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Kids in the Riot: High and Low with The Libertines
Book by Welsh, Peter
- GenresMusicNonfictionBiography
232 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2005
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March 25, 2009Some girls read chick lit. My light reading tends toward that peculiarly British band book - the one written by a marginally famous person who grew up with/toured with/did drugs with a significantly more famous person, or um.. pair of siblings.
It's usually, but not always, a flattering coming of age story - as seen through the lens of the only person with enough brain cells left to write the tale of the band's early days.
Not sure why I picked this up - I've never understood the appeal of Pete Doherty, and I've never made it through the entire (2nd) Libertines CD.
The book doesn't change my impression of Pete Doherty much, but I do find the rivalry between he and Carl Barat fascinating.
There's the usual rehearsed in my mate's mum's basement, did E, appeared on TOTP completely knackered, fought in the streets, picked a fight with John Lydon bit.
But there is a genuine love for each other that comes through when Carl and Pete talk about each other that really makes this a touching read.
And for someone who primarly knows Doherty from his dalliance with Kate Moss, it's interesting to read about the other visionary in the band.
But in all honesty... don't look at the pictures in this book.. Doherty is seriouly one strange looking dude - heroin or no.
It's usually, but not always, a flattering coming of age story - as seen through the lens of the only person with enough brain cells left to write the tale of the band's early days.
Not sure why I picked this up - I've never understood the appeal of Pete Doherty, and I've never made it through the entire (2nd) Libertines CD.
The book doesn't change my impression of Pete Doherty much, but I do find the rivalry between he and Carl Barat fascinating.
There's the usual rehearsed in my mate's mum's basement, did E, appeared on TOTP completely knackered, fought in the streets, picked a fight with John Lydon bit.
But there is a genuine love for each other that comes through when Carl and Pete talk about each other that really makes this a touching read.
And for someone who primarly knows Doherty from his dalliance with Kate Moss, it's interesting to read about the other visionary in the band.
But in all honesty... don't look at the pictures in this book.. Doherty is seriouly one strange looking dude - heroin or no.
August 9, 2024
So I really want to rate this 2.5 stars but such as Goodreads is I can’t but just imagine it.
Easily the least compelling of the selection of pieces written/recorded about the libertines & Pete + Carl’s relationship & when it was written as well as the relationship the author had to the libertines means it doesn’t quite pull off some of the things I think it needs to. It’s not even necessarily that the lads - Peter in particular, obviously - come off exceptionally (too) well here but I don’t think the author is able to command the narrative in the way quite required. I don’t think Pete Welsh is necessarily a bad writer & at times his reflections and the insights are interesting. Most glaringly though, I wish a few years had been taken before writing it - writing a book about a band that have the relationship the libertines do just as they’d split up is wild to me. I think Bound Together & Carl’s memoir do a much better job at basically everything you’d want to hear here - I’d say perhaps the only thing in its favour narrative wise being that since it was written right after self titled it can linger on certain aspects of the early years longer and some of those stories are pretty interesting/telling about the inevitability of it all. Also on that - it truly cracked me up how often Peter or Carl are quoted as saying ‘that’s when things really went downhill’ (or anything to that point) the narrative truly was doomed, eh? For all that it ends honestly fairly charmingly and certainly has its moments of intrigue in a version of the story that is overall pretty fucking depressing (as it of course was for a good while back there). It took me a fair while to get through for that reason, went through some pretty shitty personal stuff midway through reading it and simply couldn’t imagine taking a book this depressing along with me on that road, haha. Overall I’d say if u want the best retelling of the story (in my opinion) go for Bound Together or Carl’s memoir - or even No Innocent Bystanders is great, especially for a more current version of the story….in video form! - I’d recommend this only if you really want a very specific time capsule version of the story (or if you’re like me and just want to read everything ever written about the libertines). Lastly: can someone for the love of god please write a good faith, music oriented piece about how great Babyshambles were?!? I’m so tired.
Easily the least compelling of the selection of pieces written/recorded about the libertines & Pete + Carl’s relationship & when it was written as well as the relationship the author had to the libertines means it doesn’t quite pull off some of the things I think it needs to. It’s not even necessarily that the lads - Peter in particular, obviously - come off exceptionally (too) well here but I don’t think the author is able to command the narrative in the way quite required. I don’t think Pete Welsh is necessarily a bad writer & at times his reflections and the insights are interesting. Most glaringly though, I wish a few years had been taken before writing it - writing a book about a band that have the relationship the libertines do just as they’d split up is wild to me. I think Bound Together & Carl’s memoir do a much better job at basically everything you’d want to hear here - I’d say perhaps the only thing in its favour narrative wise being that since it was written right after self titled it can linger on certain aspects of the early years longer and some of those stories are pretty interesting/telling about the inevitability of it all. Also on that - it truly cracked me up how often Peter or Carl are quoted as saying ‘that’s when things really went downhill’ (or anything to that point) the narrative truly was doomed, eh? For all that it ends honestly fairly charmingly and certainly has its moments of intrigue in a version of the story that is overall pretty fucking depressing (as it of course was for a good while back there). It took me a fair while to get through for that reason, went through some pretty shitty personal stuff midway through reading it and simply couldn’t imagine taking a book this depressing along with me on that road, haha. Overall I’d say if u want the best retelling of the story (in my opinion) go for Bound Together or Carl’s memoir - or even No Innocent Bystanders is great, especially for a more current version of the story….in video form! - I’d recommend this only if you really want a very specific time capsule version of the story (or if you’re like me and just want to read everything ever written about the libertines). Lastly: can someone for the love of god please write a good faith, music oriented piece about how great Babyshambles were?!? I’m so tired.
