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L.A. Punk Rocker: Stories of Sex, Drugs and Punk Rock that will make you wish you'd been in there.
.Fifteen stories from the eighties set in Los Angeles, written by LA Punk Queen Brenda Perlin and her friends who lived every moment of an electric era in the City of Angels. That unique and precious time when punk rock was more than just a rebellion. Inside you'll discover Billy Idol. Iggy Pop. X. U2. Bad Religion. Tales of local punk rockers on the brink of glorious fame. Late nights at the Roxy. Wild times at the Whisky with some of the best rock ever. Here you'll find the in-your-face attitude, the clothes, the fashion, the sex, the music as hard as nails and fast as lightning. Brenda and her friends were somewhere every night queuing backstage, in hotel rooms with the band, partying on the streets...and avoiding irate parents on school nights! It's all here. LAPunkRocker. The next thing to being there...
- GenresMusicNonfiction
144 pages, Paperback
First published July 17, 2015
17 people are currently reading
341 people want to read
About the author
Brenda Perlin
14 books175 followersBrenda Perlin lives in Orange County, California. She spent most of her working life in the physical fitness arena. She loves the gratification that comes with helping people achieve their fitness goals and the fulfillment that comes with having a healthy body.
She moved from the Los Angeles area where she was raised to Orange County in the Spring of 2005. During that time she was a housewife with a couple of dogs. Now she is not. Instead she is writing her adventures for all to read.
Brenda has been writing just for fun since she was a young teen. For many years she wrote on paper napkins.
She moved from the Los Angeles area where she was raised to Orange County in the Spring of 2005. During that time she was a housewife with a couple of dogs. Now she is not. Instead she is writing her adventures for all to read.
Brenda has been writing just for fun since she was a young teen. For many years she wrote on paper napkins.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
August 12, 2015
The main part of this book is Brenda Perlin's memoir from her teenage years, when she was a rebellious middle class schoolgirl and flirted with the punk scene of Hollywood. It's no Sid and Nancy type story, which was what I was expecting; it's actually rather sweet, a memory of Brenda and her friends having a great time together seeing bands, meeting people like Billy Idol and Iggy Pop, and having arguments with her mum. Brenda's punk experience seemed fairly innocent as she wisely stayed on the periphery, just dipping her toe into sex, drugs and rock and roll. The affection she has for that time comes across very clearly.
I wasn't into punk; it started in 1976 in England, which was the year I left school, already a long hair and rock type person, but in my early 20s I hung around with a fair few people who were into that scene, so it was interesting to read about it from the golden hills of Hollywood as opposed to a grey Midlands English town. If you have similar memories to Brenda you will enjoy reading about the bands she saw, the places she went - it's highly enviable! I would have liked to hear more about Skid Row and the darker side of life at the time, but I imagine that the decision was made to keep the book fairly upbeat. At the back there are some of her own photos of the bands she saw.
Also in the book are some other peoples' memories, plus an introduction and story about Billy Idol by the fabulous Mark Barry - which, I hear, Billy Idol has actually read! This is certainly worth a read if you're on a punk nostalgia trip, and I imagine it's something Brenda will always treasure.
I wasn't into punk; it started in 1976 in England, which was the year I left school, already a long hair and rock type person, but in my early 20s I hung around with a fair few people who were into that scene, so it was interesting to read about it from the golden hills of Hollywood as opposed to a grey Midlands English town. If you have similar memories to Brenda you will enjoy reading about the bands she saw, the places she went - it's highly enviable! I would have liked to hear more about Skid Row and the darker side of life at the time, but I imagine that the decision was made to keep the book fairly upbeat. At the back there are some of her own photos of the bands she saw.
Also in the book are some other peoples' memories, plus an introduction and story about Billy Idol by the fabulous Mark Barry - which, I hear, Billy Idol has actually read! This is certainly worth a read if you're on a punk nostalgia trip, and I imagine it's something Brenda will always treasure.
August 28, 2015
*** Iggy Pop, David Bowie, Billy Idol … she met them all ***
I envy Brenda Perlin.
Like me, she grew up with strict parents who wanted to protect her from the perceived negative influences of teenage years—too much partying, drugs, and clubbing.
Unlike me though, her parents had reason to worry.
I lived through the disco era. The worst thing that could happen to me was stubbing a toe at my after-school sock hop while dancing to the latest, forgettable disco song. What I could write about that time in my life would interest no one.
Ms. Perlin and several other writers, notably Mark Barry, whose stories bookend L.A. PUNK ROCKER, have chronicled their adventures of a seminal time in music history. Some of it was good, some of it tragic, and Ms. Perlin lays them out in a collection of fascinating stories.
When I read L.A. PUNK ROCKER, I didn’t know what to expect. Would I emerge with a better understanding of a music genre that had escaped me? Or would it be an interesting account of one woman’s journey during a short-lived time in music?
The answer is both.
Through Ms. Perlin’s eyes, I see how punk rock evolved. It wasn’t just another music genre that popped up out of nowhere. It was a reaction to many things— to the dinosaurs of music that had been around for ages: Stones, Eagles, Beatles, etc —to disco and its uninspired musicality, and lastly, to the over-the-top stadium concerts that had transformed music into something of circus proportions. Musicians had become god-like and inaccessible. Punk rock brought it back to the intimacy of small clubs.
Ms. Perlin does a remarkable job of weaving her coming-of-age into the emergence and eventual acceptance and decline of punk rock. For her, it wasn’t just about the music, it was a lifestyle. This gave me a true appreciation for how Punk shaped her life.
It was a free thinker’s type of music with no specific look or uniform or dance move. This enabled the youth to express themselves however they liked. Like the punk rockers themselves, they were creating a movement together. How liberating!
Ms. Perlin had to be different, so she could become an individual. Her stories tell of being on the cusp of something new and exciting, a time of acceptance and rebellion … these are tales we can relate to regardless of where we fall on the musical spectrum.
Throughout the book, I could almost hear the author sigh with bittersweet memories. It is clear how special this time was in her life. She was happy to be young despite the confines of curfews and lies to her mother to attend concerts. She learned her lessons of acceptance by being herself, that it wasn’t necessary to fit in to belong. These are the same struggles facing today’s youth. I only hope this generation has music they could relate to as Ms. Perlin did.
Despite how the author evaluates herself at times, she was an individual par excellence. Nothing reveals this more than a line in one of the final chapters of the book:
“Now that Punk was becoming “trendy,” I started to lose interest."
Without a doubt, Punk defined formative years in Ms. Perlin’s life, and she writes about that time with love, affection, sadness, and joy. Most of all, she writes with the confidence of a woman who has learned life lessons and lived to tell about them.
For that, Brenda Perlin has my deepest admiration.
I envy Brenda Perlin.
Like me, she grew up with strict parents who wanted to protect her from the perceived negative influences of teenage years—too much partying, drugs, and clubbing.
Unlike me though, her parents had reason to worry.
I lived through the disco era. The worst thing that could happen to me was stubbing a toe at my after-school sock hop while dancing to the latest, forgettable disco song. What I could write about that time in my life would interest no one.
Ms. Perlin and several other writers, notably Mark Barry, whose stories bookend L.A. PUNK ROCKER, have chronicled their adventures of a seminal time in music history. Some of it was good, some of it tragic, and Ms. Perlin lays them out in a collection of fascinating stories.
When I read L.A. PUNK ROCKER, I didn’t know what to expect. Would I emerge with a better understanding of a music genre that had escaped me? Or would it be an interesting account of one woman’s journey during a short-lived time in music?
The answer is both.
Through Ms. Perlin’s eyes, I see how punk rock evolved. It wasn’t just another music genre that popped up out of nowhere. It was a reaction to many things— to the dinosaurs of music that had been around for ages: Stones, Eagles, Beatles, etc —to disco and its uninspired musicality, and lastly, to the over-the-top stadium concerts that had transformed music into something of circus proportions. Musicians had become god-like and inaccessible. Punk rock brought it back to the intimacy of small clubs.
