The composer of "Yesterday", "Hey Jude", "Eleanor Rigby", and "Let It Be", Paul McCartney is one of the most famous men in the world, yet one of the most elusive. An international superstar for more than 40 years, he has not only sold hundreds of millions of records but has also altered the course of popular culture. He has been worshiped and ridiculed, his work revered and reviled. Governments have celebrated him, persecuted him, thrown him in prison, and knighted him.
More than a rock star, more than a celebrity, McCartney is a cultural touchstone. Yet no book has revealed the headwaters of his genius or, for that matter, explained why the Beatles' talented and adventurous musician seemed to abandon his position as an innovator, trading the daring of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band for an endless procession of what even he has called silly love songs. But McCartney never lost the spark of genius. And at any given moment, McCartney can reach into himself and pull out something phenomenal.
Drawing on years of research, Paul McCartney: A Life spans McCartney's roots in England's working class to his life in the present day, performing around the world and working for causes he believes in. Informed by new, exclusive interviews with friends, bandmates, and collaborators, the book describes McCartney's many triumphs as well as his failures, from the Beatles era through his decade with Wings and his subsequent solo career.
©2009 Peter Ames Carlin; (P)2009 Tantor Media
"McCartney...receives long-overdue fair treatment in this insightful biography.... Carlin's balanced portrayal of all the Beatles' virtues and flaws is commendable." (Kirkus)
"The best thing about Peter Ames Carlin's book is the way he entangles the music and the life, so that we begin to understand them as what they are - inextricable." (Dave Marsh, author of Bruce Springsteen on Tour: 1968 - 2005)
"Great...But"
Being a huge macca fan, i just wish it was longer. I'm also a Beatles fanatic, and i wish it didn't jump so ahead of time in various parts of the book. The author does provide great stories and facts about the life of macca, some stuff even beatles fanatics like me don't even know. It's a great book and the author did a fantastic job at doing his homework and composing it all together, but for a man like Paul. You just need a much longer book than this.
"Excellent and FASCINATING!"
This audio book is EXCELLENT and FASCINATING! I love the theme that runs throughout, that is, that Paul McCartney deals with the pain of life with music. I can relate to that (being a guitarist myself)!
"What happened?"
Not a bad read and insight into some of the complexities and contradictions of the man. But still no explanation as to why he could not repeat anywhere near his musical genius with the Beatles. This will remain one of life's great mysteries.