Me: Elton John Official Autobiography by Elton John

$24.99 NZD

Category: Music Biography

The best selling memoir, now in paperback!

Killing Time: Short Stories From the Long Road Home by Jimmy Barnes

$49.99 NZD

Category: Music Biography

From the rock legend turned master storyteller, this collection of non-fiction short stories is vintage Jimmy. Stories of adventure, misadventure, love and loss from the #1 bestselling author of the critically acclaimed memoirs Working Class Boy and Working Class Man. Outrageous, witty, warm and wise, K illing Time shares more than 40 yarns from an epic life - a dazzling collection of tall tales, out-takes and B-sides from one of Australia's finest storytellers. ...Show more

Let Love Rule by Lenny Kravitz

$37.99 NZD

Category: Music

"I see my story as a suite of songs that have a magical connection. I never understood that connection until I sat down to write. It was then that the magic started to flow." Let Love Rule is a work of deep reflection. Lenny Kravitz looks back at his life with candor, self-scrutiny, and humor.   "My lif e is all about opposites," he writes. "Black and white. Jewish and Christian. The Jackson 5 and Led Zeppelin. I accepted my Gemini soul. I owned it. I adored it. Yins and yangs mingled in various parts of my heart and mind, giving me balance and fueling my curiosity and comfort."   Let Love Rule covers a vast canvas stretching from Manhattan's Upper East Side, Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant, Los Angeles's Baldwin Hills, Beverly Hills, and finally to France, England and Germany.   It's the story of a wildly creative kid who, despite tough struggles at school and extreme tension at home, finds salvation in music.   We see him grow as a musician and ultimately a master songwriter, producer, and performer. We also see Lenny's spiritual growth--and the powerful way in which spirit informs his music.   The cast of characters surrounding Lenny is extraordinary: his father, Sy, a high-powered news executive; his mother, Roxie Roker, a television star; and Lisa Bonet, the young actress who becomes his muse.   The central character, of course, is Lenny, who, despite his great aspirational energy, turns down record deal after record deal until he finds his true voice.   The creation of that voice, the same voice that is able to declare "Let Love Rule" to an international audience, is the very heart of this story.   "Whether recording, performing, or writing a book," says Lenny, "my art is about listening to the inspiration inside and then sharing it with people. Art must bring the world closer together."    ...Show more

Acid for the Children: The Autobiography of Flea, the Red Hot Chili Peppers Legend by Flea

$27.99 NZD

Category: Music Biography

Flea, the iconic bassist and co-founder, alongside Anthony Kiedis, of the immortal Red Hot Chili Peppers finally tells his fascinating origin story, complete with all the dizzying highs and the gutter lows you'd expect from an LA street rat turned world-famous rock star. Michael Peter Balzary was born i n Melbourne, Australia, on October 16, 1962. His more famous stage name, Flea, and his wild ride as the renowned bass player for the Red Hot Chili Peppers was in a far and distant future. Little Michael from Oz moved with his very conservative, very normal family to Westchester, New York, where life as he knew it was soon turned upside down. His parents split up and he and his sister moved into the home of his mother's free-wheeling, jazz musician boyfriend - trading in rules, stability, and barbecues for bohemian values, wildness, and Sunday afternoon jazz parties where booze, weed, and music flowed in equal measure. There began Michael's life-long journey to channel all the frustration, loneliness, love, and joy he felt into incredible rhythm. When Michael's family moved to Los Angeles in 1972, his home situation was rockier than ever. He sought out a sense of belonging elsewhere, spending most of his days partying, playing basketball, and committing petty crimes. At Fairfax High School, he met another social outcast, Anthony Kiedis, who quickly became his soul brother, the yin to his yang, his partner in mischief. Michael joined some bands, fell in love with performing, and honed his skills. But it wasn't until the night when Anthony, excited after catching a Grandmaster Flash concert, suggested they start their own band that he is handed the magic key to the cosmic kingdom. Acid for the Children is as raw, entertaining and wildly unpredictable as its author. It's both a tenderly evocative coming of age story and a raucous love letter to the power of music and creativity ...Show more

