Waylon: An Autobiography [NOOK Book]

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Overview

Waylon Jennings relates the story of his life as a country music star. His beginnings were poor but he became Buddy Holly's protege before sinking into drug abuse and 3 failed marriages. His success came when he met his present wife, Jessi Colter.

What People Are Saying

Chet Atkins
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More About This Book

Overview

Waylon Jennings relates the story of his life as a country music star. His beginnings were poor but he became Buddy Holly's protege before sinking into drug abuse and 3 failed marriages. His success came when he met his present wife, Jessi Colter.

Editorial Reviews

Entertainment Weekly
Well turned, sometimes salty...refreshing...candid...poignant....An honest spotlight on a passel of colorful characters....One of the best of country's tell-alls, as warm, peculiar, and individualistic as Jennings's music itself.
Washington Post
As good a book about American popular music as one is likely to find.
More Reviews (3) Fewer Reviews
Publishers Weekly
As one of the original "outlaw" country music stars, Jennings (b. 1937) has done his best to live up to the image of the hard-living honky-tonker who doesn't take crap from anybody. With the help of writer and rock guitarist Kaye, an older, calmer, drug-free Jennings now relates his life story, from his childhood in a dirt-floored house in West Texas, through his busted marriages and hard-partying days, to his current existence as happily married man (to country star Jessi Colter) and member of the Highwaymen, the country music supergroup made up of Jennings, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson. The narration reads as if Jennings is relating stories over a beer. There are wonderfully evocative accounts of playing bass for Buddy Holly on his last tourJennings gave up his seat on the plane that crashed, killing Holly and the Big Bopperand of Jennings and Johnny Cash sharing an apartment in Nashville in the early '60s. There's a little more than most readers need to know about Jennings's money troubles, sex life, personal feuds and various drug habits, and there are a few too many testimonials from younger performers (e.g., Billy Ray Cyrus telling Jennings, "You're like a god to me"). As a raconteur, Jennings is by turns self-deprecating and self-indulgent, but never less than entertaining, and almost always charming. This soulful book should interest most anyone curious about the life of a pop musician, and is likely to be essential reading for country fans. A selected discography of Jennings's recordings is included. Photos not seen by PW. (Sept.)
Library Journal
A country music star tells of his poor childhood and rise to stardom.
Ray Olson
Lately, we are hearing a lot about country music stars from Texas, what with Daniel Cooper's "Lefty Frizzell" , George Jones' "I Lived to Tell It All" , and a forthcoming life of Ernest Tubb. Fans interested in the professional making of music will probably prefer this autobiography of Nashville rebel Jennings to any of those. Waylon and fellow Texan Willie Nelson led the early-1970s revolt against the slick, sweet Nashville sound. They broke country music out of the nostalgic, pseudorural ghetto it inhabited during the 1950s and 1960s and into the free-spending (long-haired, drug-gobbling) rock market. Waylon tells the story of that achievement from the inside, paying plenty of attention to his squabbles with Nashville and his obsession with crafting a song. Before and during that testimony, he tells of his youth and early days in music (including a short stint with Texas rocker Buddy Holly), his years of pill popping (no drinking, though; he never could stand the stuff), and his satisfied life and mind since his marriage to singer Jessi Coulter. Instead of gussying up a text that probably started out on tape, coauthor Kaye wisely casts the whole book as a long oral history. Jennings' voice--grammatical gaffes, personal idioms, and all--"speaks" throughout, and by golly, it's a charming voice.

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780446562379
  • Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
  • Publication date: 6/27/2009
  • Sold by: Hachette Digital, Inc.
  • Format: eBook
  • Sales rank: 64,429
  • File size: 5 MB

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 5
( 7 )

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Sort by: Showing all of 7 Customer Reviews

  • Anonymous

    Posted November 11, 2002

    Greatest autobiography I've read ever written

    There are not many books that I can read from beginning to end and then pick up again a month later and reread it again. This is one of them. It is inspiring, tragic, funny and emotional. A definite read for all fans of Waylon, fans of country music and fans of autobiographies in general. Given five stars only because there is six star rating.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted September 26, 2008

    Amazing Autobiography

    This book is one of the best ive ever read. Waylon Jennings was an amazing man who lived an amazing life. It sure tells his story well. He is one of my true inspriations that when times are tough to never give up. Anyone who is a huge fan of Waylon's should give this book a read!

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  • Anonymous

    Posted September 13, 2003

    a great singer a greater man

    waylon was a great singer but after reading this book i think he's even a greater man...you just can't put the booko down...its that good

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    Posted July 26, 2010

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    Posted April 16, 2009

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    Posted July 23, 2009

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