Customer Reviews

Sublime's Brad Nowell: Crazy Fool (Portrait of a Punk)

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Has it really come to this? A glossy Sublime picture book? I guess it's for the folks who never got the Sublime documentary DVD to play in their VCR. Picture one of those ultra-glossy N.K.O.T.B. biography magazines and you've got the idea here.

I like the positive, fist-person testimony just fine, but this book needs a plot, a flow, and a brain. And, at times, a spell checker. More effort on the part of the author to hunt down the people who know the truth, even if they didn't idolize Bradley. Find a point besides, "Brad is swell".

I mean, did anybody dislike Brad? Get the scoop from the record execs that didn't sign him. He was a huge druggie, but no conversations with a dealer or two? Who made the final descision to boot Sublime from the Warped tour? He had trouble with the law but no case worker could be found?

I justify my purchase two ways. 1) I'm a huge fan and would probably buy a CD of Bradley sleeping. 2) The money goes to Jake.

I've listened to Sublime's music and Bradley sang with a brutal honesty that is nowhere in this book. He would be [angry].

From the moment I got this book, I haven't been able to put it down! If you want to read about Sublime and the life of Bradley Nowell this is the bible! The book has lots of unseen photos of Brad, Bud, and Eric and Brad's family and friends and yes, Louie dogg too! It gives an in dept perception of what a crazy life Bradley led from being devoted to his family and the demons of his drug addiction. If you think you've read and know about Sublime you haven't touch the tip of the iceberg until you read this book! My only regret is not buying this book when it first came out!

A definite for any Sublime fan. Insightful; an honest look into Bradley from some of his closest friends. Interviews from Bud, Eric, Troy, and his Parents among others. (Although I was really expecting some verbage from Miguel, Ras MG, and Opie.) Excellent graphics; from photos of Brad as a youngster, to his school report cards and hand written essays and lyrics. A deeply sincere letter from Troy to Jake could be a tearjerker for some. Check it out!

I have been a Sublime fan for years and this is the first book that I feel truly pays tribute to the legendary Bradley Nowell. The pictures alone are worth the price of this book. The entire book, including all text, is laid out amongst glossy color photos. Some pictures are common among Sublime fan web sites, but many are rare and never seen before. The interviews are very casual, which makes it very easy to become absorbed by the book. What a brilliant man, what a loss to society. I have a friend who is having many problems with the same drug that took Brad's life. This book has really helped me deal with the thought of loosing a close friend. A must read for all Sublime fans. A good read for anyone who wants to better understand the hardships of drug abuse. Either way, you won't be able to put this book down!!!!

What a great book! This was a very enjoyable, and touching read about a band "that should have been." Any Sublime fan will be greatly pleased by this book. Provides lots in inside information about the band history, along with touching anecdotes from bandmates, friends, and obviously, family memebers. While sadness prevails throughout, this is also a cautionary tale to musicians and non-musicians, about the affects of drug use, not only for the individual abusing the chemicals, but for anyone close to them. Wonderfully illustrated, with lots of great photos. Troy Nowell's letter to her son regarding his dad is heartfelt and a great ending to a great book. Imagine what could have been.

For those who think that fifty bucks is a lot to pay for this book, I'd like to say that I paid ten times that price. That's right, folks, I got this book for five-hundred bucks. It was worth every penny because I bought it directly from James Nowell, or "Papa Nowell" (Brad's dad), off of a certain auction website. As of this writing, James Nowell has about two dozen copies left in his archives and is auctioning them off, one per week, each with a personalized inscription to the buyer. Papa Nowell personally inscribed the book for my best friend who introduced me to Sublime. My friend and I will never have the opportunity to see Sublime live, so this is the closest we can get. (Papa Nowell didn't say so, but I'm assuming that proceeds go to the Jakob Nowell college fund.)

