Punk Paradox
A Memoir
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo first 3 months
Buy Now for $32.31
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Sean Patrick Hopkins
-
Greg Graffin
-
Written by:
-
Greg Graffin
About this listen
From the legendary singer-songwriter of Bad Religion comes a historical memoir and cultural criticism of punk rock’s evolution.
Greg Graffin is the lead vocalist and songwriter of Bad Religion, recently described as “America's most significant punk band.” Since its inception in Los Angeles in 1980, Bad Religion has produced 18 studio albums, become a long-running global touring powerhouse, and has established a durable legacy as one of the most influential punk rock bands of all time.
Punk Paradox is Graffin's life narrative before and during L.A. punk's early years, detailing his observations on the genre's explosive growth and his band's steady rise in importance. The book begins by exploring Graffin’s Midwestern roots and his life-changing move to Southern California in the mid-’70s. Swept up into the burgeoning punk scene in the exhilarating and often-violent streets of Los Angeles, Graffin and his friends formed Bad Religion, built a fanbase, and became a touring institution. All these activities took place in parallel with Graffin's never ceasing quest for intellectual enlightenment. Despite the demands of global tours, recording sessions, and dedication to songwriting, the author also balanced a budding academic career. In so doing, he managed to reconcile an improbable double-life as an iconic punk rock front man and University Lecturer in evolution.
Graffin’s unique experiences mirror the paradoxical elements that define the punk genre—the pop influence, the quest for society’s betterment, music’s unifying power—all of which are prime ingredients in its surprising endurance. Fittingly, this book argues against the traditional narrative of the popular perception of punk. As Bad Religion changed from year to year, the spirit of punk—and its sonic significance—lived on while Graffin was ever willing to challenge convention, debunk mythology, and liberate listeners from the chains of indoctrination.
As insightful as it is exciting, this thought-provoking memoir provides both a fly on the wall history of the punk scene and astute commentary on its endurance and evolution.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2022 Greg Graffin (P)2022 Hachette BooksYou may also enjoy...
-
Do What You Want
- The Story of Bad Religion
- Written by: Bad Religion, Jim Ruland
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro
- Length: 10 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Do What You Want's principal storytellers are the four voices that define Bad Religion: Greg Graffin, a Wisconsin kid who sang in the choir and became an LA punk rock icon while he was still a teenager; Brett Gurewitz, a high school dropout who founded the independent punk label Epitaph Records and went on to become a record mogul; Jay Bentley, a surfer and skater who gained recognition as much for his bass skills as for his antics on and off the stage.
-
-
Awesome book!
- By Samqc on 2023-07-14
Written by: Bad Religion, and others
-
NOFX
- The Hepatitis Bathtub and Other Stories
- Written by: NOFX, Jeff Alulis
- Narrated by: NOFX, Jello Biafra, Tommy Chong
- Length: 12 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
NOFX: The Hepatitis Bathtub and Other Stories is the first tell-all autobiography from one of the world's most influential and controversial punk bands. Fans and non-fans alike will be shocked by the stories of murder, suicide, addiction, counterfeiting, riots, bondage, terminal illness, the Yakuza, and drinking pee. Told from the perspective of each of the band's members, this audiobook looks back at more than 30 years of comedy, tragedy, and completely inexplicable success.
-
-
A Fantastic Look Into NOFX
- By Anonymous User on 2024-09-10
Written by: NOFX, and others
-
Smash!
- Green Day, The Offspring, Bad Religion, NOFX, and the '90s Punk Explosion
- Written by: Ian Winwood
- Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins
- Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With astounding access to all the key players of the time, including members of Green Day, The Offspring, NOFX, Rancid, Bad Religion, Social Distortion, and many others, renowned music writer Ian Winwood at last gives this significant, substantive, and compelling story its due. Punk rock bands were never truly successful or indeed truly famous, and that was that - until it wasn't. Smash! is the story of how the underdogs finally won and forever altered the landscape of mainstream music.
