Buy new:
-5% $22.73
FREE delivery Friday, May 17 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35
Ships from: Amazon.com
Sold by: Amazon.com
$22.73 with 5 percent savings
List Price: $24.00

The List Price is the suggested retail price of a new product as provided by a manufacturer, supplier, or seller. Except for books, Amazon will display a List Price if the product was purchased by customers on Amazon or offered by other retailers at or above the List Price in at least the past 90 days. List prices may not necessarily reflect the product's prevailing market price.
Learn more
Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns
FREE delivery Friday, May 17 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35. Order within 12 hrs 38 mins
In Stock
$$22.73 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details
Price
Subtotal
$$22.73
Subtotal
Initial payment breakdown
Shipping cost, delivery date, and order total (including tax) shown at checkout.
Ships from
Amazon.com
Ships from
Amazon.com
Sold by
Amazon.com
Sold by
Amazon.com
Returns
30-day easy returns
30-day easy returns
This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.
Read full return policy
Returns
30-day easy returns
This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.
Read full return policy
Payment
Secure transaction
Your transaction is secure
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
Payment
Secure transaction
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
$12.47
Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns
Book may show minor signs of use but pages and spine are still in great condition and intact. This book appears to have NO writing inside. Book may show minor signs of use but pages and spine are still in great condition and intact. This book appears to have NO writing inside. See less
FREE delivery Monday, May 20 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35
Only 1 left in stock - order soon.
$$22.73 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details
Price
Subtotal
$$22.73
Subtotal
Initial payment breakdown
Shipping cost, delivery date, and order total (including tax) shown at checkout.
Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Jack Boulware
+ Follow
More books from this author
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Gimme Something Better: The Profound, Progressive, and Occasionally Pointless History of Bay Area Punk from Dead Kennedys to Green Day Paperback – September 29, 2009

by Jack Boulware (Author), Silke Tudor (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 55 ratings
See all formats and editions
{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$22.73","priceAmount":22.73,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"22","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"73","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"Tr%2FanfiDMs8dtlwu0Q87dVBGzcLOWEyVuAtkJ5u9AAyCAx4tmzbToM%2Bx%2F2Lb63qSE1Jdr0oOQUo23DtYvO4hG3KWtW5GXuQPSwsdM6pOhSnNjLu7yo7ZTNDdcozzz%2FWZttY9PCOOxhc%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$12.47","priceAmount":12.47,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"12","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"47","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"Tr%2FanfiDMs8dtlwu0Q87dVBGzcLOWEyVCVCIisgZdkd7pUVRbW2%2BekP8Y6Xdz8HB1wVTOydnR2F5lYwhVgwlMtCXrX%2FHxaO8bM8Fzv6Y24u8tjK9ksVtijfgZpqPQNNQsBCvfnR51LGc5gBG5CyxonOjMk4F3cRCFv8ge%2Fvri1Tk7g0J044wn7TyFwAyjG3y","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

An oral history of the modern punk-revival?s West Coast Birthplace

Outside of New York and London, California?s Bay Area claims the oldest continuous punk-rock scene in the world. Gimme Something Better brings this outrageous and influential punk scene to life, from the notorious final performance of the Sex Pistols, to Jello Biafra?s bid for mayor, the rise of Maximum RocknRoll magazine, and the East Bay pop-punk sound that sold millions around the globe. Throngs of punks, including members of the Dead Kennedys, Avengers, Flipper, MDC, Green Day, Rancid, NOFX, and AFI, tell their own stories in this definitive account, from the innovative art-damage of San Francisco?s Fab Mab in North Beach, to the still vibrant all-ages DIY ethos of Berkeley?s Gilman Street. Compiled by longtime Bay Area journalists Jack Boulware and Silke Tudor, Gimme Something Better chronicles more than two decades of punk music, progressive politics, social consciousness, and divine decadence, told by the people who made it happen.
Read more Read less
Previous page
  1. Print length
    512 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Penguin Publishing Group
  4. Publication date
    September 29, 2009
  5. Dimensions
    8.43 x 5.51 x 1.03 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0143113801
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0143113805
  8. See all details
Next page
The Amazon Book Review
The Amazon Book Review
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.

Frequently bought together

Gimme Something Better: The Profound, Progressive, and Occasionally Pointless History of Bay Area Punk from Dead Kennedys to
$22.73
Get it as soon as Friday, May 17
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
+
Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground 1981-1991
$16.33
Get it as soon as Friday, May 17
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
+
Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk
$14.99
Get it as soon as Friday, May 17
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Details
Added to Cart
Choose items to buy together.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jack Boulware is an author, writer, and freelance columnist whose work has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, the Washington Post, Playboy, Maxim, Salon, the San Francisco Chronicle, and SF Weekly. He is the cofounder of San Francisco’s Litquake literary festival, and the author of Sex, American Style and San Francisco Bizarro.

