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Last Chance Texaco: Chronicles of an American Troubadour Kindle Edition

4.6 out of 5 stars 1,250 ratings

A candid and colorful memoir by the singer, songwriter, and “Duchess of Coolsville” (Time).

This troubadour life is only for the fiercest hearts, only for those vessels that can be broken to smithereens and still keep beating out the rhythm for a new song . . .

Last Chance Texaco is the first-ever no-holds-barred account of the life of two-time Grammy Award-winner and Rickie Lee Jones in her own words (Hilton Als). It is a tale of desperate chances and impossible triumphs, an adventure story of a girl who beat the odds and grew up to become one of the most legendary artists of her time, turning adversity and hopelessness into timeless music.

With candor and lyricism, she takes us on a singular journey through her nomadic childhood, her years as a teenage runaway, her legendary love affair with Tom Waits, and ultimately her longevity as the hardest working woman in rock and roll. Rickie Lee’s stories are rich with the infamous characters of her early songs—“Chuck E’s in Love,” “Weasel and the White Boys Cool,” “Danny’s All-Star Joint,” and “Easy Money”—but long before her notoriety in show business, there was a vaudevillian cast of hitchhikers, bank robbers, jail breaks, drug mules, and a pimp with a heart of gold, and tales of her fabled ancestors.

This intimate memoir by one of the most trailblazing and tenacious women in music is filled with never-before-told stories of the girl in the raspberry beret, whose songs defied categorization and inspired American pop culture for decades.

“A striking, distinctive self-portrait.” —
The New York Times

“Terrific . . . Jones is as fearless in prose as she is on stage.” —
Minneapolis Star-Tribune

“Men leave, fame fizzles, family breaks your heart . . . but Jones knows a good story and how to tell it.” —
Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“[The] premiere song-stylist and songwriter of her generation.” —Hilton Als, Pulitzer Prize–winner and author of
White Girls

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From the Publisher

Scott Simon NPR
O, the Oprah Magazine
Mojo

Editorial Reviews

Review

Praise for Last Chance Texaco

"A jaw-dropping youth, and an addictive, funny, eccentric and perceptive memoir." —Nick Hornby

“In this raw and roving life story, Jones depicts a child who recognized her humanity and worth even when others wouldn’t, and a woman whose confidence helped her rise above heroin addiction, music-industry sexism and the traumas of her youth . . . In a book about the past, Jones has no problem moving on. It’s a neat trick.” —Jake Cline, Washington Post

“Winding and leisurely, as rich and colorful as Jones’s best lyrics. It’s a classically American picaresque tale… Jones paints a striking, distinctive self-portrait.”— New York Times

“Vividly cinematic… Sexy and moving and sad.” —Bookforum

“She reads as a modern Huck Finn…A testament to the joys and the chaos of a life of travelling.” — New Yorker

“It’s the absolute best book about being an artist in the rock world that I’ve ever read.” — Bob Lefsetz, The Lefsetz Letter

“[Rickie Lee Jones] opened every door, and she never flinched…she’s a storyteller.” — San Francisco Chronicle

“Candid, cosmic, so cool… An impassioned and cinematic trip through Jones’s eventful life. Jones manages to carry her originality, intimacy, and volcanic expressiveness into book form.” —Boston Globe

“Terrific… The prose is rich and rhythmic, filled with lines that are pithy ("Rickie Lee is a Frank Capra movie that had been overtaken by Stanley Kubrick") and poetic ("childhood traumas leave their dirty footprints on the fresh white snow of our happy-ever-afters.") . . . Jones is as fearless in prose as she is on stage." —Minneapolis Star-Tribune

“So remarkably beautifully written, showing [Rickie Lee’s] signature as a songwriter, too.” —Scott Simon, NPR

“One of the most compelling memoirs I’ve ever read… What really sucks you in, and lifts you up, is the dazzling magic of her prose.” —Please Kill Me

“Well-crafted and intensely candid.” —San Diego Union-Tribune

“A crackling debut memoir… Wise and gorgeous, this story is as poetic as the songs that made Jones famous.” —Publishers Weekly (starred)

“In gorgeous prose interspersed with her lyrics, this is as distinctive as she is, a rich, bracing, and candid memoir dancing with the love of language.”—Booklist (starred review)

“What makes this a most inspiring memoir is her absorbing storytelling, facility with language (no surprise there) and her fealty to integrity – commerce be damned." —Michael Simmons, MOJO

