Shots From the Hip: Why everyone wants to be a rock star

I chose to read Shots from the Hip by Charles Shaar Murray for my beginning research on rock music. I had already skimmed sections of the book in the past, but had never read more than a chapter at a time. It is a truly incredible book. Murray has an amazing insight into the world of rock, specifically in it's "Golden Age" (1960s-1970s). The book is really a summary of '70s rock, but Murray constantly digresses, going off on mini tangents about various artists or even specific songs and their potential meaning. His passion for the music is quite apparent, and he gives a valuable inside look at some of the culture's biggest names: Hendrix, McCartney, The Rolling Stones, etc. He even discusses specific encounters he and others had with the stars, from interviews to police reports. The book may be long, but it still manages to always leave you wanting more, wondering what the next amazing story could possibly be - and who it might involve. 

After reading this, I am considering focusing on the impact of 60s and 70s hard rock culture on the rest of the culture in America. At the time, rock stars were the ultimate role models, not only for adolescents but for adults as well, and as a result, every move they made was both criticized and copied. Anything a major rock artist did was bound to affect the rest of American culture - and some of the general population were so inspired by their favorite musicians they formed followings. These followers were often so obsessed with the artists that their lives became consumed by a constant need to see and hear them - some even put the rest of their lives on hold to follow the tour schedules of their obsessions. 

While the musicians were certainly my focal point when I chose this topic, I may end up focusing as much (if not more) on the fans as on the performers themselves. Shots from the Hip definitely opened my eyes to the inner culture surrounding rock music in it's Golden Age, and I am very excited to dig deeper into the lives of some of the greatest performers of all time.