Me (Elton John)

Me - John  Elton

There is actually more humility on display here than you would expect from the egocentric title. Elton John is one of the survivors amongst his hard-living generation of rock stars, and one reason for that is that he developed a bit of self-knowledge along the way, as well as the (eventual) courage to jettison his drug/alcohol habit with the help of some remarkably loyal friends.

 

At the distance of a few weeks, none of the anecdotes in this heavily anecdotal (and quite readable) memoir leaps to mind as the most remarkable, though the life itself has been altogether remarkable in its good fortune; that good fortune appears to have been supported by a pretty good work ethic (except during the most depressed episodes) and a solid sense of how the business works as a whole. Like just about any other celebrity autobiographer I've read, Elton John has his own tales of venal &/or inept management. But it seems he has managed to hang on to control of his own work pretty well, and even managed to dictate his own terms with heavy hitters like Disney. And he has also, against all odds, acquired a happy domestic life - with marriage (to a Canadian!) and kids - in his old age.

 

John has a legendary temper. He admits to it here, but I doubt he really admits to all the damage he has likely done with it over the years. He does provide a bit of insight into its origins when he discusses the painful and lengthy friction with his mother.

 

I enjoyed this while I was reading it, and would recommend it to anyone interested in the period, but really I'd far rather go back and listen to "Your Song", "Rocket Man" or "Crocodile Rock" than read it again.