“This tender, fierce, intimate memoir is testament that Jones has lived a life as brave… and rich as her music—with love, heartbreak, addiction, and magic, sprinkled throughout.” —O Magazine

“Men leave, fame fizzles, family breaks your heart…but Jones knows a good story and how to tell it.” —Kirkus (starred review)

"Fans will enjoy this buoyant coming-of-age narrative by one of music’s most idiosyncratic performers." —Library Journal


Praise for Rickie Lee Jones

“Rickie Lee Jones has been pushing down musical boundaries for over four decades with her hauntingly beautiful voice and fearless experimentation.” —NPR

“[Her] music has healing properties: the beauty of its melodies and the wisdom of its words soothe the soul and remind us what a peculiar treasure Jones is.” —Boston Globe

“Intimate and real . . . she feels like an old, confiding friend—plaintive and genuinely heartbreaking.” —Mother Jones

“One of the most intriguing, idiosyncratic vocalists of our time.” USA Today

“A singular talent.” Daily Mirror (UK)

“There has always been something defiant about Rickie Lee Jones . . . [with] a voice from a dream, elusive yet familiar, transcendent, a messenger from another place.” Independent (UK)

“A standout international performer.” The Australian

About the Author

Rickie Lee Jones has released seventeen record albums and received two Grammy Awards. She lives in New Orleans.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B072Y9RZ8T
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Grove Press (April 6, 2021)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ April 6, 2021
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 10.8 MB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 432 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 out of 5 stars 1,250 ratings

About the author

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Rickie Lee Jones
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Born in Chicago, 1954, dropped out of high school enrolled in college at 17. Grammy winner, publisher, musician and song writer. Mother of one child, love animals and children and bugs. in that order. Have always written poems and prose and stories. this is a picture of me and bob W. a long time ago after a show in San Fransisco. my show.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
1,250 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book thoroughly entertaining and engaging, with a gifted magical tale filled with honest backstories. The writing style is praised for its poetic language, and customers are amazed by the artist's songwriting talents, considering her one of the greatest songwriters of our time. The narrative style receives positive feedback for its authentic storytelling, and customers appreciate the beautiful music and art direction.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

49 customers mention "Readability"49 positive0 negative

Customers find the book thoroughly entertaining and an excellent read.

"...almost prose and then pulling back, it seems to almost have been a great book, edited into a good book, a struggle between the voice of the..." Read more

"...The language is poetic and evocative, playful, and artistic. It's a quick and enjoyable read -- I wish it was longer and I'd read three more volumes..." Read more

"Rickie Lee Jones' biography is an entertaining and thoughtful look at Jones' life and art...." Read more

"...It's haunting and engaging, insightful and sensitive...." Read more

38 customers mention "Story quality"38 positive0 negative

Customers find the book's story engaging and insightful, with honest tales that are full of soulful magic, and one customer mentions it opened up many memories.

"...it's almost a perfect metaphor for her childhoo. She is an Artist Whose life and work continue to unfold." Read more

"...The language is poetic and evocative, playful, and artistic...." Read more

"...And her story itself is so riveting, I could not put the book down - I read it in two sittings...." Read more

"...It’s my favorite story in the book...." Read more

32 customers mention "Writing style"30 positive2 negative

Customers praise the writing style of the book, noting its poetic language and describing the author as a true poet.

"...pulling back, it seems to almost have been a great book, edited into a good book, a struggle between the voice of the writer and the will of the..." Read more

"...it to anyone who's interested in any of the things she writes so beautifully and honestly about: Family (love and disfunction, tragedy and kindness)..." Read more

"...that someone who writes songs brilliantly and speaks brilliantly would write a brilliant memoir -- one of the best I've read...." Read more

"...Lee not only has a one-of-a-kind singing voice, her writing voice is also very unique, with an unusual style that is very appealing...." Read more

22 customers mention "Artist's talent"22 positive0 negative

Customers admire the artist's songwriting talents and consider her one of the greatest songwriters of our time.

"...included it in her list for most important books of 2021, NPR did a very nice piece...." Read more

"...It's personal and heartfelt, and she has a mature and insightful, even spiritual perspective on what she's been through...." Read more

"...I have ever read - Rickie Lee not only has a one-of-a-kind singing voice, her writing voice is also very unique, with an unusual style that is very..." Read more

"...She is so brilliant and her story telling is so like her song writing - her unique use of language paints a vivid picture of the brutality of life,..." Read more

22 customers mention "Insight"22 positive0 negative

Customers find the book insightful, appreciating its candor and honest viewpoint, with one customer noting how it presents both good and bad aspects of life.

