Me
Elton John Official Autobiography
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4.3 • 285 Ratings
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- £6.99
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- £6.99
Publisher Description
In his first and only official autobiography, music icon Elton John reveals the truth about his extraordinary life. Me is the joyously funny, honest and moving story of the most enduringly successful singer/songwriter of all time.
The Sunday Times bestseller with a new chapter bringing the story up to date.
'The rock memoir of the decade' – Daily Mail
'The rock star's gloriously entertaining and candid memoir is a gift to the reader' – Sunday Times
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Christened Reginald Dwight 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 songwriting 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 the Queen; from friendships with John Lennon, Freddie Mercury and George Michael to setting up his AIDS Foundation. 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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'Self-deprecating, funny . . . You cannot help but enjoy his company throughout, temper tantrums and all' – The Times
'Racy, pacy and crammed with scurrilous anecdotes - what more could you ask from the rocket man' – Guardian (Book of the Week)
'Chatty, gossipy, amusing and at times brutally candid' – Telegraph
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
As Rocketman showed, when Elton John tells his story he wants it to be unvarnished, bracingly frank and wildly entertaining. Me doubles down on this. In fact, it might just set a new bar for celebrity autobiographies—not least because of the extraordinary subject matter available to mine. Liberated from Hollywood run-times, the artist formerly known as Reg Dwight is able to unspool his life story with a trademark candour and a searing eye for detail that means this book is utterly addictive. Nothing is off-limits: the tumultuous road to stardom; addiction; relationships; shopping; Bernie Taupin—and it’s a tale full of delicious wit, genuine heartbreak and wonderful anecdotes you’ll be dying to share with everyone you meet.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
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 Britain's griever-in-chief with his "Candle in the Wind" tribute at Princess Di's 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 insecurities his unrelentingly critical mother haunts the book and 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.") John's fans will love this funny, down-to-earth, and openhearted self-portrait. Photos.
Customer Reviews
Fab read
Sad, funny, self deprecating, and acknowledged by the man himself, has had an incredible life. Loved the highs ( literally), the lows and everything in between .
Unputdownable
Hugely entertaining, disarmingly honest and humorous beyond measure. I now have a fuller appreciation of the man behind the music. I devoured the book in a couple of days because I was so captivated by the writing.
A hoot!
Couldn’t put it down. Hilarious, heartwarming and highly entertaining.