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“I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
It is genuinely funny, and Carole’s voice – bright, self-deprecating, but fearful and searching – comes through wonderfully well. The writing on Burt Bacharach is a highlight; really well observed, and the treatment of the depth of her despair over losing him is terrific.”
– Bette Midler
“Carole gives us a front row seat
on the piano bench as she knocks out hit after hit with Marvin Hamlisch and Burt Bacharach, sits down with Bob Dylan in his barn, Michael Jackson in his studio, and Elizabeth Taylor on her bed (no, they didn’t churn out a hit, just a deep friendship). This is a funny fast paced heartfelt book by an accomplished glamorous woman who openly shares her journey with us.”
– Candice Bergen
“From the hit-prone Carole Bayer Sager
comes this delightful and funny tell-all crammed with famous names and famous songs. Every few pages you’ll say to yourself, ‘I didn’t realize she wrote that.”
– Steve Martin
“Carole Bayer Sager is simply the finest.
Having lived, loved and worked alongside gold standard major hitters like Marvin Hamlisch, Burt Bacharach, David Foster, and Peter Allen, she has had to be. Carole braids together lyrics the way Venus and Serena spin aces – repeatedly, miraculously – and this book is one of the best, most lasting songs she has ever written.”
– Carly Simon
If you like, you can read all about my life, my songs my collaborators, including the composers and artists I’ve worked with, Melissa Manchester, Peter Allen, Marvin Hamlisch, who I wrote “They’re Playing My Song” with, Bob Dylan, Michael Jackson and the one I married, (Burt Bacharach), Carole King, Carly Simon, Barbara Streisand, and more in my memoir, it also is the story of my journey from darkness to light, xxx
They’re Playing Our Song
Grammy and Academy Award–winning songwriter Carole Bayer Sager shares the remarkably frank and darkly funny story of her life in and out of the recording studio, from her fascinating (and sometimes calamitous) relationships to her collaborations with some of the greatest composers and musical artists of our time.
For five decades, Carole Bayer Sager has been among the most admired and successful songwriters at work, responsible for her lyrical contributions to some of the most popular songs in the English language, including “Nobody Does It Better,” “A Groovy Kind of Love,” “Don’t Cry Out Loud,” and the theme from the movie Arthur, “The Best That You Can Do” (about getting lost between the moon and New York City).
She has collaborated with (and written for) a dizzying number of stars, including Peter Allen, Ray Charles, Celine Dion, Bob Dylan, Neil Diamond, Clint Eastwood, Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Carole King, Melissa Manchester, Reba McEntire, Bette Midler, Dolly Parton, Carly Simon, Frank Sinatra, and Barbra Streisand.
Her relationship with composer Marvin Hamlisch was the basis of the long-running hit musical, They’re Playing Our Song, for which she wrote the lyrics. And her work with composer Burt Bacharach, to whom she was also married for ten years, produced pop standards such as “On My Own” and “That’s What Friends Are For” (inspired by her friendship with Elizabeth Taylor), which raised over two million dollars for AIDS research.
But while her professional life was filled with success and fascinating people, her personal life was far more difficult and dramatic. In this memoir, Carole Bayer Sager tells the surprisingly frank and darkly humorous story of a woman whose sometimes crippling fears and devastating relationships inspired many of the songs she would ultimately write.
They’re Playing Our Song will fascinate anyone interested in the craft of songwriting and the joy of collaboration, but Carole Bayer Sager’s memoir is also a deeply personal account of how love and heartbreak made her the woman, and the writer, she is.