As to why this book, the only biography of Bradley Nowell, is out-of-print and so expensive, Papa Nowell kindly explained. The book's printer went out of business back in 2000 after only one printing of 11,000. Papa Nowell says there has been talk among Sublime managers of reissuing an edited version of this book, but so far there are no immediate plans. So what we have here folks is the time honored issue of supply and demand. There are millions of Sublime fans who would love to have this book, but only 11,000 copies in circulation. This is what is driving the book's price to fifty, one hundred, and in my case five hundred dollars.

As to the content of the book itself, imagine one of those Sublime booklets that come with the CDs (such as the booklet in Everything Under the Sun) but in an extended, book-sized form. All the Sublime graphics, artwork, and photographs we've come to be familiar with, but in a greater number and with some material we've never seen before.

What I found most moving about this book were the photographs of Bradley as a child, a young boy, and eventually as a young man. These are aspects of his life that we don't usually get to see. The photographs of Bradley with his father during that important trip to Jamaica, when Bradley was introduced to Reggae, were very poignant. The testimonial of a grade school teacher was beautiful; this teacher knew Bradley during his childhood when his parents divorced, and she remembers Bradley as a gifted but "fragile" young man who required extra attention and who related better with adults than with children his own age. The reprinting of Bradley's 1989 "writing proficiency examination" makes obvious why Bradley was in classes for gifted students. And reading James Nowell's testimonials makes it obvious where Bradley got his sensitivity.

I must say that I don't understand the previous comments about this book appearing one-sided and saying little more than "Brad is swell." There is quite a bit in this book that is challenging and critical of Bradley Nowell. For starters, Bradley's own mother comments that after her son died she was embarrassed by some of the footage of him that aired on television; she didn't understand or approve of the rock-and-roll lifestyle. Bradley's widow, Troy Nowell, describes Bradley's mother as coming from a very structured and conservative Christian background. Troy says she regrets that Bradley's mother was allowed to choose the minister who officiated Bradley's memorial, because he was too conservative and seemed to preach to Bradley's friends that they need to accept Jesus to be saved. James Nowell speaks candidly about being unprepared for married life with Bradley's mother. And everyone, Brad's friends, family, managers, etc., speaks candidly about Bradley's chemical dependency. What emerges is the portrait of troubled family, with the implication being that Bradley's sensitivity made it all unbearable for him. Troy Nowell herself openly talks about the problems within the family, saying that Bradley's mother didn't know her son but is now learning to know her grandson, Jakob Nowell.

Ultimately, this book makes palpable the lifestyle of Bradley, his family and friends, and the culture Bradley grew up in and lived in down in Long Beach, California. You feel you can inhale the atmosphere. Hopefully, there will be a reissue of this book at some point. Until then, you'll have to pay double, or in my case twenty-times, the original listing price. But if you are a Sublime fan and are able to get your hands on a copy, you won't regret it.

This book is awesome. The photos and writings are excellent. Although the intro states that the book is written for fans, and does not try to be objective, it does reveal Bradley Nowell's darker side.

Well I bought Sublime's Brad Nowell : Crazy Fool (Portrait of a Punk book and it were so emotional. Brad's history, Brad was a honor student in school. His talent was so creative. Those who are not a sublime fan think Sublime was all about drugs, it was not. Sublime was all about there desire to play. Brad's creative life style. I read though the whole book and when I was finished I had tears coming, started crying. Believe it or not Brad's Lyrics had a meaning to it and always will...

I paid $50 for this book, and I don't regret it one bit. It's a great look at Brad's life, from the good to the bad. It intensely describes his escalating drug problems which really serves as a reminder of how much they can screw your life up. There are tons of pictures too. I'd recommend this book to any SUBLIME fan.

if your'e a fan of sublime you're gonna love this book just because it captures the life and spirit of a legend. The pictures alone are reason enough to pay but just, i dunno man, this book just means a lot because it's one more piece of brad. it's like even though he's dead he still speaks through his music and documentaries like this one. take full advantage of this book about a great band