Broken Summers

Rating:
Summary: Not Good
Review: Broken Summers chronicles the making of the Rise Above album to benefit the West Memphis Three (http://www.wm3.org) and in so illustrates the range of Rollins. From the giddy emotions to working with some of his old Flag bandmates and other greats (Lemmy from Motorhead) to the depression that inevitable hits him after a tour, this book runs the gamut. You can read how much he absorbs the knowledge in books, in music; it really makes you want to kick off the dust in your own life. The passages regarding touring to support this album bring the energy of those show to life. For those who saw it, we will never forget it and it is remarkable reading about the show he played in your city in his own words. The "Albatross!" chapter is a must for any Black Flag fan. You will never laugh this loud. The mystery of Dale Nixon will haunt our laughter for years. A definate read for any Rollins, Black Flag, or music fan out there.

Rating:
Summary: henry can do no wrong
Review: Henry Rollins can not write a bad book, i've read every single book he has written and they are all good. He writes how he feels and sometimes it makes you feel better. His situations are outragious and lately his books have had alittle Rollins humor he's the man and you should buy this book, and every other book that was writen by Henry Rollins.

Rating:
Summary: One of Henry's better books
Review: Henry Rollins is adept at two major things. He's actually good at everything he does, thanks to his ceaseless wellspring of creative energy and his solid, distraction-free work ethic, but two things stand out in regards to this latest, fantastic tome.

One is the proclivity for bringing his readers to parts of the world that most of them will never get to see -- and offering a real perspective, through real human eyes, rather than the scenic brochure version. Henry's mission is to bring the music. He goes around the world and does this. Even his warm, brutally honest, friendly but (thankfully!) uncompromising spoken word performances are music to his listeners. The mindset that he generously allows his readers to tap into surveys vastly eclectic bits of the world from this context: I am bringing music to this place. I am not messing around. I always choose DO IT over DON'T DO IT, and I work hard. That's the general motif. I'm not sure if anyone's ever sincerely thanked Henry for his hard work in making sure that his output is consistently real and unpatronizing, thanked him for sharing his visits around the world with us, and thanked him for doing what he can't help but do anyway -- defy the feeble trends and stick to what he knows kicks booty. THANK YOU for all the incredible deals on 2.13.61, Henry.

So there's one thing -- making the world human and real, taking his unknown friends along with him. I defy you to try and put such an honest, provocative book down. It's highly addictive and quite fascinating. The second major thing at which Henry's impeccable is looking at himself from an objective viewpoint and presenting himself as something of a sociological science-fair experiment: "Why am I feeling this way? Why does it contradict the way I felt a couple days earlier?" He refuses to B.S. himself (if only everyone could be like that), and although he probably doesn't set out to be "inspirational," his brutal honesty fuses him with the reader in an instant camaraderie, especially if the reader has "outgrown the ordinary" and wonders if (s)he's the only one who feels that the Western World has, by and large, allowed itself to be trained into ignorance and blandness.

So whether or not he sets out to do such when he writes in his journal, Henry's material wipes the floor with every so-called "motivational" book out there. You want motivation? Read these tales of a man who's been through more hell than you or I will ever be able to identify with, and yet manages to be hilarious quite often, and finds the realistic mindset to write things like "It's a good day to be breathing." His enthusiasm remains undiminished; THEY haven't gotten to him. He is successful in this respect. This is because he's a mental giant.

Having admittedly been a Rollins fanboy for a great many years now (not the pathetic kind who hangs out waiting for an autograph! I never understood that -- and I don't drink, so I certainly never bugged him backstage anywhere), a new Rollins book is an EVENT. This man's words have gotten me through so much stuff. Usually I just look for the motivation in myself, but it's nice to have a friend whom you've never met who writes books like this. I never get star-struck, even with bands we open for or other authors who like my book. So please don't misunderstand. On those days when all one needs is some realistic, down-to-earth perspective -- EVERYTHING is perspective in life, really -- Rollins prose is the greatest. It's always awesome, and it gets better and better and better, just like his music and his spoken word.

It's nice to know of an author whose latest release you can pick up and already be assured that it's going to provide that one thing so sadly lacking in most modern literature: excellence.

Thanks again, Henry. You ROCK. You know this to be true. For those who don't....it's their loss. Their mass-media duping. Not your responsibility. Those of us who KNOW will keep showing up and keep digging your talent and your perspectives and your intelligence.

I sound rather fruity here. Oh well.

