The Beautiful Ones

This book, had he been able to finish it and allow some of the same rawness, memorabilia, and pictures, would have been massive in size...volumes... so its tempting to give the book less than five stars, but I can't fault a memoir for an unfortunate and tragic death that curtailed its completion. Its brilliant what they were able to do in spite of his death though. Plus, had he lived he might have chucked it anyhow. A two hundred page journal discovered after he died would have probably been brilliantly raw...the fact we get 28 pages of that is still a treat.Some have said this is a quick read, but really its not. It is surprisingly dense with tidbits and offers new insights when you re-read it. The article (with his conversations and thoughts throughout), the captions in the back, his memoir and its notes, the pictures and things he kept (his dad's wallet with his mom's picture in it--speaks volumes) , the original darker PR script--all make up a puzzle... When you assess all this stuff and organize it a bit by theme, its got a lot to say about Prince's core dilemma and the way in which he filtered his personal experiences (how he attempted to use humor, imagination, self invention, and optimism to combat despair and often succeeded) .You discover a man tormented by insecurities/an identity crisis, religious guilt, and a longing for unity due to polar-opposite parents who drug him into their drama (not intentionally but still) leaving him feeling divided and unclear of how loved he was. He is consumed with imagination and a brilliant savant-like mind and as a result, he decides to use art, music, fame and re-invention (maybe a bit too soon after the 'traumatic" divorce) as a way to create a happy harmonious life, and when he was up on that stage soaking up the audience's love , I believe it worked.. But, it must have been exhausting to be Prince though (and this might have helped lead to his death) and I am not sure he ever found that harmony on a regular basis, but his life had wonderful moments through out. The Beautiful Ones hurt you the most and sometimes you love them but don't trust them but there is still love, forgiveness, beauty, and humor in the little moments. And even if one is warring with oneself a lot of the time, there is still moments of harmony and joy to be had in the expression of that duality.Do we learn about what Prince thought about his mistakes later in life or his behavior with others and some of his narcissistic defenses? .NO. (But there is a point when he alludes to his tendency to self-protect by bailing out of relationships when he figures they are heading into the pits..to guard his heart) But we are given a motivation for his need to create himself and control that creation...we get his motivation for making his art his life. (Very few artists do I find to be misunderstand and "tortured" artists to the extent I see in him.) But his warm attention to detail in terms of describing others and his love of people like Bernadette Anderson, his parents, the musicians who inspired him, and his community overall indicate a heart more caring than he might have wanted people to believe in the past.Plus, the book has got cool pictures and is damn funny at times.

Worth the read. Well written. Provides interesting information about Prince. Sad that such a great talent has been lost to us.

Prince. The mere mention of his name brings up memories of my first Purple Rain album, waiting in 100 degree heat for tickets, the exhilaration of his concerts, and the giddy joy of it all. There was no one on earth who was great with music, greater with double entendres, and the greatest at singing about his ode to joy: sex. And he did it with high heels and makeup. Prince was my life. Until his life ended.A few months before he passed, Prince was working on publishing his memoir. He sought out an unknown journalist named Dan Piepenbring to do the ghostwriting. For three months Piepenbring spent time in Prince’s inner circle, had lengthy discussions with him, and read over his handwritten notes. After his lonely death, the estate granted Piepenbring access to Prince’s personal items that spanned his entire life.Those personal items are the core of the Beautiful Ones, Prince’s “incomplete” memoir. Replete with family photos, school pictures, his drawings, and with his written songs, The Beautiful Ones gives us a glimpse of his family and his early years. It also gives us an idea of what it was like for Prince to grow up black in Minneapolis. In good ways and bad, one can glean that Prince’s childhood not only shaped him, but allowed him to channel those struggles into his music.The real treat of the Beautiful Ones is the photo journal taken in 1977, right before Prince’s rise to superstardom. You see Prince the wunderkind, mugging for the camera, knowing he’s a star. The early photos of Prince are both poignant and sad, because it shows his brilliance yet shows his vulnerability and loneliness. It’s almost like he’s taking those pictures from a fishbowl.Because of its incompleteness, The Beautiful Ones has a lot of photojournalism along with quotes from various interviews and magazine articles. The rare photography of Prince shows his sheer presence, and his hunger for fame. For the Uber-Stans, The Beautiful Ones won’t disappoint you. If you’re a casual fan who wants an in-depth memoir into Prince’s life, look elsewhere.It isn’t a coincidence that The Beautiful Ones is incomplete, just as his death wasn’t as untimely as we’d like to believe. Prince lived on his enigmatic terms, and he died as one. He gave us everything he had, but he wasn’t going to give us everything. He gave us just enough to keep us guessing, without giving himself totally away.Prince loved his fans, which is why he wrote this beautiful book. This was his swan song, his thank you, and his goodbye to his fans. I found myself in awe throughout the book, because it’s truly that beautiful...And in tears because it’s truly that sad.