Weird Like Us: My Bohemian America

by Ann Powers

American bohemia is alive and well and redefining the way all of us live, love, and work: so declares Ann Powers in an invigorating blend of criticism, journalism, and autobiography that takes us into the heart of alternative America today. Powers, one of the nation's most notable music critics, explores how the generation that inherited the counterculture assumptions of the sixties is transforming youthful rebellion into a sustainable alternative style of living—creating a new bohemia with dynamic citizens who are reinventing shared values from the ground up. Through stories from her own life and those of her comrades—artists, writers, entrepreneurs, queers, and cyber-outlaws—Powers traces the evolution of this world and celebrates those who keep bohemia thriving from coast to coast.

Genres: Nonfiction, Music, History, Essays, Cultural Studies, Biography, Biography Memoir

287 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Ciara · Rating 2 out of 5]

meh. fucking ann powers. talk about your intellectual dullards. when i was a teenager, my dad got me a subscription to "spin" magazine, which ann powers often wrote for. she had the same writing style in her "spin" articles as she does in this book: kind of breathless, enchanted with whatever new cultural discovery she has made, embarrassingly un-self-conscious & also unbearably untinteresting. could there be a worse combination? just imagine being cornered by someone like that at a party. they're all, "i just heard about this awesome new band, the beatles? wow, they're so fresh & unique! but i bet they won't get too big because their record company doesn't understand them." & you're like, "dude, are you fucking kidding me? i am going to need some serious vodka if i'm going to have this conversation with you." the whole book is ann being all, "i am so interesting & edgy! i am interested in all these different sub-cultures! have you heard about raves yet? let me full you in!" it's just embarrassing, like a clueless aunt trying to bro down with you over your crass t-shirt at xmas. ugh.

[El · Rating 2 out of 5]

Man, did I really want to like this. I enjoy a good cultural study! I knew going into it what it would probably be like. I know of Ann Powers from some music reviews I've read over the years, and she's fine and dandy and all, but I figured I'd have an idea what this book would be like based on those reviews. She gets super excited about stuff and it's all shiny and new to her which can be either annoying or contagious.

This book was a little of both.

Look, I don't need anyone telling me about their bohemian lifestyles. I read plenty, I know people, I live my own life, whatever. I guess maybe my point is that this book would probably be liked by people who have led really sheltered lives and have never known anyone outside of their own family. Hearing people tell endless stories about their own experiences, or their drug use, or what makes them so cutting edge... it's exhausting. It's one thing if that sort of thing comes up in natural conversation, but have you ever met that kind of person who out of the blue will just be all, "Oh, man, this one time? When I was tripping? Fucking crazy, man!" That's what this book felt like sometimes.

She had some good stuff to say, don't get me wrong. But it was all so "Isn't it awesome to be alternative? But don't call us that because we don't like labels!" The whole book is a label. I think Powers alludes to that somewhere in the introduction or something, and she certainly touches on it in the Selling Out chapter.

And, yeah, I really enjoyed Stover's Bohemian Manifesto: A Field Guide to Living on the Edge because I felt it was more tongue-in-cheek than 100% serious. There's some truth to what Stover wrote in her book. There's some truth to this book too, but... in a different way. This was more elitist than I had been expecting.

There's this whole social argument that you can't be one thing if you're this other thing, and I don't buy it a lot of the time. I don't believe that if you work a corporate/professional job you can't also go see bands play at night. I've done it. One time it was to see the New Kids on the Block reunion tour. Another time it was to see the Flaming Lips. Whatever. I get so sick of this concept that if you like this one band then you can't like this other band. That if you wear this one style of clothing, you can't wear this other kind or you're a fake. That if you read books a bunch and are relatively quiet that you don't have a past or haven't had any experiences. But if you're this other way all the time, then you must have convictions, man, real convictions, and everyone else is fake and selling out and on and on and on.

Exhausting.

I am me. That's it. Take it or leave it. I don't live a conventional lifestyle. I don't believe in marriage, but I am in a monogamous relationship, going on 8 years. I don't believe in God. I don't drive; I either ride the bus or walk or get a ride if it's too far to do one of the other things. I don't plan on owning a house, but it could happen. Maybe. We prefer dogs over kids and that will never change. I'd rather save my money to travel and buy books than to buy jewelry or go out drinking every night. I have convictions, but don't need to talk about them all of the time.

