Many musicians have a fantastic story to inform about their action-packed lives – and the most effective music memoirs are all the time passionate and extremely private. Some concentrate on artistic journeys and a seek for inventive achievement; some provide accounts of untamed events and different rock’n’roll excesses. Some classics, comparable to Woody Guthrie’s Sure For Glory and Miles Davis’ Miles: The Autobiography, have been written many years in the past, however there have been some nice trendy additions to the canon, by greats comparable to Elton John, Patti Smith, Keith Richards, and Debbie Harry.
Listed here are our 30 greatest music memoirs of all time. Suppose we’ve missed considered one of yours? Tell us within the feedback part, under.
30: Woody Guthrie: Sure For Glory (EP Dutton, 1943)
The autobiography of Woody Guthrie, written with the assistance of his first spouse, Marjorie, detailed the people singer’s travels throughout America and his experiences as a fruit-picker dwelling in a hobo camp. Sure For Glory has its personal attraction because it explains the background behind one of many Twentieth-century’s most vital musicians. Guthrie’s boyhood gang, who options within the memoir, offered the inspiration for the identify of Bob Geldof’s band The Boomtown Rats.
29: George Melly: Proudly owning Up (Penguin, 1965)
Proudly owning Up was singer George Melly’s first-hand account of the skilled jazz world of the 50s. After giving up work in an artwork gallery, Melly was drawn into the jazz revival. In Proudly owning Up, the primary of a collection of memoirs by the Liverpudlian, Melly humorously describes an limitless spherical of pubs, golf equipment, seedy guest-houses and transport cafés, and the bizarre array of musicians, drunks, and eccentrics that have been a part of that vanished music scene.
28: Booker T Jones: Time Is Proper: My Life Be aware By Be aware (Omnibus, 2019)
Booker T Jones, the chief of the acclaimed Stax Data home band Booker T And The MGs, is integral to the historical past of 60s soul music. His self-penned memoir is filled with nice tales about musicians comparable to Otis Redding and Dr John – and presents an attention-grabbing account of his personal musical schooling, together with his love of Blue Be aware pianist Horace Silver. He’s additionally modest about his personal expertise, writing in reward of Ray Charles, for instance, that he couldn’t match his approach of taking part in ‘I Got A Woman’. “Ray played with such precision and did not miss a note or beat, every note exactly in place, singing at the same time! I couldn’t even play it in time.” This, by the way in which, comes from the person who helped create the instrumental masterpiece ‘Green Onions’, a music Barack Obama invited him to carry out at The White Home.
27: Chuck Berry: The Autobiography (Concord Books, 1987)
Chuck Berry was eager to let everybody know that he had not paid for a ghostwriter. “The book is entirely written, phrase by phrase, by yours truly, Chuck Berry,” he wrote within the introduction to his 1987 autobiography. It’s no shock that the person who wrote classics comparable to ‘Roll Over Beethoven’ and ‘Johnny B Goode’ has a intelligent approach with phrases as he presents a compelling view of being topic to the injustices of racism whereas additionally charting his place within the founding of rock’n’roll.
26: Nile Rodgers: Le Freak (Little, Brown, 2011)
Nile Rodgers, the kid of jazz-obsessed junkies, had an action-packed life. He jammed with Jimi Hendrix, toured with Huge Chook on Sesame Road’s roadshow, and performed within the legendary Apollo Theatre home band. He was additionally a key a part of the “sex, drugs and disco” revolution of the 70s because the co-founder and guitarist for Stylish. His memoir is an exhilarating, blunt story of an incredible musical journey.
25: Iggy Pop: I Want Extra (Karz-Cohl Publishing, 1997)
Iggy Pop, who was born James Osterberg, was thought-about one of many grand previous males of punk rock when he wrote what he described as “a kind of autobiography in fragments” within the late 90s. The guide ranges from his childhood in Ann Arbor, Michigan, to the evolution of his seminal rock band, The Stooges. Pop particulars his reckless adventures and troubles in his personal frank and indomitable method.
