Pamela des Barres: I'm With the Band: Confessions of a Groupie (1987)
We watched Cameron Crowe's Almost Famous with friends and family over the holidays, and it prompted many Millennial and Zoomer questions about ancient music business practices, rituals, and specifically groupies.
So I inevitably cited Pamela des Barres' seminal memoir, I'm With the Band, as perhaps the ultimate document of the groupie culture that arose and then flourished alongside classic rock in the late '60s and into the '70s.
In today's far more enlightened world, it can all seem a little complicated ...
But no one that I know of contextualized the groupie experience more earnestly, eloquently, romantically, authoritatively, and candidly than the legendary Miss Pamela (née Miller).
From her innocent upbringing in Southern California, to her scandalous liaisons with stars like Jimmy Page, Keith Moon, Mick Jagger, Flying Burrito Chris Hillman, and her eventual husband, Michael des Barres (Silverhead, Detective, etc.), to her membership in the Frank Zappa-endorsed G.T.O.'s, this is simply one of rock 'n' roll's essential reads.
And whatever your opinion about Pamela's exploits, right or wrong, her motivation -- same as the story told in Almost Famous -- ultimately boils down to the search for individual freedom and an unquenchable passion for MUSIC -- something many us can relate to.
I briefly met Miss Pamela at SXSW, one year, and then it was my turn to act like her fawning, wide-eyed, slack-jawed groupie ... well, not like that, but you know what I mean.
Silverhead: Silverhead (1972)
Frank Zappa: Hot Rats (1969)
The Flying Burrito Bros.: The Gilded Palace of Sin (1969)
The Who: Quadrophenia (1973)
Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin III (1970)
