Bootleg: The Secret History of the Other Recording Industry

I am using this book as part of the background for my dissertation, and it has a lot of good information, but the author undercuts his own ethos by letting too much of his opinion through. He CLEARLY does not like Led Zeppelin, and fails to understand how that is not important to the book. And calling Humble Pie a "progressive rock" band? That just makes me doubt he knows what he is talking about. I'll use this book VERY carefully.

This is an extremely well-researched book about the history of bootleg rock records. Was inspired to go get a great Stones bootleg--LIveR than you'll ever be" --the first bootleg I ever bought, over 50 years ago!

I absolutely LOVED this book. I am an avid bootleg collector and have a ridiculous number of shows. As I read through this book, I found myself reminiscing on the details surrounding my acquisition of about half of the titles listed here! I can remember when I was 14 and biked up to the record store to purchase "The Coming of Khoutek"... the latest TAKRL Floyd title. Or "All Meat Music" or "Sweet Apple Trax" or... If you recognize these titles then you NEED to read this book! Incredible.

If you are like me you remember the thrill of finding that local record shop that had a nice mix of "boots" in with the "regular" vinyl that you would occasionally stumble upon. Sure, you had to drop significant cash for these "imports", but you always knew this one would be worth it. Well, this book is a great way to relive some of that experience as the author tells the story of the bootleg industry including how it worked and who was involved. This is one I'll read over and over.

This book took forever to read. The author has no sense of writing style. Very dry and boring. I have read more exciting Philosophy text books in college! It took forever to get through the book. However, it is comprehensive if you want to learn about the history of bootlegging records.

Great book! And they got it to me fast!

I first read this book from the library and instantly knew I had to get a copy. As a live recording collector and fanatic, this book is an excellent read! A huge thank you to Mr. Heylin for writing this book. If you like live "Recordings of Indeterminate Origin", or "Recordings of Independent Origin" and/or collect for the historical signifigance of each live recording, get this book! You can't go wrong. Especially for the price here.

If you are into music and records, and you wanna know your history, this book is essential.