The Meaning of Mariah Carey by Mariah Carey

$39.99 NZD

Category: Music Biography

It took me a lifetime to have the courage and the clarity to write my memoir. I want to tell the story of the moments - the ups and downs, the triumphs and traumas, the debacles and the dreams, that contributed to the person I am today. Though there have been countless stories about me throughout my car eer and very public personal life, it's been impossible to communicate the complexities and depths of my experience in any single magazine article or a ten-minute television interview. And even then, my words were filtered through someone else's lens, largely satisfying someone else's assignment to define me. This book is composed of my memories, my mishaps, my struggles, my survival and my songs. Unfiltered. I went deep into my childhood and gave the scared little girl inside of me a big voice. I let the abandoned and ambitious adolescent have her say, and the betrayed and triumphant woman I became tell her side. Writing this memoir was incredibly hard, humbling and healing. My sincere hope is that you are moved to a new understanding, not only about me, but also about the resilience of the human spirit. Love, Mariah ...Show more

Learn to Play Country Guitar by Phil Capone

$14.99 NZD

$27.00 (44% off)

Category: Music

Learn to play country guitar the easy way, including simple, illustrated lessons that will have you jamming in no time.From hybrid picking and double stops, to twang techniques and country licks--discover everything you need to know to create that unique country guitar sound.And there's a free CD too!- The book contains a series of exercises, explained simply and concisely (and demonstrated on an audio CD) that will allow you to pick up confidence and speed. - Also includes a useful resource section with a "country chord library" and scale libraries for the most popular open tunings used in country guitar. - Exercises are shown in standard musical notation as well as TAB, and with additional photographs to add clarity where needed. ...Show more

Janis: Her Life and Music by Holly George-Warren

$22.99 NZD

Category: Music Biography

Longlisted for the 2020 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence This blazingly intimate biography of Janis Joplin establishes the Queen of Rock & Roll as the rule-breaking musical trailblazer and complicated, gender-bending rebel she was. Janis Joplin's first transgressive act was to be a white girl w ho gained an early sense of the power of the blues, music you could only find on obscure records and in roadhouses along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast. But even before that, she stood out in her conservative oil town. She was a tomboy who was also intellectually curious and artistic. By the time she reached high school, she had drawn the scorn of her peers for her embrace of the Beats and her racially progressive views. Her parents doted on her in many ways, but were ultimately put off by her repeated acts of defiance. Janis Joplin has passed into legend as a brash, impassioned soul doomed by the pain that produced one of the most extraordinary voices in rock history. But in these pages, Holly George-Warren provides a revelatory and deeply satisfying portrait of a woman who wasn't all about suffering. Janis was a perfectionist: a passionate, erudite musician who was born with talent but also worked exceptionally hard to develop it. She was a woman who pushed the boundaries of gender and sexuality long before it was socially acceptable. She was a sensitive seeker who wanted to marry and settle down--but couldn't, or wouldn't. She was a Texan who yearned to flee Texas but could never quite get away--even after becoming a countercultural icon in San Francisco. Written by one of the most highly regarded chroniclers of American music history, and based on unprecedented access to Janis Joplin's family, friends, band mates, archives, and long-lost interviews, Janis is a complex, rewarding portrait of a remarkable artist finally getting her due. ...Show more

Like a Bat Out of Hell: The Larger than Life Story of Meat Loaf by Mick Wall

$37.99 NZD

Category: Music

"I never wanted to be a big star. I just wanted to be the biggest at what I do! Powerful, unstoppable, heavy - when that word still meant something good!" - Meat Loaf, as told to Mick Wall Everything in the story of Meat Loaf is big. From the place he was born (Texas); to the family he was born into (hi s father weighed 22 stone, his uncle weighed over 40 stone, while Meat Loaf himself weighed 17 stone before he was even in his teens); to the sound he made (a colossal collision between Richard Wagner, Phil Spector and Bruce Springsteen); and of course the records he sold - nearly 50 million in Britain and America alone. Now, on the eve of the 40th anniversary of Bat Out of Hell, the album that gave rise to Meat Loaf's astonishing career, the premiere of Bat Out Of Hell: The Musical, and the launch of a mammoth two-year farewell tour, Mick Wall, who has interviewed Meat Loaf on numerous occasions throughout his career, pulls back the curtains to reveal the soft-hearted soul behind the larger-than-life character he created for himself. From a tumultuous childhood with an alcoholic father to the relentless abusive bullying from classmates and their parents alike, nobody could have predicted Meat Loaf's meteoric rise to fame. But when the messianic rock opera Bat Out of Hell was released in 1977, it became one of the biggest albums of all time, selling over 45 million copies worldwide to date. Its release marked the start of a rollercoaster ride of incredible highs and seemingly career-ending lows. By the 80s, Meat Loaf was battling with drug and alcohol addiction and escalating money problems that would eventually lead to a nervous breakdown. But just when it seemed like it was all over, the astonishing success of Bat Out of Hell II and the mega-hit 'I'd Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That)' marked an extraordinary new wave of success. Now, Mick Wall will bring this extraordinary story up to date, drawing on the hours he spent with Meat Loaf, both in interviews and on tour, as well as offering up a unique insight from those who have known him best. ...Show more