"...and heartfelt, and she has a mature and insightful, even spiritual perspective on what she's been through...." Read more

"...It's haunting and engaging, insightful and sensitive...." Read more

"...She does not hold back, and presents everything good and bad, both with candor and elegance ...." Read more

"...blended with a loving, innocent, forgiving, determined, brave and accepting spirit...." Read more

22 customers mention "Music quality"22 positive0 negative

Customers love the music in the book, describing it as beautiful and heartfelt, with one noting how it reads like a RLJ song.

"...in songwriting, the details of how the lyrics and music came together are very revealing...." Read more

"...stones in an intriguing life told by a hugely talented and unique singer and song writer. Yes, read it." Read more

"...writing voice is also very unique, with an unusual style that is very appealing...." Read more

"...of language paints a vivid picture of the brutality of life, blended with a loving, innocent, forgiving, determined, brave and accepting spirit...." Read more

22 customers mention "Narrative style"22 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the narrative style of the book, describing it as an amazing autobiography with authentic storytelling that matches her songwriting.

"...She remains respected by the greatest writers of her time, one of the few woman included in the heady lists of American writers of the past rock n..." Read more

"This is one of the best autobiographies I have ever read - Rickie Lee not only has a one-of-a-kind singing voice, her writing voice is also very..." Read more

"...She is so brilliant and her story telling is so like her song writing - her unique use of language paints a vivid picture of the brutality of life,..." Read more

"...No Rickie Lee Jones collection is complete without this amazing autobiography." Read more

12 customers mention "Art direction"12 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the art direction of the book, describing it as beautiful, with one customer noting its good photos.

"...Good photos, nice chapter organization. the stories are amazing, good writing here...." Read more

"This is a stunning, beautiful book. I finished it five weeks ago and think about it every day...." Read more

"Rickie Lee Jones' biography is an entertaining and thoughtful look at Jones' life and art...." Read more

"...hold back, and presents everything good and bad, both with candor and elegance ...." Read more

As beautiful as her music
5 out of 5 stars
As beautiful as her music
Previous reviews are so well written. I am not a writer. I am here as someone who has been touched deeply by Rickie Lee’s music. There was no way I was not going to read this book. I’m only halfway through, but I can say definitively this book grabs my soul like any/all of her music. I’ve been lucky enough to meet her twice and each time I felt so completely at ease. What a beautiful soul. Reading this book, well.. there are no words. It is an amazing experience. What a gift. Thank you, Rickie! ❤️
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on April 6, 2021
    "Last Chance Texaco, Chronicles of an American Troubadour" or in Britian, just 'Chronicles of a Troubadour' is named after her Grammy-nominated song 'The Last Chance Texaco" and it definatly should have been on the best seller lists of 2021-22. Unfortunate that it was released during Covid, so there were no live appearances in book stores or tie ins to tv shows, etc. none of the support it might have gotten even though Grove is relatively small and does not promote books with much vigor. I kept looking for it at the airport. Never the less, here it is on Amazon with lots of 5 star reviews. Mojo, the British music music magazine, named her book 'Best of the year, ' Oprah included it in her list for most important books of 2021, NPR did a very nice piece. It was a unique and engaging story of an impossibly cinematic and ridiculously dangerous life.
    As long as Rickie Lee Jones is discovered by new people and her legend is made from her own hand and no one elses, I think history will be kind to this artist. Her performances remain, like her writing, funny, smart, heart-rendering. She remains respected by the greatest writers of her time, one of the few woman included in the heady lists of American writers of the past rock n roll century, including Randy Newman, Bruce Springsteen, Becker and Fagen, John Prine, Laura Nyro. Rickie Lee Jones was the last of the singer songwriters, and yet .. ten years after... is not really part of that group at all. She is singular, the first and only one of her genre. Her impact has never really been documented, the odd and ridiculous documentary here or there... But the actors and songwriters of today tell the story. in their style, timbre, clothes, confidence. RLJ gave confidence to the younbg outsiders who were neither punk nor... disco nor... From Melissa Ethridge to Sheryl Crowe, Jamie Lee Curtis and Mary Louise Parker, even Whoopi Goldberg - have their come to jesus moments with Pirates and 'Rickie lee Jones'. The Prince women, those were Rickie Lee Jones outfits - but frew would know that today. the lace and leather. Old emblems of sexuality and new emblems of innocence, that was her device. Even Erykah Badu, backstage at the Long Beach jazz festival was heard whispering "I named myself after your song...." We are all teenagers once and those women and men who impact us should never be set aside. Perhaps... Neil Young and Rickie Lee Jones are the .. kind of...underground tunnels we pass through on our way to our own ideas.

