King's X: The Oral History by Greg Prato

King's X: The Oral History Reviews

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  Rev

  Love love love this book! It was put together brilliantly and had so much depth and detail into the history of this amazing band. And not just how it was laid out made it brilliant, but also having so many fellow musicians help tell the story and their love for King's X made it a truly enjoyable read!
• 
  Chris Shepard

  As a die hard King's X fan, this book is like reading about yourself. A totally exhaustive, but never exhausting, tome dedicated to the music of a great band. I will be returning to this, Over and Over. It's gratifying to know I'm not crazy and alone for loving this band.
• 
  Anderson Baldwin

  I loved this book so much. I feel like I know them personally after them being one of favorites since 1989. It was put together perfectly and Jaw Bone publications did a bad ass job on the jacket and print. Couldn't have been done better!!
  
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  Marcus Vetrano

  Specific parts were interesting, especially the “dogman” era which is one of my favourite periods of Kings X, however towards the end it got a bit bland as it was mainly a showcase of what everyones opinion was of the band. However this book did offer some unique insights into the personal lives of the band members, so I feel like I got know them more so overall, not bad.
• 
  John Michael Strubhart

  The question that keeps rearing its head in this books is, "Why didn't King's X become as famous as the Beatles?" or something to that effect. I think I have it figured out. It's perhaps a combination of poorly timed marketing, compositions and styles that were way ahead of their time and the fact that King's X is a musician's band. Surely, popularity is not a true measure of talent, but it sure would be nice had they received that kind of recognition. I was introduced to King's X ( Gretchen Goes To Nebraska) by one of my AP Chemistry students in 1990. I have no idea how she figured that I would be a fan, but she was right! I've been a fan ever since. Anyway, I like a book about music and musicians to be about the music and the musicianship, and this has a good deal of that, but largely, it's personal anecdotes and a generous amount of butt-kissing by fans who also happen to be fellow musicians. Entertaining, but not hugely informative if you're trying to be a student of the band's talent. I give it a 5 star rating, because I love King's X.
• 
  Carlton Duff

  So thankful Prato put together this excellent book.
  A well done chronicle of band that despite it’s tremendous impact on fans and musicians never translated to record sales.
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  Joel Martin

  Fantastic insights into the band, albums, songs, life on the road, personal stories, and insights from some of the people and musicians they've impacted. Their music is timeless, they never made it big and we all agree that is too bad, but they have and always will be my favorite band. King's X I'll never get tired of you.
• 
  Michael

  A fascinating read about the history of this eclectic Hard Rock trio, but also slightly depressing. Doug, Jerry & Ty have been slogging away together for over 40 years (35 or so of them as King's X) and never really "made" it. If you've been a fan of the heavier forms of of Rock any time in the last four decades then it almost 100% certainty that one of your favorite artists is either a huge fan of, or inspired by, King's X. Probably both.
  
  I remember reading a review of their debut album, Out of the Silent Planet, back in 1988 that described their music as being along the lines of a Hard Rock blending of The Beatles (specifically their harmonies), The Police, U2 & Gospel music. Say what? Even though that jumbled description didn't exactly fit my then 18-year-old self's Hair & Thrash Metal tastes I was intrigued enough to check it out... which has led to me following them for 30+ years.
  
  It short-circuits my brain to think that an outfit that over the course of thirteen studio albums has landed in VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock (at #83), were hand-picked by such diverse acts as Billy Squier, AC/DC, Mötley Crüe & Pearl Jam to be their opening act for various shows/tours and probably had the best performance of Woodstock '94 still struggles to make ends meet.
  
  And by all means, if you're not familiar with the guys check 'em out. Here's a (very small) sample of tunes to get ya started:
  
  Power of Love
  Over My Head
  Mission
  Moanjam
  Lost in Germany
  Black Flag
  Pillow
  Mississippi Moon
  Higher Than God
  Black Like Sunday
  Go Tell Somebody
  Goldilox (Especially this. The live version is legendary.)
• 
  David Dewata

  Jika ada kategori grup rock paling apes sedunia, mungkin ya King’s X ini. Banyak didukung dan disukai para kolega musisi namun penjualan album seret —walau juga banyak konser tunggal mereka yang tiket ludes terjual.
  
  Doug (vokal/bass) bahkan mengaku ada periode akhir 90an hingga periode 2000an yang nggak punya tempat tinggal dan terpaksa menjual koleksi bass. Bahkan sekarang pun penghasilan utama dari side projects, bukan hasil penjualan album King’s X.
  
  Demikian juga nasib Jerry Gaskill (drum/vokal) & gitaris/vokalis Ty Tabor —Ty bisa “hidup” jualan jasa studio rekaman dan side projects.
  