This wonderful book, this chronicle of a successful Rollins Band tour and the subsequent Black Flag tribute album's recording sessions and shows (the Rise Above album is AMAZING, incidentally), is HIGHLY recommended. It's gloriously longer than the typical Rollins volume, and the reader can't help but be thankful that the author cares to share so many thoughts and still treats his readers like they're -- heaven forbid! -- smart.

Information on the West Memphis Three, the young men for whom Rise Above and its resulting shows have provided legal funding, can be found online. I'm not allowed to give links in an Amazon review, but a little searching will fill you in on the details.

Maybe you have to have been in a band for a long time to really dig the appeal of this prose. But I seriously don't think so. I think I'd like it just as much if I did something else. You want serious, REAL, raw, brutal, oft-funny, oft-too-much-for-the-weak-minded-to-handle, addictive, fascinating reading? Buy this book. And his others as well. Or you're missing out -- big time.

Rating:
Summary: Henry's Best Book
Review: I just finished reading Broken Summers and this is by far, Henry's best writing. I have read just about all his other books and this one stands out as being the best written. His writing has improved 100 percent. Henry gets very retrospective in his journal entries which I really liked. You get to see a more mature yet still trying to grow up Henry in this book. He is so honest and revealing from his early days in Black Flag, hanging out in DC, all the people around him who have died, surviving in today's music industry, to still trying how to deal with a relationship. If it's been a while since you read a book by Henry or if you never read anything by him, this is the one to get. No, you won't always agree with him and there will be times when he will annoy the hell out of you but that's what Hank is all about. He even admits to disagreeing with himself!

Rating:
Summary: Henry's Best Book
Review: I just finished reading Broken Summers and this is by far, Henry's best writing. I have read just about all his other books and this one stands out as being the best written. His writing has improved 100 percent. Henry gets very retrospective in his journal entries which I really liked. You get to see a more mature yet still trying to grow up Henry in this book. He is so honest and revealing from his early days in Black Flag, hanging out in DC, all the people around him who have died, surviving in today's music industry, to still trying how to deal with a relationship. If it's been a while since you read a book by Henry or if you never read anything by him, this is the one to get. No, you won't always agree with him and there will be times when he will annoy the hell out of you but that's what Hank is all about. He even admits to disagreeing with himself!

Rating:
Summary: Another Interesting Book By Henry Rollins
Review: This book is by far Rollins' most mature writing. Like other books by Rollins Broken Summers has a journal format which creates a sort of intimacy with the reader. It is interesting to read the ideas, rants and daily goings on of a person as well known as Henry Rollins.

Make sure to pick up Rise Above - Album To Benefit the West Memphis Three as well. That is after all the whole reason this book came to be at all.

Rating:
Summary: Another Interesting Book By Henry Rollins
Review: This book is by far Rollins' most mature writing. Like other books by Rollins Broken Summers has a journal format which creates a sort of intimacy with the reader. It is interesting to read the ideas, rants and daily goings on of a person as well known as Henry Rollins.

Make sure to pick up Rise Above - Album To Benefit the West Memphis Three as well. That is after all the whole reason this book came to be at all.

Rating:
Summary: Not the average Rollins
Review: This book is great companion piece to both the Rise Above CD and Henry's current speaking tour. Although the book is slow going at times with workout schedules and menu plans it gives a great insight to touring, band realtions and the politics of making a benefit CD.
You feel for Henry throughout the book that his good intentions are disrupted by other people's agendas and politics and you find yourself hoping he sells 10 million copies of the CD, despite how you may feel about the West Memphis Three.
Don't bother with this book if you're easily offended by truth. Henry frequently challenges the actions of the US government but it's rather him thinking aloud then going on a full on rant. Give it a try. It'll make you think.

Rating:
Summary: One of his best!
Review: Unless you're a mindless patriot (remember, however, that REAL "patriots" ask questions and challenge bad leadership!), this book is fantastic. Inspiring, intense, poetic at times, thoroughly fascinating, ultimately even (gasp!) optimistic.

For a brief background on the book's nonfiction setting: Our society certainly has major problems, as can be evidenced by the joke of a justice system in certain unenlightened communities. Henry didn't just talk about the wretched treatment of three innocents in West Memphis -- he recorded an astonishing Black Flag tribute album called Rise Above and donated the proceeds to the West Memphis Three's defense fund (i.e. DNA testing of the evidence found at the scene of the crime). This book largely chronicles the making of the album and subsequent tour (which was also undertaken to benefit the WM3), and it's written with active, interesting language. It's difficult to put down!

Of course, if you're a mindless patriot and you refuse to acknowledge how things really are, then you probably shouldn't be reading a book written for smart people.

You rule, Henry.