By Simon McDonald, Editorial Manager | simon@thereadingroom.com
Check out our selection of 15 great books about music, musicians, and the music industry.
Delivering exclusive information and a compelling psychological portrait, Untouchable is the story of Michael Jackson from his boy idol childhood to the final four-year odyssey of his tumultuous adult life.
The Fifth Beatle is the untold true story of Brian Epstein, the visionary manager who discovered and guided the Beatles from their gigs in a tiny cellar in Liverpool to unprecedented international stardom.
As lead guitarist of the Rolling Stones, Keith Richards created the riffs, the lyrics, and the songs that roused the world.
This is the book Frank Sinatra failed to stop, the unauthorized biography of one of the most elusive public figures of our time.
The result of six years of research and some 1,200 interviews, this book takes fans deep into Lennon’s secretive world, from his traumatic childhood to his Beatles days to his hidden life with Yoko Ono.
Clive Davis recounts an extraordinary five-decade career in the music business while also telling a remarkable personal story of triumphs, disappointments, and encounters with some of the greatest musical artists of our time, including Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, Simon & Garfunkel, Barry Manilow, the Grateful Dead, Patti Smith, Whitney Houston, Carlos Santana, Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, and Alicia Keys.
In just a two-year span, Stefani Germanotta, a struggling performer in New York’s Lower East Side burlesque scene, has become the global demographic-smashing pop icon known as Lady Gaga.
It has been said, “Most pop stars have to be dead before they reach the iconic status that Morrissey has reached in his lifetime.” Autobiography covers Morrissey’s life from his birth until the present day.
The publication of Feel: Robbie Williams by Chris Heath in September 2004 caused shockwaves of controversy and delight. Not only was its publication trumpeted in tabloids, on TV, and the radio, but it was also critically lauded by the broadsheets. Finally, a book had been written on the subject of celebrity and the modern world that had intelligence, honesty and humor.
Penned by a contemporary and life-long fan and the product of extensive research, dozens of interviews, and unprecedented access, this account confirms The Smiths as one of the greatest, most important and influential rock groups of all time.
Utilizing his unparalleled gifts of storytelling and the exquisite expressiveness that are the hallmarks of his music, Bob Dylan turns “Chronicles: Volume One” into a poignant reflection on life and the people and places that helped shape the man and the art.
Neil Young is a singular figure in the history of rock and pop culture in the last four decades. Reflective, insightful and disarmingly honest, in Waging Heavy Peace he writes about his life and career.
. In his unforgettable autobiography, Johnny Cash tells the truth about the highs and lows, the struggles and hard-won triumphs, and the people who shaped him.
Presley’s stunning rise is portrayed in vivid, dramatic terms.
The full, true, and mesmerizing story of Elvis Presley’s last two decades.