  Untung mereka ini orang-orang baik. Tidak terhitung banyaknya musisi yang ngajak King’s X tur atau label yang nawarin personel grup ini untuk bikin album solo maupun ngajak side projects. Dan semua itu tertuang di buku ini.
  
  Sangat saya rekomendasikan bagi penggemar King’s X, atau juga bagi yang belum pernah mendengarkan musik mereka.
• 
  Jeff Waltersdorf

  A transcription of interviews with and about the long-running trio King's X. Bassist Doug Pinnick, guitarist Ty Tabor, and drummer Jerry Gaskill formed an alchemical mix of hard rock, blues, progressive metal, funk, and Beatles harmony. Decades of touring small clubs and as opening acts for major touring bands such as Iron Maiden, AC/DC, and the Scorpions, earned them fans among bands as diverse as Anthrax, Pantera, Pearl Jam, and Motley Crue. But commercial success continued to elude them.
  
  Their albums have been a constant companion of mine since college, but I confess to not knowing much about the band. Interviewer Greg Prato covers their entire history, with commentary on every track of their twelve studio albums. It's fascinating to see the band's perspective on individual tracks, and the formation of each album.
  
• 
  Cal

  I love this band so much.
  I like the book.
  It gives some background, but it is mostly the guys talking about the past and the path towards making the albums and the tours. It is all done in hindsight with other individuals making their comments and thoughts from managers to other musicians.
  I totally respect that these guys have always made the music that they wanted to make. They did not break out like everyone said that they would or like King's X hoped that they would, and that is a damn shame.
  Every musician that I have ever played with has either been a King's X fan or become one after they got introduced to this band. I only wish that I could have seen them play live just one time.
• 
  Chris Anderson

  An excellent book about one of the most underrated bands of all time. Told in their own words, as well as testimonies from a wide range of musicians and industry types, this book brilliantly tells the 40-year story of one of the most unique and underrated bands on the scene. Keeping the text strictly in the words of those involved keep this book from getting stuck in the mire of storytelling and delivers exactly what needs to be delivered. The book also goes through every album and features commentary on the album as well as every song contained within. I was only a nominal fan of this band before I read the book - they very quickly became a favorite.
• 
  Antony Peter Irvine

  Your favourite band's favourite band.
  
  At turns dark, comedic, joyful, uncomfortable, yet always wryly honest and forever hopeful, the tale of King's X is told by the band themselves and a cast of characters from their lives, including ardent admirers from the biggest names in hard rock.
  
  I was expecting something of an enthusiast's approach, but in many ways the band are their own harshest critics and provide a tender balance to the slack-jawed praise bestowed from the musical spectrum-ends of Motley Crue and Pearl Jam.
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  Sean

  The book is geared towards folks who are already in on the music of this terrific band. I was able to enjoy it a lot as a result, but I don't know if the band will earn many new fans from the book. That being said, as a lot of the well-known musicians quoted throughout indicate, as long as people keep sharing, the band will continue to grow long after their "prime."
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  Kate Sherrod

  A terrific read for fans of the band, fans of music in general, anybody who's interested in how art gets made and how successful collaborations work. Lots of amazing anecdotes and insights into the songs that make up one of the best, and most criminally underappreciated, catalogs in modern music. There should be more like this!
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  Jared Abbott

  King's X has been my favorite band since the 90s, so it was great to read about the history behind their songs from their perspective. It's frustrating that they never got their due and maybe never will. This is a great read for King's X fans. It's a little like the old VH1 Behind the Music documentaries, but in book format.
• 
  Angel R. Cortes Ledesma

  Timeless
  
  King's X is the most underrated band in the world and this book told a very fascinating and frustrating at the same time story of these phenomenal band a must for everyone go tell somebody!
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  Brian Chenault

  My only complaint about this book is that it isn't twice as long, especially the chapters breaking down each album track by track. You really get to understand the band's personalities and dynamic through their voices and stories in the book.
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  Jeffery Workman

  Can NEVER get enough of King’s X! This is a great read for any fan of the band. It was great reading it as somewhat of a conversation. Finding out some view and insights to songs and al ins from members of the band as well as their friends kick in support.
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  Gordon Bowman iii

  Really enjoyed reading this book. I am a big King’s X fan, so the book and the way it was all first-hand accounts of their journey was really exciting. It is essential reading for anyone who enjoys good rock music!
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  Scott Radway

  I loved all the information presented here, and the band is a favorite of mine, but I did not enjoy the "oral history" format of the storytelling.
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  Mike Talvensaari

  Great if you are a fan.