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Mick Jagger

3.43 of 5 stars 3.43 · rating details · 178 ratings · 48 reviews

A supreme achiever to whom his colossal achievements seem to mean nothing . . .

A supreme extrovert who prefers discretion . . .

A supreme egotist who dislikes talking about himself . . .

Philip Norman has long towered above other rock biographers with his definitive studies of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Elton John, Buddy Holly, and John Lennon--legends whom the world t...more A supreme achiever to whom his colossal achievements seem to mean nothing . . .

A supreme extrovert who prefers discretion . . .

A supreme egotist who dislikes talking about himself . . .

Philip Norman has long towered above other rock biographers with his definitive studies of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Elton John, Buddy Holly, and John Lennon--legends whom the world thought it knew, but who came to life as never before through the meticulousness of Norman's research, the sweep of his cultural knowledge, and the brilliance of his writing.

Now Norman turns to a rock icon who is the most notorious yet enigmatic of them all. Throughout five decades of fronting the Rolling Stones, Mick Jagger has been seen as the ultimate arrogant, narcissistic superstar, whose sexual appetite and cavalier treatment of women rival Casanova's and whose supposed reckless drug use touched off the most famous scandal in rock history. Now a grandfather nearing seventy and a British knight of the realm, he still creates excitement at the mere mention of his name; still remains the model for every young rock singer who ever takes the stage.

Norman shows Jagger to be a character far more complex than the cold archseducer of myth: human, vulnerable, often impressive, sometimes endearing. Here at last is the real story of how the Stones' brilliant first manager, Andrew Oldham, transformed a shy economics student named Mike Jagger into a modern Antichrist...of Jagger's vicious show trial and imprisonment on minuscule drug charges in 1967...his remarkable feat at the Stones' Hyde Park concert in making a quarter of a million people keep quiet and listen to poetry...his unpublicized heroic role at the Altamont festival that brought the sunny sixties to a horrific end...the cavalcade of beautiful women from Chrissie Shrimpton to Jerry Hall, whom he has bedded but not always dominated...the enduring but ever-fraught partnership with his "Glimmer Twin," Keith Richards.

While playful about some aspects of Sir Mick, Norman gives him long overdue credit as a songwriter, whose "Sympathy for the Devil" is one of the few truly epic pop singles, and as a harmonica player fit to rank among the great blues masters who inspired the Stones before money became their raison d'etre.

Mick Jagger, above all, explores the keen and calculating intelligence that has kept the Stones on their plinth as "the world's greatest rock 'n' roll band" for half a century.(less)

Hardcover, 640 pages

Published October 2nd 2012 by Ecco

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May 13, 2013 Charlie Crane rated it 3 of 5 stars

Perhaps the most shocking revelation in Philip Norman's new unauthorized biography of the Rolling Stones' frontman, Mick Jagger (Harper Collins, 640 pages) is that Jagger isn't a very interesting subject at all. Norman was rejected back in 1982 as a potential ghostwriter for a Jagger autobiography, and he seems to take great pleasure in relating the story of how the completed manuscript was deemed by its editor "heart-stoppingly dull" and duly rejected. Similarly, a documentary directed by Peter...more Perhaps the most shocking revelation in Philip Norman's new unauthorized biography of the Rolling Stones' frontman, Mick Jagger (Harper Collins, 640 pages) is that Jagger isn't a very interesting subject at all. Norman was rejected back in 1982 as a potential ghostwriter for a Jagger autobiography, and he seems to take great pleasure in relating the story of how the completed manuscript was deemed by its editor "heart-stoppingly dull" and duly rejected. Similarly, a documentary directed by Peter Whitehead about a 1965 tour of Ireland was left unreleased when the director spent most of his time following not Jagger but drummer Charlie Watts, and a mooted article by Truman Capote about the Stones' notoriously decadent 1972 American tour was scrapped, with Capote dismissing Jagger as an uninteresting "businessman."