-
-
Just to be clear, this book is about Green Day
- By Cameron J Laird on 2023-03-14
Written by: Ian Winwood
-
Sellout
- The Major-Label Feeding Frenzy That Swept Punk, Emo, and Hardcore (1994–2007)
- Written by: Dan Ozzi
- Narrated by: Chris Abell
- Length: 13 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Seasoned music writer Dan Ozzi chronicles this embattled era in punk. Focusing on eleven prominent bands who made the jump from indie to major, Sellout charts the twists and turns of the last “gold rush” of the music industry, where some groups “sold out” and rose to surprise super stardom, while others buckled under mounting pressures. Sellout is both a gripping history of the music industry’s evolution, and a punk rock lover’s guide to the chaotic darlings of the post-grunge era.
-
-
Little to do with punk rock history.
- By KD on 2025-01-02
Written by: Dan Ozzi
-
Population Wars
- A New Perspective on Competition and Coexistence
- Written by: Greg Graffin
- Narrated by: Tom Zingarelli
- Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the very beginning, life on Earth has been defined by war. Today, those first wars continue to be fought around and literally inside us, influencing our individual behavior and that of civilization as a whole. War between populations - whether between different species or between rival groups of humans - is seen as an inevitable part of the evolutionary process. The popular concept of "the survival of the fittest" explains and often excuses these actions.
Written by: Greg Graffin
-
Beastie Boys Book
- Written by: Michael Diamond, Adam Horovitz
- Narrated by: Michael Diamond, Adam Horovitz, various
- Length: 12 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A panoramic experience that tells the story of Beastie Boys, a book as unique as the band itself - by band members ADROCK and Mike D, with contributions from Amy Poehler, Colson Whitehead, Wes Anderson, Luc Sante, and more.
-
-
phenomenal
- By Johnny Waite on 2018-11-05
Written by: Michael Diamond, and others
-
Do What You Want
- The Story of Bad Religion
- Written by: Bad Religion, Jim Ruland
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro
- Length: 10 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Do What You Want's principal storytellers are the four voices that define Bad Religion: Greg Graffin, a Wisconsin kid who sang in the choir and became an LA punk rock icon while he was still a teenager; Brett Gurewitz, a high school dropout who founded the independent punk label Epitaph Records and went on to become a record mogul; Jay Bentley, a surfer and skater who gained recognition as much for his bass skills as for his antics on and off the stage.
-
-
Awesome book!
- By Samqc on 2023-07-14
Written by: Bad Religion, and others
-
NOFX
- The Hepatitis Bathtub and Other Stories
- Written by: NOFX, Jeff Alulis
- Narrated by: NOFX, Jello Biafra, Tommy Chong
- Length: 12 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
NOFX: The Hepatitis Bathtub and Other Stories is the first tell-all autobiography from one of the world's most influential and controversial punk bands. Fans and non-fans alike will be shocked by the stories of murder, suicide, addiction, counterfeiting, riots, bondage, terminal illness, the Yakuza, and drinking pee. Told from the perspective of each of the band's members, this audiobook looks back at more than 30 years of comedy, tragedy, and completely inexplicable success.
-
-
A Fantastic Look Into NOFX
- By Anonymous User on 2024-09-10
Written by: NOFX, and others
-
Smash!
- Green Day, The Offspring, Bad Religion, NOFX, and the '90s Punk Explosion
- Written by: Ian Winwood
- Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins
- Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With astounding access to all the key players of the time, including members of Green Day, The Offspring, NOFX, Rancid, Bad Religion, Social Distortion, and many others, renowned music writer Ian Winwood at last gives this significant, substantive, and compelling story its due. Punk rock bands were never truly successful or indeed truly famous, and that was that - until it wasn't. Smash! is the story of how the underdogs finally won and forever altered the landscape of mainstream music.
