Bye Bye Baby: My Tragic Love Affair with The Bay City Rollers

by Caroline Sullivan

Funny, poignant, and totally original--this story of one girl's love affair with the Bay City Rollers is a brilliant portrait of an era.

'I loved them desperately. For four years I lived for them. It's not a pretty story.'

Bye, Bye Baby is the true tale of a passionate obsession with possibly the most untalented bunch of musicians in the history of rock and roll. Even in their heyday, Leslie, Eric, Woody, Alan, and Derek of the Bay City Rollers were hideously uncool among everyone but fourteen-year-old girls. Their tartan knickerbockers and striped socks were sneered at, while their feeble teenybopper music was ridiculed.

And yet for Caroline Sullivan, a teenager in suburban New Jersey, these pasty-faced Scottish youths ruled her heart. Over four hot summers from 1975 to 1979, Sullivan and her band of lust-crazed friends, the Tacky Tartan Tarts, crisscrossed the United States in the Rollers' wake, staking out airports and hotels, tricking airline clerks and wheedling information out of bodyguards and PR companies-all in pursuit of that one big night.

Bye Bye Baby is a confessional memoir that invites the reader into some of Sullivan's most excruciatingly embarrassing moments. More than just an uproarious tale of teenage passion and teen-adulation, it is also an inspired exploration of the intimate bonds that tie teenage girls.

Genres: Music, Biography, Nonfiction, Memoir, Biography Memoir

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

I'm not the Caroline Sullivan who writes poetry - I'm the other one, who's published six books: Bye Bye Baby: My Tragic Love Affair with the Bay City Rollers; Madonna: Ambition. Music. Style.; Ed Sheeran: Writing Out Loud; Adele: The Other Side; Dua Lipa: The Unauthorized Biography (bit of a dull title, apologies) and the Sunday Times bestseller Taylor: Era by Era.

Hmm. Goodreads apparently thinks that I haven't set up an account, and it's commanding me to do so.

I've been trying to write a little plug recommending the book I'm currently reading, Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch, but it keeps saying that I haven't got an account. Sigh.

Reviews

[Nigeyb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who'd have thought that the Bay City Rollers could provide sufficient material for two compelling books?

'Bye Bye Baby' is a frank, enjoyable memoir about Caroline Sullivan's teenage obsession with the Bay City Rollers. Obsession is not an understatement: Caroline and the Tacky Tartan Tarts, who were a small group of similarly obsessed older teenagers and young adults, trailed the group across America, following their cars, booking into their hotels, endlessly discussing them, making scrapbooks, and trying to sleep with them.

The oh-so fleeting nature of the Rollers' fame gives the book added poignancy. When Caroline is initially attracted to the group, they are having hits and playing fairly large venues, over the next few years their star quickly wanes and they end up playing the sorts of theme parks depicted so memorably in Spinal Tap. As the group's success declines some of them actually start to welcome the attention of their hardcore fans and so the Tacky Tartan Tarts get to hang out with the band. These weird and awkward encounters are particularly compelling. Caroline even has a few brief sexual encounters with "her Roller" who she never actually names (though through a process of elimination it's not too difficult to work out who it probably is).

The other story is Caroline's own. Caroline grew up outside New York but starts visiting the city to see bands quite young (even seeing Led Zeppelin prior to her Rollers obsession) and soon moves there with a friend and would-be boyfriend (called David whose generosity and devotion she abuses mercilessly) whilst working in various low paid, short term jobs. This aspect of the book, specifically Caroline's own transition into greater maturity, and how this dovetails with her feelings for the Rollers, is as compelling as her insights into fandom and a teeny bop band in decline.

The book concludes with a couple of brilliant codas. Caroline, many years later and now an established UK based music journalist, meets both Les McKeown and "her roller" as a mature adult, with a very different power dynamic.

I recently read 'When the Screaming Stops: The Dark History of the Bay City Rollers', which I really enjoyed and have reviewed separately, and it was through that book that I discovered this one. 'Bye Bye Baby' is a brilliant companion read to 'When the Screaming Stops: The Dark History of the Bay City Rollers'. Who'd have thought that the Bay City Rollers could provide sufficient material for two such compelling books?

