Rolling with the Stones (Hardcover)

by Bill Wyman (Author)
Key Phrases: highest chart position, New York, Rolling Stones, Los Angeles (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Of his own choosing, Bill Wyman's career as a founding member of the Rolling Stones has achieved a perspective that his legendary bandmates don't yet enjoy: a beginning, middle, and end. Indeed, the musicians once hailed as the greatest rock & roll band in the world have become more like the band that wouldn't die. But history can't be denied, and the man born William Perks of Lower Sydenham, London, has lovingly assembled this over-500-page book, equal parts memoir and lavishly illustrated coffee-table tome, with a winning mix of clear-eyed reportage (based on his own voluminous diaries) and an eye for colorful detail and ephemera worthy of a proud family scrapbook. Which, in many ways, Rolling with the Stones most resembles: family--and musical--trees are acknowledged, career moves dissected, deaths mourned, and triumphs and foibles alike are dispensed with equal candor. Wyman deflates the myth of the Stones as rock's preternatural bad boys (a conservative, sensationalist press made it all too easy to live down to expectations) yet allows the tragic legend of band founder Brian Jones to assume its proper perspective. A half-decade older than his bandmates, the retired Stone has few illusions about the band's true cultural impact and creative arc, devoting nearly three-quarters of the book to the Stones' first, turbulent decade. What is more gratifying is that he avoids the myopic constraints of the similarly sized Beatles Anthology, generously weaving the recollections of band members, associates, family, reporters, and even fan letters into a narrative whose outline is epic, but whose viewpoint has a decidedly human scale. --Jerry McCulley

From Publishers Weekly
Wyman's obsession makes for a Rolling Stones fan's delight. While this tome has the visual treats of a coffee-table book, categorizing it as such betrays the rich text within. The Stones' bassist for nearly four decades, Wyman appears to have ruined it for all Stones biographers past, present and future. A tireless collector, he offers rare photographs and letters, press clippings, tour posters and record sleeves. And thanks to either reams of diaries or marvelous powers of recall unaffected by decades spent in a hard-partying rock band, he provides copious historical and observational data as well. Wyman, teaming up again with Havers (Bill Wyman's Blues Odyssey), gives even short-tenured band mates commensurate face time and portrays the good times, like the band's first visit to America in 1964, and the bad, such as the time Wyman went out to score heroin for a sick-and recently busted-Keith Richards in 1977. Among the memorable photographs are a fit and trim Richards in swimwear on a 1968 Australia tour and a three-shot sequence of Mick Jagger, Jerry Hall and a paparazzo, during which Jagger confronts the shutterbug and ends up on his back on the sidewalk. Wyman shows humility and humor by including his quote from '67: "It's alright leaping about the stage when you're 20, but when you get to 25 or 26 it gets a bit embarrassing." It's too bad the book stops in 1990, when Wyman, well past the age of embarrassment, stopped touring with the band.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 512 pages
• Publisher: DK ADULT; 1st edition (October 28, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789489678
• ISBN-13: 978-0789489678
• Product Dimensions: 12.1 x 10.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #473,182 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you love the Stones, run--don't walk--to buy this!, January 6, 2004

By	Joe G. Brannen "Voracious Reader" (Huffman, TX United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Let me begin by tempering my comments with the fact that I've long been a fan of the Stones (going back to my garage-band days in the late 60's), so I began this book with a sincere interest in understanding the "phenomenon" we know as "The Rolling Stones". After just a short while, I was absolutely blown away by Bill Wyman's thorough, loving, and fantasically annotated effort. Here it is ladies and gentlemen, the complete history (warts and all) of one of the world's great rock bands. I am amazed that the book comes across as objective, and Wyman never sounds as if he's boasting or bragging...he just lays out the history of the group, song-by-song and performance-by-performance. Information is presented in somewhat of a scrapbook format, but this quickly grows on you, as it allows you to skip over items you might not care to view (lists of each forum where the Stones played on each tour), and savor the tidbits of information that are so insightful. Each page holds an incredible amount of information: photographs, background information, side notes, copies of contracts, mini-biographies, discographies, and so on. Very interesting tidbits of information are found almost everywhere....did you know that the famous "Jumping Jack Flash" riff was NOT a Jagger/Richard idea? Lots of clippings from newspapers and other media of the day, in turn condemning or praising the Stones as a group and as individuals. It's almost like being allowed to view Wyman's day-by-day scrapbook/diary of what happened as the band went from a bunch of school boys to the greatest rock band left standing. The amazing thing is that I never found myself bored with this volume. Maybe that's because I've always been amazed by the Stones, and perhaps that's natural for someone who "grew up" with them. So my advice is aimed at those who are sincere Stones fans or those who have a deep interest in the history of the band. This book should pretty much answer all your questions and provide MANY hours of entertainment as you "roll" with the Stones.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You'll Love It, December 1, 2002

By	Anthony Nasti "Tony" (Staten Island, New York United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This book by ex-Stones bassist Bill Wyman and Richard Havers is one of the best rock books ever; it's also the most definitive Rolling Stones book. This is the second book by Wyman,
his first being 1990's "Stone Alone". This book has everything Stones- tour setlists, photos, information on singles, and clippings from newspaper articles. It even tells the real title and the story behind the infamous groupie anthem "Star Star". It also features a hilarious 1970 Peanuts comic advertising the release of "Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out". The photos here are amazing. But there's one fact I can't believe. Who would vote Keith the 9th handsomest man in the world? Ray Charles? This is great book
for any Stones fan.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Coffee Table Book on the Stones!, December 10, 2002

By	J. E FELL "boogaloojef" (Carterville, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I was interested when I found out Bill Wyman was doing another book on the history of the "Greatest Rock And Roll Band in the World." His first book "Stone Alone" is one the better books I have read on the history of the band. Unfortunately that book ends at the start of the 1970s. Wyman's new book "Rolling with the Stones" follows the exploits of the band through his entire tenure with the band. Fanatics will enjoy the many pictures of memorabilia from Wyman's own collection. There are a number of rare photographs including some from when the band members were only kids. Other interesting items include many magazine covers and articles, tour posters, and pictures of rare import single sleeves. Album and single releases include track listings, chart positions and information about the original versions of songs the Stones covered. A general set list of songs played on each tour is included as well as list of tour dates and opening acts for each tour. Wyman makes the book a good read by spicing the book with quotes and stories from fans, friends, family, other fellow musicians and the Stones themselves. Many of the quotes and stories pertain to the memorabilia and photos included in the book. Another great aspect of the book is that since Bill Wyman was involved that book does not focus almost entirely on Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Brian Jones. The pictures are divided up more evenly among the band members including Ian Stewart. The book is essential to anyone with more than just a passing interest in the Rolling Stones. It was well worth the price especially since I got it on sale.