-
-
Just to be clear, this book is about Green Day
- By Cameron J Laird on 2023-03-14
Written by: Ian Winwood
-
Sellout
- The Major-Label Feeding Frenzy That Swept Punk, Emo, and Hardcore (1994–2007)
- Written by: Dan Ozzi
- Narrated by: Chris Abell
- Length: 13 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Seasoned music writer Dan Ozzi chronicles this embattled era in punk. Focusing on eleven prominent bands who made the jump from indie to major, Sellout charts the twists and turns of the last “gold rush” of the music industry, where some groups “sold out” and rose to surprise super stardom, while others buckled under mounting pressures. Sellout is both a gripping history of the music industry’s evolution, and a punk rock lover’s guide to the chaotic darlings of the post-grunge era.
-
-
Little to do with punk rock history.
- By KD on 2025-01-02
Written by: Dan Ozzi
-
Population Wars
- A New Perspective on Competition and Coexistence
- Written by: Greg Graffin
- Narrated by: Tom Zingarelli
- Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the very beginning, life on Earth has been defined by war. Today, those first wars continue to be fought around and literally inside us, influencing our individual behavior and that of civilization as a whole. War between populations - whether between different species or between rival groups of humans - is seen as an inevitable part of the evolutionary process. The popular concept of "the survival of the fittest" explains and often excuses these actions.
Written by: Greg Graffin
-
Beastie Boys Book
- Written by: Michael Diamond, Adam Horovitz
- Narrated by: Michael Diamond, Adam Horovitz, various
- Length: 12 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A panoramic experience that tells the story of Beastie Boys, a book as unique as the band itself - by band members ADROCK and Mike D, with contributions from Amy Poehler, Colson Whitehead, Wes Anderson, Luc Sante, and more.
-
-
phenomenal
- By Johnny Waite on 2018-11-05
Written by: Michael Diamond, and others
-
My Damage
- The Story of a Punk Rock Survivor
- Written by: Keith Morris, Jim Ruland
- Narrated by: James Patrick Cronin
- Length: 9 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Keith Morris is a true punk icon. No one else embodies the sound of Southern Californian hardcore. Short and sporting waist-length dreadlocks, Morris is known the world over for his take-no-prisoners approach on the stage and his integrity off of it. Over the course of his 40-year career, he's battled diabetes, drug and alcohol addiction, and the record industry. My Damage is more than a book about the highs and lows of a punk rock legend, however.
-
-
Quite good
- By Crompsy on 2020-08-22
Written by: Keith Morris, and others
-
Down with the System
- A Memoir (of Sorts)
- Written by: Serj Tankian
- Narrated by: Serj Tankian
- Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Serj Tankian will be the first to admit that his band, System of a Down, was “unlikely a chart-topper as had ever existed in modern music history: a band of Armenian-Americans playing a practically unclassifiable clash of wildly aggressive metal riffs, unconventional tempo-twisting rhythms, and Armenian folk melodies, with me alternately growling, screaming, and crooning lyrics that could pivot from avant-garde silliness to raging socio-political rants in the space of a single line.” After all, as Serj concedes, “it’s not easy listening.”
-
-
Beyond the Music: Serj Tankian Unplugged.
- By Kindle Customer on 2024-10-20
Written by: Serj Tankian
-
Led Zeppelin
- The Biography
- Written by: Bob Spitz
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro
- Length: 21 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the author of the definitive New York Times best-selling history of the Beatles comes the authoritative account of the group many call the greatest rock band of all time, arguably the most successful, and certainly one of the most notorious.
-
-
Epic
- By Anonymous User on 2022-01-10
Written by: Bob Spitz
-
Sonic Life
- A Memoir
- Written by: Thurston Moore
- Narrated by: Thurston Moore
- Length: 19 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Thurston Moore moved to Manhattan’s East Village in 1978 with a yearning for music. He wanted to be immersed in downtown New York’s sights and sounds—the feral energy of its nightclubs, the angular roar of its bands, the magnetic personalities within its orbit. But more than anything, he wanted to make music—to create indelible sounds that would move, provoke, and inspire. His dream came to life in 1981 with the formation of Sonic Youth, a band Moore cofounded with Kim Gordon and Lee Ranaldo.
