An iconic figure of the 1960s and rsquo;70s; Pattie Boyd breaks a forty-year silence in Wonderful Tonight; and tells the story of how she found herself bound to two of the most addictive; promiscuous musical geniuses of the twentieth century and became the most famous muse in the history of rock and roll. She met the Beatles in 1964 when she was cast as a schoolgirl in A Hard Dayrsquo;s Night. Ten days later a smitten George Harrison proposed. For twenty-year-old Pattie Boyd; it was the beginning of an unimaginably rich and complex life as she was welcomed into the Beatles inner circlemdash;a circle that included Mick Jagger; Ron Wood; Jeff Beck; and a veritable whorsquo;s who of rock musicians. She describes the dynamics of the group; the friendships; the tensions; the musicmaking; and the weird and wonderful memories she has of Paul and Linda; Cynthia and John; Ringo and Maureen; and especially the years with her husband; George. It was a sweet; turbulent life; but one that would take an unexpected turn; starting with a simple note that began ldquo;dearest l.rdquo; I read it quickly and assumed that it was from some weirdo; I did get fan mail from time to time.... I thought no more about it until that evening when the phone rang. It was Eric [Clapton]. ldquo;Did you get my letter?rdquo;... And then the penny dropped. ldquo;Was that from you?rdquo; I said....It was the most passionate letter anyone had ever written me.For the first time Pattie Boyd; former wife of both George Harrison and Eric Clapton; a high-profile model whose face epitomized the swinging London scene of the 1960s; a woman who inspired Harrisonrsquo;s song ldquo;Somethingrdquo; and Claptonrsquo;s anthem ldquo;Layla;rdquo; has decided to write a book that is rich and raw; funny and heartbreakingmdash;and totally honest and open and breathtaking. Here is the truth; here is what happened; here is the story yoursquo;ve been waiting for.From the Hardcover edition.
#2335278 in eBooks 2015-09-15 2015-09-15File Name: B016XN1434
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Kindle problemsBy jdownThis is another case where the hardcover book would be much preferable to the Kindle Fire version if one were willing to pay the difference in price. First. Gerry Souters account of Hoppers life. his art. and his stormy relationship with wife Jo (why did she stay with this guy?) are told in a straightforward manner. Souter describes with words each of Hoppers major works and their backstory. Psychoanalysis of the man and the painting are brief and to the point.Unfortunately. in my Kindle Fire. the paintings themselves are shown more or less randomly. not chronologically. throughout the book. For example. Railroad Sunset (1929) and Classic Landscape (1931) are found along with Souters account of Hopper just before WWI. Nighthawks (1942) is shown well before the text describing this classic American painting. certainly Hoppers most famous work. It also does not help that Nighthawks and many other images are split into two halves. which detracts from the overall appreciation of the painting. There is a List of Illustrations at the back of the Kindle version. but with no indication where they are to be found in the book. Finally. the Notes are not highlighted; it is not possible to tap the # of the note. go to the back and read it. then tap the # again to return to the page one was reading.In other words. a B+ for the book. a D- for the Kindle presentation.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A Deep Perspective of Americas Greatest ArtistBy Richard C. GeschkeI have been a student and admirer of Edward Hoppers paintings and drawings for well over two decades. Included in my studies are many catalogs and books showing the paintings and drawings of this great American artist. With Mr. Souters excellent biography of Edward Hopper we follow the making and development of the artistic talents of what I consider the greatest American artist. Souter not only goes on to explain the oeuvre and its inherent development from being a student of Robert Henri and struggling to find his identity as to what style he would develop throughout his artistic life. Souter explains Hoppers struggles and the paintings and drawings of his renderings in his travels to France where he finds himself as a post impressionistic painter looking for his raison detre. Hopper was born a child of the Victorian age and as he developed his talents as Americans greatest painter we shall see his Victorian attitudes play out in his male superiority in his marriage to Josephine Nivison who herself was an artist and student of Henri. In fact Mr. Souter explains the contemptuous relationship that was forty-two years of marriage in which Mr. Hopper physically abused his wife who in all reality was much devoted to him. In fact it is through Josephines ledger keeping records of all of Hoppers works that are recorded as to whom they were sold to when they were sold and for how much money they were sold. Souter explains Hoppers development and his development of his genre. Hoppers use of light and darkness to create a mood or an ambiance of what the scene was. Souter explains that Hopper painted subjects as a realist and chose his scenes not for their beauty but rather for their mystery and in many ways their common appeal. A building not of grand stature but one possessing commonality as seen in everyday life would be a subject Hopper would seek to define. The use of light whether in the morning. midday or in the evening from the sun or from a street lamp in inside lighting of a building were used as every day scenes of realistic sights. Also the use of looking from the outside to the inside of human activity in very intriguing and shall I say in historical perspective "very Hopperesque." Nothing of which Hopper created was meant to be complex. However his critics always interpreted his works to the nth degree and in reality made Hopper actually simplify his works when he interpreted them. thus disappointing the artistic critics. As an admirer of Edward Hoppers works. I find that one has to look at his oeuvre of work and look at them and make their own interpretations. Once one can do that. one will see the enduring genius of what Hopper created over his long artist life. Souter has put together an epic historical record of Americas greatest artist. Bravo!!1 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Gentle. informative introduction to Edward Hoppers life and workBy P. SHAVEREveryone with even a passing interest in 20th century art is familiar with some of Hoppers unique and iconic paintings. with their odd mixture of realism. abstraction. and Moody expressionism. They force a viewer to wonder what kind of person created them. under what life circumstances. This book provides a clear. accessible overview of Hoppers long life. his troubled but unbreakable relationship with his wife. and the fascinating paintings he created during tumultuous years in Americas. and Western art s. history. The book contains a large selection of Hoppers paintings. along with information about when. where. and under what circumstances. they were painted. The book is short on information about Hoppers technique. and on attempts to analyze Hopper and his wife psychologically. (Im a psychologist who studies relationships. so I care about these kinds of things. but I can imagine that many other readers do not.) Overall. I enjoyed the book and intend to reread parts of it again while studying particular paintings in more detail.
