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A review by luluwoohoo
From Cradle to Stage: Stories from the Mothers Who Rocked and Raised Rock Stars by Virginia Hanlon Grohl
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
3.0
From Cradle To Stage by Virginia Hanlon Grohl
☀️☀️☀️
With Mother's Day this weekend, I was keen to read a book on theme, and this certainly delivers it in an interesting way.
Virginia Hanlon Grohl, mother to rockstar Dave Grohl, reached out to other mothers of talented musicians to see if their life experiences were similar, and what it was about their kid's childhood that had them gravitating towards stardom. The book is an interesting amalgamation of these women's stories, and Virginia's own vignettes sprinkled throughout.
The concept is strong and carries through, particularly in the obvious commonalities the children shared - many were poor students academically, many were deemed too high energy and rambunctious, and many had relatives with some creative background even if it wasn't in music. But the main focus is on the women who raised these talented folks, and although some of the stories were fascinating (such as one mum-and-dad duo who spent decades running a private investigation company, and another mother who has lived in over 50 countries in her lifetime), overall I found the interviews to lack a level of depth I was craving. There are certainly dark moments shared via the mothers of Dr Dre and Amy Winehouse, as well as Virginia's reflections on Kurt Cobain's life, but on the whole these chapters spent more time summarising the lives of these women rather than totally tapping into the beating heart of the story - the relationship with their rockstar kids.
I did appreciate the commonalities also found amongst the mothers interviewed: many had 'disjointed' childhoods that had them travelling and moving a lot; many worried less about their kids when they first started out touring and living city to city, but when fame and money really came into the picture; many lament the current education system that didn't work for their creative children, and they desire change to help the next generation of artists to find the support they need.
For what is essentially a rapid fire round of interviews, Grohl does manage to unearth some interesting tales and leave the reader feeling positive, but I can't help but wish there had been more time and pages allocated for some greater depth.
☀️☀️☀️
With Mother's Day this weekend, I was keen to read a book on theme, and this certainly delivers it in an interesting way.
Virginia Hanlon Grohl, mother to rockstar Dave Grohl, reached out to other mothers of talented musicians to see if their life experiences were similar, and what it was about their kid's childhood that had them gravitating towards stardom. The book is an interesting amalgamation of these women's stories, and Virginia's own vignettes sprinkled throughout.
The concept is strong and carries through, particularly in the obvious commonalities the children shared - many were poor students academically, many were deemed too high energy and rambunctious, and many had relatives with some creative background even if it wasn't in music. But the main focus is on the women who raised these talented folks, and although some of the stories were fascinating (such as one mum-and-dad duo who spent decades running a private investigation company, and another mother who has lived in over 50 countries in her lifetime), overall I found the interviews to lack a level of depth I was craving. There are certainly dark moments shared via the mothers of Dr Dre and Amy Winehouse, as well as Virginia's reflections on Kurt Cobain's life, but on the whole these chapters spent more time summarising the lives of these women rather than totally tapping into the beating heart of the story - the relationship with their rockstar kids.
I did appreciate the commonalities also found amongst the mothers interviewed: many had 'disjointed' childhoods that had them travelling and moving a lot; many worried less about their kids when they first started out touring and living city to city, but when fame and money really came into the picture; many lament the current education system that didn't work for their creative children, and they desire change to help the next generation of artists to find the support they need.
For what is essentially a rapid fire round of interviews, Grohl does manage to unearth some interesting tales and leave the reader feeling positive, but I can't help but wish there had been more time and pages allocated for some greater depth.
"Sandi keeps scrapbooks in the hopes that Gary [Clark] Jnr will look back on their pages someday and recall the early times and places in his career. "Not how many tickets he was selling or how much he was being paid for a show, but what his fans were seeing and hearing and writing about. I want him to remember that he really moved people." The title of her scrapbook should probably be what she and her son say often: it's all about the music."
"When he [Tom Morello] set out on his own risky path, Mary fully supported him. "She wanted me to be free, to follow my own North Star, so when I, with a Harvard degree in my pocket, announced that I was moving to Hollywood to play heavy metal music and start revolutions, she said 'OK, fine. What day are you leaving?'" "