[eRin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Caroline Sullivan was obsessed. Sadly, her obsession was with the Bay City Rollers and it lasted four long years. Tortured by her love for the band (and their dismissal of her), she eagerly collects clippings (and on at least one occasion, a discarded cigarette butt), follows them on tour, and stalkishly hunts for information regarding their whereabouts. The Rollers provide high highs and even lower lows for Sullivan and her friends (they call themselves the Tacky Tartan Tarts), but they can't get enough. This memoir will make anyone who's ever been a fan cringe in recognition (even those with less embarrassing taste in music).

I've been dying to read this book ever since I discovered that it existed a couple of months ago. Of course my library didn't have it, and I had to wait and wait for it from PS. When it was finally granted to me and arrived in my mailbox, I immediately dropped Stiff (which says a lot since I was *loving* that book) and picked this up. I wasn't disappointed. I have been cursed with horrible taste in music in my own life (something I wholeheartedly admit to), and this could very well have been me if only the timing was right. I, too, was obsessed with an embarrassing act--New Kids on the Block. While it's not embarrassing anymore since they've reunited (seen them twice on the reunion tour!), I was infatuated waaayyyy too long to be considered appropriate. If I had been older than 11-14, I would have been exactly like Sullivan and jumped on the road following them. Alas, I don't think my mom was up for it and had to settle for seeing them three times in local-ish areas. And then we can fast-forward to the last six years in which I have seen my current act of choice (John Mayer, of course--who still isn't considered cool by anyone that I know) no less than fifteen times. In my defense, there are reasons I've seen him so many times, but I won't waste my time or yours since you're still probably in disbelief. Now if this love had started any earlier, I would have been just immature enough to follow the bus (or van, or buses, depending on the point of his career) from venue to hotel to venue again. Thankfully, I have never done that; nor have I waited by the stage door or stalked the bus. I show up in the middle of the opening act, watch the show, and leave without trying to get into the after-party or figure out which hotel he and the band will be staying in. But, like I said, it's all thanks to timing that I haven't. Therefore, I can totally relate to Sullivan and can understand her frustration and emotions (though she got a hell of a lot closer than I ever did with either act). Really enjoyable read.

[Bob Schnell · Rating 4 out of 5]

You don't have to be a fan of the Bay City Rollers to enjoy Caroline Sullivan's "Bye Bye Baby." If you have ever been the "biggest fan" and went so far as to stalk (in a non-threatening way) the object of your adulation then you will enjoy this tale.

[Martinxo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely account of the authors obsession with the Bay City Rollers. I love reading books like this, Sullivan writes well and with compassion.

I was a Roller fan...sigh...but then was saved by Punk Rock, hurrah!

[Sally N. Inglis]

This was a Bookcrossing book.

[Marti · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book made me laugh hysterically. Then again, I am the type who lives for music and has sat in a beanbag chair in somebody else's wood-paneled rec room. You also have to love a book that mentions The Wombles and Drew University within the first 30 pages (though living in London as an expat now, the author is from Millburn, New Jersey). And if this paragraph made no sense to you, you will probably find the whole thing pathetic.

I would almost describe this woman as my evil twin.... except for the fanatical devotion to the Bay City Rollers. And I admit, I might have liked their catchy singles more at the time if they hadn't constantly been hyped as "the next Beatles." (I was inoculated against believing that because I had already seen A Hard Day's Night several times. The real sticking point for me was the ridiculous calf-length tartan elephant flares they wore on stage).

Basically, Sullivan and a group of cohorts whom she met at BCR appearances, followed the band everywhere (chasing their car to their hotel after shows, and even greeting them Beatles-style at JFK airport). Needless to say they became a somewhat familiar sight; but the band did not exactly welcome them with open arms (they were highly noticeable due to the fact that they were in their late teens when the average fan was about eleven).

However, I had to admire their tenacity and detective work as they tirelessly unearthed hotel and flight information by deceiving label/publicists, airline reservationists, and hotel clerks; and racking up large bills doing it. All this while subsisting on Hostess Sno-Balls and Tab. You could not get away with this today.

