I'd like to read more books about rock bands, specifically any books about bands that are trying to make it. Fiction, real, I don't mind. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!

I am sure there are others out there but this is the only one I can think of.  Good luck!

Five Against One: The Pearl Jam Story
Author: Kim Neely

I read one by Cyrinda Fox Tyler.  I'm sorry I can't remember the title.  The book is kind of about her, she was Stephen Tyler's first wife, but there is alot of info about Stephen Tyler and Aerosmith. 

I also just got a YA book on here for my nephew called "Resurrection Blues" about a young man who drops out of school to be in a band and his adventures, can't remember if it's fiction or not. 

There are also many books out about the Beatles. 

I wonder if you search by subject what you'll find?  Good luck!

Bonnie - that Resurrection Blues one actually sounds really interesting. I wish I had a credit so that I could get it - hopefully it won't be gone by the time I get one :(

Bon Jovi (on my wish list),  Slash, my DD said Valerie Bertinelli's book is more about Van Halen than Valerie so she gave it to her boyfriend to read

Hammer of the Gods (Led Zepplin)

No One Gets out of here Alive (Jim Morrison/The Doors)

The Dirt (Motley Crue)

The Wishbones by Tom Perotta (fiction)

And I don't want to live this life (Nancy Spungen & Sid Vicious)

Scar Tissue by Anthony Keidis (red hot chili peppers)

There are gazillion of these books out there, mostly by or about bands that were/are very popular.

I used to read a lot of them. I don't think I've ever seen such extremes in any genre. Either they were really good, or they were absolutely horribly done. Very little middle ground.

I really enjoyed this one: Angels Dance And Angels Die: The Tragic Romance of Pamela and Jim Morrison by Patricia Butler (Paperback - Nov 1, 2007)

Here's one, I have it in my pile to post when my acc't is UNheld:

Born In The USA:  Bruce Springsteen And The American Tradition by Jim Cullen.  

I haven't read this, found it in my Sal. Army store.  It looks interesting...

I read an autobiography by Marilyn Manson a few years ago...what was it called....The Long Hard Road Out of Hell (had to look it up). Part of that was about trying to make it in the business, also plenty of stuff about his own life, too. I always wondered how someone under 30 years old can write an autobiography? Punkass kid! LOL

Cheryl

Ha! You've come to the right spot. As a rock-n-roll author, myself, I have a list of Rock Books on my website. It's nowhere near a complete list, and there may be books on there that, since I haven't read them, don't entirely belong, but ... http://westofmars.com/west-of-mars/rock-books/  Be warned -- this list is only fiction.

Knock yourself out and holler if you have any questions. I've got some non-fiction on my shelves, as well. Everything from Pamela Des Barres to Chuck Klosterman to the absolutely brilliant Heroin Diaries (Nikki Sixx; you'll never look at leather pants the same way again). I'm always glad to talk books -- although my time's limited since I'm supposed to be writing some!

This is kind of different - but King Dork, possibly the best YA book I've read in the last 5 years, greatly concerns a teenage boy starting a band with his friends.  IMO it's a hilariously accurate portrayal.  It's also a truly wonderful book I don't see mentioned here very often.

And I'm With the Band was my favorite-est book when I was about 17.

ETA - and I loved Girl, too.  That list is truly amazing!

I'll second King Dork by Frank Portman. The author is also in a band- The Mr. T Experience.

ETA: A good non-fiction one is Our Band Could Be Your Life by Michael Azerrad. It tells the story of (mostly) indie bands from the 80s: Beat Happening, Black Flag, Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr. etc.

Also Route 666: the Road to Nirvana by Gina Arnold is really good.

I can't remember what it's called, but that crazy journal/scrapbook thing Courtney Love put out a few years ago is completely riviting.

And also very different, and only periferally about rock bands, but a fascinating read none the less:  Lipstick Traces: A Secret History of the Twentieth Century by Greil Marcus.  It's one of those books that is potentially life changing if you read it at the right time.

While we're talking YA, don't forget one of my all-time faves, Fat Kid Rules the Earth, by KL Going. Not quite about a band struggling to make it so much as a kid trying to find his place in the world -- and the importance of a good, all-accepting subculture.

Thank you for all the suggestions, everyone. It's actually for a novel I'm writing. Just got Resurrection Blues in the mail and I'll start reading it when I finish Stairway To Heaven. :)

The Commitments by Roddy Doyle, which was also made into a movie.  It's fiction about a band that plays "Dublin soul," and it's hilarious!

The Heroin Diaries by Nikki Sixx and Tommyland by Tommy Lee

I read So You Wanna Be a Rock & Roll Star by Jacob Slichter a few years ago.  He is the drummer for Semisonic.  I really enjoyed that book.  I also read The Commitments by Roddy Doyle recently and also liked it.

If you enjoyed The Commitments, I highly recommend the other two books in the Barrytown Trilogy: The Snapper and The Van.  They all focus on the Rabbitte family - movies were made of all three and Colm Meany played the father in them all.