Straight Whisky

I've read the great books about rock & roll of recent years ("The Dirt," "No One Here Gets Out Alive," Old Gods Almost Dead," etc.) and this book ranks right up there with the best. Compelling all the way through, often very funny, and full of facts I didn't know about the history of rock in Los Angeles. Highly recommended.

I found this book to be a great read. It's got lots of wild stories about some of my favorite rock stars, and a ton of interesting historical facts. I went to the Whisky one time and always wanted to know what kind of crazy things happened there over the years. This book answered all my questions in a very readable, entertaining style. If you enjoy reading about sex, drugs and rock and roll, this book is absolutely for you.

I think anyone interested in this portion of American culture will enjoy this book. A great gift for any rock n roll fan.

I read this book cover-to-cover in just a few days, and there isn't a dull page in it. Whether you're a serious rock and roll historian or just love hearing the kind of insane tales they tell on VH-1's "Behind the Music,"(except totally uncensored here) then this book is for you."Straight Whisky" goes inside the most legendary rock clubs on L.A.'s Sunset Strip: the Whisky, the Roxy and the Rainbow. It's packed with juicy stories, and the authors aren't afraid to treat the subject matter with as much creative energy as the musicians they are writing about. I guess some critics have had a problem with this inventive approach, but I thought it made the book that much cooler. I mean, this isn't a doctoral dissertation on world hunger--it's a book about rock stars getting loaded, getting laid, and making history. The stories are just amazing: Jim Morrison pulling a date-rape move on Janis Joplin and getting a bottle broken over his head in return. . . Roger Daltrey enjoying a backstage mini-orgy with the Plastercasters. . . Led Zeppelin absolutely ripping it up in Rainbow Bar and Grill. . . David Bowie getting brutally assaulted by an obsessed fan who happened to be a black belt. . . the Germs causing a riot at the Whisky and setting the stage on fire. . . One wild story after another, told in an intense narrative style. Plus there's a great amount of interesting information about the clubs and how they affected the history of rock and roll in America. Overall, a great read, highly entertaining and informative. With 32 pages of killer photos, almost none of which I've seen before, "Straight Whisky" totally delivers the goods. Read it.

It's the music of course, live and on my headphones, but it's also the scene and the lifestyle and the stories. Straight Whiskey captures what's gone on "behind the music," back in the dressing room, out in the street and even under the tables at the coolest rock clubs of all time. (Guys, the next time G & R's school bus comes to town, try to get a good seat!) Reading this book, I learned a lot and laughed more than I have since I read the great Motley Crue memoir The Dirt, which this book reminded me of. Made me want to go to L.A. and try again to ride my axe to glory, or at least a really good time. I'm old and (mostly) straight now so the best I can do to imagine what it's really like--and why I love it--is it put on No Sleep At All, [open] a Bud and re-read my favorite chapters of this great book.