INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
NOW UPDATED WITH A NEW CHAPTER
In his first and only official autobiography, music icon Elton John reveals the truth about his extraordinary life, from his rollercoaster lifestyle as shown in the film Rocketman, to becoming a living legend.
Christened Reginald Dwight, he was a shy boy with Buddy Holly glasses who grew up in the London suburb of Pinner and dreamed of becoming a pop star. By the age of twenty-three he was performing his first gig in America, facing an astonished audience in his bright yellow dungarees, a star-spangled T-shirt, and boots with wings. Elton John had arrived and the music world would never be the same again.
His life has been full of drama, from the early rejection of his work with song-writing partner Bernie Taupin to spinning out of control as a chart-topping superstar; from half-heartedly trying to drown himself in his LA swimming pool to disco-dancing with Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth; from friendships with John Lennon, Freddie Mercury, and George Michael to setting up his AIDS Foundation to conquering Broadway with Aida, The Lion King, and Billy Elliot the Musical. All the while Elton was hiding a drug addiction that would grip him for over a decade.
In Me, Elton also writes powerfully about getting clean and changing his life, about finding love with David Furnish and becoming a father. In a voice that is warm, humble, and open, this is Elton on his music and his relationships, his passions and his mistakes. This is a story that will stay with you by a living legend.
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Creators
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Release date
October 15, 2019 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781250231062
- File size: 339471 KB
- Duration: 11:47:13
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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AudioFile Magazine
Reginald Dwight, better known to us as Elton John, offers a candid and surprisingly detailed memoir. The musician himself provides a heartfelt and precise narration of the brief prologue and epilogue. Narrator Taron Egerton's performance of the bulk of the audiobook is, at best, tolerable and, at worst, grating. Egerton's success as Elton in the movie ROCKETMAN does not translate well; the excitement he generates for nearly every sentence of the audiobook quickly blurs the subtleties in Elton John's journey from middle-class Londoner to international megastar. Having played Elton in the movie, Egerton may have attempted to re-create the man's vocal qualities. However, this choice is stylistically wanting. Nonetheless, fans will undoubtedly enjoy the insights. It's all here: drug addiction, depression, family dramas, and traumas--sensitively and articulately portrayed. W.A.G. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine -
Publisher's Weekly
Starred review from October 21, 2019
The legendary pop star looks back cheerfully on a melodramatic life in this rollicking autobiography. John recounts his ascent from toiling pub pianist to becoming the biggest singer-songwriter of the 1970s with hits such as "Rocketman" and "Bennie and the Jets," to elder statesmanship as one of the first openly gay stars and Britainâs griever-in-chief with his "Candle in the Wind" tribute at Princess Diâs funeral. Beyond a vivid account of his flamboyant showmanship and outfits (think pink suit with Eiffel Tower headdress), he gives an unusually candid look at his insecuritiesâhis unrelentingly critical mother haunts the bookâand at the bubble of celebrity entitlement that enabled his rock-star excesses, including childish tantrums, controlling and callous behavior toward a string of boyfriends, and rampant drug use. (After ingesting much vodka and cocaine with Duran Duran, he "returned to the video set, demanded they begin running the cameras, took off all clothes and started rolling around on the floor naked.") John keeps his good humor throughout, treating even his suicide attempts as farces and poking fun at his own vanity. ("However much a hair transplant hurt, it was a mere pinprick compared to the sensation of hitting your head on a car door immediately after having a hair transplant.") Johnâs fans will love this funny, down-to-earth, and openhearted self-portrait. Photos.
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Formats
- OverDrive Listen audiobook
subjects
Languages
- English
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