Elton John’s secret illness, Edith Piaf’s belated love, Ozzy Osbourne’s exuberant youth – all this is described in autobiographical books. These books introduce us to the biographies of genius songwriters, legendary musicians whose live music gives us joy, who breaks up the dance floor by day and spend quiet evenings at home with the family.
I would like to present to your attention a collection of literary works devoted to great musicians. The stories of the characters’ lives are similar in many ways: they all fought the circumstances and faced the challenges, illuminated by the bright star named “music.” However, these books are unique in that they tell about iconic figures in history, the voices of an entire generation.
Somebody to Love: The Life, Death, and Legacy of Freddie Mercury by Matt Richards and Mark LangthorneÂ
For the first time, the biography of the last years of the life of the 20th century’s most brilliant musical genius Freddie Mercury is presented in this book. The work of Matt Richards and Mark Langthorne is a heartfelt story about the great man that includes:
- Interviews with his closest friends
- Shots from his photo archive
- Previously unknown and startling facts about the singer’s life
- Details of his years-long search for love and creativity and, of course, his struggle with an unrecognized terminal illness in the mid-1980s.
“The show must go on” was the motto of a great man who remained true to his profession despite all the difficulties. Talented, eccentric, dynamic, daring Freddy will always remain a role model for new generations of musicians.
No One Here Gets Out Alive by Jerry Hopkins and Danny Sugerman
Singer, philosopher, poet, outlaw, brilliant and charismatic seeker of truth and explorer of the boundaries of reality – this is how Jim Morrison’s friend and personal biographer Jerry Hopkins portrays the leader of the immortal band The Doors. His work is a documented, unbiased biography based on extensive interviews with the musician, personal recordings, and amazing facts about his life and career. Unfortunately, the book was rejected by publishers more than twenty times before it saw the world and became a bestseller.
Me: Elton John Official AutobiographyÂ
This is a biopic about the life of the prominent composer and showman of our time, which tells the story of the musician’s formation. It describes the transformation of the unknown English rocker Elton Hercules John into the legendary Sir Elton John. The book introduces readers to the more intimate side of the singer’s life, from a traumatic childhood marked by his mother’s neglect and father’s rage attacks, his love for his children, and his battle with cancer in adulthood.
The Way I Am by Eminem
Eminem is the inspiration of an entire generation. This man showed through his own experience that anyone can succeed, even if you were born in a poor neighborhood of Detroit, in a dysfunctional family, if you were hated by your classmates and betrayed by your friends. Even if you have to overcome yourself, overcome your doubts, go forward, reach your goal, and go until your heart beats to a rhythmic beat.
The Beatles: The Authorized Biography by Hunter Davies
Before becoming a legendary band, John, Paul, Ringo, and George were just ordinary guys from Liverpool. They could not imagine that their music would have a significant impact on society, fashion, cinema, and art one day. Hunter Davis explores the origins of the band, the history of songwriting, and the relationship between the musicians to analyze the Beatles phenomenon. The book is filled with illustrated material from the author’s private collection: letters, rare photographs, and drafts with recordings of the band’s nascent hits.
The Wheel of Fortune: The Autobiography of Édith Piaf
The life of the queen of French chanson was full of deprivation and hardship. First, three-year-old Edith went blind, grew up without a mother’s love, then was forced to make a living singing in the central square of her town. But that’s not what the book is all about. This book tells about the love Edith Piaf met only at the age of 47 when she was already exhausted by her busy schedule and the crushing hits of fate.
I Am Ozzy by Ozzy Osbourne and Rupert Farley
The great and powerful Ozzy wrote his memoirs with ease and humor, trying to recall the brightest moments of his wild rock’n’roll life. Running away from reality, from the boring everyday life of the working class, the modest John Michael Osborne dives headlong into the world of music. He penetrates deeper and deeper, meets different people, experiments with genres, and creates immortal compositions that will be sung for many generations along the way. And then appears Ozzy, the immortal dark king of rock music and one of the most iconic characters in show business history.
Madonna: Like an Icon by Lucy O’Brien
Lucy O’Brien is a music journalist who has written biographies of many famous women before describing the life and creative path of music’s most iconic personality, Madonna. She interviewed backup singers, dancers, managers, several ex-fiancés, and high school friends. She meticulously researched each singer’s performance to show the reader how an ordinary girl from a conservative family became a worldwide icon, listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most commercially successful singer.
