Quite confusing, unfortunatly I lost track

I listened to around 3 hours of the audible book but found it very confusing on who was who and what was going on.

Just not a book for me unfortunatly.

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Not one to miss.

Whilst listening to this book I felt I was part of Bernie’s world throughout the decades. With anyone else narrating, I believe his story would feel like a mire of self indulgent name dropping and extravagantly fanciful storytelling but he manages to recount his past in such a matter of fact way that there can be little doubt to its accuracy.
He is almost flowery and poetic in his style of writing and I have no idea how he can remember his life in such detail but I also felt an honesty to his recollections. I was left feeling envious of his life so far and the incredible people he has interacted with over the years.
This book is a time capsule of recollections about the famous and infamous over the decades and Bernie Taupin stands toe to toe with all these greats.
He seems brutally honest, self deprecating and generous with his praise of those he admires.
A great wordsmith, narrator and historian.
I enjoyed being a fly on the wall.

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A life lived full

Whether or not you are a fan of the music of Bernie and the rainbow that is Elton this a a roller coaster of a ride and a fascinating peek into a beguiling world most of us can only read about. This is a Magical Mystery Tour de force.

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Loved it

Thanks Bernie was a great read, what a great life you have had. I am happy that you and Elton found what life is really about in the end.

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Bernie is an inspirational man for all seasons!

I found this telling very humourous, inspirational and revealing after every count. Well worth more than one listen! The words had me chuckling if not laughing out loud, what a gas. Wish I'd known this fella personally, a man after my own heart, it seems to me.

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Magnificent

One of the best autobiographies I’ve ever read.
I obviously knew of Elton John, his music and his life story. I’ve also seen Elton live on three occasions.
As to the man behind the lyrics, I only knew the name, Bernie Taupon, (in fact I served Bernie at my market stall in Lincolnshire, UK and found him to be kind and without the trappings of a ‘famous pop star’.)
In this autobiography I am entertained by Bernie’s amazing life.
All in all, a great pleasure.

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A superb read. Thankyou

I put this review on Amazon as I have book/kindle versions but mainly used audio and would like it here as well because i disagree with some of the reviews here.
I chanced on this book when visiting LA and through attending the LA Live Talk of Bernie interviewed by Cameron Crowe. There was much discussion there about the songs and the words and some anecdotes about interesting people, including Sir Elton. But I don't recall any questions about the process of writing it. How many drafts before he was happy with it? Did he agonize over some sentences until they were just right? He says he wrote the lyrics for his favorite work in 30 minutes. Surely this book was different because... can I say it, was almost Joycean? Each sentence seemed to have been carefully honed. With audiobook at 1.2 speed on the long flight home, it became a pleasure to follow despite the intricate, full-bodied writing style, with the occasional 30 second rewind to savour a sentence. The visual metaphors, the choice of words were a challenge early but as the book went on, and the mind adjusted to the pace, well, some of it was just so clever and beautiful. Talking of his home office he said it was "unorganized". The immediate thought is a gotcha moment - should have been "disorganized" - but listening again to the context, the former was right, implying intent with the latter implying neglect. Brilliant if it was deliberate. The anecdotes were entertaining. Admitting all the not-so-fine times was honest. The struggle with parents' health was familiar and the later chapters were redemptive and uplifting. I love it when people open up like this when they are having an extraordinary life. We are richer for hearing it. Although I would not have wanted to meet him in some of those Almost Famous-style drinking sessions at a seedy bar between gigs, I think anyone today would enjoy a good chin-wag with Bernie over a meal and a drink. A chat about anything but Sir E because even Rocketman admitted surprise at what Bernie got up to over the years. Thankyou Bernie for putting in the effort.

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2 people found this helpful

I loved it! Brilliantly written (of course), honest, witty & humorous.

With no exceptions I thoroughly enjoyed this audio, with its flowery writing & visuals it generated (which I usually loath) but being frequently injected with humour, made for many laugh out loud moments.
When I discovered who Bernie was (back in the 80’s) I was envious of his life/job & genuinely believe he had the best job in the world & the best side of the “coin”.
I appreciated that he doesn’t waffle on about the intricacies of his job (which others found disappointing) but rather focuses on his life as a whole. Other reviews complained about him name dropping (which I found ridiculous) these ‘famous’ people are his friends, how is he supposed to talk about his life & experiences without mentioning them.
I particularly loved his honesty & capacity to remain unimpressed by famous twats, just because they’re famous, calling them out for being Not nice people.
Most of all I loved his loyalty, love & devotion to his friend (brother from another mother) Reg.
Looking forward to now listening to Elton’s side of the “coin”.

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Not enough insight into the creative process, boring at times.

Not enough insight into the creative process and quite boring at times unfortunately. Elton’s memoir is superior

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Boring Boring Boring

The single worst audiobook that i have purchased, i’m sure theres s decent story in there but the monotonous reading where every sentence drifted straight into the next sentence put me to sleep . That reading was horrendous and why did the story not sound like anything that BT has ever written on spoken .. BT is a good interview and nothing like this verbose bore

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