Lemon Jail

A tour diary of life on the road with one of Minnesotas greatest bandswith nearly 100 never-before-seen photographs Dont bore us, get to the chorus is Bill Sullivans motto, which will come as no surprise to anyone who opens Lemon Jail. A raucous tour diary of rock n roll in the 1980s, Sullivans book puts us in the van with the Replacements in the early years. Barreling down the highway to the next show through quiet nights and hightailing it out of scandalized college towns, Sullivanthe young and reckless roadieis in the middle of the joy and chaos, trying to get the band on stage and the crowd off it and knowing when to jump in and cover Alice Cooper. Lemon Jail shows what its like to keep the band on the road and the wheels on the vanand when to just close your eyes and hit the gas. That first van, dubbed the Lemon Jail by Bill, takes the now legendary Replacements from a south Minneapolis basement to dive bars and iconic rock clubs to college parties and eventually an international stage. Its not a straight shot or a smooth ride, and theres never a dull moment, whether Bob Stinson is setting a record for the quickest ejection from CBGB in NYC or hiding White Castle sliders around a hotel room or whether Paul Westerberg is sneaking gear out of a hostile venue or saving Bills life at a brothel in New Jersey. With growing fame (and new vans) come tours with REM and X (what happens when the audience isnt allowed to stand?), Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and the Violent Femmes (against their will), and Saturday Night Live, where the bands televised antics earn the edict Youll never play on NBC again. Fast forward: Youll never play Washington, D.C., again. Or Moorhead. Hiding in fans backyards while the police search the streets and pelted with canned goods at a Kent State food drive, the Replacements hit rough patches along with sweet spots, and Lemon Jail reveals the grit and glory both onstage and off, all told in the irrepressible, full-throttle style that makes Bill Sullivan an irresistible guide on this once-in-a-lifetime road trip with a band on the make.