Book description
In August 1970 Elton John achieved overnight fame after a rousing performance at the Troubadour in Los Angeles; over the next five years he was unstoppable, scoring seven consecutive number 1 albums and sixteen Top 10 singles in America. But behind his outre image and comedy glasses lay a desperately…
Why read it?
1 author picked Captain Fantastic as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
I always enjoy Tom Doyle’s books.
He writes biographies of pop stars like Paul McCartney and Kate Bush, and I always find them to be well researched and engagingly written. This book on Elton’s rollercoaster life in the 1970s is so rich in detail that I wished Doyle had not stopped at the end of that decade (keep going, Tom!).
A different book with the same title and on the same topic was published the year before (written by David DeCouto). I mention this in case it confuses anyone, as I ended up buying (and reading) both. It is even…
From Matthew's list on the extraordinary life and music of Elton John.
If you love Captain Fantastic...
Ghosts
Known more for his books on Mayas, Aztecs, and Spanish conquistadors, historian Matthew Restall's latest book takes his deepest dive yet into the history of pop music.
In the late-1970s, three music-obsessed, suburban London teenagers set out to make their own kind of pop music: after years of struggle, success…
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