Pamela Des Barres (; born Pamela Ann Miller; September 9, 1948) is an American

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

groupie The term groupie is a slang word that refers to a fan of a particular musical group who follows the band around while they are on tour or who attends as many of their public appearances as possible, with the hope of meeting them. The term is usu ...

, writer, musician, and actress. She is best known for her 1987 memoir, '' I'm with the Band: Confessions of a Groupie'', which details her experiences in the Los Angeles rock music scene of the 1960s and 1970s. She is also a former member of the experimental

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...

-produced music group

the GTOs ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

Early life

Des Barres' parents were from

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. Just before she was born, her father moved the family to the Los Angeles,

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

area, where Des Barres resides to this day."I'm With the Band", Pamela DesBarres Her mother was a homemaker and her father worked for

Anheuser-Busch Anheuser-Busch Companies, LLC is an American brewing company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Since 2008, it has been wholly owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (AB InBev), now the world's largest brewing company, which owns multiple glo ...

and occasionally as a gold miner. Des Barres idolized

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

and

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

as a child, and fantasized about meeting and dating her favorite Beatle,

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

.Nobody did it better...
, BBC Later, upon discovering the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...

, she daydreamed of

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

Rock music groupie

A high school acquaintance,

Victor Hayden Victor Hayden (August 16, 1948 – December 7, 2018), also known by his stage name The Mascara Snake, was an American painter and musician. Biography Hayden was a cousin of Don Van Vliet, better known as Captain Beefheart. Hayden joined Beefhear ...

, introduced Des Barres to his cousin Don Van Vliet, better known as

Captain Beefheart Don Van Vliet (; born Don Glen Vliet; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist best known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. Conducting a rotating ensemble known as Th ...

, a musician and friend of

. Van Vliet, in turn, introduced her to

Charlie Watts Charles Robert Watts (2 June 1941 – 24 August 2021) was an English musician who achieved international fame as the drummer of the Rolling Stones from 1963 until his death in 2021. Originally trained as a graphic artist, Watts developed an i ...

and

Bill Wyman William George Wyman (né Perks; born 24 October 1936) is an English musician who achieved international fame as the bassist for the Rolling Stones from 1962 until 1993. In 1989, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member ...

of the

, which drew her to the rock music scene on the

Sunset Strip The Sunset Strip is the stretch of Sunset Boulevard that passes through the city of West Hollywood, California. It extends from West Hollywood's eastern border with the city of Los Angeles near Marmont Lane to its western border with Beverly H ...

in Los Angeles. She started to spend her time with

the Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...

and other bands, and when she graduated from high school in 1966, she took various jobs that would allow her to live near the Sunset Strip and take part in the rock music scene. She famously went on to form friendships with many of the great musical artists of that era, and became romantically linked with various notable artists such as

Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the rock band Led Zeppelin. Page is prolific in creating guitar riffs. His style involves various alternative ...

Keith Moon Keith John Moon (23 August 19467 September 1978) was an English drummer for the rock band the Who. He was noted for his unique style of playing and his eccentric, often self-destructive behaviour and addiction to drugs and alcohol. Moon grew ...

,Harris, Sarah (2007)
Pamela Des Barres: Her latest book celebrates the outrageous, unsung exploits of her fellow 'band-aids'
",

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

, 23 September 2007

Nick St. Nicholas Nick St. Nicholas (born Klaus Karl Kassbaum on September 28, 1943) is a German bandleader, bass guitarist, singer and songwriter; best known for his partnership in Steppenwolf. Early life He was born in Plön, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany ...

Noel Redding David Noel Redding (25 December 1945 – 11 May 2003) was an English rock musician, best known as the bass player for the Jimi Hendrix Experience and guitarist/singer for Fat Mattress. Following his departure from the Experience in 1969 a ...

Jim Morrison James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 – July 3, 1971) was an American singer, poet and songwriter who was the lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Doors. Due to his wild personality, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, unpredicta ...

Chris Hillman Christopher Hillman (born December 4, 1944) is an American musician. He was the original bassist of and one of the original members of the Byrds, which in 1965 included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby and Michael Clarke. With frequent ...

Gram Parsons Ingram Cecil Connor III (November 5, 1946 – September 19, 1973) who was known professionally as Gram Parsons, was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist who recorded as a solo artist and with the International Submarine Band, ...

Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...

Brandon deWilde Andre Brandon deWilde (April 9, 1942 – July 6, 1972) was an American theater, film, and television actor. Born into a theatrical family in Brooklyn, he debuted on Broadway at the age of seven and became a national phenomenon by the time he com ...

