In his rich, distinctive voice, Di Meola candidly discusses his life, musical development, collaborations, and revolutionary guitar style from the harrowing story of how, at eight years old, he survived life-threatening brain surgeries and his subsequent epiphany; to his breakthrough appearance onstage at Carnegie Hall at nineteen with Chick Corea (whose recent death made national headlines) and Return to Forever; to his relationship with the great Les Paul; to his battles over contractual earnings; to the intense pressure he faced to join Scientology; to his separate encounters with his musical heroes, John Lennon and Paul McCartney; to details of his special collection of guitars; and so much more.
Author Biography
Al Di Meola is a living guitar legend, a pioneer of impeccable guitar technique who traverses multiple genres, including flamenco, Latin, fusion, jazz, and rock. He is a Grammy Award winner with three gold albums who has sold more than six million albums worldwide. His musical collaborations have spanned the generations with artists such as Jimmy Page, Santana, Herbie Hancock, Frank Zappa, Luciano Pavarotti, and myriad others. Over the arc of his astounding career, he has been honored by Guitar Player magazine with more awards (eleven total) than any other guitarist in history. He is also the only four-time winner of the Best Jazz Guitarist award from that same magazine, as well as the recipient of the prestigious Miles Davis Award.
