Fear and Loathing at Rolling Stone

The Essential Writing of Hunter S. Thompson

By: Hunter S. Thompson

Narrated by: Phil Gigante

Length: 17 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

“Buy the ticket, take the ride,” was a favorite slogan of Hunter S. Thompson, and it pretty much defined both his work and his life. Fear and Loathing at Rolling Stone showcases the roller-coaster of a career at the magazine that was his literary home.Jann S. Wenner, the outlaw journalist’s friend and editor for nearly thirty-five years, has assembled articles that begin with Thompson’s infamous run for sheriff of Aspen on the Freak Party ticket in 1970 and end with his final piece on the Bush-Kerry showdown of 2004. In between is Thompson’s remarkable coverage of the 1972 presidential campaign — a miracle of journalism under pressure — and plenty of attention paid to Richard Nixon, his bête noire; encounters with Muhammad Ali, Bill Clinton, and the Super Bowl; and a lengthy excerpt from his acknowledged masterpiece, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

Woven throughout is selected correspondence between Wenner and Thompson, most of it never before published. It traces the evolution of a personal and professional relationship that helped redefine modern American journalism, and also presents Thompson through a new prism as he pursued his lifelong obsession: The life and death of the American Dream.

©2011 Hunter S. Thompson (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

This is a hell of a trip

Phil Gigante. Some narrators will do a good job - get you through the book easily enough. Gigante is an artist is the best sense of the word. It's like floating in Venice with a gondolier who can tell you the history, interesting and salacious stories and maybe that nugget of wisdom you needed.

I pop the speed up to 1.25x. it really makes it flow.

Yea for the new narrator.

Finally, someone that comes close to style of Hunter's rhythm and pitch and tone. Scott Sowers is an awful narrator of Thompson's work, but Phil Gigante comes as close to perfect as anyone we are likely to hear. The first two hours of the book are great. The letters between Jann Wenner and Hunter are pieced together wonderfully and make you feel as though you were standing over the shoulder of Hunter as the days wore on and he banged them out on his godforsaken type writer.
The book, however, takes a bit of a dip once it gets into the articles. Most of them are the same articles that run in other published works from hunter over his last years.
However, if you've never read any other recently published Hunter books, then you will find these articles to be very interesting-- which, by the way, they still are even hearing them for about the three time.

Overall, I rate it a 4... 5 for the Phil Gigante (PLEASE REDO HIS OTHER BOOKS ON HERE) I've read Fear and Loathing in Vegas three or four times over the past eight years and consider it in my top three favorite books of all time and would love to own a copy of you reading it.

The Real HST is in This Book

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

If you like Hunter Thompson, then you will like this book. It's made up of his letters and stories, which give a very personal perspective into a lot of his most famous works.

What did you like best about this story?

There's so much crazy random stuff going on with HST, this story gives me bits of those experiences.

Which scene was your favorite?

Probably one of my favorites was the "Fear and Loathing in Elko" part, lol....
I really enjoyed the whole thing!

If you could give Fear and Loathing at Rolling Stone a new subtitle, what would it be?

The Life and Times of a Rolling Stone: Hunter S Thompson

Any additional comments?

Once again, if you're a fan of HST, you'll most likely like this book!!

Ron Mclarty is the best

He should be the only person allowed to narrate a Hunter S. Thompson book. Thompson is an amazing writer, and Ron is able to capture his essence. It made the book so much more enjoyable.

a visit from the doctor.

when i started this book the only other of Dr. Thompsons works ive read was the copy of "Fear and loathing in Las Vegas." i stole from my college library my freshman year. the verry same copy with the picture of oscar on the dust cover which explains him as the inspiration for Dr. Gonzo. and much like that work of literature this book has changed me. (and was delighted to have a piece of gonzo history) the performance and directing were amazing and it truly captured what i am learning to be hunters style. laughs, shock, confusion. my eyes are opened and i will be looking into more of hunters works. but the ticket, take the ride.

Loved it, can not say too much in nice public.

Love Hunter. The narrator spoke in Hunter's rapid fire bursts. The swearing took me back to the past when we could throw vulgar phrases like candy. You need to have lived through the 1960's and 1970's to enjoy the Nixon and McGovern stuff. Miss Hunter's sarcastic wit. He would have quite a time laying into Donald Trump.

Amazing!

Want to know why Hunter S. Thompson is revered as one of the great writers of the 20th century? Just listen to this book. And Phil Gigante's reading is flawless—in fact, brilliant. This book is hilarious and ingenious. It's so clever that it will actually give you insights into your own mind. In a word, amazing.

Gonzo will never die

Being a long time fan of Hunter's larger than life writing style I was hopeful that this Audible version would be as good. Well played! Gonza came through loud & clear. Many laugh out loud moments were enjoyed.

Great Journey Through The Past

If you were a subscriber to RS, this will rekindle memories of The Doctor at the top of his game. His uncanny perceptions of America’s decline into mediocrity are as relevant today as they were 40+ years ago. His never completed book on “The Death of the American Dream” seems to have finally reached fruition. I’m glad that he didn’t live to see this sad state of our national political system’s distinction . It would have killed him. He felt it coming. I doubt that he ever imagined that it would be this insane. Rest In Peace HST. You were a true patriot!

Buy the ticket...this is a great compilation.

Being someone that has read a lot of Hunter S. Thompson's work, I was a little skeptical about this compilation. But it's very well done...as the preface states, Rolling Stone attempted to create a narrative out of his various writings done for their magazine and they succeeded in a big way.

It essentially cronicles Hunter's time at Rolling Stone magazine starting in 1970. His personal correspondence with Rolling Stone's editoral staff (mostly unpublished until now) is included, as well as his account of the "Freak Power" local political movement that attempted to prevent Aspen, Colorado from becoming the high-brow Yuppie haven that it is today; "Strange Rumblings in Azltan" about the LAPD violence aganist Chicanos; the hilarious District Attorney's conference of his famous "Las Vegas" book; a sizeable chunk of "Fear and Loathing on the Campaign trail, 72'"...still an extremely relevant work. A ton of his "Politics from the Sports Desk" Rolling Stone features show up in this audiobook as well.

The narrator, Phil Gigante, does a good impression of Thompson as well when reading from Hunter's perspective.

It's a great listen, definately worth the credits. Now, what audible really needs is some more Hunter S, works...."Hell's Angels", the entire "Campaign Trail, 72'" and "The Curse of Lono" would be awesome I would listen to all of them.