We Are the Road Crew, Vol. 1

by Ken Barr

Starting in 1978 and ending in 2000, I worked in the music indusrty as a technician. My journey started in the bars and rock clubs on Long Island, New york, and eventually took me to arenas and stadiums around the world working for KISS, Alice Cooper, Stone Temple Pilots, and many other groups. This is my story. From club gigs after school as a teenager, to concerts on every continent on the planet. I've been there and back, and survived to tell the story. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed living it.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Memoir

230 pages, Paperback

First published July 4, 2009

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Would have benefited greatly from editing; the lack of possessive apostrophes in particular distracted me, especially coupled with instances of apostrophes where they did not belong (for instance, "on it's own"). It was also frustrating when the author would allude to things he wasn't writing about. "South America back in the eighties was a wild place. There is a lot I would like to talk about, but I don't think this book is the right place." Really? A book about your experiences traveling with bands is not the right place to share stories from those travels? Or this: "There were things that happened at the last show that I think we all could have done without. I don't think it merits details, just to let you know the road isn't all sunshine and roses." I don't get it. Either tell us or don't, but "vaguebooking" is just annoying. Even the stories that were told didn't have enough detail for me--I want to know what was in the author's workbox, and what the reasoning is behind the advice on which side of the bus to grab a bunk on--yet I got way too much detail on the two gross poop stories that were included.

[Darth · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I first started reading, the stories were interesting but then they became repetitive because of the nature of the job. There were a few memorable stories that stood out, including the sweat rain story and pub with the shoe basket in the ceiling.

The author's writing style is very straight forward, like he's telling stories at a party.

One thing I liked about this book is there's no negativity. He didn't burn any bridges with this memoir.

[G.L. Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Don't read this expecting literature. Read it if you want an insight into life on the road. Yes, it could use good editing, but I'm pretty sure that's not the point. It's a roadie's memoir. Go in with that expectation, and you'll have fun with this book. It's a quick and easy read.

[Joe Vitucci · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very interesting if your into this kind of thing. I enjoyed the descriptions of the work they do, the bands, the tour, the antics, very interesting stuff. Nice job.

[Cory Seymour · Rating 1 out of 5]

Really no point to reading this unless you know the author and were involved with his job. It's like hearing someone's stories from high school.

[Debra Barstad · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book. It was about a guy who traveled with different rock bands as a part of their crew that set up the shows. would recommend.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book could benefit from a bit of editing, but overall it was an enjoyable read. As a rock & roll geek, it's neat to hear about some of the behind-the-scenes events/shenanigans that make up a tour. It's also interesting to see some of the slightly more obscure bands I've listened to being referenced in this book.

[Michael Gauggel]

the tale of a simpleton who stumbles upon a career

in the last couple pages he tells us that he left out the dirt intentionally..... you know a book is bad when you start to notice the spelling and grammar errors which it is full of.... the tour and drinking stories are boring