Why Did I Write “Once A King, Now A Prince?”
When I sat down to write my rock and roll autobiography, Once a King, Now a Prince, one might first surmise from the title that the reference to ‘King’ was meant to refer to my days at the pinnacle of the music business and to laud my accomplishments for all to read about. My memoir did not start as another one of those rock and roll autobiographies. That is not how this all began.
I did not start to write one of those books on rock and roll, nor another of those rock and roll autobiographies. My intent ten years or so ago was to continue the process of growth and catharsis, stemming from a unique childhood in a highly dysfunctional family. If anything, I envisioned myself at the time writing one of those books about dysfunctional families. As books about crazy families go, well, before I was at the top of the rock and roll music business, I was living, as a child, in a world of hurt and crazy. If anything, should I have even thought at that time that this Once A King, Now A Prince would become one of those rock and roll good celebrity memoirs, I would have had a good laugh, as it was far from the truth, initially.
As I wrote in an early chapter, King of the Devils, my choice of using the word ‘king’ was inspired by an image of a four-year-old child trying to escape the horrors of his confined world. At the same time, my choice of using the word ‘prince’ came from the eventuality of being satisfied with my life and having survived the traumas of my childhood. Thus, I grew into a “Prince of a fellow.” I will admit here, providing you don’t tell anyone, that I did not pick a name for my autobiography until later on, when I started writing about “life in the fast lane” of the music business, and, although it was not my original intent for using it, it seemed to fit.
Why Read My Rock and Roll Autobiography?
It is worthwhile reading it on multiple levels. If you enjoy reading an autobiography by famous people, then “Once A King, Now A Prince” will be for you, as it is not just my life that I write of, which you would expect to read about in a celebrity autobiography, but the memoir also covers the lives of the musicians, in books about rock and roll history.
The history of that era in rock and roll is very much present in my presentation and worthy of all good rock and roll autobiographies. There is a chapter on Rush, and the promotion I created to secure them a record deal, airplay, and a tour. There is my signing of Deep Purple to a three-year exclusive contract, only to lose them at the end of the agreement to an agent who worked for me. There is plenty of rock and roll content that you may expect to find in any of the quality rock and roll biographies to enjoy in “Once A King, Now A Prince,” the autobiography of Ira Blacker, and a true tale of sex, drugs, and rock and roll.
For those who enjoy a good cry while reading books about dysfunctional families, this one is for you. That is not to say I wanted to be the star of that segment of my life, but it was simply the misfortune of having the wrong parentage and suffering the consequences thereof. I do not claim that mine was a childhood worse than all others, but when it comes to books about messed-up families, it ranks near the top for dysfunction and child abuse.
What Can You Expect From Reading My Memoir?
I think that you will be able to, in many cases, identify with your growing up in a dysfunctional family, and hopefully understand not only some of the “mechanics” of your own traumatic upbringing, but also find some insight into how to survive it. Survival is a key concept here, as with most dysfunctional family stories, survival is often near the top of what one may attain, and that is no small thing. Some can go well beyond survival.
Some can thrive, prosper, and go on to greatness. Frankly, if asked, I survived, and as much as I made a success of my life, I can guarantee you this: If my family history were not that which I wrote about in my autobiography, “Once A King, Now A Prince,” I conceivably would have had far greater, if not less traumatic, a life. I truly hope you read and rank this one at the top of your list of rock and roll autobiographies.
Please enjoy my audio version of this blog.
