27s: The Greatest Myth of Rock & Roll
by Eric Segalstad (Goodreads author), Josh Hunter (Illustrator) 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
Every Little Thing Gonna Be Alright: The Bob Marley Reader
Every Little Thing Gonna Be Alright: The Bob Ma...
by Hank Bordowitz 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
Once upon a Nightwish: The Official Biography 1996-2006
Once upon a Nightwish: The Official Biography 1...
by Mape Ollila 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
You Can't Always Get What You Want
You Can't Always Get What You Want
by Sam Cutler 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
Remembering Bix: A Memoir Of The Jazz Age
Remembering Bix: A Memoir Of The Jazz Age
by Ralph Berton 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
The Score: Interviews with Film Composers
The Score: Interviews with Film Composers
by Michael Schelle 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
Can't Buy Me Love: The Beatles, Britain, and America
Can't Buy Me Love: The Beatles, Britain, and Am...
by Jonathan Gould 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
Clapton: The Autobiography
Clapton: The Autobiography
by Eric Clapton 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
71
A Drink with Shane MacGowan
A Drink with Shane MacGowan
by Shane MacGowan 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
84
Hellfire: The Jerry Lee Lewis Story
Hellfire: The Jerry Lee Lewis Story
by Nick Tosches 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
84
The Inner Game of Music
The Inner Game of Music
by Barry Green, W. Timothy Gallwey 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
84
Jim Morrison: Life, Death, Legend
Jim Morrison: Life, Death, Legend
by Stephen Davis 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
84
Rock Albums of the '70s: A Critical Guide
Rock Albums of the '70s: A Critical Guide
by Robert Christgau 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
84
One Nation Under a Groove: Motown and American Culture
One Nation Under a Groove: Motown and American ...
by Gerald Early 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
84
I Me Mine
I Me Mine
by George Harrison 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
84
Dance of the Infidels: A Portrait of Bud Powell
Dance of the Infidels: A Portrait of Bud Powell
by Francis Paudras 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
84
Head On/Repossessed
Head On/Repossessed
by Julian Cope 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
94
Improvisation: Its Nature and Practice in Music
Improvisation: Its Nature and Practice in Music
by Derek Bailey 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
94
Turn the Beat Around: The Secret History of Disco
Turn the Beat Around: The Secret History of Disco
by Peter Shapiro 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
94
The Jazz Tradition
The Jazz Tradition
by Martin Williams 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
94
Storms: My Life with Lindsey Buckingham and Fleetwood Mac
Storms: My Life with Lindsey Buckingham and Fle...
by Carol Ann Harris 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
94
Scars of Sweet Paradise: The Life and Times of Janis Joplin
Scars of Sweet Paradise: The Life and Times of ...
by Alice Echols 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
94
Bird Lives!: The High Life and Hard Times of Charlie (Yardbird) Parker
Bird Lives!: The High Life and Hard Times of Ch...
by Ross Russell 1 person voted »
didn't like itit was okliked itreally liked itit was amazing
List started by: Sarah Pi (votes)
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comments (showing 1-1 of 1) (1 new)

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message 1: by Jerry (new)

1272576 Unfortunately, I can not vote for any of the selections, having read none of them. The closest experience I have is reading (and re-reading) "I Me Mine", a collection of interviews, conversations, and memories, of and by George Harrison. This collection, which includes lyrics and discussions, gives insight into the spirit that moved within George, and helps explain his enormous impact upon me and countless others. I highly recommend this collection.


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