Scabby scar tissue

As a huge Red Hot Chili Peppers fan and avid reader, this seemed the ideal gift for my girlfriend to tuck in my Christmas stocking.

And it should have been a great book for all RHCP fans - but somehow it falls short.

First off is my usual problem with autobiographies which are written by a third party - in this case Larry "Ratso" Sloman - but presented as the first person narrative of the star.

Kudos for actually putting Larry''s name up there on the cover in the usual "with" billing, but if you're going to be open about this - why present the book as a "I did this...I did that", it seems overly contrived and sadly lacking in depth.

Putting those isues aside I waded through the book in a few days. Waded is probably the best word as surprisingly I didn't find it as unputdownable as I imagined when I first unwrapped it. Not that it isn't well written, if anything it is a litle too simplistic and childish for most readers.

Interesting it certainly is as an insight into the sordid world of Keidis's sad addiction to drugs. While this a theme which has obviously dominated his life, it tended to overdominate the book.

As a fan I was looking for more about the history of the band, where the music came from and why it came - rather than the realisation the Chili's existed mainly because a group of drugged up individuals managed to strike it lucky and stay alive long enough to create a fan base.

The only relief from the constant cycle of drug binging, rehab and relapse is Keidis's pretty immature and rather odd obsession with notching up sexual conquests. It's not just the slight tackiness of this - you're a rock star, of course you get to sleep with people - but the cheap pulp/porn fiction style these conquests are portrayed in that really grates. This also gets into a sad spiral of falling in love at the drop of a hat and then breaking up with love interest several pages later. And for a 30 something old man Keidis seems to be emotionally stunted (whether thanks to a largely responsibility free life of a drugged up rock star, or the pyschological scars of his far from normal upbringing) - with it usually being the girlfriend's failings for the split rather than his own, according to Keidis.

Chili fans looking to learn about the inspiration of a band which has probably inspired them for decades will have to make do with very occasion references to song lyrics and gigs, along with the constant underlying drama of ever shifting band members - which is presented in a slightly depressing and farcical rather than hugely informative way.

Those looking for a pretty compelling reason not to do drugs will find it in Scar Tissue, although there are better written and more readable stories out there about people who aren't lucky enough to be able to afford constant rehab and exoctic nurses to inject ozone into their bodies to keep them clean and sober.

All said, I'm glad I read it, even if it does bring a hero of mine down a notch or three. In fact, that's probably the best thing the book has achieved.

if you're looking for an insight into the mind of a creative and groud breaking musician and his band - try one of the other biographies of the group. If you want sordid tales of sex, drugs and rock and roll, pick away at Scar Tissue.