I don't want to be identified by the music I listen to, or the books I read, or how I spend my alone time. I've been misunderstood and misrepresented because of both the things I say and the things I don't say. My job doesn't define me; I work hard because it's important to me and I won't let my job walk all over me... or at least I'm working on that last bit. I don't need to live a certain way just to prove to whomever that I am what I am. The only way you really know anything about anyone is by talking to them. If you're not going to take the time to talk to someone, then you deserve whatever you get. Basing someone's worth on what they wear, what they listen to, what they read, which movies they watch, which job they hold (or don't hold for that matter - there's that whole belief that holding any sort of job is "selling out" and "being held down" or whatever)... that doesn't mean shit if they're dumb as rocks on the inside.

[Lord Beardsley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I dunno. I read this book when I was living like a hobo in a slumlike apartment We were all on a first name basis with the local crackheads who lived under the viaduct near our apartment and one time got chased by a woman with one long dreadlock for hair and a beard who told us we had her parents' heads stuffed behind the fan in my window. Maybe I could more relate at that time to ann powers' mental masterbation about bohemians...now I'm just over it.

Re-reading this was akin to being beaten over the head by a tranny hooker on Clark Street.

[Alex Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have to say that I was highly disappointed in this book. I couldn't even finish the final chapters because it was becoming such a chore to read. Her essays began to be simple ramblings of her own personal experiences with other people who happened to be self-proclaimed Bohemians. There was very little (if any) talk about bohemian lifestyles outside of her own views of what she considers it. Nothing was incredibly poignant and nothing sticks out other than her first section about living arrangements, which at times became stilted and too studious.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now somewhat dated, this late 90s era overview of the different tribes and cultures that make up bohemian America is still a very interesting read, largely due to the author’s personal history and connections to many of the subcultures she describes. As Powers describes it, Bohemian America is typified by its desire to live beneath and outside of the rules that most of us follow, whether it’s in terms of career and profession, relationships and sexual morality, or merely the kind of family life we choose to adopt, and the pursuit of a lifestyle focused on art, culture, and personal fulfillment rather than economic success. Written in the late 90s and published in the year 2000, it seems like portrait of a long ago world, but of course there are still bohemian subcultures being developed and created in every city in America.

She divides her explorations into a variety of subgroups, although her viewpoints are focused on overwhelmingly white and educated denizens of America’s great cities — especially San Francisco and New York, which have long housed bohemian subculture — although the real estate markets and cost of living always imperil their existence. Those folks exist in an economic underclass of their own choosing, free to pursue recreations like drugs, art, second-half clothing or purportedly deviant sexual interests free of the constraint of making a mortgage payment or having a 9-5 job.

I found the most interesting section her pieces on Upper Bohemia, those who maintain access to the artistic underclass while achieving the cultural cachet and income that comes from having a respectable newspaper or academic job. That’s a tight tight rope to walk, and much about that section focuses on the conflict between “selling out” and buying into the economy that is needed to maintain in artistic culture in the first place.

Many of the once countercultural elements in this book have now been fully adopted as mainstream, whether it’s gay marriage or legal marijuana. That makes some pieces of the book painfully dated. But I still enjoyed it, especially for Powers’ keen eye to musical and cultural signifiers that carry value and clout to the lasting bohemian centers in late 20th century and early 21st century America.

[NinaCD · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is revolutionary. It should be the bible of West Philly. Reading it this past spring opened my mind to the fact that Bohemia is not dead and it us keeping it alive. Ms. Powers has made the transition from being a wild bohemian hippie in the 60s and 70s to being an older, partly sold-out modern Bohemian. She has the most down-to-Earth realistic perspective on how Bohemia has (and always will be) alive and morphing, not dead. It's always out there, changing constantly as society changes. As one wave of Bohemian movement is breaking and receding, another one is forming. Bohemia will never die because society will always have fringes and marginalized groups. However, when we do start the real revolution, Ann Powers should be the head of the advisory committee behind it.

Ann Powers also has a really great blog: [http://www.eensyweensy.blogspot.com/] which I cannot access in China. Interesting. What does the modern Chinese government have against our Western Bohemia?

