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. 2020 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine
Me
Narrated by Elton John, Taron Egerton
Elton JohnUnabridged — 12 hours, 28 minutes
Me
Narrated by Elton John, Taron Egerton
Elton JohnUnabridged — 12 hours, 28 minutes
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Overview
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.
Editorial Reviews
Elton John's book will be very satisfying for his fans—it's a classic autobiography that starts in his youth, narrates his rise to superfame and tells the raucous tale of a rich, often joyful, artiste who loves to party. He's great at explaining his development as a musician, including his effort to figure out how to truly entertain a crowd while sitting behind a piano.
If John had no material other than the job his foul-tempered parents did on him, he'd still have a riveting story to tell…The lurid parts will get all the headlines. But the man's hard-won self-knowledge is what the book's really about…This is no sob story. Even the worst of it can be ghoulishly funny…
★ 10/21/2019
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 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. (Oct.)
[Me] pushes the envelope. . . . The movie Rocketman gave a reasonably accurate overview of the Elton John story—but it barely scratched the surface of what’s in this memoir. The lurid parts will get all the headlines. But [it is really about] the man’s hard-won self-knowledge.”
—The New York Times
"Thought you got all of Elton John's story in the rollicking biopic, Rocketman? Well, consider that merely a tasty appetizer ahead of this ultra-rich and heavy dinner."
—NBC News
“Magnificent. . . . While Me is as colorful as you’d expect from an artist famous for his outlandish stage costumes and outsize temper tantrums, it is also so much more. . . . Fans who think seeing Rocketman was enough and can ‘eventually’ read his memoir, we can tell you: do not wait a long, long time. Me is a riveting, laugh-til-you-cry, heartfelt page-turner.”
—Entertainment Weekly
“[Elton] proves himself an engrossing, fluid and alarmingly forthcoming writer. . . Like [his] songs, Me overflows with whimsical characters, twisted humor, winking self-aggrandizement and stark pathos. . . . An absorbing and unfettered joy.”
—TIME
“By turn hilarious, touching, and surprising. . . . In between the countless anecdotes with stars from across the decades, John’s enthusiasm for music continues to shine through. . . . It's wonderful to read [and] compelling evidence that Elton John was born to be [a star].”
—The Independent
“Outrageously enjoyable. . . . [Elton] is utterly, astonishingly, hilariously self-lacerating. . . . His clear-eyed honesty and his ear for the comic line make him a deeply appealing memoirist.”
—The Guardian
“Excellent. . . . [Me] mines a rich seam of salacious and self-deprecating anecdote, heady scandal, personal struggle, and ultimate redemption, all delivered with a total lack of self-consciousness.”
—The Wall Street Journal
“A uniquely revealing pop star autobiography. . . . Me is essential reading for anyone who wants to know the difficult road that [Elton has] walked.”
—Rolling Stone
★ 02/01/2020
John's deliciously candid autobiography is about as colorful and flamboyant as his remarkable costumes. Born Reginald Dwight in Middlesex, England, he escaped the rigors of harsh family life (he father was a stern Air Force lieutenant and his unhappy mother prone to violent rages) by immersing himself in music and obsessing over statistics on the record charts. Musically gifted at an early age, he could hear a song once and immediately play it on the piano. A natural songwriter, he teamed up with legendary Bernie Taupin after his manager showed him song lyrics penned by Taupin. This began a long-distance partnership in which Taupin mailed him lyrics and John set them to music. The book recounts his meteroric rise to fame and the ups and downs of his career, drug addiction, his late-blooming realization of his homosexuality, his great musical successes, his work with charities, and his love of football. Fans will devour the gossipy tidbits and laugh-out-loud anecdotes that appear on almost every page. The audiobook is narrated perfectly by actor Taron Egerton who portrayed John in the 2019 film Rocketman. VERDICT One of the year's best books and an essential listen for Elton John fans.—Phillip Oliver, formerly with Univ. of North Alabama, Florence
★ 11/15/2019
John has entertained fans and shaped the musical landscape for 50 years with poignant ballads, energetic pop songs, and memorable show tunes. Now the iconic singer/songwriter turns inward, with this self-aware, revealing memoir. John deftly sets the scene, describing his childhood in staid, suburban 1950s Britain. His life was changed by rock and roll, and he began playing in bands, backing established acts such as the Isley Brothers and Patti LaBelle. In 1967, he met lyricist Bernie Taupin, which launched a songwriting partnership that would last decades. John chronicles years of writing, recording, and whirlwind touring. With unflinching detail and touches of self-deprecating humor, he also discusses his contentious relationship with his parents, his sexuality, the years of drug and alcohol abuse, and his stint in rehab (he includes his devastating farewell letter to cocaine). John concludes by reflecting on his relationship with husband David Furnish, his recent fatherhood, and what he still hopes to accomplish.
VERDICT Intimate, with brushes of gossip and hard-won wisdom, this compelling work joins the ranks of other masterly rock memoirs. A must-read for John's many devotees, it will also make fans out of those new to his music.—James Collins, Morristown-Morris Twp. P.L., NJ
★ 2019-10-28
The legendary piano master tells all, and delightfully.
Reginald Dwight (b. 1947) grew up with parents who "should never have got married in the first place." Thankfully, he found deliverance in rock 'n' roll, in which, his father commanded, "you are not to get involved." Get involved he did, playing with a band called Bluesology that, he admitted, was pretty much like any other British white blues band, and perhaps a little less, save for a chance pairing with Long John Baldry, "maybe the greatest 12-string guitarist the UK has ever produced." Another chance union was with a young songwriter named Bernie Taupin, who looked out on the moors and saw the Wild West. Changing his name to Elton Hercules John to shed his former skin, the astoundingly gifted pianist threw audiences into confusion; though "Britain's least convincing flower child," he played sort-of-hippie music, but in boas and platforms. "I started to think more about how I looked onstage," he writes of the period around the era-defining "Your Song," but he also realized that smashing up a piano, as opposed to Pete Townshend's smashing a guitar, just didn't work. He was famous from his first record on, and then rich, and then a study in addictive personality. A highlight, or perhaps lowlight, of the narrative is when, coked to the gills, he insists that Bob Dylan shed his hobo clothes for something in his glittery wardrobe only to have George Harrison caution him, "I really think you need to go steady on the old marching powder." Now sober, a cancer survivor, and in his 70s, Sir Elton looks back at it all with grace and good humor. One might wish only that he spent as much time revealing how he came to such things as the astonishing structure of "Tiny Dancer" as he does recounting bad hair transplants and bad behavior. Even so, his memoir is a terrific read.
One of the best rock memoirs of recent years and a revelation for fans.
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940171953171 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Macmillan Audio |
| Publication date: | 10/15/2019 |
| Edition description: | Unabridged |
| Sales rank: | 568,082 |
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