Ms. Perlin does a remarkable job of weaving her coming-of-age into the emergence and eventual acceptance and decline of punk rock. For her, it wasn’t just about the music, it was a lifestyle. This gave me a true appreciation for how Punk shaped her life.
It was a free thinker’s type of music with no specific look or uniform or dance move. This enabled the youth to express themselves however they liked. Like the punk rockers themselves, they were creating a movement together. How liberating!
Ms. Perlin had to be different, so she could become an individual. Her stories tell of being on the cusp of something new and exciting, a time of acceptance and rebellion … these are tales we can relate to regardless of where we fall on the musical spectrum.
Throughout the book, I could almost hear the author sigh with bittersweet memories. It is clear how special this time was in her life. She was happy to be young despite the confines of curfews and lies to her mother to attend concerts. She learned her lessons of acceptance by being herself, that it wasn’t necessary to fit in to belong. These are the same struggles facing today’s youth. I only hope this generation has music they could relate to as Ms. Perlin did.
Despite how the author evaluates herself at times, she was an individual par excellence. Nothing reveals this more than a line in one of the final chapters of the book:
“Now that Punk was becoming “trendy,” I started to lose interest."
Without a doubt, Punk defined formative years in Ms. Perlin’s life, and she writes about that time with love, affection, sadness, and joy. Most of all, she writes with the confidence of a woman who has learned life lessons and lived to tell about them.
For that, Brenda Perlin has my deepest admiration.
September 26, 2015
I really hate to give this one star. I really, really wanted to love it. The snappy cover and the quote from Billy Idol and the title itself were just wonderful points that yelled "BUY ME!" So I did. I'm really glad everyone else loved the book; I just can't say the same.
I was expecting to be brought into the L.A. Punk times in depth or at least in a way that captured the feel and essence of them but instead what I read was a very distant description of one person's experience, almost as if I was reading off the back of a cereal box. Also, the writing was just so confusing. It starts off with a second person pov mood invoking evocation of Billy Idol then moves to a third person pov for the description of the writers experiences, but then towards the end gives everyone involved with the book an essay like opportunity to write what they thought of the time and the POVs, styles and everything goes all over the place.
I felt the author really had a chance to delve into some deep issues but she referred to them using one or two sentences each, and that seemed to be the essence of the book, except for the repetition of the sentiment that her parents didn't understand her. Rather than finding the zeitgeist of Punk in writing that I was expecting it was more like a "this is what I did last summer" description.
A book that is the poster child for telling instead of showing and a lost opportunity for some real depth. The best thing about the book for me were the pictures. They were great.
I was expecting to be brought into the L.A. Punk times in depth or at least in a way that captured the feel and essence of them but instead what I read was a very distant description of one person's experience, almost as if I was reading off the back of a cereal box. Also, the writing was just so confusing. It starts off with a second person pov mood invoking evocation of Billy Idol then moves to a third person pov for the description of the writers experiences, but then towards the end gives everyone involved with the book an essay like opportunity to write what they thought of the time and the POVs, styles and everything goes all over the place.
I felt the author really had a chance to delve into some deep issues but she referred to them using one or two sentences each, and that seemed to be the essence of the book, except for the repetition of the sentiment that her parents didn't understand her. Rather than finding the zeitgeist of Punk in writing that I was expecting it was more like a "this is what I did last summer" description.
A book that is the poster child for telling instead of showing and a lost opportunity for some real depth. The best thing about the book for me were the pictures. They were great.
October 20, 2015
LOVED this book. I didn't live in L.A. but where I did live had a great punk rock club which got fed bands from New York's CBGB's. My husband and I spent about 5 nights a week there. I didn't get into meeting the band members. I was into the music. Dancing every dance at twice the speed of sound (prescription speed helped), drinking Bacardi 151 proof with a beer chase. My God, I'm surprised my mouth didn't start on fire when I lit a ciggie.
There were also the best times of MY life... and I did realize it at the time. To me that punk bar was heaven. I thought it would never end. Unfortunately, it did. And I grew older.
But what a time! We talk about those days often. :)
There were also the best times of MY life... and I did realize it at the time. To me that punk bar was heaven. I thought it would never end. Unfortunately, it did. And I grew older.
But what a time! We talk about those days often. :)
May 31, 2016
Dear Ms. Perlin,
Thank you for trusting me with a copy of your book “L.A. Punk Rocker”. I found your largely autobiographical book to be easy to read on a vocabulary level, but not necessarily on a personal one. You talk about how your choices in music, clothes, and friends helped make you one of the outsiders in high school but a good fit in the new “punk” movement that had come over from London – but you certainly imply but not outright say that you wouldn’t have changed your clothes in order to fit in.
I think just about everyone feels that they don’t fit in during high school – OR, for those who are part of the “in” clique, that they’re one carelessly spoken sentence or choice away from losing it all. Having the courage to go punk showed that you KNEW you were outside and you CHOSE to be so, and I admire you for it. Drawing lines in the sand allowed you to use that as a stepping stone into adulthood and life, rather than as the first step into a world of addiction and suicide as some of your friends chose to do.
The fictionalized tales of Billy Idol that lead into the book and bring us out of it, guest-written by Mark Barry, are ironically the best individualized parts of the book. I think this is because each is a standalone tale that does not depend on any other tale in the book, and each humanizes a rock god – one who both personified and transcended the punk movement. The entire theme of the book, every person contained within the book, is effectively summarized in the character of Mr. Idol.
And I cannot forget to comment on your photographs. These are not Annie Leibovitz portraits, studio photos that capture the soul of an individual. Rather, you used your camera more in the style of the late Weegee, capturing the spirit of the moment through the individuals that are participating, or even bystanding. They provide a nice addition to your book.
I understand you’ve already written and published a sequel – based on what I read in this book, I’m sure it will be a good read. However, I am shocked after finishing this book that you actually left something off the table that can be included in a follow-up; you seemed pretty complete in this one!!
Sincerely,
Andrew
RATING: 4 stars
DISCLOSURE: This book was provided free of charge in return for an honest (and hopefully prompt) review. The provider got honesty – promptness, not so much, as it has been in my “to be read” pile for almost a year.
Thank you for trusting me with a copy of your book “L.A. Punk Rocker”. I found your largely autobiographical book to be easy to read on a vocabulary level, but not necessarily on a personal one. You talk about how your choices in music, clothes, and friends helped make you one of the outsiders in high school but a good fit in the new “punk” movement that had come over from London – but you certainly imply but not outright say that you wouldn’t have changed your clothes in order to fit in.
I think just about everyone feels that they don’t fit in during high school – OR, for those who are part of the “in” clique, that they’re one carelessly spoken sentence or choice away from losing it all. Having the courage to go punk showed that you KNEW you were outside and you CHOSE to be so, and I admire you for it. Drawing lines in the sand allowed you to use that as a stepping stone into adulthood and life, rather than as the first step into a world of addiction and suicide as some of your friends chose to do.
The fictionalized tales of Billy Idol that lead into the book and bring us out of it, guest-written by Mark Barry, are ironically the best individualized parts of the book. I think this is because each is a standalone tale that does not depend on any other tale in the book, and each humanizes a rock god – one who both personified and transcended the punk movement. The entire theme of the book, every person contained within the book, is effectively summarized in the character of Mr. Idol.
And I cannot forget to comment on your photographs. These are not Annie Leibovitz portraits, studio photos that capture the soul of an individual. Rather, you used your camera more in the style of the late Weegee, capturing the spirit of the moment through the individuals that are participating, or even bystanding. They provide a nice addition to your book.
