I didn’t read this book because I’m a Crüe fan(because I'm not), I read it because I like Rock Stars…and I do have a thing for Nikki Sixx. But let’s j...moreI didn’t read this book because I’m a Crüe fan(because I'm not), I read it because I like Rock Stars…and I do have a thing for Nikki Sixx. But let’s just say his best sides aren’t showing in this book, instead I found myself most sympathetic towards Tommy Lee. Huh, so did not expect that.
Now I have to say I haven’t listened to much Mötley Crüe in my days, and I know far too little about the band to have anything to compare the content of this book against. But here’s what I learned from The Dirt:
1. Women are crazy. 2. You can get away with anything as a celebrity (except crimes against other celebrities…especially not if they’re women). 3. Record companies are ruthless greedy bastards, and they are willing to put up with a lot of shit as long as they’re making money from you. 4. Women are crazy. 5. Mötley Crüe is built very little on their music and very much on their insane live shows and personal circuses. 6. Women are crazy. 7. Rock Stars have more lives than cats. 8. Women are crazy. 9. Every Rock Biography will contain crazy tales about Ozzy Osbourne. 10. Women are crazy.
Biographies are tricky to form a clear opinion on.
You can’t really say anything about the plot, because it’s about people’s lives and there are only so many ways you can mold that material. I definitely don’t assume that everything written in biographies, or autobiographies like this one, is true. There’s always personal bias and flawed recollection in play; also, given how sloshed and strung out these guys have been for most of their lives it’s doubtful that they can recall all these stories as they happened, and definitely not in this much detail. But that’s part of the charm; and also a part of how history is written – as the people behind the story wants it to be remembered.
What you can have an opinion on is the editing, and boy does this one reek of Neil Strauss’ influence! In general I guess they’ve done the best they could with the material they wanted to put forth, but in my opinion this book lacks heart. Mostly it was just a brief look into their upbringings and their shortcomings as a band. They don’t really dwell on the good stuff. And they don’t really make it seem like they were ever all that happy during their lives. And I do have to say…the book gets a little depressing and long winded after a while.
In my opinion there was too much explaining, and telling, and talking about lessons learned in this book for me to ever really feel anything. There was too much detail, too many people, and I guess too much of the same things over and over again for me to enjoy reading this. I do love getting an insight into Musicians’ real lives…but the things they shared here weren’t really all that interesting. Yes, they were the coolest kids in town. Yes they had rough upbringings and crosses to bear all their lives. Yes they did a lot of drugs and banged a lot of chicks and did a lot of stupid stuff. Is anyone surprised by that? What I did love to read about was Tommy and his desperate search for love in all things female. Vince and Nikki’s love and devotion for their kids. Mick’s battle with his illness. The PERSONAL stuff. And I guess I would have wanted to know more about that…but maybe that’s just me.
Also, I think because they held themselves so separate from their past selves when they retold the story of their band it felt very impersonal; like they weren’t even talking about themselves most of the time. The one chapter where I actually felt something while reading was the story of Vince and his daughter Skylar; now that was maybe not so surprising given what a sad story it was, but there’s so much that happened in these guys' lives that should have provoked some sort of emotion from me, I’m a hardcore sap, but this was the one time where despite the many completely baring stories in this book the narrative got the least bit personal...and I blame this mostly on Mr. Strauss and his vernacular.
The general view of women was also something about the book that I found fascinating. There are women in many different shapes in this book. Mothers (bad and good), teachers (lusted after), girlfriends (crazy, trashy, prude, gold-diggers, junkies, violent maniacs, and current girlfriends/wives), rented girls (toys), groupies (used, abused, violated, humiliated, turned girlfriends, clinically insane, commodities, entertainment), corporate executives (cunts), other men’s girlfriends (cheaters, gold-diggers) …etc. And the only thing they have in common is that they all are crazy, because the worse the guys behave the more attentive/attracted/devoted/interested they become…unless they’re abusive and violent themselves, in which case they’re just crazy. This message seeped out in every chapter and section of the book. I don’t even know what to say about that…
In the end I guess what makes me the saddest is that this book makes me feel relieved that I'm not primarily a Cruë fan, because after reading page after page about how little time and energy they put into most of their songs and albums I think it would have broken my heart if I had been.
Also, the happy ending part was a little awkward to read when you know that things have changed a lot since the publishing of this book. At least in Nikki’s life (which is the only one of these guys I knew anything about before reading this…well except for the Tommy and Pamela story). But that’s the thing, lives unlike books don’t have fixed endings…and that’s why it’s sometimes so awkward to read about the learned lessons and the mistakes that will never be repeated because…duh, you don’t know that for sure.
I’ll file this book under interesting tidbits about celebrities, but I won’t read the book again. I might have to pick up Tommyland one day though…(less)
This wasn’t what I expected to find when I picked this book. I expected a story based on a real life experience…what it turned out to be was a collect...moreThis wasn’t what I expected to find when I picked this book. I expected a story based on a real life experience…what it turned out to be was a collection of anecdotes from a life, tied together loosely through a vaguely chronological perspective and a bunch of generously worded descriptions of people, emotions and locations.
The narrative is personal and from the foreword we learn that it is indeed an autobiographical story. The author also lets us know that he was an addict while he wrote this book, and I don’t know if that has anything to do with it, but the book is sometimes very hard to keep up with as it skips from one subject to another without any notice. The descriptions, which are plentiful, are sometimes overly lengthy and tiresome to read, but the next minute they are fascinating and lively, showing the author’s very unique literary qualities. At best I’d say the book is very uneven, but sometimes it feels a bit like it’s just a bunch of random written clippings glued together haphazardly.
At times it was interesting to read. It was a very vivid view into an adolescent’s mind, where childishness meddled together with adult desires and fantasies. The way the protagonist is described to be almost playacting his way through life, performing as if his every move was cinematized, was particularly fun to read. The way he also painted colorful images in his mind about people he met just by noticing their appearance and body language was sometimes fascinating, but sometimes far too lengthy. It was also somewhat disturbing to read at times; especially the detailed descriptions of physical intimacy between young kids and the very early oedipal sexualisation of the author’s relationship with his father. Sometimes it felt very much like the author was trying to bring forth a great deal of ‘shock value’.
What frustrated me the most about this book was that it never seemed to get anywhere. There was no discernible plot (not so strange given that it is a biography), but in lack of that I would have hoped for at least some sort of framework to keep all the images and anecdotes together. Right now the text feels like it could have been stripped from a diary with just a bunch of added details and descriptive sections. I wasn’t grabbed by this at all.
I don’t think I will be reading the two sequels to this book. I wasn’t gripped by the story and can’t really summon up any curiosity as for what happens next in the author’s life. (less)
Goes straight to the heart! I'm a Californication-era Red Hot Chili Peppers fan, so it was of course a must for me to read. I never thought I would be...moreGoes straight to the heart! I'm a Californication-era Red Hot Chili Peppers fan, so it was of course a must for me to read. I never thought I would be so touched by Anthony's story though, a book I will carry with me in my heart forever!(less)
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