Rocks : My Life in and Out of Aerosmith

Joe Perry's New York Times bestselling memoir of life in the rock-and-roll band Aerosmith: "An insightful and harrowing roller coaster ride through the career of one of rock and roll's greatest guitarists. Strap yourself in" (Slash). Before the platinum records or the Super Bowl half-time show or the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Joe Perry was a boy growing up in small-town Massachusetts. He idolized Jacques Cousteau and built his own diving rig that he used to explore a local lake. He dreamed of becoming a marine biologist. But Perry's neighbors had teenage sons, and those sons had electric guitars, and the noise he heard when they started playing would change his life. The guitar became his passion, an object of lust, an outlet for his restlessness and his rebellious soul. That passion quickly blossomed into an obsession, and he got a band together. One night after a performance he met a brash young musician named Steven Tyler; before long, Aerosmith was born. What happened over the next forty-five years has become the stuff of legend: the knockdown, drag-out, band-splintering fights; the drugs, the booze, the rehab; the packed arenas and timeless hits; the reconciliations and the comebacks. Rocks is an unusually searching memoir of a life that spans from the top of the world to the bottom of the barrel—several times. It is a study of endurance and brotherhood, with Perry providing remarkable candor about Tyler, as well as new insights into their powerful but troubled relationship. It is an insider's portrait of the rock and roll family, featuring everyone from Jimmy Page to Alice Cooper, Bette Midler to Chuck Berry, John Belushi to Al Hirschfeld. It takes us behind the scenes at unbelievable moments such as Joe and Steven's appearance in the movie of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (they act out the murders of Peter Frampton and the Bee Gees). Full of humor, insight, and brutal honesty about life in and out of one of the biggest bands in the world, Rocks is "well-paced, well-plotted...a mini-masterpiece" ( The Boston Globe ). Joe Perry Exposes His Unrepentant, Unbridled Life As The Lead Guitarist Of Aerosmith. He Delves Deep Into His Volatile, Profound, And Enduring Relationship With Singer Steve Tyler And Reveals The Real People Behind The Larger-than-life Rock-gods On Stage. The Nearly Five-decade Saga Of Aerosmith Is Epic, At Once A Study In Brotherhood And Solitude That Plays Out On The Killing Fields Of Rock And Roll. With Record-making Hits And Colossal Album Sales, Aerosmith Has Earned Their Place In The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. But Theirs Is Ultimately A Story Of Endurance, And It Starts Almost Half A Century Ago With Young Perry, The Rebel Whose Loving Parents Wanted Him To Assimilate, But Who Quits School Because He Doesn't Want To Cut His Hair. He Meets Tyler In A Restaurant In New Hampshire, Sways Him From Pop Music To Rock-and-roll, And It Doesn't Take Long For The Toxic Twins To Skyrocket Into A World Of Fame And Utter Excess. From The Mega-successful Song And Music Video With Run Dmc, Walk This Way, To The Realization That He Can't Pay His Room Service Bill, Perry Takes A Personal Look Into The Human Stories Behind Aerosmith, The People Who Enabled Them, The Ones Who Controlled Them, And The Ones Who Changed Them. Gestation. The Water And The Woods ; Sounds ; Prep ; Post-prep -- The Birth. The Commonwealth ; Shot In The Dark ; Twinges Of Love ; Make It -- The Classic Albums. Toys ; Marriage At The Ritz ; Rocks ; All Together And Totally Apart ; The Ruts -- The Project. Out ; Further Out -- The Second Rise And Fall (and Rise Again). Back ; John Kalodner John Kalodner ; Vacation In Vancouver ; Dinosaurs Eating Cars ; Cult ; Trying To Get A Grip ; How It Worked ; The Meltdown ; Brothers -- Rockin' In The Twenty-first Century. Push ; 9/11 ; Honkin' ; Confusion And Pain ; Falling ; Idol ; Another Dimension ; Vermont In The Summer. Joe Perry With David Ritz. Includes Index And Selected Discography. In the tradition of the mega-bestseller Life by Keith Richards, Aerosmiths Joe Perry opens up for the first time about the wild, inside story of his life in the legendary band he cofounded in 1970which is still going strong today. In Rocks , Joe Perry exposes his unrepentant, unbridled life as the lead guitarist of Aerosmith. He delves deep into his volatile, profound, and enduring relationship with singer Steve Tyler and reveals the real people behind the larger-than-life rock-gods on stage. The nearly five-decade saga of Aerosmith is epic, at once a study in brotherhood and solitude that plays out on the killing fields of rock and roll. With record-making hits and colossal album sales, Aerosmith has earned their place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But theirs is ultimately a story of endurance, and it starts almost half a century ago with young Perry, the rebel whose loving parents wanted him to assimilate, but who quits school because he doesnt want to cut his hair. He meets Tyler in a restaurant in New Hampshire, sways him from pop music to rock-and-roll, and it doesnt take long for the Toxic Twins to skyrocket into a world of fame and utter excess. From the mega-successful song and music video with Run DMC, Walk This Way, to the realization that he cant pay his room service bill, Perry takes a personal look into the human stories behind Aerosmith, the people who enabled them, the ones who controlled them, and the ones who changed them. In his own words, Rocks is the whole story: the loners story, the bands story, the recovery story, the cult story, the love story, the success story, the failure story, the rebirth story, the re-destruction story, the post-destructive rebirth story. Foreward by Johnny Depp. "An insightful and harrowing roller coaster ride through the career of one of rock and roll's greatest guitarists. Strap yourself in."--Slash "Rocking Joe Perry rocks' again! "--Jimmy Page Before the platinum records or the Super Bowl half-time show or the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Joe Perry was a boy growing up in small-town Massachusetts. He idolized Jacques Cousteau and built his own diving rig that he used to explore a local lake. He dreamed of becoming a marine biologist. But Perry's neighbors had teenage sons, and those sons had electric guitars, and the noise he heard when they started playing would change his life. The guitar became his passion, an object of lust, an outlet for his restlessness and his rebellious soul. That passion quickly blossomed into an obsession, and he got a band together. One night after a performance he met a brash young musician named Steven Tyler; before long, Aerosmith was born. What happened over the next forty-five years has become the stuff of legend: the knockdown, drag-out, band-splintering fights; the drugs, the booze, the rehab; the packed arenas and timeless hits; the reconciliations and the comebacks. -- Rocks is the ultimate rock-and-roll epic. In Perry's own words, it tells the whole story: "the loner's story, the band's story, the recovery story, the cult story, the love story, the success story, the failure story, the rebirth story, the re-destruction story, and the post-destructive rebirth story." The lead guitarist of Aerosmith shares behind-the-scenes perspectives into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame-inducted band, discussing such topics as his teen decision to drop out of school, enduring relationship with Steve Tyler and experiences with fame and recovery.