I understand you’ve already written and published a sequel – based on what I read in this book, I’m sure it will be a good read. However, I am shocked after finishing this book that you actually left something off the table that can be included in a follow-up; you seemed pretty complete in this one!!
Sincerely,
Andrew
RATING: 4 stars
DISCLOSURE: This book was provided free of charge in return for an honest (and hopefully prompt) review. The provider got honesty – promptness, not so much, as it has been in my “to be read” pile for almost a year.
August 20, 2015
With its literary snapshot of a vibrant, seminal time and place in rock history, LA Punk Rocker captures moments of that time in stories and remembrances of the writers gathered for this anthology. Certainly anyone who was there then, or even on the periphery, recalls the scruffy beginnings of the punk movement, all leading to its less underground MTV hey-days of wild videos and sexy, screaming stars. LA Punk Rocker does a good job of giving us a glimpse in.
Not all the stories are uniformly sharp, however, with some offering anecdotes that seem more like excerpts from a diary than edgy tales of that creatively explosion time. But where that tone is found, and where the book soars, is in its bookend pieces by Mark Barry.
I’ve read a number of Barry’s novels and am a fan, so I found his wicked wit, his facility with prose-poetry, and that signature ability to use rhythm and pace to create what I call “word surfing” (riding us up and down, with some precariousness, on the rise and fall of his prose) all in exhilarating presence. His imagined forays into seminal punk god, Billy Idol’s, mind at various points of his career are brilliant, funny, and audacious. In fact, if all the entries had the punch of his, this book would have risen above enjoyable to essential.
As it is, it IS an enjoyable read. The book’s “producer,” Brenda Perlin, shares her own perspective with very personal tales of escaping her teenage home to find herself on the rowdy streets of LA, decked in punk gear, with camera in hand. In fact, one of the pleasures of the book are her many photographs of other seminal figures of the time. It’s clear she was a true witness, and that gives her stories an almost reporter-like veracity.
All in all, a great cover, a compelling topic, and a fun look back. Rock & roll!!
Not all the stories are uniformly sharp, however, with some offering anecdotes that seem more like excerpts from a diary than edgy tales of that creatively explosion time. But where that tone is found, and where the book soars, is in its bookend pieces by Mark Barry.
I’ve read a number of Barry’s novels and am a fan, so I found his wicked wit, his facility with prose-poetry, and that signature ability to use rhythm and pace to create what I call “word surfing” (riding us up and down, with some precariousness, on the rise and fall of his prose) all in exhilarating presence. His imagined forays into seminal punk god, Billy Idol’s, mind at various points of his career are brilliant, funny, and audacious. In fact, if all the entries had the punch of his, this book would have risen above enjoyable to essential.
As it is, it IS an enjoyable read. The book’s “producer,” Brenda Perlin, shares her own perspective with very personal tales of escaping her teenage home to find herself on the rowdy streets of LA, decked in punk gear, with camera in hand. In fact, one of the pleasures of the book are her many photographs of other seminal figures of the time. It’s clear she was a true witness, and that gives her stories an almost reporter-like veracity.
All in all, a great cover, a compelling topic, and a fun look back. Rock & roll!!
August 8, 2015
When I think of Los Angeles, I don't want to hear about Movie stars, Murders, or pretty much anything else beginning with M. There's only one M I'm interested in when it comes to the City of Angels.
Music.
Many of my favourite bands were born in this city, rising from the lights of the famous Sunset Boulevard. They roamed the sleazy streets of Hollywood and partied in the hills. Most of all, they created the music that is the soundtrack to my life.
To say I was waiting for a good book about this period in time is an understatement. There's a swell of biographies, autobiographies, and studies of the bands. But there's nothing about the people, those who walked in the musicians shadows and roamed those very same streets.
“LA Punk Rocker” is just the book anyone who wants a look at the early punk scene from a fan's perspective has been waiting for. As told by Brenda and her friends, the book is a fusion of true life and fictional accounts of a wild time in music history. The stories are rich in detail and recall everything from the post-concert highs to meeting some of the genre's most prominent stars to the sad decline of some of the fans. Billy Idol, Black Flag and many other, now household names, grace the book's pages. Each chapter is beautifully written and a treasure trove of information and insights.
This is the perfect book for any music fan, especially if you're looking for recollections of 1980's Los Angeles. “LA Punk Rocker” proves that punk is far from dead.
Music.
Many of my favourite bands were born in this city, rising from the lights of the famous Sunset Boulevard. They roamed the sleazy streets of Hollywood and partied in the hills. Most of all, they created the music that is the soundtrack to my life.
To say I was waiting for a good book about this period in time is an understatement. There's a swell of biographies, autobiographies, and studies of the bands. But there's nothing about the people, those who walked in the musicians shadows and roamed those very same streets.
“LA Punk Rocker” is just the book anyone who wants a look at the early punk scene from a fan's perspective has been waiting for. As told by Brenda and her friends, the book is a fusion of true life and fictional accounts of a wild time in music history. The stories are rich in detail and recall everything from the post-concert highs to meeting some of the genre's most prominent stars to the sad decline of some of the fans. Billy Idol, Black Flag and many other, now household names, grace the book's pages. Each chapter is beautifully written and a treasure trove of information and insights.
This is the perfect book for any music fan, especially if you're looking for recollections of 1980's Los Angeles. “LA Punk Rocker” proves that punk is far from dead.
October 29, 2015
‘LA Punk Rocker’ was, for me, a long-overdue reunion with my salad days of nihilism and gobbing. Before the anarchic phenomenon sold out to the Market Forces of the Establishment, punk was a grass-roots outpouring of bitterness and disappointment, made possible by the availability of cheap guitars and an abundance of young people who didn’t give a crap. Ms. Perlin’s book captures some of the rebellion of the time, but also the starry-eyed preoccupation with celebrity and fame which ultimately undermined punk’s initially-chaotic appeal.
The book is a fast canter through many of the ‘names’ of the era who were big/notorious on West Coast USA, and includes Ms. Perlin’s encounters with some of the sons of anarchy – although this is no kiss-and-tell account, rather a considered relating of family stresses and strains brought about by the clash of teenage rebelliousness and parental control.
A fascinating dip into the time, with perspectives from a number of contributors, and some classic photographs, ‘LA Punk Rocker’ is a quick, absorbing read.
The book is a fast canter through many of the ‘names’ of the era who were big/notorious on West Coast USA, and includes Ms. Perlin’s encounters with some of the sons of anarchy – although this is no kiss-and-tell account, rather a considered relating of family stresses and strains brought about by the clash of teenage rebelliousness and parental control.
A fascinating dip into the time, with perspectives from a number of contributors, and some classic photographs, ‘LA Punk Rocker’ is a quick, absorbing read.
July 31, 2015
Loved this! Makes you feel like your's taking a peek into that time.
March 20, 2019
If you’re looking for in depth, gritty, and honest stories from the golden years of punk... look anywhere else but this book.
I was hoping to read some darker tales of the punk scene in the 80s, but all I got were a handful of neat experiences for an upper middle class kid who happened to be at the Right Place at the Right time. Yes, seeing acts like Bad Religion, The Dead Kennedys, and Iggy Pop early on in their careers is awesome. But just because you were alive during these moments doesn’t automatically make you so interesting that you should write a book. Most of the “major” events that the author experienced were underwhelming, like meeting Bono (everyone’s favorite punk) and being in the same vicinity as David Bowie. And I’m sorry, but watching one of the greatest punk festivals of all time from side stage is lame as hell. I’d much rather readfirst hand accounts of what it was like to endure the heat and the crowd down below.
Before anyone says it, I’m not trying to “gatekeep”. Was Perlin a punk? Absolutely. Are her stories any more interesting than the average punk around at that time and place? Nope. The most rebellious thing she describes doing is staying out past curfew (what a badass!!!). And not that I condone or endorse the use of hard drugs in any way, but I was expecting some more shocking stories of drug addiction besides what basically came down to, “Yeah this guy I once knew ended up getting hooked and ODing which was a bummer.”
