Worst Rock & Roll Records

The first time I got this book out of the library, I thought it was going to be dry and dull. It was anything but. Just within the space of the introduction, I was laughing out loud. I continued to do so during almost every chapter and review. Now, they hit some of my favorites as well as some clear and obvious duds. One of the things specifically pointed out by the authors is that not everyone agrees on what constitutes good taste to begin with. Also, it would be too easy to go to the other extreme and just buy every dog-eared used album with bizarre pictures on the cover. So if you're going to view the book with constant pique and say, "They can't hit this, it's sacred," you may need to take a step back. It's all in jest. At the end of the day, you still retain your auditory freedom, so no harm done. Take everything with a grain of salt, and have a good time. The authors sometimes find it more interesting to discuss a misstep by, say, Bob Dylan, rather than a release you know is going to stink because the artist never had much talent to begin with. Talking about boy band records is like shooting fish in a barrel. Far more helpful to take a look at why someone with real skill makes the occasional "What were they thinking?" gaffe, then gets back on track. The writing is very clever and features plenty of anecdotes. You'll learn about the recording process, the atmosphere of the times, and a lot more than just, "Oh, this stinks." It's well-informed. Both authors have years of experience in music writing. Guterman and O'Donnell also cover a wide variety of genres, from classic rock to funk to pop to tv themes, and they move from singles to albums to Christmas tunes and beyond. There is so much information, you can sit down and read the book throroughly like a novel, or flip through it now and then whenever you are looking for some trivia with which to stump your friends. So, be a good sport and pick up this book. It is essential for anyone who loves music and good comedy.

I had something else in mind when I began to write this, but then I thought, "Why not just provide samples from this book and let it speak for itself?" (Whether or not you agree with any of the following, this book digs deeply and is also tremendously entertaining.) Samples from the list of the Fifty Worst Rock-and-Roll Singles of All Time: Jack and Diane, by John Cougar; The Horizontal Bop, by Bob Seger; Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?, by Rod Stewart; Wonderful Tonight, by Eric Clapton; You Can't Hurry Love, by Phil Collins; All by Myself, by Eric Carmen; Love the One You're With, by Stephen Stills; Back in the U.S.A., by Linda Ronstadt; and My Ding-a-Ling, by Chuck Berry. Samples from the list of the Fifty Worst Rock-and-Roll Albums of All Time: Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band: The Original Soundtrack to the Motion Picture, by Various Performers; History/America's Greatest Hits, by America; The Return of Bruno, by Bruce Willis; Live, by Iron Butterfly; 70's Hits: Great Records of the Decade - The Original Recordings, Vol. 1, by Various Performers (one atrocity followed by another atrocity, including You Light Up my Life by Debbie Boone, Kiss You All Over by Exile, The Candy Man by Sammy Davis Jr., and Daddy Don't You Walk So Fast by Wayne Newton); Travolta Fever, by John Travolta; Alive She Cried, by The Doors; Chicago at Carnegie Hall, by Chicago; American Dream, by Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young; and Self-Portrait, by Bob Dylan. Let me leave you with this. This book contains more than just "record reviews." It's more along the lines of art criticism. It contains a vision of what rock 'n' roll could be and should be and explains very meticulously how the records that are scrutinized miss the mark by many, many miles. This book contains aesthetic standards, philosophy, politics. This book is about...life. And not to mention that it also includes some major belly laughs (yes, it's about life, but they manage to keeps things loose).

I've owned this book for a long time, and it's brilliant. The commentary is dead-on (at last, someone else thinks Billy Joel is HORRIBLY over-rated)...It pulls no punches, I love it. It also itroduced me to the wonderful world of the Shaggs. I can't say enough about it, so I'll stop. Just buy it.

I've owned this book for a long time, and it's brilliant. The commentary is dead-on (at last, someone else thinks Billy Joel is HORRIBLY over-rated). It also explains WHY great artists such as David Bowie and Paul McCartney have put out so much [junk]. It pulls no punches, I love it. It also itroduced me to the wonderful world of the Shaggs. I can't say enough about it, so I'll stop. Just buy it.

This extremely funny book mocks much of the sacred cows of rock music, and allows you to realize how pretentious and inmature most of rock music is. I especially love the authors attacks on such pretentious overrated bands of the seventies such as Yes, Queen, Jethro Tull, etc. A good antidote to the policy of magazines such as Rolling Stone of taking rock musicians terribly seriously.