24: Boy George: Take It Like A Man (HarperCollins, 1995)
Boy George, the star of Tradition Membership, was characteristically provocative in an autobiography that confirmed off his droll wit. He offers along with his childhood because the self-dubbed “pink sheep” of a big working-class household, and talks about popping out and his teenage fascination with David Bowie and Marc Bolan. His is humorous about his jet-setting life as a pop superstar and open about his heroin habit. He additionally offers along with his weird spat with writer Anthony Burgess, who had criticized his skills as a musician.
23: James Brown: The Godfather Of Soul (Da Capo Press, 1986)
James Brown opens up about his dirt-poor childhood in an Augusta brothel and the way he went on to beat enormous obstacles to seek out wealth and fame. There are good anecdotes about Little Richard, Elvis Presley, Tina Turner, and Otis Redding, however essentially the most vivid elements of the guide are about Brown’s time in a juvenile heart. He additionally discusses the courageous stand he took following the assassination of his pal Martin Luther King.
22: Quincy Jones: Q: The Autobiography Of Quincy Jones (Hodder & Stoughton, 2001)
Quincy Jones is without doubt one of the most vital producer/arranger/composers of the trendy period and Q is an acutely private guide. Jones provides a no-holds-barred account of his life, from his mom’s psychological sickness to working with everybody from Frank Sinatra to Michael Jackson. He additionally discusses his personal nervous breakdown after the triumph of Thriller, and his failed marriages.
21: Loretta Lynn: Coal Miner’s Daughter (Knopf Doubleday, 2010)
Loretta Lynn has lived a outstanding life and her memoir tells the story of her impoverished childhood in Kentucky, her marriage at 13, her six youngsters, and the way she battled to grow to be one of the vital influential songwriters and singers in nation music. Her highly effective story is informed in a feisty, open model, detailing how she bucked towards a life the place “there was always a man telling me what to do”. The audio model was brilliantly narrated by actress Sissy Spacek.
20: Gil Scott-Heron: The Final Vacation (Grove Press, 2012)
Songwriter, poet, and activist Gil Scott-Heron died at 62 in Might 2011. His posthumously revealed memoir, The Final Vacation, is an elegiac finale to his musical and literary profession. He presents a perceptive, humorous, and compassionate account of his life, its tribulations, and the inspirations for his sensible, socially-conscious music.
19: James Fearnley: Right here Comes Everyone: The Story Of The Pogues (Faber, 2012)
The Pogues first fashioned in 1982 as Pogue Mahone (Gaelic for “kiss my arse”) and have been one of many groundbreaking bands of the period. James Fearnley, The Pogues’ accordion participant, brings to life the youthful friendships, the bust-ups, the grim gigs and the drunkenness of his occasions with a band fronted by the alcoholic Shane McGowan.
18: Willie Nelson: It’s A Lengthy Story: My Life (Little, Brown, 2015)
There have been quite a few books about Willie Nelson – together with his personal 1988 publication, Willie: An Autobiography – however essentially the most unvarnished is 2015’s It’s A Lengthy Story: My Life. This guide captures Nelson’s humor and spirit and goes off at attention-grabbing tangents. The nation music singer, an avid reader, talks concerning the affect of the TS Eliot poem ‘East Coker’ on his personal music ‘Still Is Still Moving To Me’. Nelson is a real one-off and that shines by on this story.
17 Jay-Z: Decoded (Random Home, 2010)
From drug supplier to multimillionaire rapper, Jay-Z’s story, as informed in Decoded, is gripping. Half artwork guide, half lyrical compilation, and half private narrative, Decoded can be a protection of rap music. “Rap took the remnants of a dying society and created something new,” says the person born Shawn Carter in New York in 1969.
