The History of Bones

A Memoir

By: John Lurie

Narrated by: John Lurie

The quintessential depiction of 1980s New York and the downtown scene from the artist, actor, musician, and composer John Lurie

“A picaresque roller coaster of a story, with staggering amounts of sex and drugs and the perpetual quest to retain some kind of artistic integrity.”—The New York Times

In the tornado that was downtown New York in the 1980s, John Lurie stood at the vortex. After founding the band The Lounge Lizards with his brother, Evan, in 1979, Lurie quickly became a centrifugal figure in the world of outsider artists, cutting-edge filmmakers, and cultural rebels. Now Lurie vibrantly brings to life the whole wash of 1980s New York as he developed his artistic soul over the course of the decade and came into orbit with all the prominent artists of that time and place, including Andy Warhol, Debbie Harry, Boris Policeband, and, especially, Jean-Michel Basquiat, the enigmatic prodigy who spent a year sleeping on the floor of Lurie’s East Third Street apartment.

It may feel like Disney World now, but in The History of Bones, the East Village, through Lurie’s clear-eyed reminiscence, comes to teeming, gritty life. The book is full of grime and frank humor—Lurie holds nothing back in this journey to one of the most significant moments in our cultural history, one whose reverberations are still strongly felt today.

History may repeat itself, but the way downtown New York happened in the 1980s will never happen again. Luckily, through this beautiful memoir, we all have a front-row seat.

Critic reviews

“A fantastic read . . . [John] Lurie is an ace storyteller with perfect pitch.”—Shelf Awareness




“There is a purity to John Lurie’s writing that feels almost spiritual—the stories unspool from him, seemingly effortlessly, with the fluidity of a great jazz player. Lurie has lived many lives—‘More than once I have witnessed the inexplicable,’ he tells us—and this book moves us through them all.”—Nick Flynn, author of Another Bullshit Night in Suck City

“No other human’s strange struggles and triumphs are like this. I was transfixed reading Lurie’s yearning to make sense of it all, slamming his fist through the precious veneer of the early eighties New York art/music scene. Yeeeooooow.”—Flea, author of Acid for the Children

“Look behind John Lurie’s adventure so far and see how it flows from epiphanies: their arrival, their loss, the very possibility of them. Epiphanies consign an artist to life as a hunter-mystic, in a world where the impeccable and the tawdry are equally sacred—a hell of a place, and it’s from here that Lurie’s candor throws us epiphanies to take away. This is not a book headed for bookshelves; it’s coming to crash on your couch.”—DBC Pierre, author of Vernon God Little, winner of the Booker Prize

“By turns comic, pissed off, and desolate, his raffish picaresque captures everything. . . . The result is an energetic, raucous reprise of an adventurously offbeat life.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Lurie proves to . . . be a wry, sly, furious, and vivid storyteller. His raucously frank, sardonic, sex-saturated, compulsively detailed, and hard-charging memoir is incandescent with illuminations of his musical mission, including his film scores, his friendship with Jean-Michel Basquiat, and his conflicts with Jim Jarmusch. . . . Lurie leaves readers wanting more.”—Booklist

John Lurie: The Fantastic Storyteller

When I bought this book, I first bought the hardcover copy. After reading a Chapter or two, I realized that as I read, I kept hearing John's voice in my mind. All I could think about was 'I have to see if he narrates the audiobook version, because I'd rather hear John with my ears than my mind. (Thank you, audible and John!) If you know of John, you know that he is a fantastic story-teller, a brilliant musician and artist, a talented actor, and has a deliciously ridiculous sense of humor. Once you start listening, you will not be able to stop.

Amazing stream of consciousness from a guy who embodies art

This was such a great collection of stories from a fascinating life, told in the way only John Lurie could tell them. I absolutely loved it. I’m feeling a little lost now, actually. What will I do without my evening stories from John?

Accurate history with poetic justice

Absolutely perfect. This should be required reading for all boomers & freshman alike. Fun, historic & full of heart.

Gritty and ridiculous but amusing

It was fun to listen to John Lurie get all the lurid details of his experiences as a musician in
New York. Some of the stories were so embarrassing they must have been true.

Behind the scenes of an artist's life

That John reads it makes it so much better. The book feels like what it is, a first hand account of the insides of the art world, meaning movies and music. He also gives us a lot about his life. I really enjoyed this one and didn't want it to end.

Riveting…Brilliant…

What a gift, that Laurie himself narrated this mesmerizing account…
I discovered him only recently through “Painting with John” (equally riveting) and am basically following him backwards… This recording is so good, I bought a hard copy as well… lately, when I paint, l listen to his music…. Frankly, I’m a little amazed (and envious) of this fellow’s ability to weave through drugs, chaos, betrayal, Lyme and various other afflictions and STILL make great ART….
Bless you John Lurie, you are an inspiration and a gift…

John Lurie Reading

It was so nice to hear John Lurie reading his new memoir. I didn’t know about any of his life besides the music of the Lounge Lizards and the paintings he has been doing since. One thing that stuck me was the way other people blamed him as being difficult, whereas it was “always” the promoters, producers, record company executives that were obviously trying to short change him. It kind of makes one feel kind of paranoid after awhile hearing that this happens so much, and it makes one wonder whether one is a difficult person. It takes time to figure out that the world is full of people that want to take advantage of successful people for their own feelings of self-worth.

I look forward to reading Part 2 of John’s memoir to hear how he has fared with his life post-Lounge Lizards.

It is quite an entertaining memoir. Highly recommended!

Perfect, earnest; a gift of involuntary belly laughs.

I have been fascinated by Mr. Lurie since listening to his episode of WTF with Marc Maron several years ago. Everything I learned about him through the regular media channels was either misconstrued or purposely misleading. He’s written one of the most beautifully human, and earnest Memoirs I have read, my favorites being Anthony Bourdain’s, Nick Nolte, and Norm Macdonald. A writer reading their own work is so important it can’t be overstated. He’s a great narrator. If you’re at all interested in real human beings; you’ll enjoy this memoir immensely.

Amazing Memoir Full of Life and Character

Lurie is an intriguing character. Loved every chapter of this memoir; cannot imagine it being narrated by anyone but the man, himself.

A deep dive into downtown nyc in the 80s & 90s

I didn’t know much about him other than his art. I discovered that he is so articulate about the pitfalls of artistic success and fame. Really made me care for him .