Prince: The Beautiful Ones
Prince was a musical genius, one of the most talented, beloved, accomplished, popular, and acclaimed musicians in pop history. But he wasn't only a musician?he was also a startlingly original visionary with an imagination deep enough to whip up whole worlds, from the sexy, gritty funk paradise of his early records to the mythical landscape of Purple Rain to the psychedelia of Paisley Park. But his greatest creative act was turning Prince Rogers Nelson, born in Minnesota, into Prince, the greatest pop star of his era.
The Beautiful Ones is the story of how Prince became Prince?a first-person account of a kid absorbing the world around him and then creating a persona, an artistic vision, and a life, before the hits and fame that would come to define him. The book is told in four parts. The first is composed of the memoir he was writing before his tragic death, pages that brings us into Prince's childhood world through his own lyrical prose. The second part takes us into Prince's early years as a musician, before his first album released, through a scrapbook of Prince's writing and photos. The third section shows us Prince's evolution through candid images that take us up to the cusp of his greatest achievement, which we see in the book's fourth section: his original handwritten treatment for Purple Rain?the final stage in Prince's self-creation, as he retells the autobiography we've seen in the first three parts as a heroic journey.
The book is framed by editor Dan Piepenbring’s riveting and moving introduction about his short but profound collaboration with Prince in his final days?a time when Prince was thinking deeply about how to reveal more of himself and his ideas to the world, while retaining the mystery and mystique he’d so carefully cultivated?and annotations that provide context to each of the book’s images.
This work is not just a tribute to Prince, but an original and energizing literary work, full of Prince’s ideas and vision, his voice and image, his undying gift to the world.
Review
"A triumph…The Beautiful Ones rivals the Beastie Boys Book – or even your favourite Prince song – as a masterclass in the bottling of its subject’s seductive essence… his presence in this book is so strong that it’s hard to believe he has really left the building. *****" (Mojo)
"Handsomely presented, visually sumptuous... These tantalising pages will only enhance the enigmatic pop star’s mystique. Fluidly written, intimate and warm… it offers glimpses, partial and alluring." (The Times)
"Prince remains as enigmatic as ever. And yet, it is in the very fragmentary structure of the book that the essence of the man comes alive…In a world of identikit pop stars terrified of upsetting the apple cart, this is a book that reminds us that Prince truly was one of a kind." (Irish Independent)
"The Beautiful Ones is a splendidly produced book… and if we are only to have fragments, then these are the very best ones to have: childhood, his complex relationship with his handsome father… and his beautiful complicated mother Mattie… this book is a fun glance, a tiny bolt from what now feels like a very distant past, and will leave you feeling nothing but huge affection for little, brilliant Skipper." (The Spectator)
"A compelling curiosity that finds its author orbiting around a few touchingly intimate encounters with his sphinx-like subject… with passages, lyric sheets and photographs from the Purple One himself." (Daily Telegraph)
About the Author
Prince Rogers Nelson is one of the most popular and influential musical acts of all time. Known for his style and range, Prince’s prolific music career included an ever-evolving sound that blended pop, R&B, hip-hop, jazz and soul. Prince sold over 100 million albums worldwide, making him one of the best-selling artists of all time. He won seven GRAMMY® Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and an Academy Award® for the film “Purple Rain.” He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004, the first year of his eligibility. Prince tragically passed away at his Paisley Park home on April 21, 2016. His legacy lives on through the timeless messages of love in his music and the countless ways his work has touched lives.
Dan Piepenbring is a writer and former editor at The Paris Review.
Podrobnosti
| Autor |
Prince |
|---|---|
| Vydavatel |
Century |
| Jazyk | anglicky |
| Vazba | pevná |
| Počet stran | 288 |
| Formát | 16,7 × 24,1 cm |
| EAN | 9781780899176 |
| Rok vydání | 2019 |
| Edice |
Biografie, memoáry, osobnosti Hudba Hudba |
Autor
Prince
Podobné knihy
