Rave Ups: Please Kill Me by Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain
Author: Matt Moeller1 Feb
If you have any interest at all in American underground music this is a must read. Being the book is taken from interviews with the actual people on the scene it is an extremely visceral and interesting read. The coverage is chronological starting in the late sixties covering the Velvet Underground and the other bands that are considered to be Proto-Punk. The main players in that scene included the Velvets, Iggy and The Stooges, The MC5 & The New York Dolls. The story continues covering the bands that originally became known as Punk in the mid 70s. The tag line originally referred to the bands that made a name for themselves at the now famous NY club CBGBs. Included are The Patti Smith Group, Ramones, The Dead Boys, & Television. The book covers through the involvement of The Sex Pistols & Malcolm McClaren and the controversy that followed… plus interviews about what happened to some of the major players like Johnny Thunders and Dee Dee Ramone. For me the book covered a time period in Rock N Roll that I had not previously explored and introduced to me some great bands that I wouldn’t have delved into normally. BTW: the title of the book is something Richard Hell put on a T-shirt in the early days of Television. 
One Response for "Rave Ups: Please Kill Me by Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain"
[...] One of my favorite moments is when Bowie starts miming… I’m not kidding he actually mimes that he is behind an invisible wall up on stage which he eventually is able to break through and bridge the gap between him and the audience. I was fairly surprised that the venue was populated by mostly young women screaming in adoration, I guess I underestimated Bowie’s sex appeal during the early 70s. Early on in the film you get to see the crowd file into the venue which is always fun because Bowie fans really like to get dressed up decked out in all sorts of costumey clothes, makeup and accessories (something I got to witness first hand when I went to see him on his Earthling tour in 1997). Other highlights include a particularly jazzy rendition of “Changes”, and covers of “Love Me Do” (as part of a medley w/ “Jean Genie”), “Lets Spend the Night Together”, and The Velvet Undergrounds “White Light/White Heat”. You will be disappointed if you are expecting any documentary footage as you really only get glimpses of Bowie getting his make up and wardrobe done backstage during breaks. These scenes go by uneventful except for a surprise appearance by Ringo Starr and Bowie’s now infamous first wife Angela. Angela was particularly fun for me to see because I had heard all about their “open relationship” and drugged out escapades together as they are both featured in the Punk book Please Kill Me (see my review here). [...]
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