Overall the book was a huge letdown for me. It did make me wish I was around during the events, but it really only wet my appetite and didn’t give me the deep dive that I really wanted. The only reason I’m giving it two stars is because the last few chapters, written by other people besides Perlin, actually did provide some great stories.
I was hoping to read some darker tales of the punk scene in the 80s, but all I got were a handful of neat experiences for an upper middle class kid who happened to be at the Right Place at the Right time. Yes, seeing acts like Bad Religion, The Dead Kennedys, and Iggy Pop early on in their careers is awesome. But just because you were alive during these moments doesn’t automatically make you so interesting that you should write a book. Most of the “major” events that the author experienced were underwhelming, like meeting Bono (everyone’s favorite punk) and being in the same vicinity as David Bowie. And I’m sorry, but watching one of the greatest punk festivals of all time from side stage is lame as hell. I’d much rather readfirst hand accounts of what it was like to endure the heat and the crowd down below.
Before anyone says it, I’m not trying to “gatekeep”. Was Perlin a punk? Absolutely. Are her stories any more interesting than the average punk around at that time and place? Nope. The most rebellious thing she describes doing is staying out past curfew (what a badass!!!). And not that I condone or endorse the use of hard drugs in any way, but I was expecting some more shocking stories of drug addiction besides what basically came down to, “Yeah this guy I once knew ended up getting hooked and ODing which was a bummer.”
Overall the book was a huge letdown for me. It did make me wish I was around during the events, but it really only wet my appetite and didn’t give me the deep dive that I really wanted. The only reason I’m giving it two stars is because the last few chapters, written by other people besides Perlin, actually did provide some great stories.
July 22, 2016
There's not really much I can add here that would provide amplitude to the already strong, individual voices of the writers represented here who capture the creativity, mayhem, fun, and delightful disaster that was punk rock, ground zero, Los Angeles, circa early 1980's. But I'm giving it a go just the same.
Collected in this understatedly-important offering by author Brenda Perlin, a variety of punk rock folk discuss early L.A. Punk and Punk in general, and they would know of what they speak because they, indeed, were there. 'L.A. Punk Rocker' reads well, and is as accurate a portrayal as you're likely to read of those chaotic times, secret places and sacred moments, as I was there, too, and the set of stories here is more in my wheelhouse, timewise, as a late 2nd gen/3rd gen L.A. Punk, and I smile every time I think about it.
Contrasting 'L.A. Punk Rocker' with 'Punk Elegies' by Allan MacDonell (another recent read of mine, and worth a look-see for sure) is perhaps unfair, as the tales MacDonell recounts in his work detail a time-continuum a few years earlier in this musical story...a few years before I found L.A. Punk Rock, or it found me, or whatever the fuck actually happened to go right/wrong for me in 1980-1981 (YOU decide), when I started really listening to this music, and went to my first live shows ever. But the ways 'Punk Elegies' speaks to its time, 'L.A. Punk Rocker' does much the same, almost picking up to a 'T' where 'Punk Elegies' luridly left off.
-------
An aside, perhaps detailed elsewhere: Legendary Mau-Mau's frontman Rick Wilder once told me 'Punk is Dead' (we've all of us punk rockers been hearing THAT in some form or another for 3+ decades now), while asking me for a light one night at Anti Club in 1983, then nodding off as I tried to reply. Ha! In many senses, he was as right as he was wrong.
For the first and 2nd gen L.A. punks, much of the musical diversity and creativity that morphed and melded bands/music/sounds from the Garage, Psych, Rock, Glam, Art, Proto-Punk scenes, into what would ultimately become known and defined as 'Punk' Rock by mainstream media in the late 1970's (thanks Sex Pistols, et al), was undergoing a transmutation, musically, into a more typically faster and faster beat in the early 1980's, and ultimately trended toward a more generic sound, that which is now commonly referred to as Hardcore Punk, or Thrash/Skate Punk music.
And yes, HC and Thrash changed the disposition of Punk in certain ways, musically for sure (and a few years later, Crossover/Thrash Metal was born!), and in many cases also changed the local 'scenes' around those bands. But the 'spirit' of Punk, no matter the generation, or musical stylings, can really be traced from the start to the present day, and not only in Los Angeles, but world-wide.
Researching the histories and listening to even some of the extensive discographies of Punk bands, from the Mid-1970's proto-Punk noise to present day mainstream radio-friendly Emo-Pop Punk (and everything in-between) will allow one to experience an incredible diversity of talent and range of sounds inspired by this musical 'movement'. Pleasing to many ears, abrasive and unlistenable to others, 'Punk' is rarely if ever taken for granted by those who have always been drawn to the creative, do-it-yourself-or-fake-it kind of spirit and mentality that formed and informed L.A. Punk, and Punk in general #BackInTheDay, and in many instances, still does to this day.
Some of the 1st gen Punk musicians and visionaries are still out there making art, playing gigs, and leading productive lives today, doing it their way, while similarly, new 'kids' to the 'scene', who may just be discovering this music for the first time, get inspired, and they start playing music as well, forming new Punk bands all the time!
'Punk is dead'? Yeah, sure it is (wink.)
This genie is not going back into the bottle any time soon.
Punk music, Punk-sounding music, and the commodification of Punk into mainstream fashion and culture is almost nauseatingly ubiquitous these days, but folks interested in truth about this music or background have a rich history to explore should they so choose. And the author(s) have given them more to think about with 'L.A. Punk Rocker'.
And I say all this despite many people dismissing Punk for years, who'd long assumed this music/lifestyle choice was 'bad', or 'wrong', or 'vulgar', or whatever. Punk has taken it ALL over the years, including, among other unpleasantries, the very old-fashioned and quaint notion of Punks being 'branded' as a bunch of neanderthalic ne'er do well's, mostly because of the ways we've chosen to cut our hair, wear our clothes, express our ideas and play our guitars (thanks, sadly-outdated-yet-still-utilized-media-driven-images-of-what-is-considered-Punk.) How do long-time Punk naysayers reconcile that image with the reality of today's Punk Rockish world?
Well, turns out some of us problem children Punks were pretty dang smart, as well as creative, and we managed to document (then, as now) our own music and scene. We started our own record labels to put out our own music, and we started publications of all stripes, in our own words, that have chronicled 'Punk' music and culture from the inside, nearly since its inception as a musical 'form' (the term applied very loosely there.)
That's what we've always done, and that's what we'll always do. No one could ever tell us we couldn't, wouldn't, shouldn't, and we likely wouldn't have listened much anyway because we were too busy getting shit done AND having way more fun than you.
I know I was.
-----------
'L.A. Punk Rocker' is a treasure of memories to me! Just a few points of view here, facets on a diamond, as such, but a fine read, and the real deal!
Thanks, Brenda, for putting this out (how do we NOT know one another when we have so many friends in common?) Anyway, I'm proud to call this another part of my ever-expanding library of literary works about Punk. RAFR!
If you remember some of the special moments this book illuminates (because if you WERE there, you probably don't remember ALL of them, heh heh), kudos to surviving, L.A. Punk Rocker, and I'm hopeful reading this collection will put a smile or two, or maybe even a grimace, on your mug!
Collected in this understatedly-important offering by author Brenda Perlin, a variety of punk rock folk discuss early L.A. Punk and Punk in general, and they would know of what they speak because they, indeed, were there. 'L.A. Punk Rocker' reads well, and is as accurate a portrayal as you're likely to read of those chaotic times, secret places and sacred moments, as I was there, too, and the set of stories here is more in my wheelhouse, timewise, as a late 2nd gen/3rd gen L.A. Punk, and I smile every time I think about it.