Clearly, Norman faced an uphill battle in making his subject seem worthy for chronicle, and he succeeds to a point by painting Jagger as both the sensible anchor that kept the debauchery of his band mates in check and as an insatiable Lothario incapable of expressing real emotion or empathy to his many conquests. The most tragic example of the latter tendency is Marianne Faithfull, whose descent into drug addiction and homelessness after breaking up with Mick is contrasted with his effortless climbing of social ladders. Faithfull is quoted as saying Mick's "tyranny of hip...almost killed me," and Norman often uses this phrase (later amended as "the Tyranny of Cool") to explain, if not defend, such behavior as Mick convincing Hair actress and singer Marsha Hunt to have a child with him and subsequently denying his paternity, or claiming his 1990 marriage to Jerry Hall was not legally valid only after she had filed for divorce. His frequent romantic indiscretions and infidelities are at odds with his intelligent and cautious behavior in nearly every other aspect of his life, and Norman's attempts at reconciling this paradox often read like clutching at straws.

As rock's most famous frontman, though, Jagger is a much more sympathetic figure, without whose moderation in intoxicants and financial savvy, it's suggested, the Stones would not have made it to their impending 50 year anniversary. Keith Richards, whose recent autobiography Life is dismissed as mostly-fictional (though it's frankly a much more engaging read than Norman's book), comes off as immature and ungrateful for Jagger's tireless efforts as erstwhile engine of the Stones machine. Mick's talent as a songwriter and musician (particularly his often-underrated skill as a blues harpist) is also given its due, although Norman can't restrain himself from distracting phonetic transcriptions of Jagger's fake American singing accent ("Stupid Girl" is thus referred to as "Stoopid Ge-erl," "Angie" becomes "Ayn-jeh," and on and on).

Norman is at his best when retelling the most familiar stories, particularly his account of the 1967 drug bust, which debunks quite a few rumors (although one gets the impression Norman really wants the Mars bar story to be true) and confirms that the arrest was indeed a conspiracy by both the American and British government to curb the Stones' supposedly corrupting influence on young people. The Altamont tragedy, too, long considered a byproduct of the Stones' hubris, is revealed to have been more the result of poor last-minute planning on the part of the Grateful Dead's management. After writing previous biographies about the Beatles and the Stones, Norman's an old hand at retelling the highs and lows of the Swinging Sixties, and it's not surprising that this decade takes up more space than all the following years put together.

It's a deficiency Norman is aware of, at one point even drawing a parallel with the official biographer of King George V, who ran into "a major narrative problem...after passing sixty, the king did almost nothing but shoot pheasants and stick postage stamps into albums." Although he dutifully gives lip service to more recent accomplishments like the Stones' 2005 album A Bigger Bang or the 2011 self-titled album by Jagger-fronted supergroup SuperHeavy, it's clear that doing so is strictly a formality and gives any reader hoping for real insight about the book's subject (forgive the expression) no satisfaction. Casual Stones fans searching for Christmas gifts would be better served by the forthcoming documentary Crossfire Hurricane (which sidesteps the problem of making the past 30 years narratively interesting by not even mentioning them), the aforementioned previously-unreleased 1965 film Charlie Is My Darling, or the band's umpteenth greatest hits album Grrr! Maybe Truman Capote had it right all those years ago. (This review was previously published on my Examiner page.)(less)

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May 01, 2013 False Millennium rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography-memoirs, performing-arts-film

I was surprised with this book, in that Mick Jagger is notorious for controlling information about himself and what is revealed to the press. I thought Norman did a very good job covering the early years. While he did discuss the Brian Jones problems, I felt like he only touched on it.