Michael Richards Michael Anthony Richards (born July 24, 1949) is an American actor, writer, television producer, and comedian best known for playing Cosmo Kramer on the television sitcom '' Seinfeld''. He began his career as a stand-up comedian, first enterin ...

Woody Allen Heywood "Woody" Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American film director, writer, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades and multiple Academy Award-winning films. He began his career writing ...

and

Don Johnson Donnie Wayne Johnson (born December 15, 1949) is an American actor, producer and singer. He played the role of James "Sonny" Crockett in the 1980s television series ''Miami Vice'', for which he won a Golden Globe, and received a Primetime Em ...

Music career

Des Barres was also a member of

, an all-girl music and performance art group sponsored by

. The GTOs had only one performance under that name along with

the Mothers of Invention The Mothers of Invention (also known as The Mothers) was an American rock band from California. Formed in 1964, their work is marked by the use of sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Originally an R&B band ...

Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...

Wild Man Fischer Lawrence Wayne "Wild Man" Fischer (November 6, 1944 – June 16, 2011) was an American street performer known for offering erratic, a cappella performances of "new kinds of songs" for a dime on the beaches and the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood. ...

and Easy Chair at the

Shrine Auditorium The Shrine Auditorium is a landmark large-event venue in Los Angeles, California. It is also the headquarters of the Al Malaikah Temple, a division of the Shriners. It was designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument (No. 139) in 1975, and ...

in the metropolitan area of Los Angeles, December 6–7, 1968. The entire concert lasted for six hours. The group dissolved just a month after the release of their first and only album, ''Permanent Damage'', due to some of its other members being arrested and detained for drug possession.

Acting career

During the 1970s, Des Barres pursued a career as an actress, appearing in movies (including Zappa's '' 200 Motels''), doing commercials, and playing a recurring role on the

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

Search for Tomorrow ''Search for Tomorrow'' is an American television soap opera. It began its run on CBS on September 3, 1951, and concluded on NBC, 35 years later, on December 26, 1986. Set in the fictional town of Henderson in an unspecified state, the show focu ...

'' throughout 1974. She continued to work as a nanny/babysitter for Zappa, who urged her to continue writing the diary she had begun in high school, in which she had faithfully recorded the important details of her life. When her acting career stalled, she continued to work for the Zappa family as a nanny for Zappa's children, Dweezil and

Moon Unit Moon Unit Zappa (born September 28, 1967) is an American actress, singer, and author. She is the daughter of musician Frank Zappa. Early life Moon Zappa was born in New York City, the eldest child of Gail (née Sloatman) and musician Frank Zap ...

Family life

On October 29, 1977, she married

Michael Des Barres Michael Philip Des Barres (born 24 January 1948), the 26th Marquis Des Barres, is an English actor and rock singer. He appeared as Murdoc in the original ''MacGyver'', Nicholas Helman, Murdoc's mentor, on the new reboot of ''MacGyver'' (2016) ...

, who had been lead singer first with

Silverhead Silverhead were a British glam rock band formed in early 1972, fronted by the singer/actor Michael Des Barres. The other members of the band were: Robbie Blunt (guitar), Rod Rook Davies (guitar, percussion, vocals), Nigel Harrison (bass guitar ...

(signed in 1972 to

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Ori ...

's record label

Purple Records Purple Records was a record label established in 1971 by Deep Purple's management. Their releases were distributed by EMI and now by Universal Music Group after the EMI acquisition. The label was run until 1979. Until 1974 the label was used f ...

) and later for

Detective A detective is an investigator, usually a member of a law enforcement agency. They often collect information to solve crimes by talking to witnesses and informants, collecting physical evidence, or searching records in databases. This leads th ...

(signed to Led Zeppelin's

Swan Song Records Swan Song Records was a record label launched by the English rock band Led Zeppelin on 10 May 1974. It was overseen by Led Zeppelin's manager Peter Grant and was a vehicle for the band to promote its own products as well as sign artists who f ...

label), and who, in 1985, was tour vocalist for

Power Station A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid. Many p ...

. They have a son, Nicholas Dean Des Barres ( ''GameFan'' magazine's Nick Rox). The couple divorced in the summer of 1991.

Memoirs and other endeavors

Des Barres wrote two memoirs about her experience as a groupie, '' I'm with the Band: Confessions of a Groupie'' (1987) and '' Take Another Little Piece of My Heart: A Groupie Grows Up'' (1993). It is widely believed that

Cameron Crowe Cameron Bruce Crowe (born July 13, 1957) is an American journalist, author, writer, producer, director, actor, lyricist, and playwright. Before moving into the film industry, Crowe was a contributing editor at ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, for wh ...

drew from these memoirs to create the groupie character Penny Lane for his film ''

Almost Famous ''Almost Famous'' is a 2000 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Cameron Crowe, and starring Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson, and Patrick Fugit. It tells the story of a teenage journalist writing for ''Rolling Stone ...