-
-
Amazing trip through Thurston’s life!!
- By Anonymous User on 2024-01-11
Written by: Thurston Moore
-
Girl in a Band
- A Memoir
- Written by: Kim Gordon
- Narrated by: Kim Gordon
- Length: 7 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Kim Gordon, founding member of Sonic Youth, fashion icon, and role model for a generation of women, now tells her story - a memoir of life as an artist, of music, marriage, motherhood, independence, and as one of the first women of rock and roll, written with the lyricism and haunting beauty of Patti Smith's Just Kids.
-
-
Insightful and breezy
- By Anonymous User on 2022-10-07
Written by: Kim Gordon
-
Perfect Youth
- The Birth of Canadian Punk
- Written by: Sam Sutherland
- Narrated by: Kiff VandenHeuvel
- Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
While many volumes devoted to the punk and hardcore scenes in America grace bookstore shelves, Canada’s contributions to the genre remain largely unacknowledged. For the first time, the birth of Canadian punk - a transformative cultural force that spread across the country at the end of the 1970s - is captured between the pages of this important resource. Delving deeper than standard band biographies, this book articulates how the advent of punk reshaped the culture of cities across Canada, speeding along the creation of alternative means of cultural production, consumption, and distribution.
-
-
Great Story
- By Anonymous User on 2023-06-28
Written by: Sam Sutherland
What listeners say about Punk Paradox
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ian R Clark
- 2023-10-03
Very good book
Well written and narrated. Interesting to hear bad religions history from Greg's perspective. Well worth the listen
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Scott H.
- 2023-02-24
Absolutely Rapt
What a wonderful listen this is. I wish Greg told this story sooner.
I was very surprised to learn the secret, codified inspiration behind the popular songs on the Grey Race album.
Having been a committed fan since I borrowed a copy of ‘Recipe for Hate’ on cassette from a friend as a kid, this autobiography / mediation on punk rock is a page-turner, which in audible format means sitting in the driveway with the engine off listening until real life is so pressing in the back of my mind that I had to exit the car.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Joseph D.
- 2022-11-11
A must for Bad Religion fans
Fans of the band will enjoy this book. The Introduction and Epilogue is read by Greg Graffin. The Brooks Wackerman era is a bit rushed is my only complaint but I loved it
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Tyson Finley
- 2023-11-16
Great story if you are a BR fan
This book Would be better if Greg read the whole thing! Good to hear the stories from the early days.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 2023-01-06
A Telling history lesson from the punk professor
in keeping with the author's views, Punk Paradox is an intellectual telling of the successes and difficulties balancing the dualities of being a scholar and punk legend, while making clear the similarities and mutualism they share. A fantastic view into the history of the L.A punk scene on the 1980's without the glorification of the violent and nihilistic aspects of the scene I hold so dear to my heart.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 2023-03-24
The Book Is Alright
It's a memoir of Greg's life. To a lesser extent, a history of Bad Religion. To a far lesser extent, a memoir of the punk scene during it all. Greg stays true to his life philosophy through out - trying to bring social awareness to the unwashed masses of the punk rock establishment. He often seems a bit bitter that BR never received as much fanfare as his more popular contemporaries. He tends to hate on bands that write shallow songs to appease the masses, while simultaneously being put off by the kids turning their backs on bands that "sellout". Often Greg comes across as a bit dismissive of the scene at the time, thinking BR is superior in musical talent and has a much deeper message than any other band that ever existed. From this memoir, I (disappointingly) gleaned that Greg dislikes more bands than he admires.
It is interesting to hear about Greg's childhood and what shaped him into the person / songwriter he became. Learning of the beginnings of the band and the anecdotes about touring Europe vs the US was informative. The book ends kind of abruptly, leaving any recent history untold.
If you want to know about Greg Graffin - it is a great read. If you just want a story about the early days of So. Cal. Punk Rock, this might not be for you.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!