Scar Tissue, da, e bine scrisă. A scris-o de fapt Larry Sloman, Kiedis probabil că bea un ceai și povestea chestii, mi se pare normal, dar pentru cititor e bine de știut că e scrisă fain. Prima jumătate mai amuzantă decât a doua. A doua mai intensă decât prima. La început râdeam și iubeam, la a doua plângeam și sufeream. Probabil că un om care nu știe RHCP, sau care crede că e o trupă mult prea comercială sau pur și simplu proastă, n-o să guste cartea, dar nu contează, e pentru freak-șii care au fost alături de ei încă din anii ’80, sau care li s-au alăturat pe parcurs, toți flancați de dracii personali și cu podelele găurite, chiar dacă acum au joburi corporatiste și se preling pe zidurile Centrului Vechi după o noapte de băut. Omu’ Kiedis e smart, sâsâit și plin de el, dansează cu spume, cântă discutabil și manipulează în draci. Dar când se uită la tine, fie că se uită cu ochișorii ăia cam strâmbi, fie că se uită prin cântecele, fie că se uită prin cuvinte, te pătrunde ca un tirbușon, scrîșt scrîșt până-n inimă și gata, ești prins. Nu-i în niciun caz atât de puternic pe cât pare, dar este mai sensibil decât pozează. Nu poți să nu înveți de la el. Nu poți să nu te simți inspirat de el. Nu poți să nu vezi prin filtrul lui cât de complexă e iubirea. Și inevitabilă, în același timp.
Restul impresiilor de călătorie prin lumea lui Kiedis, aici: https://suntgulie.wordpress.com/2016/...

I first read Scar Tissue about 15 years ago and I remembered liking it, so when I wanted to read about the music industry for book research, it was an easy decision to re-read it.

I liked it less this time around (and I'm knocking it down a star), perhaps because I'm older and cynical-er and I don't find tales of rockstar excess quite so glamorous anymore. It's also worth noting that the sheer number of underage girls that Kiedis had sex with gave me MAJOR ICK in this post-#MeToo world.

However, props to Kiedis for his searing honesty, which you don't get in every memoir. In particular, Scar Tissue cuts to the heart of addiction, without self-pity or self-flagellation.

Concurrently, I was also reading a different rockstar memoir, which was so turgid and filled with flavourless lists of events that it became unreadable. The fact that Scar Tissue is engaging is surely a testament to Kiedis's co-author Larry Sloman, who shaped a tumultuous life into an accessible story.

Original review - December 2008

Before picking up this book, my knowledge of Red Hot Chili Peppers was pretty minimal. I remember my sister playing Blood Sugar Sex Magik constantly when I was about 9, but since then, I completely lost track of the band. Regardless, Scar Tissue is a damn good read, if you’re interested in rock bands of any kind. I’ve found that fiction doesn’t lend itself too well to tales of rock star excess. That kind of hedonism can easily seem like pantomime – or simply dumb and contrived.

But, by virtue of being true (or, at least, whatever degree of truth we cynically expect from memoirs these days), Scar Tissue is something a reader can stay engaged with. I found it a particularly moving portrait of drug addiction. It takes Anthony yeeears – dozens of rehab stays, hundreds of promises to stay clean – before he finally kicks his drug habit.

The book also contains a fair share of car crash moments. I’m not particularly squeamish, but I recoiled in horror more than once at the things Anthony manages to do to his body over a 20 year period. Yikes. I’m also honestly not sure whether it’s titillating or uncomfortable to read Anthony’s fairly frank descriptions of his sex life, especially with some barely-legal girls. But… they’re there. With pictures!

Though his behaviour is frequently abhorrent, Anthony makes a sympathetic narrator. Apart from some New Age talk about spirituality, he's also refreshingly free from bullshit. The book is long, but extremely compelling. Though slightly harrowing in places, it's more often a fun read. Anthony lived in Hollywood through some exciting times and has some strange encounters with celebrities that are likely to delight even reluctant starfuckers.

