Scattershot: Special Edition by Bernie Taupin - Signed Special (400) Edition

Scattershot: Special Edition by Bernie Taupin - Signed Limited (400) Edition

Hand Signed by Bernie Taupin to a Title Page
Hardback 1st Special Edition
New & Unread - Published 11th November 2023

“I loved writing, I loved chronicling life and every moment I was cogent, sober, or blitzed, I was forever feeding off my surroundings, making copious notes as ammunition for future compositions. . . . The thing is good, bad or indifferent I never stopped writing, it was as addictive as any drug.”

This is the memoir music fans have been waiting for. Half of one of the greatest creative partnerships in popular music, Bernie Taupin is the man who wrote the lyrics for Elton John, who conceived the ideas that spawned countless hits, and sold millions and millions of records. Together, they were a duo, a unit, an immovable object. Their extraordinary, half-century-and-counting creative relationship has been chronicled in biopics (like 2019’s Rocketman) and even John’s own autobiography, Me. But Taupin, a famously private person, has kept his own account of their adventures close to his chest, until now.

Written with honesty and candour, Scattershot allows the reader to witness events unfolding from Taupin’s singular perspective, sometimes front and center, sometimes from the edge, yet always described vibrantly, with an infectious energy that only a vivid songwriter’s prose could offer. From his childhood in the East Midlands of England whose imagination was sparked and forever informed by the distinctly American mythopoetics of country music and cowboys, to the glittering, star-studded fishbowl of ’70s and ’80s Beverly Hills, Scattershot is simultaneously a Tom Jones­-like picaresque journey across a landscape of unforgettable characters, as well as a striking, first-hand account of a creative era like no other and one man’s experience at the core of it.

An exciting, multi-decade whirlwind, Scattershot whizzes around the world as we ride shotgun with Bernie on his extraordinary life. We visit New York with him and Elton on the cusp of global fame. We spend time with him in Australia almost in residency at an infamous rock ‘n’ roll hotel in an endless blizzard of drugs. And we spend late, late night hours with John Lennon, with Bob Marley, and hanging with Frank Sinatra. And beyond the world of popular music, we witness memorable encounters with writers like Graham Greene, painters like Andy Warhol and Salvador Dali, and scores of notable misfits, miscreants, eccentrics, and geniuses, known and unknown. Even if they’re not famous in their own right, they are stars on the page, and we discover how they inspired the indelible lyrics to songs such as “Tiny Dancer,” “Candle in the Wind,” “Bennie and The Jets,” and so many more.

Unique and utterly compelling, Scattershot will transport the reader across the decades and around the globe, along the way meeting some of the greatest creative minds of the 20th century, and into the vivid imaginings of one of music’s most legendary lyricists. 

Designed by Bernie Taupin: This special edition includes beautiful bespoke printed prelims, with a tip-in page hand signed by Taupin, and a real cloth case made from an original artwork created exclusively for this edition for Bernie Taupin. The edition has vivid red sprayed edges, 80 gsm Munken Print Cream pages, black head and tailbands and a black reading ribbon.

Limited Edition Postcards: Included in this special edition is an A5 sized postcard of Bernie Taupin’s 'Love Me Again' artwork, created in 2019 in honour of the song “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” for the Rocketman soundtrack. Plus, an A5 print of the book’s epilogue, hand-written by Bernie Taupin.

About the Author: Bernie Taupin is an English lyricist who has worked in partnership with legendary singer, composer, pianist, and worldwide icon Elton John since 1967 and has written the lyrics for most of John’s famous hits, including “Rocket Man,” “Candle in the Wind,” “Crocodile Rock”, “Your Song,” “I’m Still Standing,” and countless others. One of the most successful and long-running musical collaborations in music history, John and Taupin received the Johnny Mercer Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame, a lifetime achievement Grammy, an Academy Award, and many more. In 2022, Taupin was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to music, and in 2023 he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He lives in Southern California.

Format: Hardback Special Edition
ISBN: 9781800962033

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