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Tasartir View Drop Down
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    Posted: February 22 2023 at 02:24
Hey everyone,
I'm looking for good reading material and I'm starting to get into musician autobiographies.

So, my question is: regardless of whether they've employed a ghost writer or co-writer, or whether they're prog or not, what would be your top 3 musical autobiographies?

Thanks in advance for your recommendations!
...Histoires Sans Paroles...
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Psychedelic Paul View Drop Down
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Three favourites from my music library, all by J. Randy Taraborrelli.....

Michael Jackson - The Magic, The Madness, The Whole Story
Madonna - An Intimate Biography
Diana Ross - An Unauthorized Biography








Edited by Psychedelic Paul - February 22 2023 at 03:41
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Tasartir View Drop Down
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Wow, you sure have wide-ranging tastes in music. Thanks!
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Frank Zappa - The Real Frank Zappa Book
Robert Wyatt - Different Every Time
Rush - The trio of... Anthem, Limelight, and Driven
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Bill Bruford's has to be one of the best for its level-headed insight into the business of being a full-time musician.
Drew Fisher
https://progisaliveandwell.blogspot.com/
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Hi,

In my website I have reviewed quite a few of them ... 

IF I have a favorite, Robert Wyatt's is excellent, and you learn more about how he feels, and why it has to be "different" every time, something that rock fans and musicians are not usually very good at.

I think it depends on what you want, since some of them are excellent at the history of it all, and some are not that good, except the fame side of things.

I enjoyed "Gimme Danger - Iggy and the Stooges", even though he does not exactly mention a lot, and concentrates on his beginnings and the start of the band.

Miles Davis: Birth of Cool .... is a special somewhere and worth seeing. 

The Frank Zappa book above is good. However, it does not really explain a whole lot of his music, which sometimes leaves us ... how???

Force Majeure - Tangerine Dream ... Edgar's book goes up until the 1990 time and that's it. Lots of stories, and explanations.

Maximum Darkness - Man on the Road to Nowhere. A sad book by Deke Leonard, but a good story about a band that didn't want to quit.

No One Here Gets Out Alive - About Jim Morrison, and very good. Detailed!!!

I read the one on Hawkwind and Dream Theater, and they are nice, but not exceptional.
Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
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I am currently reading 'Rainbow In The Dark: The Autobiography of Ronnie James Dio'
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I think the only one I've ever read is Keith Emerson's Pictures of an Exhibitionist.


Edited by JD - February 22 2023 at 07:57
Thank you for supporting independently produced music
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4 which I have read and can recommend:
  - Rick Wakeman - SAY YES
  - Kerry Livgren - SEEDS OF CHANGE
    (The above 2 have a nice (for my tastes) mixture of music and spirituality)

  - Nick Mason - INSIDE OUT 
    (Very informative, but a little "dry")

  - Christian Décamps (ANGE) - TOUTE UNE VIE D'ANGE (so far only in French, but extremely exhaustive)
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Excellent recommendations. I've taken note of most of these.

Thanks, and keep them coming if you have them!
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A few more I enjoyed.


Contents Under Pressure - 30 Years of Rush at Home and Away

A Wizard a True Star - Todd Rundgren in the Studio

Freak When Spoken To - The Story of Freak Kitchen

King's X - The Oral History

Soft Machine - Out-Bloody-Rageous

Genesis - Chapter and Verse

In the Court of King Crimson An Observation over Fifty Years

Yes - Close to the Edge
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Points: 170 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote IncogNeato Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 22 2023 at 09:58
Originally posted by Grumpyprogfan Grumpyprogfan wrote:


King's X - The Oral History

That one is really cool.
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Originally posted by Psychedelic Paul Psychedelic Paul wrote:


Interesting title. Big smile
                      quality over quantity, and all kind of PopcoRn almost beyond
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Psychedelic Paul View Drop Down
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^ Yes. Let's hope the publishers won't need to retitle Phil Collins' autobiography for many years yet in the  reprint editions. Wink
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The Real Frank Zappa book is both interesting and very funny.
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Originally posted by Psychedelic Paul Psychedelic Paul wrote:

this one was amazing read, really opened the understanding of Genesis' pop era for me
Originally posted by BrufordFreak BrufordFreak wrote:

Bill Bruford's has to be one of the best for its level-headed insight into the business of being a full-time musician.

Another fantastic one indeed


More recommendations:

(literally the one which started my own obsession with music books)


(it's like reading my own thoughts and opinions on MANY things, scary!)

plus not prog but a good read:

Swans - Sacrifice And Transcendence
Dave Grohl - The Storyteller
Gary Numan - (R)evolution
Paradise Lost - No Celebration
Facing the Other Way - The Story of 4AD
Substance - Inside New Order
Rob Halford - Confess
Alan McGee - Creation Stories
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Originally posted by IncogNeato IncogNeato wrote:

Originally posted by Grumpyprogfan Grumpyprogfan wrote:


King's X - The Oral History


That one is really cool.


Yup, great read this one!

Enjoyed the Rob Halford, Bruce Dickinson and Ozzy Osbourne ones, all very different!
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Recent ones I've read are:
Bruce Dickinson - What Does This Button Do?
Steven Wilson - Limited Edition of One
Rob Halford - Confess
KK Downing - Heavy Duty: Days and Nights in Judas Priest

All pretty good. Rob Halford's is the best of those and it's interesting to get both his and KK Downing's versions of the same events.
Oh, for the wings of any bird, other than a battery hen
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Points: 40087 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Psychedelic Paul Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 23 2023 at 12:22
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