What's interesting and puzzling at the same time is how a man who is so controlling in what he wants to show the world (which isn't much in terms of his personal life) is so incredibly careless in having so many c...more

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Jan 15, 2013 Lindsay rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: music

Philip Norman wrote a really good biography given that he was trying to write about the Tyranny of cool. Jagger will continue to deny that he remembers anything and will never write his own story. He doesn't want to rummage through the past. This is possibly as close as we will ever get. Although, Keith Richards memoir, Life, also gives some first hand insight into this glimmer twin. Jagger is an egotistical, selfish and greedy man and sometimes reading his exploits made me cringe. Like his char...more

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Jan 01, 2013 Peebee rated it 3 of 5 stars

I don't like it when biographers have an agenda, and Philip Norman clearly had an agenda when writing this book. This was clearly written as a response to Keith Richards' Life which was released to considerable critical acclaim and a hefty advance. It's not a news flash to anyone that 1) Keith is less responsible than Mick; 2) Keith is more interesting than Mick; and 3) Mick has slept with many more women than Keith. So why it took over 600 pages to convince us of these things, I'm not sure. Kei...more

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Jan 06, 2013 Peter Kane rated it 5 of 5 stars

Every few years a new Jagger biography comes out but pick any book from any decade and the story is the same -
1. Jagger is a self obsessed mysoginist
2. He has only had one real relationship in his life and that is with Keith Richards. Keith claims to no longer know or understand him.
3. Money is Jagger's sole motivator and he will deceive friends and colleagues to ensure he gets more.
4. He has slept with a huge amount of women and a few men.
5. He is not a rebel but rather a middle class boy, we...more

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Dec 08, 2012 Stephen rated it 2 of 5 stars

A disappointment. Phillip Norman has written in the field of rock and roll journalism and biography for along time and I expected some depth and information not previously revealed. There are bits and pieces of that but nothing of any real consequence and while Jagger has worked hard to remain a mystery the vast majority of this book is drawn from other sources rather then new interviews or journalistic digging. For a reader new to the Jagger life story it's a thorough overview of his life (thou...more

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Dec 20, 2012 Leah K rated it 4 of 5 stars

Mick Jagger by Philip Norman

★★★★

First off, I am happy I finally finished a book this month! It’s about time!

Many people I have talked to have an opinion – Beatles or The Rolling Stones. And I’m not going to lie; I’m in the Beatles camp all the way. But when my husband showed up with this book from the library for me to read (long story short, he likes to surprise me with a book a month – my own personal book club. But with money constraints we’ve gone from purchasing a book a month to checking o...more

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Oct 15, 2012 Mauberley added it

What struck me first was Norman's unabashed admiration and, at times, affection for his subject. This is no hatchet job but neither is a hagiography. I am most interested in the time up to the release of 'Exiles' and the 1972 tour and so, it appears, is the author. Over thirty years of Jagger's life are crammed into the final hundred or so pages yet it is all for the most part quite well done. Loog Oldham is/ was a much more fascinating character than I had realised and Norman sketches his relat...more

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Feb 11, 2013 David rated it 4 of 5 stars

This biography made tremendously good reading last week whilst in holiday catching some winter sun. It's a pretty hefty hardbook (which I like) and required a bit of concentrated readin time - where better than by the pool. It's very well written and well-informed, Philip Norman having followed the Stones closely since the early days. Jagger is a quite complex and interesting individual and of course his story tracks the tremendous social and cultural changes of the past 50 years. My memory of J...more

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Feb 19, 2013 Little Gray Pixel rated it 1 of 5 stars

I was really hoping for a better read than this, as I've read Philip Norman's bios on The Beatles and John Lennon and thought they were fantastic.

I'm not sure how anyone could make Mick Jagger's life seem boring, but that's the impression I got from this book. It was a major snoozefest through the first half. I was waiting and waiting for something exciting to happen, but no.

