Big Man: Real Life & Tall Tales
by Clarence Clemons, Don Reo
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Book Summary Information
Author: Clarence Clemons, Don ReoForeword: Bruce Springsteen
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-10-21
ISBN: 0446546267
Number of pages: 384
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Book Reviews of Big Man: Real Life & Tall Tales
Book Review: Strange and Wonderful
Summary: 5 Stars
It says in the beginning of the book that this is not a standard memoir, which is certainly true. I can't really think of an appropriate comparison because I don't think I've ever read anything like it before. It's a peculiar and utterly unique mix of Clarence's memoir and half-truths (the "Legend" sections tell you up front, basically, that they are compilations of true things that happened but in different orders/settings and half truths that have been embellished for fun). On top of that, it's told in rotating first-person narratives so you have Clarence's voice telling you what happened and then sometimes you have the co-writer basically filling in the blanks. Honestly, it's a strange combination of factors.
That said, I couldn't put it down. The writing is excellent, the storytelling is a blast, it moves incredibly quickly, and you do learn a ton about Bruce and E Street (at least I did, but I'm not a complete Bruce nut...just a regular fan who could not tell you the last time he played any specific song live).
More than anything, this book seems to be about conveying a feeling, as in giving you the feeling that you are basically hanging out with Clarence while he tells you many things about his own past (childhood, wanting to be a football player, following music to Bruce, etc etc) to his hopes and dreams and fears. When you look at this way, you end up with a much better sense of Clarence as a person than you would have with "I was born in X. Then I did X. Then I did X." type of standard memoir. As Bruce says in the Foreword: "This book gets as close to the "truth" about Clarence Clemons as I can imagine. Mere facts will never plumb the mysteries of the Big Man."
I applaud Clarence for having the courage and desire to take a really different route in the book world, one that is far more creative, personal, unqiue, strange, and, for me at least, leaves me with a much longer-lasting impression of the man himself than I have gotten from other musician/celeb memoirs I can think of. I'm sure it would have been a lot easier for him to just tell a ghostwriter stuff about his life and do a standard thing. This feels nothing like that...it comes from the heart and clearly Clarence and Don have a relationship far deeper than a celeb and ghostwriter.
Like the Big Man, it's one of a kind. Bravo.
Summary of Big Man: Real Life & Tall Tales
For the first time ever comes the inside story of Clarence "Big Man" Clemons--his life before, during and beyond the E-Street Band, including unbelievable, never-before-told adventures with Bruce Springsteen, the band, and an incredible cast of other famous characters recounted by himself and his best friend, television writer/ producer Don Reo.Here are just a few things you'll get from reading it:
- The truth behind the final hours of making Born To Run
- The real story of how the E-Street Band got its name
- What happened when Clarence and Ringo Starr were sitting in a hotel room and Clarence got the call that Bruce was breaking up the band
- How Bruce and Clarence met that dark, stormy night at the Student Prince
- The E-Street band's show at Sing-Sing prison where all of their equipment blows out right as they take the stage
- The secret that Robert De Niro told Clarence and Bruce they had to keep for 25 years
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