A Man Called Destruction: The Life and Music of Alex Chilton, from Box Tops to Big Star to Backdoor Man Hardcover – March 20, 2014

Somehow I missed Alex Chilton during the 80s and 90s when I most likely would have come across him, and, like many others, I was tipped off to him by the song "Alex Chilton" on the Replacements Album "Pleased to Meet Me." After reading the Replacements book "Trouble Boys: The True Story of the Replacements" I was really excited to read this biography. Unfortunately, I've come away from it with great ambivalence and feeling as though Alex Chilton's greatness is diminished in my mind.Let's start with the good -- there was a LOT of detail about specific events in Chilton's life as well as recording sessions in the book. I had a really great time reading the book while simultaneously listening to many of the songs mentioned. Alex seemed to have an encyclopedic knowledge of music with eclectic tastes. I ended up finding a few gems that I never would have if I hadn't explored the book. Somehow I also missed Big Star, and I have to say I'm a huge fan of the band after listening to all three of their albums; I can now see their influence in a lot of the music that came later.Now the not so good. The book was just extremely dry. I've heard so much about the legend of Alex Chilton by now that I expected to ingest copious stories full of drama and destruction and self-sabotage. I expected to get the story of a complex, conflicted man. The reality is there are lots of statements about how, at various times, Chilton was "at the nadir of his career" or was wasting his talent, but there's very little exploration of, or even conjecture on, his motivations and emotions. There were quotes from critics of his shows and music, but very few stories to demonstrate the trajectory of his life and career. Even the stories that are told are relayed matter-of-factly without color or context. In addition, the first 50 years of Chilton's life are explored almost tediously in depth, but then the final 10 years of his life just flit by with very little detail or depth. There's a statement of fact that Chilton achieved a sense of peace and balance later in his life -- perhaps somewhat related to his teetotaling -- but there's no exploration in any depth where this important change came from. Like much in this book, it's just drily stated and there is no exploration of the changes Chilton's character, just the changes in his actions. Maybe this is because, as the author recounts, she was originally talking to Chilton about writing his biography (to be titled "I Slept with Charles Manson") with him, but Chilton never had the time to get the project off the ground. Still, this feels like a cop out as other biographers put in the work to explore the depth of their subject and provide conjecture as to internal thoughts and motivations. As a result, "Destruction" reads like a biography written by someone who could never get close enough to the subject to truly know him."A Man Called Destruction" often states that Alex Chilton was brilliant, but reading the book didn't give me any real insight into that brilliance. The book talks about the self-destruction and self-sabotage, but didn't illustrate that behavior and how it affected him. The book talks about Chilton looking back on his life and finding satisfaction, but unfortunately "Destruction" left me unsatisfied and wanting more than just the skeleton of the man it sketched.

This biography has gotten some flack from certain people, specifically for glossing over the last years of his life. With all due respects, the years preceding those years were the years that I found most interesting.I'm sure there are details that will be lost, but Mr. Chilton was an enigma to me and I was curious for more background, since very little has come to light over the years.I decided to toss one into the good ol' Amazon shopping cart and find out for myself.I bought "Like Flies on Sherbert" after reading a review for it in Creem Magazine back in the day. If my memory serves, it said something like "this sounds like Brian Wilson chasing Phil Spector around the studio with an axe handle", heh - who doesn't want to hear that?!It changed my life, in a way like no other LP ever did. I searched for and clung to every record, interview, bands-he-produced, etc. that I could find, with varying results. Maybe I'm a lost cause, but for me, "Flies" still represents the pinnacle of his musical vision.So these "lost years" are the time in Mr. Chilton's life that fascinated me the most, and I was not disappointed in the least with what Holly George-Warren has researched and presented in her book.But wait, there's lots more; the unique family life, the Box Tops/Big Star experiences, all enriched my understanding/appreciation for/of the man. I don't feel that there ever has been or ever will be any way to pigeon-hole Alex Chilton in the least. We'll never know what went on in his head or how he felt.I also know that I find it difficult judge any man. To me, he was an artist; absurd and bleak and joyous; sometimes all at the same time.If you take yourself and/or the way you perceive the creative people that have enriched your life too seriously, this may not be the book for you. Some may say Alex was his own worst enemy in those early Memphis days, but I'm glad he walked the earth, never forgot where Ardent was, and did it his way against all odds AND evens.