Although Sullivan openly admits that the BCR were kinda crap after their first two albums, she continued to let her life revolve around them pretty much until 1980. After about 1978 or so the book starts to drag a bit as real life, depression, and anxiety attacks ensue. However, as soon as the band comes back to the United States for yet another attempt at a comeback (recording an album at third rate studio in New Jersey), it became fascinating again in a more cringeworthy way. (You would think by that point, the band would have been happy to have female fans older than eleven...or any fans at all). It's all the more inexplicable because Sullivan was also into all the edgier punk rock coming from Britain in the late '70s.

All this made me wonder if the author had ever seen the movie Spirit of '76. This is almost the literary equivalent in that every fad you remember is name-checked (like "Gee Your Hair Smells Terrific")

[Maggie May · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book in a charity shop, and following the recent death of Les McKeown, plus being a former BCR fan, I read it with a degree of sadness. I didn't find Caroline's exploits of chasing the band all over the place, ransacking their hotel rooms after they'd left, taking used teabags and tissues as souvenirs, amusing at all- it was scary and they were (although benign) stalkers. No wonder the men weren't impressed to see them time after time. It was painfully obvious the men found them ridiculous and only slept with them when there was no-one else around. Caroline was also unnecessarily harsh about their songwriting and performing. They never claimed to be the next Beatles, that was the press at the time. Rest in peace Alan Longmuir and Les McKeown, you made some happy summer tunes that were fantastic to dance to. Bye bye baby indeed.

[Elisabeth Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ouch! Somebody has a giant chip on her shoulder.
This is a memoir; these are her recollections and emotions about being a Bay City Roller's obsessive - obsessive because I don't think she was an actual fan. She comes across as a stalker and a groupie, and as an older 'fan,' decided what true fans were doing was beneath her.
She compares the Rollers to other acts of the day. Acts, she stresses, had talent and taste. Her only attraction to them was their looks and their dateability. Speaking of taste, I cringed at her impression that the series The Prisoner was intolerable.
She does the Rollers a disservice by dissing their writing and performing abilities. A rock reviewer should not compare boy bands of the 90s, etc, to the BCR. Boy bands of the newer generation did not play instruments or write their own songs.
The Rollers fought to get their original songs on albums when the record label and producers wanted them only to do covers of other's songs. The sad fact was that they were always accused of not playing their instruments. They were ripped off by the label and their manager(the less said about him, the better). Eric and Woody finally got back ownership of their songs in the mid-1990s. The band sold 300 million records and 130 million albums. They never saw the money owed them. Royalties were never paid after 1979. In a court case, they were awarded a measly $70,000 each.
In hindsight, this book is now 25 years old, and three of the Rollers have passed away. As others have mentioned, she should have done her research at the time. She states that Duncan Faure's South African band Rabbitt never had a peak when they had a number one there and won their equivalent of the Grammy. He also contributed to the Who's That Girl soundtrack.
I'm not sure who this book was written for or if it was a palate cleanser, a reason to write off her fangirling of the Rollers as a delusional episode in her otherwise purist rock life. Don't shelve Once Upon A Star next to Houses Of The Holy - horrors.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Any time I have ever read a book from the point of view of a fan, I'm torn. I often times wonder if certain details have been wholly exaggerated and I find myself taking their "story" with a grain of salt. As I read this book, the feeling I got from it was mixed. I couldn't decide as to whether or not Ms. Sullivan was gloat fully bragging that she had managed to bed a band member after much chasing, or if this book was a tale full of regret for having wasted so much time and energy at being such a groupie. I don't know. As a fan of the band, I knew there were females out there of all ages who did a great many of the things (and more) that Ms. Sullivan and her friends had done. I was not naïve to think that the teen magazines were truth in print and that the band were innocent as the magazines claimed to be. However, it seems to me that this book gives the reader an insight into what ANY fan would do in order to be close to the object of their desired affections. Whether those affections would be reciprocated in some way by that object of desire remains to be seen. In this case, Ms. Sullivan's amorous affections WERE at some point ((Sorry! Spoiler!)) but then again after much chase given, what would a male celebrity be expected to do, after all? Either way, I think this is a sad tale of what idolatry can lead to and that if one is seriously obsessed, what can happen if allowed to continue on such a path without anyone to say "Hey! Slow down! You're getting too wrapped up in this and are crossing too many lines here!" Let it be a tale of caution to young fans of what NOT to do with their celebrity crushes. Often times it can lead to trouble of the worst kind in some cases.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg. I know this book was written a long time ago. Found it at a Goodwill store and since I was a huge Roller fan back in the day, I just chuckled and bought it. Wow….didn’t expect to enjoy it so much….had me walking down memory lane for sure and what great memories they were, being 13 years old & so in love with the Rollers especially lead singer Les. What a bummer to read he was kind of an a&$hole but boy how I loved him. I think my mom and dad took me and my friends to see them at Idora Park in Youngstown like in the book….but we were much younger than the author was and could not have followed them around the country like these girls did. Oh, how we wished! We did have a club though, and we met once a month and wore our homemade tartan bell bottoms 😂😂
It’s really pretty tragic, their story. They were so huge for such a short time, and what a terrible ride down that must have been. Didn’t even know Les had died because I hadn’t kept up with them at all throughout the years. What a bummer.
Just really enjoyed the book, even the parts about her personal life apart from the band. Now off to watch old Roller performances on YouTube…..

