bunnieslikediamonds's review against another edition
4.0
Whoa, Carly Simon sure got around. Kris Kristofferson, Mick Jagger, Jack Nicholson, Warren Beatty and many other 70's hotties had a thing for her and she for them. Oh, and Terence Malick! Also Cat Stevens. And I'm pretty sure her sister slept with Sean Connery. This is not at all the point of this memoir by the way, but I'm apparently a frivolous person who is easily impressed by sexual conquests. Sorry.
I can hum maybe two of her songs, so I don't count as a fan, but I never pass on an opportunity to read a juicy memoir from the 70's music scene. This was a lot of fun to read. VERY candid. Almost half the book is about her pre-fame childhood, which I thought was every bit as engrossing as her musical career, but may not appeal to those who are mainly interested in her as a musician. This is, I should add, very much a memoir as opposed to an autobiography, meaning no dull chronological exposition, just the good stuff.
I came away thinking that 1) James Taylor is a huge asshole, which is the opposite of what Carly Simon, most forgiving woman in the world, thinks, and 2) Warren Beatty had moves I cannot even conceive of.
I can hum maybe two of her songs, so I don't count as a fan, but I never pass on an opportunity to read a juicy memoir from the 70's music scene. This was a lot of fun to read. VERY candid. Almost half the book is about her pre-fame childhood, which I thought was every bit as engrossing as her musical career, but may not appeal to those who are mainly interested in her as a musician. This is, I should add, very much a memoir as opposed to an autobiography, meaning no dull chronological exposition, just the good stuff.
I came away thinking that 1) James Taylor is a huge asshole, which is the opposite of what Carly Simon, most forgiving woman in the world, thinks, and 2) Warren Beatty had moves I cannot even conceive of.
tbim's review against another edition
3.0
I first met Carly in the summer of '74. We had an immediate sexually chemistry and spent several blissfull weeks together in Des Moines. Well, not really, but that story would fit right in this biography.
mfg1994's review against another edition
4.0
Such fascinating anecdotes from one of the greatest women in music. An honest yet sweet memoir, touching on issues from stage fright and anxiety to infidelity and love. Beautifully written.
spinnerroweok's review against another edition
3.0
I was not expecting so many personal details in a book. I liked that the audiobook had her music. The only drawback is that in the mixing, many times the music competed with the narration. Also, the music didn't appear to always punctuate the moment as I would have expected. But then again, maybe I didn't recognize the moments as punctuatable. Interesting book. It reminds of The Outsiders where Cherry Valance says, "Things are rough all over" indicating that regardless of social class, life is not easy.
thuglibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
Lovers of music and of Carly will want to read this book so it will sell. I found it to be pedantic in areas and foggy in others. Carly doesn't seem to have great insight (or at least it doesn't come across in this memoir) into why she started stuttering and suffered from stage fright. Or she does recognize these childhood events but trivializes them as a way of coping with what occurred. Either way, this book will sell.
catzeyez's review against another edition
5.0
Maybe I am biased as I am a big Carly Simon fan, and her music was so much a part of my life during my teens and still can transport me back to various moments and emotions in my life when I hear a particular song.....I loved this book and plan to read it again at some point. As a memoir it covered much of what I wanted, her life from childhood, her family relationships, her analysis of various moments of her life, her song writing, her relationships, her beautiful music, her emotions. It was so beautiful to read of a moment in time which could then be linked to a lyric, so much so I would hear the song in my head as I read. That often lead to tears, but then I get emotional over music, reading, art. Her writing was very good, as you would expect, she shared her experiences openly and honestly. Well worth the read.
kspoonerfish's review against another edition
3.0
3 1/2 stars. It's a book I would recommend to someone that grew up with Carly Simon and James Taylor songs. It tells the story behind many of their songs. It was sad because of the marriage failures and addictions. It gives some behind the scenes of musicians from the 70's and some actors. The Warren Beatty story was funny. There were a lot of boys in her trees.
robinsbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I've been a Carly Simon fan since 1971 when she released her first hit, "That's the Way I Always Heard It Should Be," so I waited for this memoir with great "Anticipation," but turns out the subtitle could have been "You're So Vague."
This was both fascinating and exasperating as Carly went into too much detail in some areas and not enough in others, and even though she imparted some very intimate (and many times unneeded) aspects about her life and experiences, (especially about her sexual development), she lightly skimmed or ignored other areas. Or she talked in circles or was coy about a few things had happened and I was never really clear as to what she meant (did she or didn't she have an affair with Mick Jagger?). Her prose also verged on wordy and florid, and a few times I had to reread sentences to get the exact meaning.
One of the most interesting parts of her story was the development of the song "You're So Vain" and her admission of who was the object of one of the verses (Warren Beatty, which is no spoiler because by now it's been widely reported), but wouldn't say who the others were about. My own thoughts were if one read between the lines of her other affairs and friendships, perhaps the others could be discerned--but perhaps that's just me reading too much into it.
Because I'm a fan and have waited so long to read her story, I gave this 4 stars, and since this ended with the end of her marriage to James Taylor (who comes across as a total jerk) in the mid-eighties, I hope she continues her story in another volume.
This was both fascinating and exasperating as Carly went into too much detail in some areas and not enough in others, and even though she imparted some very intimate (and many times unneeded) aspects about her life and experiences, (especially about her sexual development), she lightly skimmed or ignored other areas. Or she talked in circles or was coy about a few things had happened and I was never really clear as to what she meant (did she or didn't she have an affair with Mick Jagger?). Her prose also verged on wordy and florid, and a few times I had to reread sentences to get the exact meaning.
One of the most interesting parts of her story was the development of the song "You're So Vain" and her admission of who was the object of one of the verses (Warren Beatty, which is no spoiler because by now it's been widely reported), but wouldn't say who the others were about. My own thoughts were if one read between the lines of her other affairs and friendships, perhaps the others could be discerned--but perhaps that's just me reading too much into it.
Because I'm a fan and have waited so long to read her story, I gave this 4 stars, and since this ended with the end of her marriage to James Taylor (who comes across as a total jerk) in the mid-eighties, I hope she continues her story in another volume.