Contrasting 'L.A. Punk Rocker' with 'Punk Elegies' by Allan MacDonell (another recent read of mine, and worth a look-see for sure) is perhaps unfair, as the tales MacDonell recounts in his work detail a time-continuum a few years earlier in this musical story...a few years before I found L.A. Punk Rock, or it found me, or whatever the fuck actually happened to go right/wrong for me in 1980-1981 (YOU decide), when I started really listening to this music, and went to my first live shows ever. But the ways 'Punk Elegies' speaks to its time, 'L.A. Punk Rocker' does much the same, almost picking up to a 'T' where 'Punk Elegies' luridly left off.
-------
An aside, perhaps detailed elsewhere: Legendary Mau-Mau's frontman Rick Wilder once told me 'Punk is Dead' (we've all of us punk rockers been hearing THAT in some form or another for 3+ decades now), while asking me for a light one night at Anti Club in 1983, then nodding off as I tried to reply. Ha! In many senses, he was as right as he was wrong.
For the first and 2nd gen L.A. punks, much of the musical diversity and creativity that morphed and melded bands/music/sounds from the Garage, Psych, Rock, Glam, Art, Proto-Punk scenes, into what would ultimately become known and defined as 'Punk' Rock by mainstream media in the late 1970's (thanks Sex Pistols, et al), was undergoing a transmutation, musically, into a more typically faster and faster beat in the early 1980's, and ultimately trended toward a more generic sound, that which is now commonly referred to as Hardcore Punk, or Thrash/Skate Punk music.
And yes, HC and Thrash changed the disposition of Punk in certain ways, musically for sure (and a few years later, Crossover/Thrash Metal was born!), and in many cases also changed the local 'scenes' around those bands. But the 'spirit' of Punk, no matter the generation, or musical stylings, can really be traced from the start to the present day, and not only in Los Angeles, but world-wide.
Researching the histories and listening to even some of the extensive discographies of Punk bands, from the Mid-1970's proto-Punk noise to present day mainstream radio-friendly Emo-Pop Punk (and everything in-between) will allow one to experience an incredible diversity of talent and range of sounds inspired by this musical 'movement'. Pleasing to many ears, abrasive and unlistenable to others, 'Punk' is rarely if ever taken for granted by those who have always been drawn to the creative, do-it-yourself-or-fake-it kind of spirit and mentality that formed and informed L.A. Punk, and Punk in general #BackInTheDay, and in many instances, still does to this day.
Some of the 1st gen Punk musicians and visionaries are still out there making art, playing gigs, and leading productive lives today, doing it their way, while similarly, new 'kids' to the 'scene', who may just be discovering this music for the first time, get inspired, and they start playing music as well, forming new Punk bands all the time!
'Punk is dead'? Yeah, sure it is (wink.)
This genie is not going back into the bottle any time soon.
Punk music, Punk-sounding music, and the commodification of Punk into mainstream fashion and culture is almost nauseatingly ubiquitous these days, but folks interested in truth about this music or background have a rich history to explore should they so choose. And the author(s) have given them more to think about with 'L.A. Punk Rocker'.
And I say all this despite many people dismissing Punk for years, who'd long assumed this music/lifestyle choice was 'bad', or 'wrong', or 'vulgar', or whatever. Punk has taken it ALL over the years, including, among other unpleasantries, the very old-fashioned and quaint notion of Punks being 'branded' as a bunch of neanderthalic ne'er do well's, mostly because of the ways we've chosen to cut our hair, wear our clothes, express our ideas and play our guitars (thanks, sadly-outdated-yet-still-utilized-media-driven-images-of-what-is-considered-Punk.) How do long-time Punk naysayers reconcile that image with the reality of today's Punk Rockish world?
Well, turns out some of us problem children Punks were pretty dang smart, as well as creative, and we managed to document (then, as now) our own music and scene. We started our own record labels to put out our own music, and we started publications of all stripes, in our own words, that have chronicled 'Punk' music and culture from the inside, nearly since its inception as a musical 'form' (the term applied very loosely there.)
That's what we've always done, and that's what we'll always do. No one could ever tell us we couldn't, wouldn't, shouldn't, and we likely wouldn't have listened much anyway because we were too busy getting shit done AND having way more fun than you.
I know I was.
-----------
'L.A. Punk Rocker' is a treasure of memories to me! Just a few points of view here, facets on a diamond, as such, but a fine read, and the real deal!
Thanks, Brenda, for putting this out (how do we NOT know one another when we have so many friends in common?) Anyway, I'm proud to call this another part of my ever-expanding library of literary works about Punk. RAFR!
If you remember some of the special moments this book illuminates (because if you WERE there, you probably don't remember ALL of them, heh heh), kudos to surviving, L.A. Punk Rocker, and I'm hopeful reading this collection will put a smile or two, or maybe even a grimace, on your mug!
July 27, 2017
This is another one of those books that spent way too much time on my TBR list. I really enjoyed this book much more than I thought I would. I think I was afraid to dive into these true-life accounts of the Punk era knowing the reputation of drugs and violence that follows it, but I’m glad I let my curiosity and love of music convince me to go ahead and read it.
This book will be difficult for me to describe to others when I recommend it, which I will, because it’s not just one thing. For the most part, it’s a memoir, a nonfiction personal account of the age when Punk was king, but it’s more than that. It’s also an anthology; some of the accounts come from other people, though Brenda Perlin is the major contributor. I think all the amazing pictures are from her personal collection. Then, there are the two highly entertaining narratives from Mark Barry that mingle in a bit of fiction…Yea, difficult to describe, but so worth trying.
Since I know that this anthology has a sequel, I guess I’ll be adding that to my TBR. Hopefully, I won’t take too long to get to it. Overall, I enjoyed this book and appreciate the honesty and insightfulness Perlin and her friends offer. I would totally recommend this to music lovers, fans of the Punk genre and era, and even teens (with parental approval) who think their rebellions are something new and unique.
This book will be difficult for me to describe to others when I recommend it, which I will, because it’s not just one thing. For the most part, it’s a memoir, a nonfiction personal account of the age when Punk was king, but it’s more than that. It’s also an anthology; some of the accounts come from other people, though Brenda Perlin is the major contributor. I think all the amazing pictures are from her personal collection. Then, there are the two highly entertaining narratives from Mark Barry that mingle in a bit of fiction…Yea, difficult to describe, but so worth trying.
Since I know that this anthology has a sequel, I guess I’ll be adding that to my TBR. Hopefully, I won’t take too long to get to it. Overall, I enjoyed this book and appreciate the honesty and insightfulness Perlin and her friends offer. I would totally recommend this to music lovers, fans of the Punk genre and era, and even teens (with parental approval) who think their rebellions are something new and unique.
November 30, 2020
I hated that I didn't love this. This book should have been so much more. I was hoping, and expecting, more details about life on the streets & in the clubs. More personal photos, or I should say photos of her friends & others that were part of the scene would have been nice. I ventured into Hollywood from the San Fernando Valley in the 70's, and a lot more was going on that Brenda could have written about. I was friends with Lorna Doom & Belinda Carlisle when we were in HS at Newbury Park, so I have an idea of what was going on. A shame that the title of this book does NOT deliver what's inside.
September 26, 2024
Brenda Perlin's stories, although fictional, were a fun, breezy ride through the early 80s punk scene in Los Angeles. The scene there, as it existed from 1976 to about 1986, was the pinnacle of punk rock... L.A. and Orange County, and up to San Francisco had the best bands. The author's narrative was compelling, engaging, and her prose style was snappy and punchy. I understand that this is supposed to be fiction, but Perlin writes with such conviction, it reads much like a true-to-life punk rock memoir. For anyone who is still obsessed with the old punk days of L.A., this book will be fun. Brenda Perlin... PLEASE write more punk fiction.
