5 Must-Read Books Written By Legendary Musicians
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It's no surprise that musicians and writers have a lot in common. When you think about it, artists are both performers and songwriters. Any good song will tell you a story. Songs induce deep emotion, and listeners will often wonder about the backstory. Writing songs and music is just a step away from writing poetry, stories, and memoirs for artists who convey emotion through language.
Chronicles By Bob Dylan
In Bob Dylan's Chronicles, you’re able to see Greenwich Village in 1961 through his eyes and mind. His version of New York is a magnificent city of opportunities, with lavish parties, literary awakenings, fleeting romances, and lasting friendships. Chronicles is an emotional and highly personal account of remarkable times, as well as side trips to New Orleans, Woodstock, Minnesota, and points west. Chronicles is a captivating window into Bob Dylan's ideas and inspirations, at times insightful, poetical, emotional, and humorous.
Using his exceptional storytelling ability and beautiful expressiveness that have become trademarks of his music, he has created a profound reflection on life, as well as the people and places that have helped form the man and the art.
2. The Beautiful Ones By Prince
The Beautiful Ones is the story of the renowned flamboyant, singer Prince. Before topping charts and stardom, he was a young boy named Prince Rogers Nelson.
The book is divided into four parts. The first part tells of Prince's memoir before his terrible death, the memoir transports readers to his early childhood through his own poetic narrative. The second half focuses on Prince's early years as a musician, prior to the release of his debut album, told through an entire collection of his writing and photos. The third part illustrates Prince's growth through candid photographs that lead readers to the brink of his greatest success, which is shown in the fourth part: his original handwritten screenplay for Purple Rain—the pinnacle of Prince's identity.
The book can be the start of a Prince obsession or the continuation of an enduring admiration. Nevertheless, The Beautiful Ones will strengthen any reader's connection with the legendary superstar.
3. Life By Keith Richards
Keith Richards has lived the rockstar lifestyle like no other. He co-created the riffs, lyrics, and songs that shook the world with the Rolling Stones, and he lived the classic rock and roll life for four decades.
He talks about his drug and alcohol problems, as well as his friendship with Mick Jagger. If you want to know how a genuine rockstar deals with the ups and downs of life, this is the book for you. Depending on how you look at it, this is either the perfect book or the not-so-perfect read. Regardless, it remains one of the greatest books written by a legendary musician.
4. Just Kids By Patti Smith
Just Kids is a poetic and touching story of Smith's childhood friendship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, who died in 1989. Smith keeps a minimal focus that reinforces her story, painting an unforgettable picture of two young artists trying to figure out their futures while living in 1970s Manhattan. Also, Smith conveys the same distinct, poetic quality to Just Kids as she does to the rest of her art, including her iconic 1975 album Horses, as well as her visual art and poetry.
5. Me By Elton John
Music legend Elton John narrates about his remarkable life–which is also the basis of the film Rocketman–in his autobiography, Me.
Elton was born Reginald Dwight, a quiet boy with large spectacles, who grew up in the London neighborhood of Pinner and aspired to be a pop sensation. His journey has been full of twists and turns. From working with songwriting collaborator Bernie Taupin to going off the rails as a chart-topping rockstar; from roughly trying to drown himself in his LA swimming pool to dancing with the Queen. From collaborations with other musicians such as John Lennon, Freddie Mercury, and George Michael, to establishing his AIDS Foundation. It’s safe to say that he has done it all.
But, all the while, Elton was hiding a drugs and alcohol addiction that would consume him for more than a decade.
In Me, Elton discusses being sober and changing his lifestyle, falling in love with David Furnish, and becoming a parent. Elton makes fun of himself more than anyone else—this way, Me is its own unique thing. He is completely, shockingly, and self-deprecating in a satirical way.
Final Thoughts
Writing songs is similar to writing a poem or a short story, so it's understandable that many famous musicians would experiment with published writing. It's not a simple task, but it's a great challenge for a creative musician. These are the five best books written by legendary musicians--they’re motivating, engaging, and full of stories you wish you had witnessed first-hand.
