This sounds amazing. I can't wait to read it.

Bill German's unforgivable sin in the eyes of most fans is that they weren't him. That and he stopped and made them feel guilty for spending so much of their adult lives on Stones message boards. For that he's doomed to receive snarky remarks online from what should be his most appreciative audience.

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WilliamPatrickMaynard
Bill German's unforgivable sin in the eyes of most fans is that they weren't him. That and he stopped and made them feel guilty for spending so much of their adult lives on Stones message boards. For that he's doomed to receive snarky remarks online from what should be his most appreciative audience.

No,the fact that he comes off as a diva and drama queen because he considered suicide because his favorite band turned on him. That and his endless flogging of this book. Even though he criticized the Stones over their money hungry ways. Not to mention the kiss and tell aspect of it. How about just keeping your memories to yourself instead of making a buck in a tell all. Just my humble opinion.

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sweetcharmedlife
No,the fact that he comes off as a diva and drama queen because he considered suicide because his favorite band turned on him. That and his endless flogging of this book. Even though he criticized the Stones over their money hungry ways. Not to mention the kiss and tell aspect of it. How about just keeping your memories to yourself instead of making a buck in a tell all. Just my humble opinion.

Not really there charmer, he is just an east coast kind of nerdy guy who got close to the fire. Thoughts of suicide are tame compared to what happened to other folks who got so close. His stories are great reading for Stones fans and imho he was pretty classy about what he chose to kiss and tell about. He saw a great deal more of the dirt folks would pay dearly to hear and indeed kept those parts to himself. Besides the Beggars Banquet rag he published was really cool. peace.

Bill's depression wasn't because of the Stones. It was because of the Stones fans who felt entitled to one of his 40 free tickets Michael Cohl had sent him to distribute for Mick's Webster Hall gig. Some fans felt entitled to a ticket, and then didn't thank Bill when he gave them one. (Are those the same type fans who shred the Stones most viciously on the internet, and hate Ronnie Wood, etc?? Hmmm.) Bill didn't make money off the newsletter. He lived in a crappy studio apartment when he ran it, and after he folded it he moved into a low-income apartment building. I hope he made good bucks off the book, though. After I read it, I bought all the Beggar's Banquet back issues, and then emailed Bill a comment about the book. And he emailed me back, commenting good-naturedly on what I wrote him. Very friendly, nice response.

I enjoyed reading his book. I've read much worse books about the Stones and I thought he sounded honest, even when he was writing about himself in a way that could make him look obsessed or arrogant.

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sweetcharmedlife

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WilliamPatrickMaynard
Bill German's unforgivable sin in the eyes of most fans is that they weren't him. That and he stopped and made them feel guilty for spending so much of their adult lives on Stones message boards. For that he's doomed to receive snarky remarks online from what should be his most appreciative audience.

No,the fact that he comes off as a diva and drama queen because he considered suicide because his favorite band turned on him. That and his endless flogging of this book. Even though he criticized the Stones over their money hungry ways. Not to mention the kiss and tell aspect of it. How about just keeping your memories to yourself instead of making a buck in a tell all. Just my humble opinion.

Thanks, SCL. That was a perfect complement to my post.

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WilliamPatrickMaynard

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sweetcharmedlife

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WilliamPatrickMaynard
Bill German's unforgivable sin in the eyes of most fans is that they weren't him. That and he stopped and made them feel guilty for spending so much of their adult lives on Stones message boards. For that he's doomed to receive snarky remarks online from what should be his most appreciative audience.

No,the fact that he comes off as a diva and drama queen because he considered suicide because his favorite band turned on him. That and his endless flogging of this book. Even though he criticized the Stones over their money hungry ways. Not to mention the kiss and tell aspect of it. How about just keeping your memories to yourself instead of making a buck in a tell all. Just my humble opinion.

Thanks, SCL. That was a perfect complement to my post.

Indeed, quite the set up. peace

It's a great book, and Bill's a great guy.

One thing about the book that may offer a little perspective, the book is not the inside story of Keith and Ronnie as told by Bill German. It's the inside story of Bill German's life for a decade (or so) where Keith and Ronnie are semi-major characters.

Speaking of books, when will Mick Taylor's book be ready? Can't wait for that one.

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gwen
I enjoyed reading his book. I've read much worse books about the Stones and I thought he sounded honest, even when he was writing about himself in a way that could make him look obsessed or arrogant.

Salut Gwen !

I never had this impression that he put himself as arrogant .
I think Mr German is a very kind man ,may be a bit naïve .
Did you read the book in French or in English ?

I really have a lot of regard for Bill and his book, even more so after seeing his long lecture at Villanova on Youtube. He hung on to his integrity whereas others admitted into the charmed circle haven't or wouldn't. He walked a tightrope between being a fan and an employee, and he handled it very well. The dirt he dished was VERY minor compared to what he undoubtedly saw. I think he really showed them for what they are in his depiction of how they tried to make him the bagman in Japan. And he is certainly entitled to write about his unique 15+ years with the RS.

