Having been a lover of both for some time, I’ve read my fair share of memoirs and biographies, but Trouble Boys by Bob Mehr goes straight in at number one, topping the charts with its detailed research and magnetic narrative pull.
The book follows the formation, struggles, self-sabotage, creative boom and inevitable collapse of alternative rock outfit The Replacements. For those unfamiliar with the band (something I highly recommend rectifying) they built a following throughout the 1980s, via word of mouth, college radio airplay, and live performances that earned them a reputation for simultaneously being the best band in the world and the worst.
Trouble Boys digs into a trajectory of twelve years and seven studio albums. An arc which explores creative brilliance and an earnest desire for success, both of which were neutralized by a whole host of factors: trauma; tragedy; mental illness; devastating alcohol abuse; reckless behaviour and a stubborn, contrarian nature…to name but a few spanners in the proverbial works.
The book is full of fascinating anecdotes, meticulous details, unknown connections and lesser-known (if known at all) figures pivotal to the story of The Replacements. There’s a number of rock n roll cliches, a fair bit of abhorrent behaviour and revealing insight from each member of the band and those within their orbit. But beyond the origins of how certain songs came to be, the drama that led to engineering nightmares or certain individuals being fired, the heart of Trouble Boys is built upon relationships.
The bands relationship with the music industry: defiant and earnest to a fault. The bands relationship with their audience, both loving and resentful. Their relationship with self: a complicated mix of arrogance, self-deprecation and deep open wounds.
But the most captivating relationship in the book is the band's relationship with one another. They begin their journey as a ragtag group of misfit kids who find solace and escapism through music. Over time, this evolves into an unlikely, unconventional brotherhood of sorts. A union that enables and amplifies both the very best and very worst in one another. Throw ambition, ego, and opportunity into the mix, and this duality gets even messier.
I came to this book for the music but left with a deeper, broader, more dynamic view of those responsible. A band, simultaneously behind and ahead of their time. Four trouble boys who themselves were deeply troubled; wildly gifted, downright hilarious, occasionally deplorable, authentically raw and remarkably human.
