The 12 biggest music memoirs being published this fall

It’s a fall filled with shocking, revealing, lyrically written memoirs by some of the biggest names in music. We rounded up the 12 you need to have on your radar. For pre-order links, click the release date.

The iconic indie band unveil the pain and beauty of their adolescence in this book written from both sisters’ points-of-view in alternating chapters. Among other subjects, High School tackles their struggles with sexuality and fears of looming adulthood. (Sept. 24)

Does anything conjure an era more than Just Kids does the early 2010s? You could hardly move a muscle in New York City without knocking into a hipster gripping their well-worn copy of Patti Smith’s memoir, which recounts her relationship with Robert Mapplethorpe. This time the musician-turned-author takes readers through her year of solo travel and self-discovery, starting on the coast in Santa Cruz, Calif., and viewed through the lens of the lunar New Year (of the monkey, of course). (Sept. 24)

The two-time Grammy nominee Phair experiments with genre in this dark, deeply personal account, structured around moments that continue to haunt its author to this day. (Oct. 8)

One half of one of the world’s most famous bands tells his (fascinating) side of the story, offering readers intimate access into how his friendship with George Michael developed, and taking them behind the scenes of Wham’s beginnings, heights, and lows. (Oct. 8) 

Just what will the music icon reveal in his first and only official autobiography? It’s one of the biggest questions of the fall across entertainment, and judging by the snippets EW has seen, we can’t wait to find out. (Oct. 15)

Morris, considered one of the greatest choreographers of all time, explores his own rise as a dancer and his career development. It’s a unique window into the world of modern dance, and the musical industry surrounding it. (Oct. 22)

Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Did you know that Carly Simon had a friendship with the late Jackie Kennedy Onassis? Neither did we. Turns out they met at a party on Martha’s Vineyard (of course they did) and the rest was history — and, yes, the plot of this memoir. (Oct. 22)

The memoir that the musician began writing before his untimely death in April 2016 is finally hitting shelves, packaged and framed by editor Dan Piepenbring (who also co-wrote this summer’s Manson murders exposé Chaos). It will also include photos, sheet music, and scrapbooks from his personal collection. (Oct. 29)

The Red Hot Chili Peppers co-founder takes a lyrical approach to his life story, his writing inspired by the rhythms of jazz and his structure a dreamy recounting of his journey from Australia to Los Angeles to New York, with a specific focus on the grime and wonder of the City of Angels in the ’70s and ’80s. (Nov. 5)

And you thought their reunion this year would be completed without a book? Their memoir traces their remarkable rise as well as their recent, celebrated reunion. (Nov. 12)

Okay, so not technically a mmeoir. But O’Connell works off and analyzes material that Bowie himself provided late in his life: the 100 books that changed his life. (Nov. 12)

Another account of a famous friendship in the music industry, Crawford hopes to shine a new light on Whitney Houston through this pained tribute to the late great, focusing on their inseparable friendship and fruitful collaborations. (Nov. 12)