[Cali · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although I'm still reading it, "Weird Like Us" is a fantastic book. To paraphrase Ann Powers in her book, I'm a baby bohemian in high school; like Ann in her years in the Reagan-Bush era. Ann first introduced the now-confirmed concept that not all parts of the nineties were annoyingly blank, if you were working at Planet Records and/or a hippie/punk/ otherwise bohemian. Her writing is superb; a quality hard to find lately in memoir-writers that clearly describe their heyday. Ann then begins to define the staples of late eighties/nineties/beyond bohemian life and her own opinion of them, ranging from the culture proletariat to drugs.

I will post more on this fantastic book once I'm finished!

[Bill Doughty · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to like it better, and there are some decent parts in here, but in the end, it's just the scribblings of a former hipster trying to explain to everyone why the sort of people she used to hang out with (but probably wouldn't give the time of day now that she has some success and money) are cooler than you. But then again, I enjoy consistently having a roof over my head and don't engage in recreational hallucinogen use, so admittedly I'm probably not the target audience.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

What I wanted was an in-depth analysis and one-woman take on the co-opting of subcultures in the modern world. What I got was a less-than-interesting account of one woman's self-proclaimed 'bohemianism,' which was nothing more than the discoveries of any liberal-arts college freshman.

[Peter Tillman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good memories of this book, read when it was new (circa 2000). I was reminded of this by Powers' new Joni Mitchell biography.

Rating from my old (paper!) booklog. Likely closer to 3.5 stars.

[Rebecca Noran]

An enjoyable read about people you probably know. the last chapter is called "selling out."

[Jaymi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book over 20 years ago. Rereading it now, with a longer perspective, I still see myself and Gen X in it. The balancing act required for counterculture and mainstream culture to each play into your philosophies, material resources, and behaviors is still very much alive in the present time. It was worth the read when it was first published; and worth the reread today.Gen X is a small generation. Millennials and Gen Z and beyond may not understand the roots of their existential quandaries just as we didn’t understand how our Boomer and Silent Generation parents influenced our attitudes.

[Drew · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's fine, but it's SO dated. Just couldn't keep my interest after a while. Oh well. On to the next.

[Lisa Elkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very insightful look at living alternatively.

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting ruminations on "alternative America", most especially in regards to changing sexual identities and the bohemian attitude towards working life. In the chapter titled "The Cultured Proletariat", Powers explores the satisfaction and meaning that artists can find in their "day" jobs (I must point out here that it's hard to find work these days at all, let alone a "9-5" gig). Having worked as a barista, cheesemonger and waitress for the last 7 years, I especially dug this part:
"....the cultured proletariat includes anyone who works with goods or services that reflect her cultural interests, but whose primary tasks remain menial and unrelated to that specialty."
I was always happier when I was working with natural products versus foodstuffs that I considered unethical; ergo, better to sell artisan cheese than veal picatta. But I digress.
This book was published in 2000, so it's pretty outdated culturally, and that's its main drawback. Nearly everything I read that was published before 9/11 has a blurry, vague sense of unease; no wonder it was hard for me to know what I wanted as a teenager. In the late 90's, things were too damn comfortable, and that is reflected in the meandering--dare I say it?--bobo(bourgeois bohemian)rhetoric that winds itself throughout this text.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book when it first came out. It has made more of an impression on me now actually, as if I've grown into the book and its themes have become more relevant in my life. The essays are populated with people from every slacker/subculture representation I hung out with and/or knew in the 90s, all relatively aimless about their "careers," or what might barely pass for them, and the sides of life they really live for. Coulda been me, coulda been me. In particular, Powers' take on the effects and motivations of drug use, positive and negative, are very insightful and not apologetic at all. She comes from an "intellectual mind-expanding" point of view of psychedelics, not of wanting to blot out life or be "comfortably numb" with opiates or some such, and it's an interesting philosophy -- with our without drugs involved -- for creating greater intellectual curiosity.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mixed feelings here. I got it looking for anthropology, and received autobiography. There are no new deep thoughts here, no sensational insights. And yet, there is still something of value, something that makes it worth reading. For me, it was the many moments when the author, speaking of friends past and present, reminds me of those I love. Is it really a good guide to alternative America? No, probably not. Is it a good look at those who live on the fringes by fate or choice? I think so. Thought there was little I had not heard before, Powers has enough of a way with words that there were many phrases and sentences she uses that stuck with me, that I needed to share with others. By one measure, that makes this a pretty good book.