June 21, 2018
A really good Billy Idol story at the beginning and a pretty good Billy Idol story at the end. The middle wasn't nearly as good though. Considering the pictures, I would rather the middle part be a non fiction memoir of the time. And the first and last stories are good enough as part of a separate Billy Idol novel that could be called "King Rocker." A lot of the middle stories also felt like fragments of what could be larger narratives. Good but could be better.
October 6, 2024
So much fun, I read it in a day! Brenda Perlin has culled 15 stories that really capture the early days of punk in LA. Her stories — about family, friendships, and the music she loved — reflected that glorious time when youth, rebellion, and fearlessness made every night an adventure. An added bonus is her section of front row photos of everyone from Joe Strummer to Bad Religion. I loved this little trip down punk rock memory lane!
June 20, 2019
I couldn't relate
Really, I just didn't relate to this book. I thought that I would but the only vignette that I liked was the first and last stories. If you're from that LA scene, you might enjoy this book.
Really, I just didn't relate to this book. I thought that I would but the only vignette that I liked was the first and last stories. If you're from that LA scene, you might enjoy this book.
August 5, 2015
I love the sound, the look, the feel of punk rock and in this book Brenda Perlin and her friends relive their memories of a time and lifestyle that had the same music at the heart of it but compared to my life couldn’t have been more differently lived. Yet it is all relative as the same challenges faced us all from wanting to fit in, or not, to battles with our parents.
gives us her teenage recollections in Vintage Punk. A down to earth depiction of what those years were all about from battling with strict parents to being out on the streets at night with the punks. Her second story Tropicana highlights the motel of the same name where anyone who was anyone lived and partied. L.A. Punk Queen delves deeper into the nightclub scene, as well as the clothes and the lifestyle. I loved that Perlin hated disco music as much as I did and am deeply envious of the number of bands she saw and hung out with. Here’s a taster...
“We didn’t have the world’s problems on our shoulders, only small everyday growing pains with so little responsibility, and had yet to experience real troubles. Like most teenagers, there were complaints, but we were pretty much carefree. Our rebellion was so serious in our minds, but in actuality, we were looking to have fun, even if it was done a bit differently.”
The US Festival held in 1983 gets a chapter of its own and features Bono and U2. This is swiftly followed by the girls getting into a compromising situation in L.A. Punk Mayhem and then the Grungy Streets of Hollywood where trouble was rife but music was at the centre of everything. Local bands were also part of the scene as told in Bad Religion where Perlin starts going out with musicians. The stories are not all a thrill a minute good time tales as San Francisco covers the drug culture involved and a particularly nasty attack on one of Perlin’s friends. Punk is Dead does exactly what the title says, it depicts when it was over for Perlin and her friends. The music was becoming mainstream, the drug culture taking over and taking several of her friends with it - time to move on from the best days of her life. Perlin ends her tales with a Self-portrait of a moment at school which I think captures the thoughts and problems of many teenagers.
Steven E. Metz tells of his time in the Punk Bank Mad Society in a series of lessons - I particularly liked number 4 - Jumping into a crowd is a blast! Though 5 and 6 are pretty cool too but I can’t quote them all here.
Deborah Hernadez-Runions wrote Errol Flynn’s Estate which is a fascinating insight into this particular place where the punks congregated at night - until they were chased off by the police that is.
Cindy Jimenez Mora describes a typical punk night out (police are involved!) in A Night with Ceasar, who was the bass guitarist with The Stains.
Sandwiching this compilation are two stories from Mark Barry. Both are about Billy Idol, the King Rocker himself. The first where he is just about to go on stage in Los Angeles and describes in glorious detail that last five minutes that he takes for himself in a changing room steeped in the history of all the bands that have come before - and the list is a prestigious one. That last five minutes that he takes to prepare, to build up, to believe, the start of the adrenaline rush, that you can feel because the writing is so vivid, and that is about to propel him onstage and in front of the waiting audience riding high on anticipation and baying for White Wedding.
The second, Billy again, starts at the climax of a show on his comeback tour, One Night in Richmond Park, he sees a face from his past in the crowd and she’s waiting for him in his changing room. He chills at the sight of her and the meeting is electric for this is what Barry does so very well, the platonic patter between two people where attraction simmers not even just below the surface but right there. The way Barry writes his characters is brilliant; try this on for size...
“You take a look at her in the mirror. A shock of spikey blonde hair every bit as platinum coloured as your own, back in the day. She hasn’t changed a bit. No dye. It’s real. All too real. Unbelievably gavelled cheekbones - speed cheekbones, he thought at the time - as if they’d been sculpted. Sharp as knives, those cheekbones. Virtually no body fat percentage. A face you’d never stop touching, never stop kissing. A face that launched a thousand ships. Looking at her face was an aesthetic experience. Like art. You can’t stop staring. Red lipstick and burning brown eyes sheltered underneath two stud-pierced eyebrows. Her vest obscures a black bra with two fashionably displayed straps clinging to angular, pallid shoulders.”
Just the way she addresses Billy as William is sexy and I guarantee you will have Rebel Yell buzzing through your brain for days after.
This book has photos from the punk rock days scattered throughout it. Most of them are the personal photos of Brenda Perlin and add a lovely touch to a book brimming with true life and insightful tales as well as a couple of deliciously fictional ones about the King Rocker himself.
gives us her teenage recollections in Vintage Punk. A down to earth depiction of what those years were all about from battling with strict parents to being out on the streets at night with the punks. Her second story Tropicana highlights the motel of the same name where anyone who was anyone lived and partied. L.A. Punk Queen delves deeper into the nightclub scene, as well as the clothes and the lifestyle. I loved that Perlin hated disco music as much as I did and am deeply envious of the number of bands she saw and hung out with. Here’s a taster...
“We didn’t have the world’s problems on our shoulders, only small everyday growing pains with so little responsibility, and had yet to experience real troubles. Like most teenagers, there were complaints, but we were pretty much carefree. Our rebellion was so serious in our minds, but in actuality, we were looking to have fun, even if it was done a bit differently.”
The US Festival held in 1983 gets a chapter of its own and features Bono and U2. This is swiftly followed by the girls getting into a compromising situation in L.A. Punk Mayhem and then the Grungy Streets of Hollywood where trouble was rife but music was at the centre of everything. Local bands were also part of the scene as told in Bad Religion where Perlin starts going out with musicians. The stories are not all a thrill a minute good time tales as San Francisco covers the drug culture involved and a particularly nasty attack on one of Perlin’s friends. Punk is Dead does exactly what the title says, it depicts when it was over for Perlin and her friends. The music was becoming mainstream, the drug culture taking over and taking several of her friends with it - time to move on from the best days of her life. Perlin ends her tales with a Self-portrait of a moment at school which I think captures the thoughts and problems of many teenagers.
Steven E. Metz tells of his time in the Punk Bank Mad Society in a series of lessons - I particularly liked number 4 - Jumping into a crowd is a blast! Though 5 and 6 are pretty cool too but I can’t quote them all here.
Deborah Hernadez-Runions wrote Errol Flynn’s Estate which is a fascinating insight into this particular place where the punks congregated at night - until they were chased off by the police that is.
Cindy Jimenez Mora describes a typical punk night out (police are involved!) in A Night with Ceasar, who was the bass guitarist with The Stains.
Sandwiching this compilation are two stories from Mark Barry. Both are about Billy Idol, the King Rocker himself. The first where he is just about to go on stage in Los Angeles and describes in glorious detail that last five minutes that he takes for himself in a changing room steeped in the history of all the bands that have come before - and the list is a prestigious one. That last five minutes that he takes to prepare, to build up, to believe, the start of the adrenaline rush, that you can feel because the writing is so vivid, and that is about to propel him onstage and in front of the waiting audience riding high on anticipation and baying for White Wedding.
The second, Billy again, starts at the climax of a show on his comeback tour, One Night in Richmond Park, he sees a face from his past in the crowd and she’s waiting for him in his changing room. He chills at the sight of her and the meeting is electric for this is what Barry does so very well, the platonic patter between two people where attraction simmers not even just below the surface but right there. The way Barry writes his characters is brilliant; try this on for size...