I'm not the best reviewer in the world, but here it goes!Been an Alex Chilton fan for over 20 years, never thought there'd be a comprehensive biography written about the man. Holly George-Warren does a great job with this, she resists the temptation to over editorialize the material, or get overly sentimental or dramatic, like a lesser writer would.After reading the book I don't feel like I 'know' the man any better, which is fine. It seems Chilton wanted it that way, it's all there in his music. I took my time reading the book, and listened to a lot of Big Star and his solo stuff with new ears and appreciation while doing so. This book is worth it just for that.What seems to be made clear is that Chilton wasn't some kind of total screw up, he wasn't his worst enemy. He put great effort into his music, and when it was rejected, he didn't pander, he just kind of gently put up his middle finger and moved on.As another reviewer mentioned, I wish there was more information on his last years, but if the information's not there, it's not there. There's plenty of detail on other phases of his life and career.I hope Alex had fun and some fulfillment or satisfaction throughout some of the crazy and unfair things that happened in his life, because he certainly inspired and gave joy to many with his music.I highly recommend this book for any fan of any aspect of his career, Holly George-Warren has done a beautiful job.

Holly George-Warren's biography of the late Alex Chilton provides much insight and illumination into the life and times of the Memphis-born singer-songwriter. I have been a fan of Chilton's since discovering his second band of note, Big Star, in the mid-seventies. Big Star are seen as one of the most important bands of that era, blending harmony pop with some fantastic songs, with a definite Anglophile starnd running through their first two albums, '#1 Record' and 'Radio City'. The 'difficult' third Big Star album divides critics and indeed, the Big Star fanbase to this day. George-Warren's well-written, well-researched tome details Chilton's early life, and offers up much information on how Chilton developed as a musician and an artist. I liked his first successful band, the Box Tops, who made some great records (including the singles 'The Letter', 'Neon Rainbow', 'Cry Like A Baby' and 'Soul Deep'), but served to feed Chilton's frustration in not being able to develope or present his own nascent songwriting skills.What interests me most, however, is Chilton's post-Big Star era, when he descended into a dissolute mire of drugs, drink and debauchery, that is even less edifying to read about than the often awful records he made. Then, in a determined effort to clean up his act, the mid-eighties onwards, and into the nineties when he finally started earning money off the great records that he had made with Big Star (especially the royalties coming in from cover versions), there's something of an epiphany, a redemption of sorts.George-Warren doesn't stint in painting a picture of Chilton as an occasionally obnoxious and awkward character, who could oscillate between charming and good-natured and mean-spirited and downright nasty. In the end, this is a very readable and revealing biography of a mercurial and at times wildly self-sabotaging individual - 'A Man Called Destruction' indeed.

At last a book that covers Alex's early life and his post Big Star career (70s version) - As a huge fan of Alex's I found this book to be about as good as one could hope for, with a great deal of research and very clear sources recognized at the end - Alex's passing was an unexpected tragedy, he gave us so much and really was content - in the end - in very little. I suspect recognition gave him greater pleasure than he let on but he seemed to enjoy being perverse for the sake of it, though I think he probably loved 'Volare' simply for what it is rather than some statement about anti-fashion. I really recommend this book, and it rates much higher in my opinion that Rob Jankovitch's Big Star book which LX had no direct input into. Thanks for a great read - I kinda wish I'd bought a physical version rather than the Kindle now but I wanted to read it right away! My suggestion to Alex fans? BUY IT!

Impeccably researched and, as far as I know, definitive account of a rare talent. I came to it after seeing the Big Star doc on Netflix. A must read for anyone with more than a passing interest in Alex Chilton and his turbulent life and career.Not quite a 5 star read in my opinion but very good none the less.

A sad, but memorable story of dedication to craft.

Excellent book. Such an in-depth and well written book by an author who knew, liked and understood Mr. Chilton. I gained a new appreciation of his work.