boozy rant no. 1: “The Creem Book” and Dreems of more…

“The Creem Book” has been a contentious topic among the rockcit establishment, and, by extension, the rockcrit geek subculture, which I suppose I am completely entrenched in and mixed up with no matter what I used to think. “The Creem Book”, (for those philistines who don’t know how many Chuck Eddy blog there are as of today) is Creem: America’s Only Rock ‘n Roll Magazine, by Robert Matheu and Brian J. Bowe. Like many others, I have stated on the record that it has too much later stuff, not enough early stuff. Of course, I, like almost everyone else who has leveled this criticism at the book, have no stake in the game. And the game here is a costly one for everyone involved. There’s ongoing litigation which I know virtually nothing about regarding who owns Creem and it’s vast library of intellectual property. That’s an important issue for anyone who cares about the legacy of this great magazine, but as someone who’s buying the book and keeping it on their shelf for the rest of their lives, it’s not a factor in the value of the collection itself.

I like the book a lot actually. I can’t really complain at all. The material is so good that you couldn’t possibly go wrong. The fact is that Matheu and Bowe did more than just not go wrong, they put together a gorgeous book. They knew how important it was to reprint everything for the most part how it originally appeared, and they did a great job selecting pieces that gave a good, broad cross-section of everything that Creem was over the years.

Giving a broad general history had to be exactly their goal. It was kind of the only choice they had when given the opportunity to publish this book. I mean, wouldn’t it be yours if you put yourselves in their shoes? Based on what their logical motivations had to be, up to and including making a profit (and don’t ever kid yourself that Barry Kramer’s motivation, first and foremost, wasn’t doing exactly that), mission definitely accomplished. The kids who are going to find this on the shelf at their local libraries in 5, 10, and 15 years are going to have their minds blown that such a thing ever existed. It’s more than good enough, it’s proof that this was the best rock ‘n roll magazine that ever existed. At it’s supposed nadir, it was still a million times better than anything else out there on the national level.

So I can get why that would be the approach for a book like this, the first time out. As a hard-core Creem fan though, I think that what I’d prefer, and this is just me, are definitive examinations of narrow themes. With those archives at your fingertips, you could tell the whole story of the American pre-punk era, from the Velvets to the Ramones, and it would be one of the definitive histories of that music that could ever be published. Not to mention all of the big name stars - a whole book on the Stones or Dylan would be more objective and interesting than any of Jann Wenner’s hero-worship tomes.

Hell, if they want a sure-fire seller on your hands, put out the Creem Book of Metal. In the 70’s, Creem covered more metal in a more thorough and (actually, comparatively) serious way, than anyone else. Put all that together with the material from the 80’s Creem Metal magazine and you’ve got every metal fan’s wet dream, people who wouldn’t ever get around to buying any other Creem book would HAVE to own that one.

And, on the topic of Creem Metal, I think it’s an incredibly underrated magazine. People are kind of nostalgic about Rip magazine these days, but Creem Metal did it the best. I was a teenage New Jersey stoner kid in the mid-80’s and I absolutely worshiped CM, it made me stop buying Hit Parader around the age of 15 or so,… I still grabbed the occasional Circus but just for the pictures.

And then there’s the “Complete Creem Record Reviews” 3-volume set, and the book(s) of JUST Creem pictures with the original captions! Oh, and of course the internet archive of letters to the editor, and every Eleganza on demand! As someone who has no money in the game, I’m very elaborate about the number of projects they should have going right now…

I think they did a great book, and I’m glad to hear that the people behind this one want to do more. I just hope that whoever ends up owning the Creem library keeps getting it out there to us, the public. Even if my dream books never get made, I’ll buy every single one that comes out (well, maybe not the Kiss Super Special,… no, that’s not even believable… of course I’d have to buy that, probably the Van Halen and Motley Crue ones too).