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From the voice of a generation: The most highly anticipated autobiography of the year, and the story of a man who. . .
... is a Londoner and a Mod.
... auditioned for Roger Daltrey while sitting on a bed that hid a fugitive.
... wanted The Who to be called The Hair.
... loved The Everly Brothers, but not that drawling dope Elvis.
... wanted to be a sculptor, a journalist, a dancer and a graphic designer.
... became a musician, composer, librettist, fiction writer, literary editor, sailor.
... smashed his first guitar onstage, in 1967, by accident.
... heard the voice of God on a vibrating bed in rural Illinois.
... invented the Marshall stack, feedback and the concept album.
... once speared Abbie Hoffman in the neck with the head of his guitar.
... inspired Jimi Hendrix's pyrotechnical stagecraft.
... is partially deaf in his right ear.
... stole his windmill guitar playing from Keith Richards.
... followed Keith Moon off a hotel balcony into a pool and nearly died.
... did too much cocaine and nearly died.
... drank too much and nearly died.
... detached from his body in an airplane, on LSD, and nearly died.
... helped rescue Eric Clapton from heroin.
... is banned for life from Holiday Inns.
... was embroiled in a tabloid scandal that has dogged him ever since.
... has some explaining to do.
... is the most literary and literate musician of the last 50 years.
... planned to write his memoir when he was 21.
... published this book at 67.
This long anticipated, completely unghosted autobiography demonstrates the impressive writing talents and touching candor of world famous leader of The Who. Much more than a dry tabulation of gigs or a tally of rocker misdeeds, Who I Am is the honest reflection of a gentle, multi-faceted man.
(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Act One: War Music
1 I Was There 3
2 It's a Boy! 6
3 You Didn't See It 26
4 A Teenage Kind of Vengeance 49
5 The Detours 62
6 The Who 86
7 I Can't Explain 113
8 Substitoot 130
9 Acid in the Air 151
10 God Checks In to a Holiday Inn 175
11 Amazing Journey 199
12 Tommy: The Myths, The Music, The Mud 226
Act Two: A Really Desperate Man
13 Lifehouse and Loneliness 277
14 The Land Between 304
15 Carriers 334
16 A Beggar, a Hypocrite 351
17 Be Careful What You Pray For 374
18 The Undertaker 398
19 Growing Into My Skin 416
20 Rock Star Fuckup 451
Act Three: Playing to the Gods
21 The Last Drink 489
22 Still Loony 526
23 Iron Man 559
24 Psychoderelict 589
25 Relapse 607
26 Noodling 627
27 A New Home 644
28 Letter to My Eight-year-old Self 665
29 Black Days, White Knights 694
30 Trilby's Piano 703
31 Intermezzo 714
32 Who I Am 721
Appendix A Fan Letter from 1967 725
Coda 728
Acknowledgements 730
Picture Credits 740
Overview
From the voice of a generation: The most highly anticipated autobiography of the year, and the story of a man who. . .
... is a Londoner and a Mod.
... auditioned for Roger Daltrey while sitting on a bed that hid a fugitive.
... wanted The Who to be called The Hair.
... loved The Everly Brothers, but not that drawling dope Elvis.
... wanted to be a sculptor, a journalist, a dancer and a graphic designer.
... became a musician, composer, librettist, fiction writer, literary editor, sailor.
... smashed his first ...