Gary Leonard Oldman

Ok, so I'm pretty sure you know that I dove head first into Joe Perry's autobiography and my lord was I blown away!

I've always thought Joe wouldn't dare write a book because he's always struck me a very very private person and he is but the fact that he took the time to really open up astounded me. His writing style is very straight forward and he's not one to sugar coat things which I respect and adore. He delves into the nitty gritty aspects of scrambling to put together a band, he's been in his fair share, and how far they went to keep their dream alive. He opens up about his dream of starting a family with his first wife and the blessing of his oldest son Adrian and the end of his marriage to Elyssa and the second chance he was given with his soulmate and the love of his life, Billie. He reflects on his solo project The Joe Perry Project and how his passion to create never really dissipated even though he missed the partnership of Aerosmith. As his story unfolds he speaks of his battle with addictions both with alcohol, heroin ( even though he has a fear of needles ) , and later pain killers. As you read you'll find that Joe is an unabashedly loyal and steadfast man and his partnership/brotherhood with Steven Tyler was truly tested by over zealous managers and ultimately Tyler himself. But none the less Joe stood by him "because that's why brothers do for one another." Joe's story is of a man who lives and loves passionately and deeply in his own quiet way, has hit rock bottom and battled his demons only to claw his way back up to the top. He's a true survivor and a legend in his own right. The photos that were included really brought his story full circle and it was such a wonderful thing to get peek into his world.

On a side note I do have to confess that I can identify with him on a base level ( could it be because we're both Virgos? ) and am more than proud to say that he's an inspiration to me.