16: Johnny Marr: Set The Boy Free (Penguin, 2017)
Johnny Marr’s autobiography, Set The Boy Free, was, unsurprisingly, much less grandiose than Morrissey’s memoir. The Smiths had an enormous affect on music within the 80s and Marr was one of the vital influential guitarists of his era. His memoir, which offers with the break-up of the band and his subsequent profession, is witty and transferring. A few of the most affecting elements are his reminiscences of rising up in Ardwick Inexperienced, Manchester.
15: Roger Daltrey: Roger Daltrey, My Story: Thanks A Lot Mr. Kibblewhite (Blink Publishing, 2018)
The Who members have a wealthy story to inform. After Pete Townshend’s Who Am I, revealed in 2013, there got here Roger Daltrey’s punchy memoir, which informed the story of his journey to rock stardom. It’s a humorous and open account. (The title, by the way, refers back to the headmaster who expelled Daltrey from Acton County Grammar Faculty when he was 15. Daltrey’s era might definitely maintain a grudge.)
14: Mötley Crüe: The Dust: Confessions Of The World’s Most Infamous Rock Band (HarperCollins, 2001)
Mötley Crüe’s off-stage antics have been as wild as their music, and the 2001 memoir The Dust was a collective autobiography written by Tommy Lee, Mick Mars, Vince Neil, and Nikki Sixx. A genuinely entertaining, surprising guide, it turned a bestseller in 2001. In March 2019 a movie adaptation was given its Netflix debut.
13: Johnny Money: Money (HarperCollins, 2000)
There have been a number of biographies about nation music legend Johnny Money, however in 2000 he gave his personal revealing account of his life. He lined the early days at Solar Data – with Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis – to his rise as a rustic famous person. Money presents attention-grabbing particulars about his personal complicated character and opens up about his recurring habit to amphetamines and his shortcomings as a father. This follow-up to 1986’s The Man In Black memoir can be stuffed with fantastic oddities, such because the time he was almost disemboweled by an ostrich.
12: Marianne Faithfull: Reminiscences, Goals And Reflections (HarperCollins, 2007)
Lots of the tales about Marianne Faithfull and Mick Jagger nearly belong to folklore, however she proves herself to be a witty, eccentric storyteller in Reminiscences, Goals And Reflections. Her background is fascinating, too. Her father was an ex-MI6 spy who had interrogated Himmler. In addition to tales about fellow musicians, the singer, who had successful with ‘As Tears Go By’, displays on poet Allen Ginsberg. She additionally remembers how, excessive on smack, she walked away from the a part of Girl Macbeth given to her by Roman Polanski. The guide is a unusual deal with.
11: Debbie Harry: Face It (HarperCollins, 2019)
As a part of Blondie, singer and actress Debbie Harry was one of the vital unique and profitable feminine singers of the 70s. Her tales of stardom are vivid, and her account of rising up is self-deprecating and amusing; there are tales galore of intercourse, medicine, and rock’n’roll on this entertaining memoir. She additionally presents surprises, as along with her recollections about her ardour for jazz musicians comparable to Billie Vacation, Dizzy Gillespie, and Ornette Coleman.
10: Elvis Costello: Untrue Music & Disappearing Ink (Penguin, 2016)
For Elvis Costello followers, the 2016 memoir Untrue Music & Disappearing Ink was wealthy in particulars about his personal writing course of and the experiences and feelings that impressed basic songs comparable to ‘Alison’ and ‘Oliver’s Military’. Costello presents wry particulars about his background – his father, Ross MacManus, was a dance-hall performer – and the tales about his collaborations with giants comparable to Paul McCartney, Burt Bacharach, and Allen Toussaint are riveting.
9: Bruce Springsteen: Born To Run (Simon & Schuster, 2016)
The person often called “The Boss” has been one of the vital dominant figures in rock music for greater than 40 years. His forthright memoir sheds gentle on his long-standing battle with despair, his troubled relationship along with his father, and his personal searing ambitions. That is an pleasurable, candid self-portrait by a superb songwriter and sophisticated man.
