World Famous Comics: Hitman: Forty Years Making Music, Topping the Charts, and Winning Grammys
Hitman: Forty Years Making Music, Topping the Charts, and Winning Grammys
By: David Foster Publisher: Pocket Average Rating: Binding: Hardcover Label: Pocket Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 240 Publication Date: November 04, 2008
Product Description: After almost four decades in the music business, David Foster -- producer, arranger, songwriter, performer -- is finally ready to talk. In this compelling and outspoken memoir, Foster shares some of his incredible stories: the first time he met Barbra Streisand, as a young session player in Los Angeles; his first of 15 Grammys® for "After the Love Has Gone," Earth, Wind & Fire's memorable hit; the making of Unison, Celine Dion's English-language debut; the challenges he faced on his way to putting the group Chicago back on the charts; his award-winning contribution to Unforgettable: With Love, Natalie Cole's comeback album; those back-to-back recording sessions with Madonna and Michael Jackson; and the incredible chain of events that spawned Whitney Houston's historic blockbuster, "I Will Always Love You."
Foster has worked with superstars of every decade, including:
Celine Dion - Josh Groban - Whitney Houston - Michael Bublé - Barbra Streisand - Andrea Bocelli - Madonna - Michael Jackson - Natalie Cole - George Harrison - Earth, Wind & Fire - *NSYNC - Chicago - Paul McCartney - All-4-One - Katharine McPhee - Toni Braxton - Alice Cooper - Olivia Newton-John - Michael Bolton
...and many more.
From his unique and privileged vantage point, Foster describes the delicate balancing act between artist and producer, offers revealing portraits of some of those artists at work, and shares his secrets for success in the maddeningly fickle music industry.
At its heart, this is the story of a boy with perfect pitch who grew up to become one of the most influential musical forces of our time -- the solid gold hitman who produced the soundtrack of our lives.
oh brother! laughably narcissistic. a cover to cover self-love-fest.
Watch the DVD.
Skip the book!!
Interesting Music Business Stories from a Flawed Self-Promoter Foster and his co-author have written a breezy book filled with name-dropping stories about the music business. It's all very interesting and the 209 pages fly by so quickly that the book's main fault is that it isn't long enough.
The musician writes briefly about major things that deserve many more pages, such as when the Beatles showed up to cheer when his group backed up Chuck Berry or getting his girlfriend pregnant, then the baby suddenly being "taken" from him (what does that mean?).
He dropped out of high school and never explains how he completed his education. He turns down a job with Cat Stevens, claiming that it was important to learn how to say "no," but then he ends up wallowing for years after that which negates the supposed lesson. His late-in-life spin is that it all worked out for good, but he could use some introspection and put much more of his feelings into his memoir.
There are other fun revelations, such as Kevin Costner being the one who picked "I Will Always Love You" for Whitney Houston. Or that Barbra Streisand heard him tinkering on the piano and chose his interpretation of "All in Love is Fair" over the one from the producer. Or that his estranged first daughter wrote the Michael Buble hit "Home," and David had nothing to do with it (Foster was Buble's original producer).
He also comes across as a bit of a sleazeball who tries to sugar-coat his huge failings and his inability to be in a committed relationship. He relates his story of cheating on his first wife without actually saying he was cheating, excusing it away as that he was too committed to his work. The fact that his wife went berserk when confronting the girlfriend (the police were involved) is brushed aside as no big deal. He then admits to cheating on his other wives. He continually makes excuses for ignoring his children, claiming he felt "guilt," but never being man enough to do anything about it. And in his version of the infamous story when he hit Ben Vereen with his car, Foster claims he should be praised for injuring the dancer (yes--he actually thinks he saved Vereen's life by hitting him with a car!).
He does tell us, however, that he never did drugs. He states that so often, and relates so many drug offers, than it raises questions about his sincerity. He did smoke a lot. He quotes many in the music business who worked with him and call him names like egomaniac. And he has a weird phobia of elevators--he literally never uses one.
He admits to lying over and over, so it makes the reader wonder if some of his stories are totally accurate. He also uses a lot of profanity throughout the book to the point where it's distracting.
Foster writes a bit about his TV show "Princes of Malibu," which was one of the biggest reality flops in history. Yet he claims it was a hit, saying "The show was getting great ratings." It got a 3.7 rating and a 6 share in the target demographics--an absolute disaster that placed fourth out of the major four network shows in that time slot. Then David claims it was on three weeks before getting pulled due to his pending divorce! Wrong, buddy. It aired twice before Fox cancelled it. Foster says he decided to file for divorce after watching the first episode--but that is revisionist history as well. When the news broke of the divorce filing by Linda, it was revealed that the divorce had already been in the works before the show aired.
So, again, don't believe what he writes here.
His attitude appears to be a mixture of braggadocio and forced humility. For example, Berry Gordy asked him if he had a song that combined pop and R&B. He lied and said he did, then sat down and come up on the spot with "After the Love Has Gone," claiming it was "a gift from heaven." Then, telling the story in the book, he uses a profanity and says "The best stuff comes through you, not from you."
That encapsulates the whole book. It's certainly worth reading, but you need a healthy dose of skepticism to believe David Foster is everything he thinks he is.
Interesting Bio Nice to learn something behind the man who has written, produced, arranged ---done it all for so many! Look forward to many more years of David Foster sharing his amazing talents with all of us!
Hit man alludes capture. A short, easily read memoir by the musician, songwriter and producer, David Foster. Foster is the man responsible for introducing Josh Groban and Celine Deion to the American pop market. Foster realized at a very early age that he has perfect pitch. He was the only male in a household with six sisters. His dad died when he was a teenager. He was able to make money with his music early in his preteen years. Possibly with this success, Foster does not lack in his sense of self-worth or his gifts as a hit maker. Not a lot of substance here, but for a book with a lot of references to "my good friend..." before the dropping of a familiar name, this is the book.
If you love music and behind-the-scenes looks you will love this book! David Foster has worked with so many artists and is such a talented producer, composer and musician. His experiences just leap off the pages of this wonderful book! I heartily recommend it to anyone who is a fan of modern music and the people that make it!
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