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List Price: $21.95 | | Publisher: Bartleby Press
Salesrank: 37737
Released: February 22, 2007 |
| Our Price: $14.13 |
| Used Price: $12.84 |
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| Media: Hardcover |
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Editorial Review:
With over ten million albums sold and multiple Grammy nominations, the hard rock band Godsmack has become one of the most successful groups of the last decade. The band's driving beats and searing lyrics have garnered widespread acclaim, while their well-known work ethic has earned the industry's respect. Fans who attend Godsmack concerts are sure to be rewarded with a fiercely energetic show. The force behind the band comes largely from founder and front man Sully Erna. Onstage, growling into the microphone with characteristic intensity, he appears perfectly at home, and it's no wonder. Erna has been immersed in the world of rock ever since he got his first drum set at the age of five. Given his achievements, that early start might suggest that his career was a straight shot to the top. The truth is, Erna took so many detours during the years between his first drums and Godsmack's first contract that, more than once, he nearly forgot his destination. In The Paths We Choose, he relates the turbulent story of his life before the platinum albums and packed arenas. "The Lawrence I remember was full of murderers, thieves, and rapists and half the time those people were your next-door neighbors," Erna writes of his childhood hometown in the gritty Boston suburbs. Although the danger of the streets was a constant reality, young Sully's world really revolved around music. From the day he convinced his mom to pay for drum lessons, "beating the skins" was all he ever wanted to do. As he grew older, Erna began devoting all his energy to one band after another. Life as a marginally-successful (and sometimes downright unsuccessful) musician was always unpredictable, and Sully's good times were equally matched by his frustrations. He learned that talent and passion were not enough; he also had to know who to trust. Beautiful blondes attracted Erna like a moth to an open flame, and his affairs with them were intense and often unstable. Outwardly hardened, yet privately vulnerable, he couldn't open up. This, combined with his high-adrenaline lifestyle, seemed bound to catch up with him and did. Here, Sully delves with surprising sensitivity into the emotional struggles that almost forced him to abandon his ambitions. Musical fame was never a given for Sully Erna. He could easily have continued to be "just another punk on the streets." The extraordinary success he now enjoys with Godsmack only came by an unlikely combination of talent, sweat, lucky breaks, and hard falls. Any one of the decisions he made along the way could have brought him to a dead end. But that just might be the whole point. Sully's story shows us that whatever hardship we may face, ultimately, our choices determine our destiny. He's made the most of every advantage and obstacle he has faced, and reminds us that we can, too. But for Sully, career success is not an ultimate destination. Every day brings a new fork in the road another path to choose.
The Paths We Choose Reviews:
Great book 
2009-07-04 - This book was a great read. I'm not an avid reader and I read this entire book in one sitting. I could not put it down, as a matter of fact I intend to read it again within the next few days.
Meh.... 
2009-04-21 - I was hoping for much more. I love Sully Erna and have for many years..I was just hoping for more....Great pics in the book though...
LOVE IT!!!!
2008-11-20 - Love this book. Read it 4 times already. More about his life not the aspects of fame, just everything leading up to it... the good and the bad.
Don't Miss This One !
2008-11-10 - Just as the title suggests Sully takes us back to his childhood, teenage and adult years ending with his mega succesful band Godsmack! He didn't have an idyllic childhood. This book shows what courage, motivation & dreams are made of. As the title "The Paths We Choose" suggests it is just that. Sully knew at an early age he wanted more...and was capable of acheiving his goals! It's all about the paths we choose in our lives. The negative and the positive.
This is an absolute must read!
Miss Dark
Great Read!
2008-10-07 - Big fan of GodSmack and all his work. What a great read to actually get to know the artist and his work. Wonderful book couldnt put it down.