[Lucy M · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was born the year this book was published.. I've barely heard of the BCR. Turns out there is something totally timeless about the teenage girl experience. I too had a couple of years following around a boy band, with less success than Caroline, but similar giddiness and dedication. So much of this reminded me of that time for me. The fanbase, the knowledge of managers, family, friends and any tenuous connection to the band etc etc Funny book that perfectly encapsulates the heart ache of being a teenage girl. I miss the dramatic depths my soul would go to. My favourite read of the year.

[Claire Scottish · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining and easy to read - reminded me of more innocent times...

Read this in a few hours and enjoyed it. You don't need to be a Bay City Rollers fan to like it but if you loved music as a teenager it will take you back to those times. I had my favourite band aged 14 -18 but could never match Caroline and her friends level of obsession - impressive in a way and kind of sad too.

[Jacqueline Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg, BCR! I, too, was madly in love with Leslie McKeown. I bought this when it was first published and just read it again.
I never saw them live but saw them in "16" and on television. I was in the fan club and still have the postcards to prove it. There was even a Campbell soup featuring BCR. What was it called? Who can remember.
I am insanely jealous of those mysterious up close encounters. Thank you for reminding me of those days when things seemed so innocent.

[Eve Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

All in all, it’s nothing like anything I have read before. It kept me hooked but by the time I reader 2/3s of the way through it started to lose me a little but all in all, it provides a good read that allows an insight into a band obsessed mind without a stereotypical voice.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun read. I'm glad to hear she's gotten over her Roller obsession. LOL. It brought back fun memories of being an eight-year-old kid stuck on Ian Mitchell.

[Lee Dubin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun!

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book when it first came out, but I could not really remember much of it - except that this person was, like I was, a fan of the Bay City Rollers (yes, I can admit it!).

Its weird because she mentions a lot of events related to the Rollers around the time that I actually saw them in Toronto in 1977. She even alludes to having had an intimate encounter with one of them around the 24th of August - which would have been two days after I saw them! Of course it feels odd because I was NOWHERE near considering any type of intimate encounter with them since I was not even 15 yet! she was older at 19....but still, had my young and innocent 14 year old self knew what the guys were doing, my view of them might have changed LOL.

Still, this book was compelling, although wow! what a brat she was - didn't want to go to school, didn't want a job and everyone has to support her. But the stories of basically tracking, harassing and otherwise running after the Rollers is so much fun to read. I found myself thinking "wow, she is really committed to this".

Knowing now, what the members (some of them) of the group have shared, a lot of what she cryptically refers to seems logical. Although, once again, this book is a great example of someone who wants to "share" their memoir, but any interesting or juicy details are redacted or intentionally vague, leaving us feeling cheated. This seems to happen in so many memoirs, it makes me wonder why they want to write this type of book, only to chicken out.

