This book is a collection of stories and interviews of artists from the 60's all the way through the present (the updated edition). As someone who used to be a habitual Rolling Stone reader, and not longer is as a result of the change in people covers (which is a reflection of music today) this book is a reminder of the good old days before publicists, when artists did not hide and gave full access. The stores are great, and not necessarily flattering, as a result of the honest nature. This book is a great way to learn more about music history in an entertaining way.

Ok so he had a fascination wikth Keith Richards and sometimes tended to identify a bit too much with his heroes. However he was a most brilliant writer at the best rock weekly ever, the NME. This book is brilliant and could have been longer.

It is indeed the music that counts here, of the text as well as of the artists. It kicks off with Iggy Pop's fascinating foreword, followed by the equally absorbing preface dealing with Nick Kent's history as a music journalist. The value of each chapter is directly proportional to the communication skills of the interviewed: that is why the Guns 'N'Roses piece is a complete waste of time and paper and shouldn't even have been included in the book, whilst I loved the Roy Orbison interview although I've never really been into his music.

I found the Brian Wilson piece too long and do not agree with the author's assessment of the Rolling Stones after the 60s. His view of Kurt Cobain is a bit harsh and the non-interview with Roky Erickson a bit pointless, but I loved Jerry Lee Lewis, Lou Reed, Elvis Costello, Miles Davis and I think the book's crowning glory is the chapter titled "Neil Young and the haphazard highway that leads to Unconditional Love."

What amazes me is how some of these artists managed to so consistently produce such sublime music while they were abusing themselves physically and mentally to such a gruesome degree. I suppose that is one of the intertextual messages of this book: no matter how low down you are, you can always pull yourself together again. It once again demonstrates the ability of the soul and the body to restore themselves. This is great rock writing!

If you like music then you will like this book. What I liked about this book is that it was written by a good music journalist, so that's important, and there's a little humor in it too, as if the retardedness of the musicians aren't funny enough.

A large part of the seemingly eternal appeal of rock music is the seamy underbelly of the movement itself. Kent is a master at exploring this underbelly, mainly (it seems) because he lived it himself. The man briefly toured with the Sex Pistols, befriended some of the most disturbed musicians of the 1970's, acquired and beat some serious drug addictions, and never lost an inch of his literary edge. The articles, essays and interviews in "The Dark Stuff" are compelling, exciting, repulsive and entertaining all at once. Kent knows who to write about: he chooses the pioneers, the masters and the mysteries. Some of the best music journalism of our time.