I'm with the Band: Confessions of a Groupie

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I'm with the Band: Confessions of a Groupie is a 1987 memoir by former groupie Pamela Des Barres. It was a New York Times best seller. [1]

Contents

Overview

The book tells the story of Pamela Ann Miller, a groupie who gets a kind of fame in the 1960s by having wild nights with musicians and actors. Pictures of famous musicians and actors accompany the many stories of her time in Los Angeles, California during the late 1960s and early 1970s. She recounts tales of moments shared with girlfriends The GTOs which they use as a way to outwardly express themselves. She becomes Frank Zappa's nanny as well as has relationships with Jimmy Page and with Don Johnson.

Her escapades include travels to England where she spends time with Mick Jagger and others. She also travels to Europe before coming back home. She later falls in love with Michael Des Barres, an English glam rocker. She ends the books with the story of their wedding and the birth of her son Nicholas Dean Des Barres.

Publication history

After its publication in 1987, I'm with the Band was out of print until its republication in 2003. [2] A 30th anniversary edition was released in May 2018. [3]

In 1995, Des Barres released a CD, I'm with the Band, on which she reads excerpts from the book. [4]

Reception

I'm with the Band was described by Kirkus Reviews as "a classic account of rampant narcissism among guitar egomaniacs." The New York Times described I'm with the Band as "the brightest, sexiest, funniest of... the current outpouring of groupie literature." [5] In The Wall Street Journal , Andrew Ferguson called the memoir a "vulgar kiss-and-tell". [6] A Newsday reviewer said the memoir "is a deft mix of cultural history and gossip". [7] In LA Weekly , Helen Knode observes that the book is "pretty overwrought, both in its emotionalism...and in its expression". [8] Nearly twenty years after the book's initial publication, a reviewer in the Birmingham Post called it "the stuff of legend". [9]

Adaptation attempts

In 1988, Ally Sheedy optioned the rights to I'm with the Band, intending to play the role of Des Barres. [10] In 1995, producer Beverly Camhe proposed to make a movie of I'm with the Band, starring Drew Barrymore, and directed by Tamra Davis. [11]

In 2002, Des Barres and Allison Anders co-wrote a screenplay, based on the memoir, for Starz cable channel. [12]

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References

  1. ↑ "Paperback Best Sellers: November 13, 1988". The New York Times. November 13, 1988. Retrieved April 23, 2022.
  2. ↑ Brown, Glyn (June 28, 2003). "Love on the rocks". The Independent (London). pp. 16–17. ProQuest   312210767.
  3. ↑ McLean, Craig (May 7, 2018). "Good time girl". The Observer (London). p. 23. ProQuest   2035467940.
  4. ↑ Dickinson, Christ (November 30, 1995). "Pop on the Rocks". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 14. ProQuest   305111581.
  5. ↑ Rockwell, John (16 August 1987). "Pop View". New York Times . Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  6. ↑ Ferguson, Andrew (July 31, 1987). "Bookshelf: Music Appreciation in a Modern Key". Wall Street Journal. ProQuest   398053813.
  7. ↑ Mernit, Susan (August 9, 1987). "Swinging in the '60s". Newsday (New York). p. 19. ProQuest   277789541.
  8. ↑ Knode, Helen (February 14, 1991). "Jimmy Page's Elbow". LA Weekly. p. 10.
  9. ↑ Foulkes, Caroline (December 10, 2005). "Discerning groupie turned author". Birmingham Post. p. 53. ProQuest   324009451.
  10. ↑ Goldstein, Patrick (September 4, 1988). "Des Barres' Adventures May Rock the Screen". Los Angeles Times. p. 66. ProQuest   280603430.
  11. ↑ Williams, Jeannie (September 19, 1995). "Drew the groupies". USA Today. p. 2D. ProQuest   306787275.
  12. ↑ Hochman, Steve (July 7, 2002). "Pop Eye; Her Rock Groupie Memoirs Will Finally Get a Movie Gig". Los Angeles Times. p. F62. ProQuest   421866575.
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