I finished Scar Tissue a few days ago, but I keep wanting to pick it up and find there are still a few more chapters for me to read. That's the sign of a good book.

Mr Keidis' masterpiece is notable not just for its beauty but for its daring reinvention of the novel form itself. A book full of intense symbolism and as haunting as anything by my four year old nephew.

Though on the longer side (465 pages), I read this book quicker than most half its size. Scar Tissue by Anthony Kiedis is an incredibly engaging and inspirational autobiography (not sure how much of a hand Larry Sloman had in this, but for this review, I'll assume this book was all AK), that is as much about the horror-yet-subtle-beauty of addiction as it is about Kiedis’s rise as the front man of one of rock’s greatest and most enduring bands, the Red Hot Chili Peppers. There’s an element of spirituality and exuberance woven through every inch of the text, even the most sordid, which raises the book well above the “shock value” trap a lot of rocker biographies fall into, and gives the book a meaning and purpose that kept me coming back for more. Though mostly functional and straight-forward, the prose fits the story perfectly. Let’s be clear: Anthony Kiedis does not now, nor has he ever, given a fuck what you think. He’s going to tell his story his way, and that’s exactly what he’s done here. He spews a number of clichés and uses simple, informal language, then out of nowhere will toss in a beautiful metaphor or sagacious insight brimming with the type of creativity that can only come from a man who’s lived his own way, but none of it sounds bland or forced. It all works because he’s not trying, but he’s not trying to not try. He just is, and the beauty spills out of him as a result, which one of the many great themes, and lessons, of the story.

I’ve been an RHCP fan since I first discovered good music sometime in middle school. Blood Sugar Sex Magik and One Hot Minute provided the soundtrack for my early adolescence and videos for songs like Give it Away, Under the Bridge, and Aeroplane shaped the way that I saw music as a visual expression. I quickly learned the lyrics to a number of Kiedis’s songs, and sang the hell out of them even though I never knew their meaning and never knew the story of the man behind the music. One of the reasons why I loved this book so much is that it shared this story and also some perspective into the strange phrasings and bravado behind AKs lyrics, which has given me more confidence with my own song writing. I remember singing along to Aeroplane when I was 13 and having no idea what the hell any of it meant. I just knew it added up to something special. Understanding the meaning and writing process behind these songs has made the art of song-writing less daunting for me. Somewhere along the way in my own life, I felt that music was just an extension of the chaos of everyday existence, and that there was no order to anything. It’s valuable to see that, even in chaos, there can be sweet, beautiful, simple meaning. But this is only one of the many benefits this book has added to my life.

Scar Tissue focuses on the events of Kiedis’s life that have shaped him into an artist and addict. The first hundred pages or so explore his pre-band world, growing up as a troubled kid who enjoyed pushing boundaries and defying authority. After his parents divorced, he split time between living with his mother in Michigan and his father in LA, but he felt he truly belonged in Hollywood (thus began his lifelong love affair with LA, which is another theme in the book) with his party animal, wannabe actor, addict father, who introduced him to the wild party scene at an early age. Anthony got high for the first time at age 4 when his father blew marijuana smoke in his face, and the hazy celebration never seemed to stop. Anthony’s childhood was filled with heavy drugs, whores, sex, and constant celebration, which brought him into contact with a number of celebrities, including Cher and Keith Moon who seemed to be among the only voices of reason in Anthony’s young life (and let’s face it, if Keith Moon is one of your only role models as a kid, you’re pretty much screwed). Anthony was precocious kid, filled with creativity and desire, but he lacked direction, and soon became a full-fledged heroin and cocaine addict, living on the streets of LA and hustling his way through the punk scene (getting a firsthand look into the history of this scene is another benefit of this book). Eventually, he finds the direction he craves when he’s asked to rap some of his poetry at a local nightclub as his accomplished musician friends, Flea and Hillel Slovak, already famous in the underground LA music scene, fill in for a band that cancelled a gig at the last moment. They play far better than expected, and thus began the rocky and inspiring rise of one of the greatest rock bands of the 90s.

