What's It All About? - Hardcover

Black, Cilla

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0091890365 ISBN 13: 9780091890360

Publisher: Ebury Press, 2003

Synopsis

Cilla Black is a phenomenon of truly iconic proportions. Since debuting on the showbiz circuit in 1963 she's conquered the mediums of TV, comedy and pop! As a singer she has released 14 studio albums, in addition to two successful "Greatest Hits" packages and 37 singles, many of which have charted world-wide. Beginning her career alongside The Beatles in the local Mersey music scene, she went on to share the same manager Brian Epstein and the same producer, the legendary George Martin also and recorded at Abbey Road. During the sixties she managed to sustain her place at the forefront of the Brit-Pop music scene, having one of the most impressive starts for a British female recording artist which included 20 consecutive Top 40 triumphs on the singles and EP charts! Today Cilla is a British institutions star of such shows as "Surprise", "Surprise and Blind Date" and regarded as the first lady of UK television, with countless shows, industry awards and record breaking viewing figures to her name. But this is the public story. As she relates the story of her life to us for the very first time, Cilla will reveal what really happened. The good times, the bad times. The high points and the low points. The result is a exciting and moving autobiography, of a type that only comes along once in a decade.

About this title

Review:

Cilla Black's autobiography, What's It All About, named after her signature Burt Bacharach hit, is fascinating for many reasons. One of these is the fact that, hard as it is to believe today, she was once considered to be a cutting-edge musical talent. She shared manager Brian Epstein with the Beatles and the boys even wrote several of her hits, including Love of the Loved. This early part of her career is particularly well evoked here and we are given a very vivid picture of growing up in a bomb-torn Liverpool of the late 40s.

The details of the rigidly Catholic background which the singer ultimately broke away from make a very interesting backdrop to the story of Cilla's success, which was achieved against all the odds. As she would be first to admit, it was her ability that had to take her places: she was by no means conventionally pretty. It was the steadily growing stage presence and (most of all) that memorable voice that marked her out from her contemporaries. After the Mersey explosion, which happened as Cilla reached the age of 20, there was a notable lull until she was able to reinvent her career as host to such long-running shows as the sometimes cloying Surprise, Surprise and Blind Date (from which she famously resigned on air). And while these shows, like Cilla herself, have as many detractors as supporters, there's no denying her sheer professionalism and thorough understanding of her audience.

Her life, famously, has been blighted by several personal tragedies, and they are dealt with frankly here. What's It All About won't necessarily win Cilla any new friends, but it's a frank and unvarnished account of a remarkable life in show business. --Barry Forshaw

Review:

"Cilla's autobiography leaves nothing out. This is a readable, likeable account of the life of a national treasure." -- OK Magazine

"In What's It All About? Cilla tells her unique story in intimate and vivid detail for the very first time" -- Radio Times

"You'll laugh, but you'll cry too" -- Daily Mirror

"a cut above the usual celebrity shtick" -- Sunday Telegraph

"a fascinating read...the ultimate companion for fans" -- Hello

'This is an exciting, moving and surprising read, encompassing four decades of entertainment history with an original Liver Bird.' -- My Weekly

...the amazing life story of a genuine legend -- Heat Magazine

For once a wonderful life has been turned into a wonderful book -- Boyd Hilton

About this edition

• Publisher: Ebury Press
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0091890365
• ISBN 13: 9780091890360
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 416