    Good photos, nice chapter organization. the stories are amazing, good writing here. And though they are often abbreviated, almost prose and then pulling back, it seems to almost have been a great book, edited into a good book, a struggle between the voice of the writer and the will of the editor to make it a readable adventure for the largest denominator. The photograph on the back of the outside has a tiny fairy in it. Do you see her? down by the back tire... odd, you miss the child in the photograph. it's almost a perfect metaphor for her childhoo.

    She is an Artist Whose life and work continue to unfold.
    104 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on June 2, 2021
    This is a stunning, beautiful book. I finished it five weeks ago and think about it every day. Fans of Rickie Lee Jones' music will already be reading this, but I want to recommend it to anyone who's interested in any of the things she writes so beautifully and honestly about: Family (love and disfunction, tragedy and kindness); growing up in the 60s, in Phoenix and the desert; a closely-remembered childhood; the lure of California and the partially-unfulfilled promises to the next generation who came of age just as the 60s wave was cresting; and the way the music of that time moved the next generation. Running away at 14, hitchhiking, drugs, danger, close calls and escapes, interesting characters, and strange coincidences that seem magical. And finally and somewhat miraculously, finding a voice as a singer and songwriter; day jobs, hard times, and hard work; and then, sudden, huge fame and recognition, and the aftermath of that. She shares a lot about the songwriting process, the music business (especially in her early career), and the effects of rising and falling fame on her and the people around her. The language is poetic and evocative, playful, and artistic. It's a quick and enjoyable read -- I wish it was longer and I'd read three more volumes of this if she wrote them. Her appreciations of the music that inspired her are very eloquent, detailed, and moving and help in understanding her own music. And if you like her songs, or are just interested in songwriting, the details of how the lyrics and music came together are very revealing. This is not an egotistical book -- she knows what she did, but it never comes off as bragging. There's insight into her experiences with and feelings about Tom Waits, Lowell George, Dr. John, and others, but it's not celebrity gossip. It's personal and heartfelt, and she has a mature and insightful, even spiritual perspective on what she's been through. I love almost all music memoirs and autobiographies, and reading them is a fun part of my job (I teach jazz history, among other things), but this one is different from any other and very highly recommended.
    11 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2022
    Rickie Lee Jones' biography is an entertaining and thoughtful look at Jones' life and art. She knows how to tell a good story but I'm disappointed, however, with the photos in the Kindle version of the book. This is the same problem with all Kindle books: the photos are always tiny and not zoomable. Amazon, please fix this issue!
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2021
    Stands to reason that someone who writes songs brilliantly and speaks brilliantly would write a brilliant memoir -- one of the best I've read. I'm a long-time fan of Rickie Lee Jones's music but this is so much more than just a timeline of the artist's life. It's an authentic series of stories about family, people she encountered, and how she made her way through a multitude of difficult experiences and just kept moving forward. She survived a lot but doesn't blame anyone for anything. She just takes us along on the journey through her chaotic childhood, her search as a young adult for identy and place, and her early days breaking into the music industry. It's haunting and engaging, insightful and sensitive. That she clearly lost the love of her life due to a short-lived drug addiction is not focused on. It's just one of the stepping stones in an intriguing life told by a hugely talented and unique singer and song writer. Yes, read it.
    4 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • C. G
    5.0 out of 5 stars Tolles Buch!
    Reviewed in Germany on January 21, 2023
    Spannend, lebendig, echt
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant story.
    Reviewed in Canada on November 30, 2021
    This is one of the best musician autobiographies I've read. Her memories are vivid and described poetically, effortlessly blending and mixing metaphors. Usually, I skip through the childhood memories to get to the meat of the story, but Ricki's childhood IS the story here. You're two-thirds through the book before she's making music professionally, and usually, this would bore me to tears, but she had one of the most colorful upbringings ever.

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