Silke Tudor’s writing has appeared in the Village Voice, Spin, and Tattoo Savage. She worked for ten years as a columnist and nightlife editor at SF Weekly, where she produced the annual SF Weekly Music Awards. She lives in New York City.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin Publishing Group; Original edition (September 29, 2009)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 512 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0143113801
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0143113805
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.3 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.43 x 5.51 x 1.03 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 55 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Jack Boulware

Jack Boulware

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
55 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Aimee
5.0 out of 5 stars Local Oral History of Punk
Reviewed in the United States on July 6, 2012
Verified Purchase
Not the best version of an oral history on punk, but it does pertain to the San Fran Bay Area and that is not easy to come by. As per most books of this type, it is random in spots and moves quickly (adding confusion to the experience of reading it). All in all, it is an important aspect of history and the result is a treasure trove of quotables and one-liners.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
mightyamy
4.0 out of 5 stars A fun oral history of the bay area
Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2012
Verified Purchase
I really enjoy reading punk rock related oral histories- my favorite is Our Band Could be Your Life by Michael Azerrad. Gimme Something Better starts at the very beginning of the SF punk scene and takes you up to about 2007. There is a fair amount on the very early SF punk bands which I was less familiar with. I was hoping for more history on Op Ivy and other Lookout! bands but you get a good amount of Green Day history. If you are at all interested in punk history, then this is worth a read. I would recommend not purchasing the Kindle edition.

The formatting in the Kindle edition is a bit weird- there are a lot of places where the name of the speaker is not bolded or offset and so you have to read twice to see who is speaking. Also, there is one image that is not rendered at all, it's just a target mark with a caption. For a book with very few images, you'd think they could have made sure all 4 or 5 of them made it into the Kindle edition especially for the $14.99 price.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
D. Musicant
5.0 out of 5 stars If you're curious about the alternative (especially punk) music scene in the SF Bay Area, excellent read
Reviewed in the United States on January 20, 2014
Verified Purchase
This does not come off as filtered through the perceptions of the editors. On the contrary, if I recall correctly they make no contributions at all, they only quote interviewees. Fantastic read, can't recommend it enough. I've seen a person or two put it down, I think they are silly. You won't go wrong with this.
Helpful
 Report
Trimalchio in West Egg
5.0 out of 5 stars Unique, extraordinary & well researched
Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2015
Verified Purchase
Well curated interviews and extraordinary depiction of a Northern California punk rock counterculture. Well done; kudos from one of the interviewees.
Helpful
 Report
Matt
4.0 out of 5 stars The first half is great
Reviewed in the United States on February 16, 2016
Verified Purchase
Great book, I really enjoyed it. The first half is great, but when they began talking about stuff like Rancid, who to me are such derivative, cliche sell outs, and Gilman street, where you have to read and follow their little punk rock rule book to be down...Clearly the early days, with incredible bands like Crime, Avengers, Flipper and Negative Trend, were of a totally different vibe and mind set... In a nutshell, the early bands were amazing, then it all got regimented and lame. Still, this book is totally worth picking up!
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
jay billings
5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT book, more please
Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2016
Verified Purchase
Speedy delivery, GREAT book, more please!!!!! A+++++
Helpful
 Report
ILoveAmazon
2.0 out of 5 stars The Farm? Dangerous LOL
Reviewed in the United States on November 5, 2019
Verified Purchase
Semi nailed it. But not quite. 1988 Punk scene, The Farm on Potrero Hill. Suicidal Tendencies, Circle Jerks, and Dead Kennedy's. Green Day? Never heard of 'em! The Farm was gross, but the music was cheap, and they let minors in. Speaking of minors....FYI the female author wasn't punk then. If this is the same female as the author....She was a skinhead, bleach blond with bangs in front. Skinheads, are different than punk. WAY
She attended the same "alternative" high school in affluent Larkspur, CA that I did in 1987 or so....which makes her elementary school age when punk was at it's heyday.
4 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Patrick O'Neil
5.0 out of 5 stars A reminder of when punk wasn't dead
Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2018
Strange to read GIMMIE SOMETHING BETTER, a book whose entirety is made up of quotes from all my friends and acquaintances from the good old days of the San Francisco punk scene. For the first half at least it was invigorating to dive in deep to all the old tales. It was almost as if there was still that lingering sense that we could go out and play for the sake of playing—if only the people, clubs, and culture were still intact. So yeah, it’s 2018 and Green Day is/was considered punk—which is not only sad, but horrifying (although I guess there’s a lineage of sorts and you have to mention everyone?). Punk is dead, thank you Jack Boulware and Silke Tudor for reminding me of when it wasn’t.
Helpful
 Report

Top reviews from other countries

erin
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on December 4, 2017
Verified Purchase
Great read for fans
Report
Mr. Matthew Lindsay
4.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in Australia on June 24, 2017
Verified Purchase
Informative in-look into one of music's & possibly punk rocks most influential and creative scenes. A blast! Makes me wish I was in SF & the East Bay to see some of it. Waiting to see the movie now!
Report
D. Morris
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 12, 2015
Verified Purchase
great book with insight into the early US punk rock scene from those who were there.
Report