Cheetah Chrome: A Dead Boy's Tale: From the Front Lines of Punk Rock [Hardcover]

Cheetah Chrome (Author), Legs McNeil (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 16, 2010

Here is the autobiography of Cheetah Chrome, lead guitarist of the Dead Boys, one of the greatest punk bands ever. It’s a tale of success--and excess: great music, drugs (he overdosed and was pronounced dead three times), and resurrection.

The Dead Boys, with roots in the band Rocket from the Tombs, came out of Cleveland to dominate the NYC punk scene in the mid-1970s. Their hit “Sonic Reducer” soon became a punk anthem. Now, for the first time, Cheetah dishes on the people he’s known onstage and off, including the Dead Boys’ legendary singer Stiv Bators, Johnny Thunders of the New York Dolls, the Ramones, the Clash, Pere Ubu, and the Ghetto Dogs, as well as life at CBGBs, a year with Nico, and more.

 

Straight from the man, these are the backstage stories that every punk fan will want to hear. Never mind the Sex Pistols, here’s Cheetah Chrome!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A Dead Boy's Tale is a highly entertaining account of Chrome's experiences, and you can practically smell the stale beer and vomit along the way...an invaluable trip through some of punk's most important years." - Under the Radar, July 2010

 “A Dead Boy's Tale is a fascinating read, not just revealing about the author's life but also informative about the music industry in general and this genre in particular. While there have been great books - especially the oral histories - describing the advent of punk music this memoir provides a fascinating more personal approach and it works well.” - BlogCritics.org

 

“Xmas Gifts That Don’t Suck”

“…a wild, and at times poignant, ride that fans of American music history and reckless behavior will treasure.” - My Old Kentucky Blog, October 6, 2010

 

“The Dead Boys have always been the Rodney Dangerfield of punk rock. They had the chops, but never really got the respect or credit they deserved for their role serving on the front lines of the New York punk scene in the late 70’s…[In Cheetah Chrome] The Dead Boys are finally getting some of the credit they deserve.” - Examiner.com, September 30, 2010

 

From the day I received this book every open opportunity I had, I buried my face in its pages! This book combines some of my favorite things in books, autobiographies, punk rock, and graphic detail of life wrecking adventures. The book starts with an endearing forward written by Legs McNeil leading to Cheetah Chrome’s brutally honest assessment of his life and it’s affects on others. Like many people in the world of punk rock, I look at the name Cheetah Chrome as a piece of MY history. His name ranks up there with the immortals of punk rock such as The Ramones (All of them), Iggy Pop, Sid Vicious, Johnny Rotten, Johnny Thunders, Stiv Bator, etc… This book not only mentions those legends of punk, but also great personal stories and interactions Cheetah had with each. When the cliché, sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll I normally roll my eyes and groan. However, in this situation that is truly the only way to label Cheetah Chromes life, but particularly in that order. Cheetah has lived a life that many have tried, but not many have succeeded to live as long as he has. Never in a book have I felt so connected to a character, let alone a true to life person who wrote an autobiography! I would recommend this book to not only the Punk Rock historians & punk rock enthusiasts, but to anyone who roots for the underdog. - Punk Rock Review, September 21, 2010

About the Author

Cheetah Chrome has played guitar for bands including the Dead Boys and Rocket from the Tombs, co-wrote punk classics like “Sonic Reducer” and “Ain’t It Fun,” and was declared one of Musician Magazine’s Top 100 Guitarists of all Time. An enduring influence on punk-rock guitarists, Cheetah continues to write and perform. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee, with his wife and son.
 

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Voyageur Press; First edition (September 16, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076033773X
• ISBN-13: 978-0760337738
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #130,397 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE REAL DEAL, February 6, 2011

By 

bob pfeifer - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cheetah Chrome: A Dead Boy's Tale: From the Front Lines of Punk Rock (Hardcover)

Much has been said here about who Cheetah Chrome is so I will skip that. What's important to know is that this is not some ghost written rock autobio churned out for the advance. This is more a like a diary / story. Cheetah emerges as an intelligent and insightful man not afraid to expose himself while capturing exactly what it was like to be in Cleveland in the 70's. And thus what it was like to be a kid in America living anywhere outside of Hollywood and the upper east side. When he talks about the music that was played and the "dazed and confused" life you will relate to every bit of it. I flashed on my youth as he provided the soundtrack. From Alice Cooper's "Eighteen" that every kid had to learn whether in Cle or as sex pistol in london to the various substances ingested to teenage sex there is no book that better takes you into those uncomfortable moments riding in the adolescence of punk. Cheetah emerges from this as one of the most intelligent voices of the period contrary to his image. A good companion read is Mike Hudson's equally brilliant Kerouac like tomb, Diary of a Punk.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Read For Dead Boys Fans, September 22, 2010

By 

John Wilkie (Pittsburgh, PA USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Cheetah Chrome: A Dead Boy's Tale: From the Front Lines of Punk Rock (Hardcover)

If you ever saw the Dead Boys at their peak (before the breakup and the countless reunion tours), you probably remember it as one of the greatest rock 'n' roll shows you've ever seen. I know I do, and at age sixty, I've seen a lot of shows! When I heard Cheetah was writing his story, I looked forward to reading it, but didn't know quite what to expect. The book was all I had hoped for, and then some. Of course there's an ample supply of stories of the various excesses of a life spent on the road with Stiv Bators and company, and these won't disappoint. Nor will the many tales of his encounters with rock 'n' roll royalty such as Keith Richards and Iggy Pop. However, what I wasn't expecting was the very sensitive and articulate evaluation of a life that, while having some incredible highs, also reached depths that were indeed gut-wrenching. Cheetah's not afraid to lay his soul bare here, nor is he afraid to admit his failings. His story is a fascinating one, and in the end, an inspirational one as well. If you're a Dead Boys fan, or just a rock 'n' roll fan, this book is a must-read.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Long live the punk rock spirit!, May 2, 2011

By 

Dusty Punch (McKinley, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cheetah Chrome: A Dead Boy's Tale: From the Front Lines of Punk Rock (Hardcover)

Disclosure #1: I was about 6 years old when Cheetah Chrome and the rest of the Dead Boys were terrorizing the NYC music scene.

Disclosure #2: After reading Chrome's autobiography I feel as if I was there in the front row of their punk rock roller coaster ride.

This book takes readers from Chrome's days as an awkward youth in Cleveland trying to find that perfect mix between talent and passion. It also details his role in the extremely underrated Cleveland glam/punk rock band Rocket From the Tomb. What made the book for me, though, were the stories of Chrome's days with the short-lived and combustible Dead Boys. You can practically feel the bond between Chrome and frontman Stiv Bators.

Readers will be pleasantly surprised by Chrome's writing chops. He blends humor, self-deprecation, and a vividly painted 70s and 80s set piece to bring the Cleveland and NYC punk scene to life. This is a must-read book from one of the great guitarists of our time and an unheralded legend from the days when rock had teeth.