Though about the rise of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, this book as much a tale of addiction as it is music. It begins and ends with addiction, and almost every single passage in between is either directly or indirectly about it. Kiedis pulls no punches and gives us the story straight without romanticizing drug use or blaming anyone for his excesses (though he easily could have blamed his father). Kiedis jumps from one drug and one girl to the next regardless—or perhaps, because of—how it seems to torment him, but as he grows, he begins to explore the complexity of his self-destruction, and the inherent beauty in the struggle that leads to great lines in the book, such as, “It’s that appreciation of every emotion in the spectrum that I live for.” His life story is an endless cycle of excess, sobriety, and relapse, but each relapse brings him a little closer to the realization he has in the final chapter that has kept him sober since. This final chapter is a meaningful and satisfying ending to Kiedis’s spiritual quest where he’s finally able to make some sense of his self-destruction. He gives several brilliant insights about the nature of addiction as well as the one true path to sobriety that’s worked for him. One of my favorite quotes adds several layers to the stereotype that addicts are immoral criminals who must be punished: “When I was a teenager and shooting speedballs, I wasn’t thinking, ‘I want to know God,’ but deep down inside, maybe I did.” Before reading this book, I knew AK had struggled with heroin addiction, but I had no idea how bad it was (and it was bad--very, very bad). There were a number of times it looked as though it would take complete control if not for one thing, the light and drive that kept him going: music.

A recurring theme of the book is the healing AK finds in not just making music, but more specifically, making music with his friends. As I got deeper into the story, I began to see a pattern: the more AK was making music with his friends, the more engaged I was with the story. When I pondered this, I realized that it was one of the only things that seemed to have kept Kiedis alive when his addiction was at its worst. But the sheer joy of just being with his friends and operating from what he calls a “telepathic” sense of making music pulled him out of a number of funks that may have otherwise left him dead under a freeway overpass or seedy motel room. A number of times, Kiedis claims that he doesn’t care about the money or fame or hype of it all—he would have just have been happy enough making music with his friends, and I absolutely believe his every word. The energy and connection he shares with his band mates, especially Flea, Hillel, John, and Chad, elevates him to a place far beyond the chaos and terror of everyday living. In his own words, “Each one of these guys, Flea, John, Chad, is individually a bridge to God for me, and there’s nothing I would do to change any of these people or the experiences I’ve had with them.” My favorite chapter was “Funky Monks,” which was not just about the making of Blood Sugar Sex Magik, but about the good vibes and wave of genius each of the band members seemed to have been riding at the time. It seemed as if there was no limit to their creativity, and when John began to withdraw the more famous the band became, I was upset not only to see that wave finally break, but to see how deeply it devastated Kiedis on a personal level to lose such a beloved friend. Seeing the way these guys interacted with one another gives me hope for humanity. Though they may bust each other's balls from time to time, it’s very clear that Flea, and Anthony, and Hillel, and John, and Chad, and Dave, and all of the other musicians who’ve been through the group, love one another unconditionally. There’s a gentle humanity wrapped in every page of the story, and I teared up when Anthony breaks down speaking to Hillel beyond the grave, or when Flea breaks down telling Anthony how worried he gets that he’s going to lose another friend whenever AK disappears on another bender, or when John comes back from the dead for the sole reason of making music again with his friends. So much more than fame or fortune, I’d love to have friends like these, and I think this is another one of the strongest reasons why I loved this book. Music is just an excuse for these guys to express their love for one another, and I think that’s about the highest endeavor anyone could ever possibly hope to accomplish.