And this could be because, even though Norman can write beautifully, he writes from a distance. I never felt like I was ac...more

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Nov 20, 2012 Irene rated it 3 of 5 stars

HB -- I never liked the Stones and now I know why. Mick Jagger was pompous and unforgiving. He really thought he was better than other rock n roll groups with his songs depicting women as play toys to be used and tossed. According to the book Mick was always playing Mick. his children's mothers did a fine job since it appears his kids are well grounded even though they have lived in excess. Well I have no one to blame except myself (a former hippie) to raising these average people to super power...more

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Jan 23, 2013 Gary rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: biographies

I've read a lot of the books that have come out on the Stones, and many of the separate biographies such as Bill Wyman's, Brian Jones, Keith Richards, and I'd add Andrew Oldham's to the list. Based on all the others I'd have to say that Norman's bio on Jagger is a decent book at most. I'd consider it a well researched reference book. The first third of the book was about the Stones, and the last third quickly breezed through the last 3 decades of Mick's life. All in all the book didn't reveal an...more

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Sep 22, 2012 Todd rated it 5 of 5 stars

Philip Norman -- whose biography of John Lennon was brilliant, saying something about a man who had seemed to have everything already said -- takes on the inscrutable Mick Jagger. He doesn't quite crack Mick's shell, but does unearth a more human side to a man who has tried to remain a perpetual teenager since, oh, 1973 (to the detriment of his music). At any rate, he does a better job at interpreting Jagger than pretty much anyone before, including Mick's pal Keef and certainly Sir Mick himself...more

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May 11, 2013 Robin Webster rated it 3 of 5 stars

It is difficult to write yet another biography about a man when you would think everything that can be said has already been said about him. Particularly when a number of other artist have recent biographies out that share the same story, including both Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood. Nevertheless I thought it was an interesting book which was both balanced and skillfully told. There are many references to his infidelities and his complex relationships with his long term partners. It also struck...more

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Dec 15, 2012 Ginni rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 60-s-and-70-s, biographies-autobiographies

No fool like an old fool - it must be 47 years since I fell under the spell of 'old rubber lips', watching him sing 'Satisfaction' on TOTP. Yet I've still much enjoyed reading his life story, although I know, and Philip Norman knows, that he is 'a supreme extrovert who prefers discretion...a supreme egotist who dislikes talking about himself.' He has treated women badly, written some desperately derogatory lyrics about women, and yet remains a source of fascination and desire to many women. He h...more

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Dec 26, 2012 Rob rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, biography, music-film, non-fiction

This is a little disappointing, despite the promise in the subject. No one can quite get a hold on slippery Mick, and Philip Norman unfortunately gives in to some childish attempts at riffs and refrains (on Mars Bars, lips and Mick's bedroom mores), while simultaneously being rather threadbare when it comes to the music. The best music biographies take you back to the music armed with new detail and context. Fresh ears, even. Here, music literally seems like something "calculating" Mick decided...more

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Nov 02, 2012 Albert rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography, first-reads, non-fiction, rock-n-roll

Rock n' Roll. You can't talk about it with out inevitably coming around to Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones. Satisfaction, Midnight Rambler, You Can't Always Get What You Want. the Rolling Stones are the epitome of rock n' roll. And when you think of the Rolling Stones, you think of Mick Jagger, or Keith Richard, but he's a whole other story.

Mick Jagger captures the essence of a rock stars life in the 60's and 70's. A very successful rock star I'd say. What was the saying? Drugs, sex and rock

...more

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Dec 28, 2012 Samantha Hopwood rated it 3 of 5 stars

It was obviously (and Philip Norman makes no attempts to dispute it) an unauthorized biography, and none too well written, at that. At the same time, I find Mick Jagger and his career so intriguing that I barely put the book down. If you've read all his press, you probably don't need it. If you haven't (or if you're like me and are too young to have read it live), give it a go. If you don't want to pay for it, I have a publisher copy I'd be happy to lend you.

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Jan 05, 2013 Carla Pickard rated it 3 of 5 stars

Found the book somewhat dull, especially toward the end. In addition to many grammatical errors, Norman has some of his facts wrong. Buffy Sainte-Marie is Canadian. Also the "Royal Northwest Mounted Police" have been officially called the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) since 1920, long before the timeline of this book. Mistakes like this make me question the accuracy of the other "facts" stated in this book.