Nonetheless, this is a good story, for all lovers of BCR. Of course, I cannot imagine how it would/must be today to try to get close to your favorite groups. Her story shows how innocent and in many ways, easy it was to get the "scoop" on their whereabouts from hotel clerks, airline employees - can you imagine THAT happening today? I miss the good old days in in some ways, I miss BCR!

[Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I loved them desperately. For four years I lived for them."

I absolutely loved this. Just replace the Bay City Rollers with Take That and New Kids on the Block and Caroline Sullivan was writing about me! I completely empathised with her obsessive adulation and feelings for her boyband of choice. (I would have loved to have trekked all over the country like she did but never had the courage to.) I enjoyed how she looked back over her teenage years with a witty eye and realised how irrational it all actually was. She could see the uncool aspects of the band and how lightweight the songs were but had to succumb no matter what. The Rollers even eclipsed her love for the golden god himself, Robert Plant. She had to experience the rollercoaster of intense highs (actually bedding a Roller!) and extreme lows (rejection by band members). So, humiliation, embarrassment and desperation all come hand in hand with the euphoric moments experienced. This passion dominated her late teens and every life event focused on the Bay City Rollers. One minor point: I would have loved to have seen an actual photograph of the Tacky Tartan Tarts included in the book.

Like Caroline Sullivan, who is now a respected music journalist for The Guardian, our boybands of choice still hold a special place in our teeny bopper hearts. These said hearts still miss a beat whenever we hear certain songs :) A deserved five stars.

[SouthWestZippy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok first things first, yes I like the Bay City Rollers but it was because the music was great to dance to. The boys were cute but not my type.
Now lets talk about the book. Caroline Sullivan takes you on her journey as she obsessively follows her beloved band as a teenager.
WOW this was a great book! I laughed so hard in parts I got looks from my cats. Other parts I just read with open mouth and in disbelief on what I was reading. Sullivan does not hold anything back. She is very open and honest about her past and makes no apology about it. She borders on being a stalker. Even if you not a fan of the Bay City Rollers but you have been a fan of any musician or musicians this is a MUST read.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up thinking I'd get a few chuckles at the Roller's expense, but not only did I find her recounting of the band pretty amusing, I found myself absolutely loving Caroline. As would anyone over the age of 30 who spent years in denial of their own tragic teenagedom, only to realize the simplicity and enthusiasm of that age will never be possible to recapture....

*wistful moment*

Also, I've inadvertantly attained an excellent knowledge of the Bay City Rollers now. Have been irritating my loved ones with facts about them for days. How embarrassing.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

As anyone who's ever been obsessed with a less-than-cool band knows, there's more to the life of fangirling than meets the eye. Sullivan captures the emotions and intensity of it brilliantly (with a little bit of hindsight embarrassment) in this great memoir. A must-have in the collections of anyone once obsessed.

[Pandora · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the real world white-bread-and suburbia equivalent of Pam Des Barres' I'm with the band. Hilarious, evocative and nostalgic in equal measure. My parents taught me to sing some BCR songs and apparently that was adorable, but despite that, this book is indispensable for anyone interested in wanna-be groupie adventures and girl culture in general.

[Anona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my god. My feelings exactly of teenage fandom crazyness, I never took it as far as this girl but I would have if I were in the right place at the right time. Humiliating and cringeworthy in it's honesty. Hilarious too once she starts actually talking to the roadies and learning about them and how whatever they are with her. Too funny. Read it in Berlin.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book several years ago and absolutely loved it. I was a Roller fan as a young girl and I still like to listen to them. The Rollers and The Monkees were my first experiences as a fan girl and set the stage for me to be a fan girl forever.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Love this book. Bay City Rollers - no need to say more.

[Anna Samulak · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing amazing - quite a few typ-os! But interesting view of 1970s America seen through the eyes of a teen-aged Roller-fan.

[B · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, fangirl obsession is very relatable & I look forward to the book(s) the 1D/Justin Bieber fangirls will write when they finally come to their senses. lol

[Deborah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started this awhile ago, but finished today.
It made me sad, and nostalgic for my early teen years when everything was simpler and more innocent.