I’ll be clear: Anthony Kiedis is no saint. He’s done horrible things to a lot of people, and in many ways, he doesn’t deserve to have friends and family still around him. But in many other ways, he’s done some incredible things for these people that no one else could have done for them. Another main reason I was drawn to the story was the pure love AK had for the people in his life—even those he was screwing over. Though he’s a self-professed asshole, his intentions always seem to be sincere, and even when he’s at his lowest point, he seems genuinely concerned about his family and friends' well being. This is a man who loves above all else. If you get hung up on the times he made his mother cry, or screwed over his band mates, or broke a girlfriend’s heart, you’ll miss out on the deeper reasons why. If you only look at this story with the perspective of those he’s hurt, you’ll only see your own suffering rather than the greater overall theme that, through accepting that suffering, you can achieve peace, love, and healing. I can see why some people think of Kiedis as an animal, but love is complex. Love can look like a man shooting up under a bridge, or smoking crack and crashing a motorcycle, or fucking another woman to hurt the girl sitting on Jack Nicholson’s knee. If you only see love in one way, you’ll miss it in all of its other forms, and that’s one of the best lessons of this book.

To put it simply, I loved this book. It’s so much more than a story about a man’s rise to lead a legendary band. It’s also about unconditional love, and addiction, and family, and music, and friendship, and mother nature, and freedom and excess as a means to find god. There was an exuberance throughout that reminded me of the works of Kerouac. That even in the darkest of times, Kerouac couldn’t quite help but feel overwhelmed by his love of life and marvel of the wonderful world surrounding him. I got that same feel with Scar Tissue. This story inspired me on a number of levels, and I often found myself stopping to write song lyrics, story ideas, poems, ponder my own existence, my place in the cosmos, as I continued, and now that it’s over, I feel as though I’ve lost a spiritual guide—but at least I’ll always have Kiedis’s music.

A fascinating story about a guy that I didn't know anything about until I read this book. He had the most interesting childhood I've ever heard of. He was hanging out with Keith Moon when he went to his dad's bar, and he was baby sat by Sonny and Cher. Talk about the odds of having that happen to you. It shows you how less conservative everything was back in the 70s where a kid could hang out in a bar at night. He was neglected by his dad but it allowed him to have lots of experiences and develop his personality. He was pretty much on the loose after the time he was 12 years old. The book lets you see what drug addiction is like from the perspective of the addict. It's amazing how little control he had over his life during that time. The story of The Red Hot Chili Peppers and their formation really helped me see their music in a new light. They were truly authentic at the beginning and they made their own sound and didn't try to be like any band. It really got me interested in their first 4 albums again. When you know the story behind a band it helps you appreciate their music so much more.

So, I had this collecting dust on my shelf for quite some time. Having read the reviews I wasn't sure if it was going to be worth reading. But as a Peppers' fan since I was 12 and before it was cool, it kind of seemed like a must...and I actually like it and been binge reading half of it in a few days. I find his text to be sincere, honest and not pretentious and not arrogant. He is describing his life, not trying to make himself into more than he is, accepting his faults and his life as they were.

Never meet your heroes I guess…

This is the most self indulgent, poorly written pap I have ever had the misfortune to purchase at an airport bookshop. Despite the millions of copies sold, as proclaimed on the cover, it failed to impress.

Anthony Keidis happily retells how he wasted his life on drugs, screwed and screwed over countless women, friends and collegaues and ended up alone - not even his closest friend Flea talks to him any more.

I am annoyed by the fact that any percentage of the money I paid for this book will go to Keidis. He has done nothing for the betterment of humanity despite millions of dollars, instead he wasted it away and has seemingly no regrets.

If I can stop a single person reading this book my job is done.

Drugs are great, drugs are bad, girlfriend, rehab, make an album, tour album x 4…. With slight variation on each round.

Have you seen the movie Dazed and Confused? Do you remember Matthew McConaughey’s “That's what I love about these high school girls, man. I get older, they stay the same age” character? Well, that’s Kiedis. Only even older and on heroin.

So yeah, absolutely disgusting behavior that still continues to this day. He’s 61 and his current gf is 19 (Leo still has some work to do to catch up to this).

As far as memoirs go though, he really didn’t hold back. It’s everything you want from a rockstar memoir, all the seedy things these people have done for years and years. It is not badly written, and seems like an absolutely never-ending ride of getting high (destroying your and your loved ones’ lives in the process) and trying to stay sober. His descriptions of the inability to control yourself on drugs was really good, and it’s a miracle he didn’t die as many of his friends and bandmates did.