March 30, 2013
Utter trash but enjoyable for all that.
May 17, 2022
Hey, for the record Peter Doherty did a lot of drugs. That can put people off of reading about the band, listening to their music, whatever. I'd be impressed if you got as far as looking into this book without knowing that, but crazier things have happened.
Remarkably informative but there are some glaring points. For one, one review I read said Welsch was too close to the band and I'm inclined to agree. He's hesitant to paint them in a negative light. It's that and the innate problem with this book having been written just after the self-titled record. It's a time capsule that's aged in weird ways. Watching No Innocent Bystanders before or after this is fascinating.
According to a fairly recent (as of writing) interview, Peter said he's been clean for 3 years, which means he's beaten the statistics that his career, the tabloids, and even this book were pointing to. I'm proud of him for that, frankly, and I don't know if I'd look up to him as I do if he'd not managed to deal with it. In the book, though, he doesn't have nearly the same outlook. His attitude towards how his drug use impacted his peers and loved ones doesn't seem nearly as lucid and it can be a bit maddening.
Oh, also, like many biographies and memoirs it's laid out really weirdly. I am begging publishing companies to stop putting 4 pages of photos in the middle of a sentence. It's nightmarish. The interview snippets interspersed with first person narration from Welsch, not a member of the band but a friend, is also a bit jarring in spots.
A quick read and frankly I always find Peter and Carl's commands over the English language a bit hypnotic at times. It all is the kind of English that an American would make fun of with that one Cockney accent, though. You know the one.
Not a waste but not stellar to me like Jeff Tweedy's memoir was or like Johnny Marr's is shaping up to be. For the heads. I think No Innocent Bystanders is perhaps more compelling.
Remarkably informative but there are some glaring points. For one, one review I read said Welsch was too close to the band and I'm inclined to agree. He's hesitant to paint them in a negative light. It's that and the innate problem with this book having been written just after the self-titled record. It's a time capsule that's aged in weird ways. Watching No Innocent Bystanders before or after this is fascinating.
According to a fairly recent (as of writing) interview, Peter said he's been clean for 3 years, which means he's beaten the statistics that his career, the tabloids, and even this book were pointing to. I'm proud of him for that, frankly, and I don't know if I'd look up to him as I do if he'd not managed to deal with it. In the book, though, he doesn't have nearly the same outlook. His attitude towards how his drug use impacted his peers and loved ones doesn't seem nearly as lucid and it can be a bit maddening.
Oh, also, like many biographies and memoirs it's laid out really weirdly. I am begging publishing companies to stop putting 4 pages of photos in the middle of a sentence. It's nightmarish. The interview snippets interspersed with first person narration from Welsch, not a member of the band but a friend, is also a bit jarring in spots.
A quick read and frankly I always find Peter and Carl's commands over the English language a bit hypnotic at times. It all is the kind of English that an American would make fun of with that one Cockney accent, though. You know the one.
Not a waste but not stellar to me like Jeff Tweedy's memoir was or like Johnny Marr's is shaping up to be. For the heads. I think No Innocent Bystanders is perhaps more compelling.
September 9, 2022
Amazing book! Even though it was just interviews, it still brought me a lot of laughter, sadness, curiosity and fascination. I'm still surprised that it was written so early, thinking about the band's existence period at that point. Nevertheless it didn't fail to deliver so many interesting stories and more importantly insights on the meanings behind the songs that we listen today, and what they were really built on. It also gave a very nostalgic throwback to what early 2000s were really like. A lot of the stuff they were getting away with then would be simply not possible these days. By reading how fragile the relationship of Pete and Carl really was, it's a blessing that they're still doing what they're doing and don't hate each other's guts Oasis-style. It's really fantastic.
I'm not sure why people here claim that Pete Welsh abstained from putting The Libs in a bad light, when that's basically the fundaments of the book. I mean, there's a lot about alcohol, drugs, sex, stealing, fights, prison, breaking up the band, you know, typical rock'n'roll stereotype.What do you mean by saying that he was "too friendly" while writing it? It's all out there. Have you read the same book? I think not.
The only negative thing about the book, restraining me from wanting to give it a 5/5 is the style in which it was put together. Sometimes there are parts of the text which make you not sure who the words belong to. Another thing that someone mentioned here already is the weird placement of the pictures sides that also cut in the mid sentence, which is far from ideal. Other than that, really enjoyable find for a lover of that scene.