8: Chrissie Hynde: Reckless: My Life As A Pretender (Ebury, 2015)
Singer-songwriter Chrissie Hynde admits within the prologue to her memoir that she waited to publish her autobiography till her straitlaced mother and father had died: “I would have had to leave out the bad language and tell a lot of lies about what I’d been doing all that time I was gone.” The result’s a compelling, candid account of the music enterprise, one crammed with memorable anecdotes and harrowing revelations.
7: Eric Clapton: The Autobiography (Cornerstone, 2007)
Eric Clapton’s account of his life is stark and painfully trustworthy. He offers along with his unusual background, his habit issues, and his “ruthless” pursuit of musical excellence. The guitarist, who gained fame with The Yardbirds and Cream, additionally covers the love triangle that concerned Clapton, Pattie Boyd, and George Harrison. Clapton’s autobiography is notably devoid of the defensiveness and evasions usually present in superstar memoirs.
6: Kim Gordan: Lady In A Band (Faber, 2015)
Kim Gordon was the charismatic frontwoman in Sonic Youth – alongside husband Thurston Moore. On this fascinating memoir, she remembers their shambolic early days, her feud with Courtney Love, and the cut-throat music enterprise of the early 80s. “Women aren’t allowed to be kick-ass. I refused to play the game,” says Gordon. Her descriptions of New York within the 80s, when Sonic Youth fashioned, are particularly superb sections.
5: Elton John: Me (Pan Macmillan, 2019)
Elton John says he has lived “an extraordinary life” and his autobiography, Me, is a hilarious, candid window into that life. John remembers the life-changing fortunate stroke of teaming up with songwriter Bernie Taupin and presents an trustworthy appraisal of how his life fell aside as a famous person, when he turned hooked on medicine. There are additionally plenty of humorous tales about fellow musicians comparable to Freddie Mercury and Rod Stewart.
4: Miles Davis: Miles: The Autobiography (Simon & Schuster, 1989)
The memoir from one of many best jazz males of all time is wealthy in tales, self-analysis, and reflections on music. There are some beautiful passages by which he remembers his pleasure at listening to Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie in a St Louis nightclub in 1944. It was his first reside publicity to bebop. The fixed use of profanity within the guide brought on controversy, as did his candid reflections on his personal failings, together with his issues with drug habit. His conduct is usually repulsive – he admits to pimping to assist his behavior – however Miles stays an eminently readable autobiography.
3: Bob Dylan: Chronicles: Quantity One (Simon & Schuster, 2004)
This modest, plain-spoken, and considerate opening installment of Bob Dylan’s memoirs offers along with his life as folks troubadour in Greenwich Village within the early 60s. The way in which he talks about musical mentors comparable to Hank Williams, Woody Guthrie and Johnny Money is touching. As you’d anticipate from somebody who has received The Nobel Prize In Literature, he’s additionally well-read, and expresses his admiration for Balzac and Chekhov, amongst others. The tone of the guide turns into extra reducing when he’s coping with his personal rising fame. This offbeat, ruminative guide is a must-read for Dylan followers.
2: Patti Smith: Simply Children (Ecco, 2010)
Patti Smith provides a heartfelt account of her inventive schooling and love affair along with her pal Robert Mapplethorpe within the evocative memoir Simply Children. Her account of working in a manufacturing unit and dwelling in a succession of squalid New York residences is intense and edgy, as she labored her approach in the direction of turning into an influential element of the New York Metropolis punk rock motion along with her 1975 debut album, Horses. Simply Children received the distinguished 2010 Nationwide E-book Award For Nonfiction.
1: Keith Richards: Life (Orion, 2011)
Keith Richards’ life story pulsates with outlandish tales. His accounts of rising up in wartime Dartford are fascinating and, from the second he indicators to Decca Data with The Rolling Stones, he’s on the heart of the British music scene. Richards holds little again about his wild, drug-filled days in music, however he additionally conveys his rapturous delight on the music he liked, particularly from blues stars comparable to Howlin’ Wolf, Little Walter, and Muddy Waters.
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