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Behind Sad Eyes: The Life of George Harrison
Marc Shapiro - 2002
From his hard knock childhood in Liverpool to his ascendance into rock infamy, George Harrison's life has been a torpid ride filled with legendary success and heart crushing defeat.New York Times bestselling author Marc Shapiro sheds new light on this paradoxical rocker, whose reputation for unusual religious practices and drug abuse often rivaled his musical notoriety.A man whose desire was to be free rather than be famous, Harrison's battle against conformity lead him to music making, a soulful and creative expression that would be his ticket to success and the bane of his existence. Behind Sad Eyes is the compelling account of a man who gave the Beatles their lyrical playing style and brought solace to a generation during turbulent times.
Alma Mahler: Or the Art of Being Loved
Françoise Giroud - 1987
She married three of them--the composer Gustav Mahler, the architect Walter Gropius, and the writer Franz Werfel--and had a host of admirers andlovers, including the painters Oscar Kokoschka, Egon Schiele, and Gustav Klimpt. The composer Alban Berg dedicated his opera Wozzeck to her and a violin concerto to the memory of her daughter, Manon, who died of polio. In Alma Mahler, Francoise Giroud provides a spirited portrait of one of Europe's great femme fatales, ranging from her childhood (she was raised on a steady diet of Nietzche) to her heyday as a leading figure in Europe's art scene, to her later life as an exile in California and New York. We meeta woman of remarkable beauty and unconventional mind, the possessor of a fine, demanding intelligence, who was highly conscious of herself as a member of the elite, a woman never truly conquered by her lovers. Her last husband, Franz Werfel, called her one of the very few sorceresses of our time.And indeed when she appeared, her presence attracted all eyes as she moved like a queen through a room. And what eyes she drew. Virtually all the great figures of 19th-century Vienna march through these pages, including Sigmund Freud, Richard Strauss, Arnold Schonberg, Hugo van Hofmannsthal, KarlKraus, and Elias Canetti, and Giroud pens striking portraits of each. There are also many memorable scenes: Franz Werfel singing Verdi arias with James Joyce in a Paris cafe; the young Gropius, having an affair with then-married Alma, chased from the Mahler home by guard dogs and taking refuge undera bridge; Kokoschka, after his affair with Alma has died, commissioning a life-sized doll, a faithful reproduction of his former lover. But the heart of the book is Alma's marriage to Mahler. We read Alma's own first impression of Mahler--He is terribly nervous. He paced around the room like a wildanimal. He's pure oxygen. You get burnt if you go too near. Unfortunately for Mahler, his attempt to subjugate his young wife to his will--you have only one profession from now on: to make me happy--led to disaster, and he himself was burnt. Alma Mahler stood at the center of the creative world, the intimate friend (if not lover) of the major artists of her age, and Giroud paints an unforgettable portrait. It was awarded France's Grand Prix litteraire de la femme in 1988.
Open Book : the life and death of Amy Winehouse
Andy Morris - 2011
Amy lived a rock-star lifestyle to the max, replacing an addiction to drugs with a battle against alcohol. When she died, aged 27, she joined a long list of musicians whose lives had been tragically cut short at the same age - the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain and Jim Morrison. She burst onto the scene with her debut album, "Frank," in 2003. But it was her follow-up, "Back To Black," in 2006 that won her millions of fans right around the world as she won five Grammy Awards for the album. Her chart success, though, would always be measured against a personal life full of trauma. She wrote "Back To Black" about Blake Fielder-Civil, who she married in 2007. But they spent little time together as a married couple as Blake was sent to prison. Theirs was a stormy romance, and despite divorcing they would remain in love with each other until she died. There were always plenty of other men in Amy's life, though. In the end she died alone in her bed. A bodyguard kept her protected from the outside world, but nobody could protect her from herself...
Waging Heavy Peace: A Hippie Dream
Neil Young - 2012
He tells of his childhood in Ontario, where his father instilled in him a love for the written word; his first brush with mortality when he contracted polio at the age of five; struggling to pay rent during his early days with the Squires; traveling the Canadian prairies in Mort, his 1948 Buick hearse; performing in a remote town as a polar bear prowled beneath the floorboards; leaving Canada on a whim in 1966 to pursue his musical dreams in the pot-filled boulevards and communal canyons of Los Angeles; the brief but influential life of Buffalo Springfield, which formed almost immediately after his arrival in California. He recounts their rapid rise to fame and ultimate break-up; going solo and overcoming his fear of singing alone; forming Crazy Horse and writing “Cinnamon Girl,” “Cowgirl in the Sand,” and “Down by the River” in one day while sick with the flu; joining Crosby, Stills & Nash, recording the landmark CSNY album, Déjà vu, and writing the song, “Ohio;” life at his secluded ranch in the redwoods of Northern California and the pot-filled jam sessions there; falling in love with his wife, Pegi, and the birth of his three children; and finally, finding the contemplative paradise of Hawaii. Astoundingly candid, witty, and as uncompromising and true as his music, Waging Heavy Peace is Neil Young’s journey as only he can tell it.
