Spinner

Runaways' Cherie Currie Tells All in New Version of 'Neon Angel' Memoir

Cherie CurrieMany rock stars have had the opportunity to write their autobiographies and tell their stories the way they want to. Unlike most of them, Runaways singer Cherie Currie got to do it twice. In her new autobiography, 'Neon Angel: A Memoir of a Runaway,' Currie recounts her life before, during and after the Runaways and actually reveals details she skipped over in her first book, 'Neon Angel: The Cherie Currie Story,' which she released in 1989.

Now, Currie tells all from the day her mother left and moved to Indonesia to being raped by her sister's boyfriend. Although both books talk about Currie's life, she refused to read the '89 version until 2000, when she realized it needed a revamp.

"It's not an easy thing to do and it brings back all these yucky memories," Currie tells Spinner. "But I read the book. I don't know why. I just thought, 'You know what? That was a Young Adult book. I've got to rewrite it and tell the stories I couldn't tell in that young adult book.'"

Another addition readers will find in the new memoir is a foreword by Currie's ex-bandmate and friend, Joan Jett, who shares her feelings about Currie's 1977 departure from the group. While Jett admitted she "was so pissed" and "very angry and hurt for several years after" the lead singer left the band, Currie reveals that she was unaware that Jett was upset. "I had no idea she was pissed off," Currie says. "I thought she wanted me out of the band. I thought all of them wanted me gone, so that was an easy decision for me. I thought, 'I'm going to give you guys what you want. I'm gone.'"

Although Currie also admits she thought she was better than the band at the time, she felt that the rigorous touring mixed with the fact they were so young just took a toll on them.

"We were constantly insecure with the way Kim [Fowley] would be verbally abusing us at every turn and making us feel like we were dogs---," she says. "We were called every name in the book. I just wished we could have taken a break for a couple of months because we never had a break. But the schedule was grueling, and we just lost communication. We were on this fast speeding train and we weren't even able to take time and connect what we were feeling at any point."

While leaving the Runaways was the best thing for Currie at the time, she was also so sad about it that she couldn't bear to listen the band's music for a long time. "It broke my heart," she says. "I couldn't even listen to another Runaways record. I never listened to the record after I left. It was horrible. But it happened the way it happened."

After years of not speaking, Currie and Jett finally reunited. With the rewriting of 'Neon Angel' and the making of 'The Runaways' film, Currie is happier reconnecting with Jett but she still misses another of her Runaways bandmates. "The one thing I'll miss is Sandy West," she says of the band's original drummer, who died of cancer in 2006. "We'll never have it back to that sisterhood, but Sandy's gone. I'm so glad I've got Joan back in my life but we miss Sandy desperately."

With 'The Runways' playing nationwide and her new book out in stores, Currie isn't doing too badly. Aside from all the promotion, she is also a well-renowned chainsaw wood carver, something she's been doing for eight years now. She even made actress Dakota Fanning a custom-made piece for 'The Runaways' star's 16th birthday. However, don't think that Currie has turned her back on music -- she plans to play a bunch of shows this summer along with her son, Jake. "My son loves it," she says. "He's a fantastic musician, and he's actually going to be performing with me and my band."

Currie's book, 'Neon Angel: A Memoir of a Runaway' is available now and 'The Runaways' is currently in theaters nationwide.

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Lulu

@MrDay:

I *think* I figured out who the teen idol was.....Rick Springfield. He lived in Hollywood at that time, was in a long-ish relationship with Linda Blair previous to meeting Cherie and he had some hits in the 70's. Plus he's the only one who would have had an accent as he is from Australia. I could be wrong but it makes perfect sense to me.

February 16 2011 at 1:50 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Andy Jett

I am the next Cheri Curri, i do sing, and strut my ass in a courset, and i look dam fine too.

December 27 2010 at 9:00 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
MrDay

Does anybody know who the male teen idol is in chapter 10? Sounds like a real creep, but I bet it's somebody we all know and that's why Cherie never named him. I'm just curious.

April 24 2010 at 8:07 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Cait

i just finished reading this book. it was amazing. i've never experienced the things Cherie writes about, but man did i feel it. i really felt for her. this is an incredible book, and i would definitely reccomend giving it a read. i wasn't born yet when The Runaways were around, but i learned about them through my dad and the movie. i'm a fan now, that's for sure.

April 20 2010 at 10:41 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Gail

Must Read Book: Neon Angel, A Memoir of a Runaway By Cherie Currie
http://www.worleygig.com/2010/04/must-read-book-neon-angel-a-memoir-of-a-runaway-by-cherie-currie/

April 11 2010 at 1:49 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
MIKE ZVIRBLIS

ROCK FANS MADE FUN OF THE RUNAWAYS, NOW TODAYS BANDS COULDNT EVEN TOUCH THEIR "MUSICIANSHIP"!

April 10 2010 at 1:55 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
jtmontclair

Lita Ford? You must be kidding. Forget the VH1 image machine, and listen to some decent rock music instead of garbage wannabe heavy metal.

April 10 2010 at 1:42 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
SAUL

she too old to be on stage, she looks like my grandmother.

April 10 2010 at 12:24 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to SAUL's comment
Inja

Dingo; its funny how easy it is to make remarks like "Granny" at your apparent young age. But don't worry, one day, before you know it, you are going to wake up, find out you are 50 or 60 years old, but feel exactly the same way inside as you did when you were 20. The only thing that really changes is that you age on the outside and, hopefully, get a little bit smarter by the time you reach 60. Rock and Roll was started by all those people that are in that age group now. If it hadn't been for them, who knows what music would be like now? These people, women, were INNOVATORS, look the word up if you don't know what it means.

April 10 2010 at 1:23 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
ohyeah

I enjoy their music but did not get to live through their live concerts or their lives. Through you who have posted, I do. I will read her book and keep on posting people. You'll get those of us who did not get to see it live, want it live. Rock on and thanks.

April 10 2010 at 12:23 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Rod

How come Lita Fords participation has been minimized in all this?

April 10 2010 at 11:51 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
3 replies to Rod's comment