I'm not sure why people here claim that Pete Welsh abstained from putting The Libs in a bad light, when that's basically the fundaments of the book. I mean, there's a lot about alcohol, drugs, sex, stealing, fights, prison, breaking up the band, you know, typical rock'n'roll stereotype.What do you mean by saying that he was "too friendly" while writing it? It's all out there. Have you read the same book? I think not.
The only negative thing about the book, restraining me from wanting to give it a 5/5 is the style in which it was put together. Sometimes there are parts of the text which make you not sure who the words belong to. Another thing that someone mentioned here already is the weird placement of the pictures sides that also cut in the mid sentence, which is far from ideal. Other than that, really enjoyable find for a lover of that scene.
February 26, 2023
As someone who has only a vague interest or knowledge of the libertines and their music , it’s clear this book wasn’t really aimed at me, but I found it informative enough.
Written during the band’s heyday, the book has quite a rapid pace to it, almost seeming like the author was writing the book week by week, and there is a definite sense of the author being unsure if the book will even have a happy ending , the fear of Pete Doherty dying surfacing throughout much of the books second half.
It’s somewhat hard to review this book with the hindsight that the libertines are still around and that Pete didn’t die, but I can imagine that at the time, this book would have been amazing to a libertines fan. Sadly, the music only half appeals to me, so by extension so does this book.
Written during the band’s heyday, the book has quite a rapid pace to it, almost seeming like the author was writing the book week by week, and there is a definite sense of the author being unsure if the book will even have a happy ending , the fear of Pete Doherty dying surfacing throughout much of the books second half.
It’s somewhat hard to review this book with the hindsight that the libertines are still around and that Pete didn’t die, but I can imagine that at the time, this book would have been amazing to a libertines fan. Sadly, the music only half appeals to me, so by extension so does this book.
March 27, 2019
A great read for any music fan, I could never get tickets to see them live so this is a piece of nostalgia and a glimpse into a missed opportunity. The only criticism is it’s very contradictory in parts, but then maybe that’s intentional. The photos chosen could have been much better as well, would be nice to see the faces behind some of the names mentioned in the book
July 13, 2020
This was fine but whatever it is you want to know about the Libertines, it probably won't tell you. The author is too close to the band, and is reluctant to dig in on any of the interesting topics because it wouldn't put the band in a good light.
December 12, 2025
Libs biography by Welsh Pete.
He started writing it in early 2004 when Pete Doherty said to him:”Why don’t you write a book about us, Pete?”.
Ironically they split up in less than a year and the biography ended. I suppose Peter had always sensed the demise of the Libertines.
He started writing it in early 2004 when Pete Doherty said to him:”Why don’t you write a book about us, Pete?”.
Ironically they split up in less than a year and the biography ended. I suppose Peter had always sensed the demise of the Libertines.
February 23, 2007
It may seem a bit early for a book about them, but the Libertines story already involves so much drama it was inevitable. This is basically a collection of interviews with Carl, Pete, record label people, and photographers all put together by some buddy of their's. So it reads like a really long magazine article, which is exactly how I wanted it to be. As silly as it may seem, I've been kind of moved by a couple NME articles about them. I love their music and it's so sad how totally fucked-up they are. Especially Pete. Jesus, the guy is a disaster. Before any of their drug stuff came out in the press, a sales rep at their record label was telling me about Pete being driven somewhere by the reps in Seattle. He asked if he could smoke in the car, to which they said yes. Next thing they know there's a strange smell and they see that he's smoking crack in their car. Smoking to him means smoking crack. The non-interview parts in the book aren't particularly well-written or anything and I kind of get the feeling the guy is a bit of a name-dropper/chancer. Also, this isn't really about the Libertines. It's about Pete and Carl. It's like, I guess if I read an Oasis book it would really be about Liam and Noel, but I would still want to know what the other guys in the band had to say. There is this one photo of Pete holding his new baby (by this friend of Sadie Frost's who also has a kid by Liam Gallagher) and he looks so wasted and so fucked up. I can't really stand it. I had to put it down a couple of times during descriptions of crack dens and Pete in prison for robbing Carl's flat. But the most disturbing thing about this book is that things have gotten worse and worse and more full of drama since last year where the book leaves off. Usually when you read a biography of a drug addict they are currently either cleaned-up or dead. The fact that he's not makes this so depressing.
July 24, 2014
I'm kind of torn between 3 or 4 stars. This book is comprised of direct quotes from Pete, Carl, and a few other people, and the author's (who was a good friend of the band)personal opinion. Consequently, it's quite messy. Pete and Carl frequently contradict each other, and the book is filled with very biased personal opinions. John and Gary's voices are pretty much completely absent, which seems strange, and a lot of the people interviewed seem to be very carefully trying to avoid the blame of why The Libertines broke up, and pushing their own agendas a little. That said the book was written in 2005, when things were still very tense around The Libertines, and no one had the distance necessary to take a rational view of the whole debacle. Despite all this it's still a very interesting read.
October 13, 2015
What the hell have I just read?
June 22, 2024
Some interesting insights. Not a huge fan of the biographer's interludes; I much preferred the interview segments.
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