Cyndi Lauper: A Memoir
Cyndi Lauper - 2012
She worked her way up playing small gigs and broke out in 1983 with She’s So Unusual, which earned her a Grammy for Best New Artist and made her the first female artist in history to have four top-five singles on a debut album. And while global fame wasn’t always what she expected, she has remained focused on what matters most. Cyndi is a gutsy real-life heroine who has never been afraid to speak her mind and stick up for a cause—whether it’s women’s rights, gay rights, or fighting against HIV/AIDS.With her trademark warmth and humor, Cyndi fearlessly writes of a life she’s lived only on her own terms.
I'll Sleep When I'm Dead: The Dirty Life and Times of Warren Zevon
Crystal Zevon - 2007
As Warren once said, "I got to be Jim Morrison a lot longer than he did."I'll Sleep When I'm Dead is an intimate and unusual oral history of one of our most original and distinctive rock-and-roll antiheroes. Narrated by his former wife and longtime co-conspirator, Crystal Zevon, the book draws on over eighty interviews with the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Stephen King, Billy Bob Thornton, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, and countless others who came under his mischievous spell. The result is a raucous and moving tale of love and obsession, creative genius and epic bad behavior. Told in the words and images of the friends, lovers, and legends who knew him best, I'll Sleep When I'm Dead captures Warren Zevon in all his turbulent glory.
Ian Gillan: The Autobiography of Deep Purple's Lead Singer
Ian Gillan - 1993
This is the autobiography of their lead singer, Ian Gillan. Here he tells his life story, and that of the band he helped to make great. Stories of friction and violence, groupies and non-stop partying, drugs and alcohol, and how, finally, it all spiralled out of control to destroy the band.
Your Pretty Face Is Going to Hell: The Dangerous Glitter of David Bowie, Iggy Pop and Lou Reed
Dave Thompson - 2009
When Lou Reed and Iggy Pop first met David Bowie in the fall of 1971, Bowie was just another English musician passing through New York City. Lou was still recovering from the collapse of the Velvet Underground, and Iggy had already been branded a loser... Yet within two years they completely changed the face of popular music with a decadent glamour and street-level vibe. With Bowie producing, Reed's Transformer album was a worldwide hit, spinning off the sleazy street anthem Walk on the Wild Side. Iggy's Raw Power, mixed by Bowie, provided the mean-spirited, high-octane blueprint for Punk. Bowie boosted elements from both Iggy and Reed to create his gender-bending rock idol Ziggy Stardust. Your Pretty Face Is Going to Hell is the story of this friendship and the incredible productivity and debauchery that emerged from it. Presented here for the very first time are their stories interwoven in a triple helix of sexuality, glam rock, and drugs - as seen through the eyes of the people who made it happen.
Eva Cassidy: Songbird: Her Story by Those Who Knew Her
Rob Burley - 2001
Eva Cassidy's albums "Songbird, Live at Blues Alley, Eva By Heart, Time After Time," and "Imagine" have sold over a million and a half copies in the U.S. and millions more worldwide. Her songs have been heard on many television shows and film soundtracks, and the video of her classic performance of "Over the Rainbow" is the most requested in BBC history. Yet she lived to see only one of her solo albums released, a CD she underwrote herself and sold from the trunk of her car before her tragic death. Capturing Eva's essence and tender life story, "Eva Cassidy: Songbird" collects the intimate memories of relatives, close friends, and the musicians who collaborated with her. The book tells the story of her too-brief life and enduring music. Featuring candid full-color photos and reproductions of Eva's original artwork, a vivid portrait emerges of a woman who devoted her energies to the things she truly loved-giving encouragement to those around her, tending to plants at the nursery where she worked, and performing her music at clubs in Washington, D.C. She succumbed to cancer at age thirty-three just as the world was starting to notice her arresting voice. Eva Cassidy's music continues to grow in recognition from critics and legions of fans throughout the world. The rock icon Sting has said her voice possesses "a magical quality. People respond to its purity. It suggests something ethereal-something unattainable." This American edition contains two new chapters about her influences and her posthumous success in her native country. With the publication of "Eva Cassidy: Songbird," the woman behind the unforgettable voice will at last be known.