I have loved this band since high school and have seen them live, but man, I really need to learn that most rock bands I love so much are made of terrible fucked up people that deserve no adoration. It's insane how he blamed absolutely everyone around him for his issues except his deadbeat dad and himself, and how he had zero patience for other people's identical to his faults.

This is all to say that it’s a solid memoir, and I enjoyed learning about the meaning behind many songs I like (for example, Tearjerker is about Kurt Cobain), just be prepared to be disgusted. He's a terrible human being, not a good poet, and it's funny how he doesn't even know it, the delusion is hilarious, absolutely zero awareness.

Second read (May 1st, 2018):
Done, again.
I can't say I'm a fan of the ending, and I can't say I'm a fan of the countless relapses that one must read about. Despite those things however, this book is very interesting and never fails to bring me back to my RHCP phase. No shame.

Third read (November 9th, 2021):
Oddly enough, I'd compare my rereading of this book to my rereading of Lolita. I know that must seem like a strange statement, but I can explain.
The first time I ever read Scar Tissue, I was 13 and had just discovered the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I was enthralled by their music and their stories, so I had to buy and read this book immediately of course. I did - and I saw no problems with it. I remember really enjoying it and finding Anthony Kiedis to be an inspiration.
Just like with Lolita, I'm back again and I'm a little older and a little wiser. Some of my 13-year-old naivety has worn off.
I found that rereading Scar Tissue was not at all how I remembered it. It was almost like reading an entirely new book, I remembered so little. Of course, Anthony's teenage hijinks, journey to sobriety and behind-the-scenes looks at the Chili Peppers were still charming. I still have an admiration for this band - their music, their energy, their story. However, my view of Anthony has shifted upon rereading this book as an adult. Prior to this time, I never even considered the amount of relationships Anthony has had with underage or significantly younger girls to be wrong. Sometimes the way he described them in here .... really didn't sit well with me, actually. I was shocked to discover how much of that I had forgotten.
It's hard for me to believe that 13-year-old me was so accepting of this. But like I said, it's like Lolita - I was so young and naive that I absolutely romanticized this behavior.
I also found that Anthony was actually a little bit conceited. He seems to glorify himself quite a bit in here, (which as a lead singer, should be expected) and I was a little off-put by that as well. I didn't seem to notice this the first or second time around either.
Overall, it's difficult for me to rate this book negatively. I still love the Red Hot Chili Peppers and so badly want to consider myself a fan of them. Although I don't agree with a bit of the behavior exemplified in this book, I want to overlook it just to appreciate the artistry and talent that is Anthony Kiedis.
I guess I'll end this with a question - can we separate the artist from their art? In this case, I'd like to think so.

2.5
This was my second time reading this book, and let me say - I was not impressed at all. The writing is just plain bad, and if I had to read about one more sexual exploit that Kiedis had, I was going to throw this book across the room. Halfway through I realized I really didn't care much, and started skimming and skipping over chunks that truly did not matter. Yes, the pictures are cool and so is reading about the early workings of the Chili Peppers since I do love a lot of their music, but otherwise, who cares? Kiedis was his own worst enemy and yes its great that he's sober and doing well now, and at least he admits he is an egomaniac but damn. He is just incredibly full of himself from childhood to adulthood and everything in between, and it was hard to sympathize or feel bad for any of the stupid situations he got himself into. He is a predator when it comes to young girls, and the way he talks about women in this book is either based all on looks and whether he would want to have sex with them, or they were the love of his life that he just couldn't stop cheating on and then they were crazy. Drug addiction is a monster that many people deal with and it is nothing to be taken lightly, and I felt like he just didn't bring enough attention to the seriousness of it all. Hillel dies from an overdose and then he launches into a story that has nothing to do with Hillel, other friends die and then he launches into stories of sex with his woman of the day/week/month. Its hard to say how much of this was actually Kiedis' doing, since Larry Sloman helped write it, but either way, I've read books with a lot more heart on these topics than this one, and its interesting how much your point of view changes as you get older.