• Reviews

• All
• Music
• DVDs
• Live
• Cinema
• TV
• Books
• Comic Books
• Video Games

Jun 21, 2015 Web Exclusive By Frank Valish

In Whiskey Bottles and Brand-New Cars, Mark Ribowsky presents a terrifically detailed and wonderfully engaging portrait of Lynyrd Skynyrd, and especially its leader Ronnie Van Zant. Ribowsky’s narrative is driven by extensive research; however, the text is not heavy on quotes. Instead, Ribowsky’s story is heavy with a storyteller’s style and prose that moves the tale of his subjects forward with critical examination and understanding. Van Zant is not idealized in this tale. He is presented as a complex man driven by deep seeded pain and trouble, which manifested itself in drink, drugs, and violence. The band’s sometimes-questionable relationship with the Confederacy is discussed throughout the narrative as well. Of course, Ribowsky gets into grim detail about the plane crash that ultimately ended Van Zant’s life and the lives of two other band members, injuring the rest and compromising the Skynrd story from there on in. Skynyrd post-crash becomes and interesting beast that itself is examined in depth. Overall, Ribowsky presents a comprehensive, immensely readable tale of a band whose history had not been chronicled in this manner before. (www.chicagoreviewpress.com)

Author rating: 7.5/10