.'' Crowe has stated that the character was actually a composite of various girls he knew during his time as a teenage rock journalist, including one named Pennie Trumbull who went by Pennie Lane. The memoirs by Des Barres have another connection to the film: actress

Kate Hudson Kate Garry Hudson (born April 19, 1979) is an American actress and businesswoman. She has received numerous awards and nominations, including a Golden Globe Award, a Critics' Choice Movie Award and a Satellite Award, as well as nominations f ...

read them for inspiration as she portrayed Penny Lane. The March 1989 issue of ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

'' magazine featured Des Barres in a nude layout, published together with an article the author herself wrote for the magazine''.'' In the captions, she was quoted as saying, "I wanted to be in ''Playboy'' when I was younger, but my breasts did not precede me. But now I have semicelebrity tits, so they don't have to be as big." In addition to her memoirs, Des Barres has written three non-fiction books: ''Rock Bottom: Dark Moments in Music Babylon'' (1996); ''Let's Spend the Night Together: Backstage Secrets of Rock Muses and Supergroupies'' (2007); and ''Let It Bleed: How to Write a Rockin' Memoir'' (2017). An updated edition of ''I'm with the Band'' was released in 2005. Today, Pamela Des Barres continues to author books, contribute to others' works as an editor and consultant, and pen articles for online and print publications. She writes a regular column for Please Kill Me, in which she confessed that she once kissed murderer and former Manson Family member

Bobby Beausoleil Robert Kenneth Beausoleil (born November 6, 1947) is an American murderer and associate of Charles Manson and members of his communal Manson Family. He was convicted and sentenced to death for the July 27, 1969 fatal stabbing of Gary Hinman, w ...

Golden Gate Park Golden Gate Park, located in San Francisco, California, United States, is a large urban park consisting of of public grounds. It is administered by the San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department, which began in 1871 to oversee the development ...

during his pre-Manson days. In addition to her work as a writer, Des Barres also teaches creative writing classes in Los Angeles, as well as in several other cities throughout the U.S. and internationally. She affectionately refers to her writing class members as her "dolls".

Discography

*1969

The GTOs ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

- ''Permanent Damage'' ( Bizarre/

Straight Straight may refer to: Slang * Straight, slang for heterosexual ** Straight-acting, an LGBT person who does not exhibit the appearance or mannerisms of the gay stereotype * Straight, a member of the straight edge subculture Sport and games * Str ...

)

Bibliography

*1987 '' I'm with the Band: Confessions of a Groupie'' *1992 '' Take Another Little Piece of My Heart: A Groupie Grows Up'' *1996 ''Rock Bottom: Dark Moments in Music Babylon'' *2007 ''Let's Spend the Night Together: Backstage Secrets of Rock Muses and Supergroupies'' *2012 ''One Night Bands'' *2017 ''Let It Bleed: How to Write a Rockin' Memoir''

Filmography

*1971 '' 200 Motels'' *1973 ''

Slaughter's Big Rip-Off ''Slaughter's Big Rip-Off'' is a 1973 blaxploitation film directed by Gordon Douglas and written by Charles Eric Johnson. The film stars Jim Brown, Ed McMahon, Don Stroud, Brock Peters, Gloria Hendry and Dick Anthony Williams. The film was rel ...

'' *1974 '' Arizona Slim'' *1975 ''Kitty Can't Help It'' *1978 ''

Paradise Alley ''Paradise Alley'' is a 1978 American sports drama film written, directed by, and starring Sylvester Stallone (in his feature directorial debut). The film tells the story of three Italian American brothers in Hell's Kitchen in the 1940s who beco ...

'' *1978 ''Human Feelings'' *2003 ''

Mayor of the Sunset Strip ''Mayor of the Sunset Strip'' is a 2003 documentary film on the life of Rodney Bingenheimer directed by George Hickenlooper, and produced by Chris Carter. Background In 2011, Craig Hlavaty of the ''Houston Press'' named ''Mayor of the Sunset ...

'' *2015 ''Michael Des Barres: Who Do You Want Me to Be?''

Television

*1974-5 ''

'' *2011 ''

The Young and the Restless ''The Young and the Restless'' (often abbreviated as ''Y&R'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in fictional Genoa City (not the real-life similarly-named Genoa City, Wi ...

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Des Barres, Pamela Groupies 1948 births Living people Writers from Los Angeles People from Reseda, Los Angeles 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American women