You’d expect the bass player from one of the rowdiest hard rock bands of all time to spend part of the book telling you how to trash hotels and get away with it, instead his attitude is been there, done that, paid the bill – now here’s what you need to know to respect the road, the spaces and customs in the places you’re lucky enough to travel. He draws on 30 years of world travel – from what to pack, what to wear, how to navigate airports, what to know about the places you’re visiting and for lack of better words (and probably most importantly) how not to be a dick.
McKagan’s writing is fresh, descriptive, and most importantly he writes about what he knows. It made me work for the things I wanted to attain.” The book has an equally impressive list of McKagan’s favorite books – from classics (Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby), philosophy (Emerson’s ‘Self Reliance’), history, politics, war, punk rock (Jennifer Egan’s The Goon Squad), etc. McKagan writes, “ will always hold a special place in my soul, it gave me strength, and it gave me friendship. The way he talks about Prince’s 1999 exhibits the powerful way music has affected him and is something I can relate to. I love to know what inspires people and how they think, which I’m sure is why I’m so drawn to McKagan’s distinct writing style. This chapter brings to mind Billy Idol’s (who Duff refers to as a friend and mentor) bio that oozed with enthusiasm about music.
There are some obvious music choices for a punk rock bassist who grew up in the ’70s – Aerosmith, The Beatles, Black Sabbath – but then there’s ABBA, Bauhaus, David Bowie, PJ Harvey, Elton John, Etta James, and Kate Bush. In the chapter “Know Your Tunes” he lists 100 albums that he says are “critical to my being” and that every man should know. In How To Be A Man, McKagan strips down his experiences and offers quick, easy tips on how to be a better (hu)man, starting with music. His latest book, How To Be a Man, is a humorous, well-written account of a man who has turned his vices into life hacks for a healthy, productive journey. His last book It’s So Easy (And Other Lies) was the first rock bio that made me both laugh, cry, then want to conquer the world.
You’d hardly expect Duff McKagan from the ’80s hard rock band Guns N’ Roses to have become such an inspiration, but every time I finish one of his books I feel energized.
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