[Jeff Loquist · Rating 2 out of 5]

Actually, it has been 3 days since I finished this book and wrote the review and I have just gotten angrier since, causing me to come back in and drop my rating even further. I actually had a nightmare that Ann Powers cornered me at a party and I couldn't escape...it was frightening. I really wanted to like this. Unfortunately, the author's desire to seem bohemian hurt every sensibility in my being. Her incessant push that Bohemianism is about more than materialism while focusing on the things she had or wore killed any chance of her being convincing in the effort.

The only redeeming part of the book was "The Cultured Proletariat" where she discusses "day jobs" of bohemians...and this was only mildly redeeming.

[Saul · Rating 1 out of 5]

The danger of trying to decipher the zeitgeist by closely studying your own experience and that of your friends is that you can wind up sounding incredibly self-involved and not very self-aware. Ann Powers writes as if she herself embodies the very spirit of the age, as if she and her crowd hold the keys to what it means to be "alternative" in the cruel world of Capitalist America. Her life just isn't as interesting as she thinks it is. She has an impressive résumé of rock & roll writing jobs, but the life she celebrates in these pages sounds remarkably plain. She is not a very good storyteller.

[Ariel · Rating 3 out of 5]

i got half way through this. it's well written. passed down to me from my mom who said "this book reminded me of you and your friends" - and it was true, so much that i don't need to read the book. i know what she's going to say next. a good book if you want to understand the late 80s / 90s generation of teenagers trying to make a world for themselves and define family for themselves. i felt like someone was telling me about my coming of age and it was frankly, boring. powers is a really good writer, but i just had to shelve it.

[dirt · Rating 3 out of 5]

The rating might not be entirely accurate because I read this book 10 years ago.

But man, I have been banging my head, trying to remember the title/author of this book for a couple months. Google searches like "book autobiography female music writer spin magazine music..." turned up nothing. I thought I might have to check in the the "What's the name of that book?" people.

What still resonates with me is Ann Powers' capturing the feeling you have when you are discovering awesome new music, listening to it with your heart, and sharing songs with others.

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good book for those of us interested in what it was like growing up in the 1970s. I also learned about different types of living arrangements and how important it is to create community; not to replace your birth family, but how to create new families around you.

We also learn about what it's like to be a music journalist and writing record reviews for different types of publications, from very small locally printed newsletters to high-end magazines such as The New Yorker and Rolling Stone.

It's a fun read!

[Jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can I say? This book exposed a crowd I think I get, but one that probably wouldn't accept me. Reading it made me feel strangely familiar...

Recap: LOVED it. Hilarious at times. Epic. Irreverent. Lots of nostalgia. Captures a time and place just before my generation, but there's intriguing overlap. Makes me laugh to know what was happening in the urban bohemes of America when I was playing in the sandbox in rural Indiana. :)

One of the most influential reads I've had.

[Allisonv · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a love/hate experience with this one. I like a lot of the topics that she attacked; writing on how unique, individual identity struggles are actually universal is a tough one. I found a lot of my abstract thoughts and emotions articulated here. Overall, it seemed incomplete, and I was annoyed with significant portions. Touches on non-traditional living situations and "chosen families," both of which I am into.

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

The bohemians are the outsiders, impossible revolutionaries, non-mainstream folks who go their own way, creatively, unconventionally. I've always admired them, maybe because I was one of them at various points in my life, and because they always had something to offer that was different, a new twist, a new perspective. This book is about them.

[Bridgette Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book! It is so great in its description of the hipster scene in San Francisco! This book was an inspiration in the ways that it defines how young people in their 20s can literally decide what they want their lives to look like. I was completely influenced by this book.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read. It took me a while to get going - I could have done without the recap of where all of her friends lived in the Bay Area in the first chapter - but ultimately a unique look at drug culture, the sexual underground and what it means to sell out.

[Brian · Rating 1 out of 5]

After the first 50 pages, I decided to move on. I think this just wasn't what I was expecting, though it also seemed a bit of a self-indulgent mess. I'll still happily read Ms. Powers' music criticism, but this was just not my cup of memoir.

[Zahki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second time I've read it. Last time was 8 years ago and much more interesting and poignant this time around. She's just a bit older than I am and a good portion of this story takes place in SF so even more relevant now. Highly recommended.

[Elyssa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This topic of bohemianism interesting to me and I think I would have liked this book better if the author had stuck to an objective journalistic approach and not integrated her own story.