The Eagles by Ben Fong-Torres

$45.00 NZD

Category: Music Biography

Eagles: Take It To The Limit is the fascinating inside story of one of the greatest rock bands of all time, written by one of music journalism's most influential voices. Ben Fong-Torres was at Rolling Stone magazine when the Eagles were a cover story in 1979. He followed the band's career, interviewed t hem himself, and even played in the now-famous Eagles vs Rolling Stone magazine softball match. Filled with anecdotes and insights spanning almost 50 years, Take It To The Limit follows the Eagles as the band changed line-up, toured the world, made the best-selling album in American history, split up, and finally reunited. Fully updated in anticipation of their 50th anniversary, this is an exceptional tribute to one of the great American bands.   ...Show more

Brian May's Red Special Guitar - The Story of the Home-Made Guitar That Rocked the World by Brian May; Simon Bradley

$39.99 NZD

Category: Music Biography

Get the full story behind the Red Special, Brian May's hand-built guitar--a unique instrument that helped make May's musical dreams come true. In 1963, Brian May and his father Harold started to build the Red Special--an electric guitar meant to outperform anything commercially made. Here, Brian talks about of his one-of-a-kind instrument, from its creation on. He played it on every single Queen album and during the band's amazing shows: the roof of Buckingham Palace, Live Aid, the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics . . . and beyond. Along with original diagrams, sketches, and notes, May has included a great selection of photographs of himself with the guitar--which was fully dismantled so it could be shot-- as well as close-ups and X-rays. ...Show more

Sweet Dreams - From Club Culture to Style Culture, the Story of the New Romantics by Dylan Jones

$45.00 NZD

Category: Music

Sweet Dreams charts the rise of the New Romantics, a scene that grew out of the remnants of post-punk and developed quickly alongside club culture, ska, electronica, and goth. One of the most creative entrepreneurial periods since the Sixties, the era had a huge influence on the growth of print and broa dcast media, and was arguably one of the most bohemian environments of the late twentieth century. Not only did it visually define the decade, it was the catalyst for the Second British Invasion, when the US charts would be colonised by British pop music - Depeche Mode, Culture Club, Wham!, Soft Cell, Ultravox, Duran Duran, Sade, Spandau Ballet, the Eurythmics and many more - making it one of the most powerful cultural exports since the Beatles. For a while, Sweet Dreams were made of this. ...Show more

A Field Guide to Post-Punk & New Wave by Steve Wide

$35.00 NZD

Category: Music | Series: The\Field Guide Ser.

This book is your gateway to the pop-rock-y, disco-esque, electronic and mod-tastic movement that was (and is) New Wave.   What makes New Wave... New Wave? It's the catchall name of punk's poppy offshoot, born in the 70s, simultaneously born in the United States and United Kingdom. But how would you d escribe New Wave's context in the zeitgeist of the time, or explain how this new electro-rock made people feel? Well, that's precisely what DJ and author Steve Wide explains in this handy book.   In these pages, Steve explains the social and music industry climates of the 70s and 80s, unpacking the influence of the punk genre on NYC-based groups like the Velvet Underground and New York Dolls. There's also a timeline on the usage of the term New Wave - for a long chunk of the 70s it was used almost interchangeably with punk. There are breakdowns on the key record labels, DJs, producers, engineers and magazines - all of which stitched their own layer on the New Wave patchwork. There are deep dives into controversies, rivalries, and messy band breakups. And lastly, there's a dissection of how ripples of New Wave are still felt today, in recorded music and across wider pop culture. ...Show more