Eddie Trunk's Essential Hard Rock and Heavy Metal
Eddie Trunk - 2011
Eddie discusses his most essential bands, his unique personal experiences with them, his favorite “Stump the Trunk” anecdotes and trivia, as well as his favorite playlists. Whether you’re a classic Metallic and Megadeath metalhead or prefer the hair metal of old-school bands like Bon Jovi or Poison, this book salutes those who rock.
AC/DC: Two Sides to Every Glory: The Complete Biography
Paul Stenning - 2005
Starting with their roots in the Australian pub circuit, this book takes a thorough look at where the band came from, where they've been, and where they're going. Bon Scott and the Young brothers' earlier bands are discussed, as well as the trio's first collaboration, supplemented by rare photographs and interviews with more than 50 of the band's friends and colleagues. Previously unpublished details on Bon Scott's untimely death in 1980 and the strange circumstances around it are revealed, along with information on AC/DC's upcoming album, their first in five years.
Most People I Know (Think That I'm Crazy)
Billy Thorpe - 1998
Take the trip.
The Doors Unhinged: Jim Morrison's Legacy Goes on Trial
John Densmore - 2010
The Doors weren’t just a soundtrack to that revolution. Their music gave it a voice. They lived by its ideals. And in a garage in Venice, CA, the four members of the band agreed to a business relationship that was also revolutionary; each member of the band would share equal songwriting credit and equal veto power. All for one, one for all. And for almost forty years, even after the death of lead singer Jim Morrison, that progressive 60s ethos guided the former band mates in all their decisions. Until one day the spirit of rock ‘n’ roll came up against its biggest nemesis—money—and the legendarily equal relationship between the remaining members of the Doors began to splinter.Drummer John Densmore’s THE DOORS: UNHINGED is the true story of the court case that put Jim Morrison’s legacy on trial and divided the former band mates in half, with Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger on one side, and John Densmore and the estate of Jim Morrison on the other.
Superstar Billy Graham: Tangled Ropes
Billy Graham - 2006
Too sweet to be sour!" Despite years of devastating health issues (a long history of drug abuse led to a liver transplant in 2002), the man regarded as one of the most influential professional wrestlers of the past thirty years still flaunts the same optimism that made his interviews as compelling as his matches. In "Tangled Ropes," his autobiography, Graham remembers his victories -- and his setbacks -- on both the wrestling and the evangelism circuits in vibrant detail.At his core, Graham is still Wayne Coleman, the artistic, curious boy who escaped the wrath of his disabled father in post-war Phoenix through painting, sports, and bodybuilding.When his photo appeared in a bodybuilding magazine, the young man caught the attention of a family in Texas who began praying for his soul. Soon, Wayne found religion at a revival meeting, then mortified his parents as he left home to bend steel, rip phone books in half, and preach the Gospel on the back roads of America.Because of his natural athleticism, Wayne held a series of jobs -- from bouncer to boxer, from repo man to football player. However, it was under the training of the "Mentor of Mayhem," Stu Hart, that the wrestler was revealed. Then the fading headliner Dr. Jerry Graham bleached Wayne's hair blond and transformed him into an in-ring "brother." Still reverent of men of faith, Coleman became "Billy Graham," after the preacher. Graham completed the package with his golden tan and enormous "pythons," a succession of color-coordinated outfits and jive-talking -- a persona imitated by countless wrestlers, including Hulk Hogan and Jesse "The Body" Ventura.The Superstar's greatest wrestling achievement came in 1977, when he took the World Wide Wrestling Federation Championship from Bruno Sammartino. He held the prize for nearly a year -- the first wrestling villain to do so. But after he lost the title to wholesome Bob Backlund, Graham fell into a deep depression. He disappeared from the business, squandering his money and losing himself in a haze of drugs.In "Tangled Ropes" -- co-written with Keith Elliot Greenberg -- Superstar Billy Graham tells a story that transcends his life in the wrestling profession, offering candor, nostalgia, inspiration, and humor. Graham's narrative is supplemented by anecdotes from personalities like Vince McMahon, Jesse Ventura, Ivan Koloff, Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes, and California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The Big Midweek: Life Inside The Fall
Steve Hanley - 2014
These vividly drawn scenes give unprecedented insight into the intense, highly-charged creative atmosphere within The Fall and their relentless work ethic which has won them a dedicated cult following, high-art respectability and a unique place in popular music history.