Legs McNeil, a longtime chronicler of punk rock history, has released a memoir offering an insider’s perspective on the 1970s New York punk scene. Titled *Resident Punk: How I Smoke, Drank and Stumbled My Way Through the ’70s Punk Scene (and Beyond)*, the book was published last week and features contributions from co-author Crispin Kott and a foreword by Blondie guitarist Chris Stein.

McNeil, 70, is widely recognized for his role in documenting the emergence of punk music and culture, notably through his co-founding of *Punk* magazine and his co-authorship of the 1996 oral history, *Please Kill Me*. In his new memoir, he revisits pivotal moments from his own life and the broader punk movement, sharing stories involving seminal figures such as the Ramones, Patti Smith, Richard Hell, and Andy Warhol.

The memoir is structured as a series of vignettes, capturing snapshots from various periods of McNeil’s life rather than a comprehensive chronological narrative. This approach was partially shaped by publishing constraints, which limited the book’s length to 80,000 words, necessitating the condensation of an originally longer manuscript.

McNeil reflects on his early days leaving his Connecticut suburban background behind to immerse himself in New York City’s vibrant yet often chaotic punk environment. He describes venues like the Mudd Club as key hubs of creative freedom, comparable in importance to the more widely recognized CBGB’s. McNeil credits his experiences at these venues for shaping his perspective and writings, noting the sense of openness and irreverence that characterized the scene.

The memoir also sheds light on McNeil’s relationship with fellow *Punk* co-founder John Holmstrom, describing Holmstrom as a brilliant and contrarian figure from whom he learned narrative structure and storytelling. Despite their early collaboration, McNeil notes that the two no longer maintain contact.

In discussing his role as a punk journalist, McNeil emphasizes the importance of immersing readers in the experience, aiming to make them feel present in the moment. He considers himself more of a participant and observer than a distant chronicler, often relying on memory and personal reflections to reconstruct the era. He candidly acknowledges that revisiting this period was sometimes difficult, given the intensity of his past experiences, which included run-ins with the law and struggles with substance use.

When asked about the contemporary commemoration of punk through museums and anniversaries, McNeil expresses little interest, stating he has moved on to other historical inquiries beyond punk.

*Resident Punk* serves as both a personal account and a document of punk’s origins, offering readers a raw and unfiltered glimpse into a formative cultural movement through the lens of one of its key storytellers.