“You take a look at her in the mirror. A shock of spikey blonde hair every bit as platinum coloured as your own, back in the day. She hasn’t changed a bit. No dye. It’s real. All too real. Unbelievably gavelled cheekbones - speed cheekbones, he thought at the time - as if they’d been sculpted. Sharp as knives, those cheekbones. Virtually no body fat percentage. A face you’d never stop touching, never stop kissing. A face that launched a thousand ships. Looking at her face was an aesthetic experience. Like art. You can’t stop staring. Red lipstick and burning brown eyes sheltered underneath two stud-pierced eyebrows. Her vest obscures a black bra with two fashionably displayed straps clinging to angular, pallid shoulders.”
Just the way she addresses Billy as William is sexy and I guarantee you will have Rebel Yell buzzing through your brain for days after.
This book has photos from the punk rock days scattered throughout it. Most of them are the personal photos of Brenda Perlin and add a lovely touch to a book brimming with true life and insightful tales as well as a couple of deliciously fictional ones about the King Rocker himself.
June 13, 2020
Fun and fascinating look at a time and place that's just a myth for most of us. Great read.
July 27, 2015
L.A. Punk Rocker opens with a beautiful Forward, written by Mark Barry. It is part dedication, part direct addressing of Billy Idol, written in the most direct, intimate manner you can imagine: “You are tight now. Tighter than a guitar string, taut almost ready to snap. You have rehearsed to the point you are sick of each other. By now, the internal dynamics of the band are akin to those inside a thermonuclear device — and you are ready to explode it on that LA stage, where the kids are screaming.”
The intimate feel of the book continues with Brenda Perlin’s writing. Not only does it give you access to exciting times in the LA Punk Rocker scene but also it illuminates her memories, reaching back to her past as an LA Punk Queen. “These were the best days of my life, but surely, I didn’t realize it at the time.” In addition to depicting this fascinating, electric era in literary form, the author gives you a visual peek by including many of the photographs she snapped at the time, which enhance the overall feel of inviting you to step with her into the moment.
The last chapter, again written by Mark Barry, is adapted from the Wikimedia Commons file, but oh, what a wonderful adaptation, written to ‘you’ (where ‘you’ stands for Billy Idol) with intense passion. It brings the book full circle to its Forward beginning, and frames not only Brenda Perlin’s memoir but also the entire career of Billy Idol. “You look in the mirror. The grey sideburns show through cheekily, the deep wrinkles on your face a map of a life spent on the road, much of it spent at the very top.”
Five stars.
The intimate feel of the book continues with Brenda Perlin’s writing. Not only does it give you access to exciting times in the LA Punk Rocker scene but also it illuminates her memories, reaching back to her past as an LA Punk Queen. “These were the best days of my life, but surely, I didn’t realize it at the time.” In addition to depicting this fascinating, electric era in literary form, the author gives you a visual peek by including many of the photographs she snapped at the time, which enhance the overall feel of inviting you to step with her into the moment.
The last chapter, again written by Mark Barry, is adapted from the Wikimedia Commons file, but oh, what a wonderful adaptation, written to ‘you’ (where ‘you’ stands for Billy Idol) with intense passion. It brings the book full circle to its Forward beginning, and frames not only Brenda Perlin’s memoir but also the entire career of Billy Idol. “You look in the mirror. The grey sideburns show through cheekily, the deep wrinkles on your face a map of a life spent on the road, much of it spent at the very top.”
Five stars.
July 27, 2015
L.A. Punk Rocker opens with a beautiful Forward, written by Mark Barry. It is part dedication, part direct addressing of Billy Idol, written in the most direct, intimate manner you can imagine: “You are tight now. Tighter than a guitar string, taut almost ready to snap. You have rehearsed to the point you are sick of each other. By now, the internal dynamics of the band are akin to those inside a thermonuclear device — and you are ready to explode it on that LA stage, where the kids are screaming.”
The intimate feel of the book continues with Brenda Perlin’s writing. Not only does it give you access to exciting times in the LA Punk Rocker scene but also it illuminates her memories, reaching back to her past as an LA Punk Queen. “These were the best days of my life, but surely, I didn’t realize it at the time.” In addition to depicting this fascinating, electric era in literary form, the author gives you a visual peek by including many of the photographs she snapped at the time, which enhance the overall feel of inviting you to step with her into the moment.
The last chapter, again written by Mark Barry, is adapted from the Wikimedia Commons file, but oh, what a wonderful adaptation, written to ‘you’ (where ‘you’ stands for Billy Idol) with intense passion. It brings the book full circle to its Forward beginning, and frames not only Brenda Perlin’s memoir but also the entire career of Billy Idol. “You look in the mirror. The grey sideburns show through cheekily, the deep wrinkles on your face a map of a life spent on the road, much of it spent at the very top.”
Five stars.
This book was sent to me gratis for an unbiased review.
The intimate feel of the book continues with Brenda Perlin’s writing. Not only does it give you access to exciting times in the LA Punk Rocker scene but also it illuminates her memories, reaching back to her past as an LA Punk Queen. “These were the best days of my life, but surely, I didn’t realize it at the time.” In addition to depicting this fascinating, electric era in literary form, the author gives you a visual peek by including many of the photographs she snapped at the time, which enhance the overall feel of inviting you to step with her into the moment.
The last chapter, again written by Mark Barry, is adapted from the Wikimedia Commons file, but oh, what a wonderful adaptation, written to ‘you’ (where ‘you’ stands for Billy Idol) with intense passion. It brings the book full circle to its Forward beginning, and frames not only Brenda Perlin’s memoir but also the entire career of Billy Idol. “You look in the mirror. The grey sideburns show through cheekily, the deep wrinkles on your face a map of a life spent on the road, much of it spent at the very top.”
Five stars.
This book was sent to me gratis for an unbiased review.
July 22, 2015
I never did like the sound of punk. I remember that time well. I wondered what all the fuss was about. Some of the artists scared me with their wild, almost sinister ways, and clothes that looked as though they had seen better days. It seemed like a dangerous time, of drugs, booze, and extreme individuality, that was both shocking and exciting.
For all the above reasons and NOT because I am a fan of punk, I picked up this book to better understand the era, which I lived through but tried to ignore.
Brenda Perlin did a magnificent job, guiding me, teaching me, enlightening me about why Billy Idol and others like him became famous, when All I thought, was that they were making a ridiculous noise!
I have to add, that written by a lesser wordsmith, this book would not have pulled me in and, more importantly, kept me reading. The writing was inspired. I can only put this down to the author's love of the subject. Her enthusiasm, enlightening stories, real conversation was done in such a way, that I not only paid attention, I thought about what was being said.
Do I now like punk...no, but I have come to understand why so many did, thanks to this great innovative book by Brenda Perlin.
For all the above reasons and NOT because I am a fan of punk, I picked up this book to better understand the era, which I lived through but tried to ignore.
Brenda Perlin did a magnificent job, guiding me, teaching me, enlightening me about why Billy Idol and others like him became famous, when All I thought, was that they were making a ridiculous noise!
I have to add, that written by a lesser wordsmith, this book would not have pulled me in and, more importantly, kept me reading. The writing was inspired. I can only put this down to the author's love of the subject. Her enthusiasm, enlightening stories, real conversation was done in such a way, that I not only paid attention, I thought about what was being said.
Do I now like punk...no, but I have come to understand why so many did, thanks to this great innovative book by Brenda Perlin.
July 30, 2015
L.A. Punk Rocker by Brenda Perlin is a fascinating glimpse into the Punk scene of the 80's, written from the perspective of someone who not only lived it, but experienced it to the hilt. All I had to see was "Billy Idol" in the synopsis and I was sold! No hesitation, I immediately clicked on the purchase button of the book and am so glad I did.