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Jan 03, 2013 Diane C. rated it 4 of 5 stars

I read Philp Norman's brilliant biography of John Lennon, so was anxious to read his bio of Mick. Doesn't compare with either Keith Richards "Life" or the Lennon bio, but still worth the read.

Didn't tell me much I didn't already know, altho was more of a portrayal of Mick being able to truly fall in love than I've seen before. Overall, Mick is still playing possum as much as possible.

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May 13, 2013 Terri rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

Mick Jagger by Philip Norman is a biography that spans the life and career of the great Mick Jagger, rock and roll superstar of the last fifty years. The book chronicles his time from birth to Joe and Eva Jagger up through 2011. In between those events, readers get to explore the blues-infused life of one of the best known names in 20th century music.

Although many of the stories in this book have multiple versions through memory fog or a haze of drug use, Norman works to include all sides of th...more

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Mar 17, 2013 Frank Thomas rated it 3 of 5 stars

I liked the book mainly because of the business elements regarding stewardship of the stones finances and the business of the Rolling Stones. I wish they had focused more on that an mess on the salacious that we already k ow as fans. As far as the music goes if nick weren't a narcissist he wouldn't be Te best LV of all times.

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Feb 11, 2013 Erik-jan Vens rated it 4 of 5 stars

I read Keith Richard's Life and felt like picking up this book after that. I didn't know much about Mick Jagger and I'm not a fan of the Stones. I read it purely as a biography of a possibly interesting person.
I have mixed feelings after reading it. The author's dislike of Mick Jagger made it difficult for me to remain unbiased. I felt I had to read a lot "behind the words". This is true of course of every biography but in this case it felt like working.

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Jan 08, 2013 Mike Bingley rated it 3 of 5 stars

Mick Jagger really doesn't come across as a very nice man. He treats his wives and (many) girlfriends badly and is really only interested in money and himself. He really comes across as a spoiled upper middle class kid who has always gotten his own way. That being said, this is an interesting read and one that I would recommend.

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Nov 02, 2012 Charles Biggs rated it 4 of 5 stars

If you don't think you know all of Mick Jagger's life's details including everyone of his sexual relationships this is the biography to read. Actually after reading this book I'm absolutely amazed at what they accomplished musically given all the problems, drugs, arrests, divorces, accidents, lawsuits, and crazy fans. The last couple of chapters really begin to drag on once Philip Norman talks about Mick's life during the period 1990 - 2010. If you grew up with the Rolling Stones like I did then...more

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Sep 21, 2012 Oat Soda rated it 5 of 5 stars

I got an advance copy of this book. I try to base my reviews on the writing and not the subject matter, and Philip Norman did an excellent job. It's a 600-page book that I got through in a week. Very well-written.
As for the subject matter, I'm not the biggest Stones fan (I like The Kinks better), but this is a fascinating story. True Stones fans should love it, I would think.

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Jan 01, 2013 Lorrie rated it 1 of 5 stars

I strongly disliked this book. The writer having very little actual information to work with, rambled on and took 4 or 5 pages to describe what most people could do in 1. Stories ended up being told more then once in an attempt to make book longer. This is the perfect book if you want to bore yourself to sleep. No real glimps of the man...no information on where inspiration came from. Just info on what everyone already knows hes a womanizer and egotist.

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Dec 04, 2012 Joan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Okay--I had fun reading this book. Inspired by seeing Cross Fire Hurricane and just being a long-time major Stones fan, I really enjoyed reading about'60's London and a life that was virtually free of the rules the rest of us live by.

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Feb 11, 2013 Maureen rated it 3 of 5 stars

a real page turner. Just wondering what Mick thinks of this book. Now I have to read Keith Richards book and compare

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Jan 17, 2013 Tracie rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography, nonfiction

If you want to know more about The Glimmer Twins (I hate that moniker.) read Keith Richards' autobiography. This one was a snooze fest.

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