I liked his book. I learned new facts but mainly I have got some feel how the inner circle looked like. I dont think we would make a better job if we were in his shoes.

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SwayStones
Salut Gwen !

I never had this impression that he put himself as arrogant .
I think Mr German is a very kind man ,may be a bit naïve .
Did you read the book in French or in English ?

I read it in french - unfortunately. Arrogant is probably not the right word, but I could not find a better one when I posted. Nevermind. Maybe "pushy" would be better.

Read it in English if you get a chance ,gwen .
I am not saying that the book was translated badly in French but i am sure it might sound a bit different in English .

I just finished the book and found it quite entertaining and interesting. What comes through loud and clear is that Ronnie and Keith seem (ed) like nice guys, who really took him under their wing. Mick comes across as a prima donna @#$%&. Really I don't know how German restrained himself when a scrawny little guy like Jagger got in his face and started berating him....wow, he has a lot of patience and perseverance. It amazes me what this guy put himself through, to get the adventure of a life time. And in no way did this guy get rich off the Stones. It sounds like that is a very hard thing to do. Another interesting thing is that Keith seemed to have agreed to make major compromises to keep the Stones going which led to Jagger taking on even more of the business decisions. And how 1989 began the big cash grab that got more excessive with every new tour. In no way does German come across as trying to cash in on the Stones. The guy is still living in some small shitty apartment, not living the life of luxury. The entire part about him contemplating suicide was a bit thin, and doesn't seem as if he really was that low into depression to actually really contemplate it, it sounded more like that was his way of expressing his anger. And boy did he have access to some very interesting and incredible adventures! It is a bit of a sad book as well, in that it shattered a lot of dreams he had and showed him the harsh reality of The Rolling Stones. They make some incredible music, but aren't the most honorable or nicest guys.

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gwen

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SwayStones
Salut Gwen !

I never had this impression that he put himself as arrogant .
I think Mr German is a very kind man ,may be a bit naïve .
Did you read the book in French or in English ?

I read it in french - unfortunately. Arrogant is probably not the right word, but I could not find a better one when I posted. Nevermind. Maybe "pushy" would be better.

What comes to mind is 'obsessive'. Even the most diehard fans would have bailed on the interview after being given the runaround for months on end by Keith. As Bill points out, to join the the RS' circle, you had to have something they wanted, such as sex, drugs or celebrity. Bill had none of those things, and that is why he had a hard time.

Yes, obsessive is a good way to describe him. Hell, he was just a kid, and a uber fan, and did whatever he could to write about them from an insider's perspective. What comes through though is that he actually started something that started getting fans interested, and the Stones realized this and merged with him, yet they didn't want to pay him a fair price and treated him rather shabbily, especially Mick, and Keith's manager Jane (she in particular seems like quite a piece of work, mean, nasty and conniving).

Another cool aspect of this book, is you get a lot of music talk too. In some ways in better detail than in Ronnie's and Keith's books. I especially found interesting the formalized account of how they went to favoring the studio versions when playing live, during the Steel Wheels tour. It was very interesting how German describes a conversation he had with Woody, and how he was finding it difficult to hit his cues. And how Keith would deliberately sabotage Mick on stage by playing a tad to long as to mess with Mick's cue. It is sad reading how it seems like the corporation began swallowing the group. And the sadness seemed to have marked a turning point in Keith and Mick's relationship. German sadly recounts the shows he saw on A Bigger Bang as if his teenage dream had finally been brought back to earth. What a heavy burden to put on five guys shoulders. The more I reflect on the book, the more I like it.

Hi all,
Fairly new here to this site - glad to find some fellow Stones fans. I have to say I loved Bill's book. After reading it, I decided I wanted to read the back issues of Beggar's Banquet - I went on the Website and noted how much I enjoyed his book. He sent me a really nice email thanking me. He's a class act.
Speaking of books, I've read: Life, STP, Miss O'Dell, the Victor Brokis Keith book, Marianne Faithful's - CAN ANYONE SUGGEST SOME FURTHER STONES READING?FYI: I started Old Gods but it I didn't buy it.

Thanks!

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Up and Down with The Rolling Stones is fun. Some loose facting, but fun, and believable. It's Only Rock and Roll is cool to the blow by blow of making of the albums and lots of other cool facts. Kind of hard to find though.

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memphiscats
Can anyone suggest some further Stones reading?

welcome to the forum - actually you should probably launch a new thread for this question! but:

if you like good writing and good reporting:
Stanley Booth's True Adventures of the Rolling Stones
Chet Flippo's On the Road with the Rolling Stones
and of course Keith's Life

if you don't mind some crappy writing but an interesting story - well, at least when he stays on topic:
Robert Greenfiel's STP

and a must-read in a class of its own:
James Phelge's Nankering With the Stones

David Dalton's The First Twenty Years, Bill's Rolling With the Stones
and the current line-up's According to the Rolling Stones are all also quite worthwhile

Good choices with sssoul
IMO Bill German is a true class act who wrote a great book...



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012-01-27 22:11 by detroitken.