From the very first page, I was transported back to the 1980's and re-living my youth back in high school. There were the freaks, the geeks, the nerds, the jocks, the wavers, the rockers and the punks. No one really liked the punks when I was in high school, but that was only because they were new and different at the time. I felt so much empathy when the author was picked on and spat on for being different. That is until punk became popular and the author no longer was an outcast, but a Punk Rock Queen.
I have read several other books by Ms. Perlin and absolutely love the way she pulls you into her story. You feel every heartache, every triumph and every thing else in between. L.A. Punk Rocker has the same flavor as the author's previous offerings and this one will definitely leave you wanting more.
Thanks for bringing back some very good memories from my youth.
From the very first page, I was transported back to the 1980's and re-living my youth back in high school. There were the freaks, the geeks, the nerds, the jocks, the wavers, the rockers and the punks. No one really liked the punks when I was in high school, but that was only because they were new and different at the time. I felt so much empathy when the author was picked on and spat on for being different. That is until punk became popular and the author no longer was an outcast, but a Punk Rock Queen.
I have read several other books by Ms. Perlin and absolutely love the way she pulls you into her story. You feel every heartache, every triumph and every thing else in between. L.A. Punk Rocker has the same flavor as the author's previous offerings and this one will definitely leave you wanting more.
Thanks for bringing back some very good memories from my youth.
July 23, 2015
When I read for pleasure, I liked to be taken into places I've never been, introduced to worlds I have not traveled, and entertained as well as informed. This little book certainly provided a form of educational escapism that I associate with the best of pleasure reading experiences. Between opening and closing chapters which read like the best of Rolling Stone Magazine : The Eighties Edition, the stories between give detailed and highly personal account of real valley girls, not the stereo types from all those formula teen movies of the era but real girls living the kind of lives that put real grey hairs on parents heads. I found the book fun, nostalgic, educational, and sometimes terrifyingly real. I enjoyed the documentary style black and white photography which completed the part memoir, part history book feel of the book. A significant book and a significant chapter in music on the west coast. For some it will be nostalgic, for others eye opening exposure to a life style they never experienced.
July 27, 2015
devoured this book! From the first 'pages' where we are getting an insight into the mental workings of the legendary Billy Idol before he goes on stage to the end stories, L.A. Punk Rocker draws the reader into a whirlwind journey into a world many of us have never seen. The world of punk rock in Los Angeles.
Brenda talks about visiting places which many of us have only heard of in movies and in articles. She talks about hanging around with musicians before they became known. She leads us through her struggles as a teenager dealing with conservative parents yet trying to fit into the emerging punk scene - the only place she felt she belonged. It is a struggle many of us can relate to.
L.A. Punk Rocker is written in a way that makes the reader feel as if she is sitting with the authors over a drink, discussing their experiences. Ms. Perlin has added other stories, which provide other glimpses into the tumultuous time they lived and which many were lucky to survive.
I highly recommend this book for those wanting to look at an important time in musical history by those who lived it.
Brenda talks about visiting places which many of us have only heard of in movies and in articles. She talks about hanging around with musicians before they became known. She leads us through her struggles as a teenager dealing with conservative parents yet trying to fit into the emerging punk scene - the only place she felt she belonged. It is a struggle many of us can relate to.
L.A. Punk Rocker is written in a way that makes the reader feel as if she is sitting with the authors over a drink, discussing their experiences. Ms. Perlin has added other stories, which provide other glimpses into the tumultuous time they lived and which many were lucky to survive.
I highly recommend this book for those wanting to look at an important time in musical history by those who lived it.
August 18, 2015
Punk Rock Stories
What is punk rock? It’s a rock music genre that started in the mid-seventies in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia. Its roots were garage rock. Punk rock is short or fast-paced songs, with hard-edged melodies and singing styles, minimal instrumentation, and offbeat lyrics.
L. A. Punk Rocker is a beautifully written depiction of punk rock. Through their short stories, Ms. Brenda Perlin and her friends capture a vibrant time, from the perspective of teens. Ms. Perlin also brings her own particular viewpoint. She was a girl who didn’t follow the crowd. Rather, she set her own tone and style, despite the bullies who tried to make her life miserable.
The pictures bring their own value to the work. The snapshots and photos show action, sometimes frantic and sometimes poignant, of a time that seems long ago and faraway.
Check out L. A. Punk Rocker. Even if you missed it, you’ll live through it…vicariously, through the thoughts, feelings, and eyes of those who did.
What is punk rock? It’s a rock music genre that started in the mid-seventies in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia. Its roots were garage rock. Punk rock is short or fast-paced songs, with hard-edged melodies and singing styles, minimal instrumentation, and offbeat lyrics.
L. A. Punk Rocker is a beautifully written depiction of punk rock. Through their short stories, Ms. Brenda Perlin and her friends capture a vibrant time, from the perspective of teens. Ms. Perlin also brings her own particular viewpoint. She was a girl who didn’t follow the crowd. Rather, she set her own tone and style, despite the bullies who tried to make her life miserable.
The pictures bring their own value to the work. The snapshots and photos show action, sometimes frantic and sometimes poignant, of a time that seems long ago and faraway.
Check out L. A. Punk Rocker. Even if you missed it, you’ll live through it…vicariously, through the thoughts, feelings, and eyes of those who did.
July 27, 2015
I'm too young to remember the punk scene, but this book was a nice glimpse into the era that occurred while I was still a babe in arms. Starting off with a introduction by Mark Berry and talking about Billy Idol, a name even *I* recognise, you're thrown in at the deep end of the world of LA punk! Brenda has a knack for making it seem as if you were going along with her to each concert, club and event and does not shy away from making it clear that there was a bad side to it all. And it's not only Brenda who talks about the punk days from her perspective, but other people tell stories about their own memories. A great little book that made me feel nostalgic for an era I never lived through! It's, once again, a quality book from Perlin. Recommended to all those who love punk, and those who never lived through it. I certainly enjoyed it myself! Grab a copy and read it, you'll learn something!
August 24, 2015
This was one of those books that you read quickly and voraciously then feel sad when it’s over. It has some wonderful pictures. It has Iggy Pop looking young and many wonderful shots of the famous and their followers. If you like eighties punk or Billy Idol it’s going to please you. If you were the teenager whose parents hoped you’d grow out of your devotion to music then this book is for you. This book is full of the snap and crackle of teenage hormones, but no pop, just punk. The book begins and ends with wonderful fiction about Billy Idol and has a chunky middle describing the L.A. punk scene in the early eighties. You can smell the fishnets. It made me think a little of Pamela Des Barres, except Des Barres was focusing on the rock bands, not the punk bands. I could happily read more of this.
July 22, 2015
This is a fascinating book: part memoir, part short story collection about the times of punk in general and some punk rockers in specific. I know some of the famous names in punk but am otherwise fairly unfamiliar with the punk movement. I always had a soft spot for it, though, had friends who were really into it. I understand the desire to be non-conformist and finding your musical niche and Perlin does a splendid job at bringing the era and the movement alive.
The stories will ring true for all youngsters and those who had good times during their youth. The book got me excited and made me dwell on my own memories of those days. This is great reading.
The stories will ring true for all youngsters and those who had good times during their youth. The book got me excited and made me dwell on my own memories of those days. This is great reading.
August 4, 2015
I was several generations before punk, funny, we all search for the same things and then we all discover everything passes and another group continues the search thinking they are right and nobody before them knew anything about the wrongs in life...great stories of the era told by an insider with truth and sincerity and not covering up those lost souls that got lost in the shuffle...the stories are at times uplifting, at times sad, always what was..Brenda has a great way of converying the period of time...and also, I think, knowing we all move on and most of life is only a memory...want some history of the punk era this is a good book...
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