Santigold's Book Recommendations (Updated for 2026)

1

Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk

Legs McNeil, Gillian McCain

4.4

A Time Out and Daily News Top Ten Book of the Year upon its initial release, Please Kill Me is the first oral history of the most nihilist of all pop movements. Iggy Pop, Danny Fields, Dee Dee and Joey Ramone, Malcom McLaren, Jim Carroll, and scores of other famous and infamous punk figures lend their voices to this definitive account of that outrageous, explosive era. From its origins in the twil

Recommended by Santigold and Seth Mandel.

Santigold

Please Kill Me is one of the most fun books I’ve ever read. It’s basically a collection of oral histories, first-hand accounts from all the people who were around in New York as punk began. It’s the inside scoop on everything punk, with all kinds of details about who hooked up with who and the crazy shit they did. It’s not like reading a history book – it’s almost like being there, talking to all these people who were part of the birth of punk. [source]

Seth Mandel

@LBC1983 love that book [source]

2

When the Drummers Were Women: A Spiritual History of Rhythm

Layne Redmond

4.5

In this long-awaited, lavishly illustrated book, drummer Layne Redmond presents an empowering narrative history of the sacred drum in the ancient Goddess civilization, using her extensive collection of images gathered during more than five years of research and travel in the Mideast and Europe. 80 photos & drawings.

Recommended by Santigold.

Santigold

This book is not just about drumming, it’s also about gender, history and spirituality. It tells the story of the relationship between women, music, religion and power. Thousands of years before Christ, women played hand drums, specifically the frame drum, in religious ceremonies, as we can see in surviving images of goddesses. Music and rhythm are intrinsically a part of spirituality, but originally women set the beat. But with the advent of Christianity, ceremonial drumming, which was associated with paganism, stops. Drums were silenced and so were women. [source]

Cover unavailable

3

Alternative Rock: Third Ear - The Essential Listening Companion

Dave Thompson

4.1

BookThis book looks inside the artists and music that transformed the American and British soundscape of the 1980s and '90s. Scene-setting essays some with interviews of key figures explore alternative rock's primary influences, from Captain Beefheart to Brian Eno, and its many subgenres, from punk to grunge and Brit pop to trip hop. Reviews and profiles cover over 2,000 recordings and more than 5

Recommended by Santigold.

Santigold

It’s a reference book, but it’s so interesting to read. I got it back in college, during the nineties. It includes anybody that you ever heard of from somebody else. It’s a beginners’ guide to every band in that genre – it tells you the best records and a bit of background, just enough to pique your interest. I learned about so many bands and records just from flipping through the book. You could do random searches on the Internet but it wouldn’t be the same. It’s really cool to have all this in one place. [source]

4

Q: The Autobiography of Quincy Jones

Quincy Jones

4.4

For work that spans every style of American popular music, Quincy Jones has garnered an incredible 76 Grammy nominations and has carved out a reputation as a pioneering music executive and film and TV producer. This no-holds-barred self-portrait encompasses an astonishing cast of show business giants and tells what amounts to one of the great African-American success stories of the century. of pho

Recommended by Santigold.

Santigold

It’s about Quincy Jones’s journey. He started out poor, born on the South Side of Chicago to a mentally ill mother. He went on to become one of the most influential producers in the industry. Music sort of saved him. He started to tour as a back-up musician in his teens with these amazing jazz bands. He ended up scoring all these movies, and then he got into producing. Quincy Jones produced the main Michael Jackson records. He started so young and he accomplished so much. [source]

5

Divided Soul: The Life Of Marvin Gaye

David Ritz

4.3

Drawing from interviews conducted before Marvin Gaye's death, acclaimed music writer David Ritz has created a full-scale portrait of the brilliant but tormented artist. With a cast of characters that includes Diana Ross, Berry Gordy, Smokey Robinson, and Stevie Wonder, this intimate biography is a definitive and enduring look at the man who embodied the very essence of the word soul.

Recommended by Santigold.

Santigold

I grew up listening to a lot of Marvin Gaye – my father was a huge fan. The day that Marvin Gaye was killed, my dad was affected so strongly he could barely speak. I didn’t understand why until I read the book. It gives you a sense of the struggles Marvin Gaye went through, as an artist and as a man – his struggle with the spotlight, his struggle with spirituality, his struggle with family and his struggle with drugs. It’s so wonderfully written and really riveting. [source]