In My Life. Artists On The Record.

Kanye West goes on the record about:

• His parents — and, interestingly, it’s his father who he speaks mostly about
• Jay-Z
• Barack Obama
• Mental health
• His contradictions.

But mostly we’re going to explore what goes on in that head of his.

Bob Dylan goes on the record about:

• Why he felt a phony in the 60s.
• His recording process
• Writing songs vs writing books
• His Born Again phase — both when he’s in it and out of it
• Gun control
• Abortion
• His peers, including John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

Bob Dylan goes on the record about:

• His childhood and parents
• Why he changed his name
• His influences
• His disdain for the press, Time magazine in particular
• Songwriting, and
• A couple of his most iconic songs.

Neil Young goes on the record about:

• His father, and the nickname he had as a child
• The many tangents he’s taken in his career
• Buffalo Springfield
• Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
• Crazy Horse
• The infamous Geffen years
• His songwriting process

Plus:

• He has some excellent advice for budding artists 
• The now-iconic line “it’s better to burn out than it is to fade away”
• Where he got the phrase “rust never sleeps” from

Yusuf goes on the record about:

• Growing up
• Wanting to be a cartoonist
• How he got the name Cat Stevens
• Getting TB
• His spiritual journey
• Songwriting
• Quitting music
• His comeback
• The difference between Yusuf and Cat Stevens

Van Morrison goes on the record about:

• Performing
• Recording
• Songwriting

Plus he speaks about some of his most iconic songs and there’s also a fascinating insight into the real Van Morrison from fellow Irish musician Glen Hansard, who spent an eventful and enlightening night with him back in the day.

Van Morrison goes on the record about the period leading up to and including Astral Weeks. He talks about:

• His childhood
• His musical influences, Ray Charles in particular
• His early bands
• His window cleaning business
• Paying his dues in Germany
• Them
• Turning solo
• Brown Eyed Girl
• Astral Weeks

Angus Young  goes on the record about:

• Learning to play the guitar
• His influences
• His brother Malcolm
• The music

Plus, Brian Johnson goes on the record about:

• Bon Scott
• Auditioning for the band

Elton John goes on the record about:

• His childhood
• His problematic relationship with his father
• Drugs
• John Lennon
• His first marriage
• His sexuality
• His gift — and his gift is his song, of course
• Songwriting
• His favourite song

Plus he has a theory at to what killed Elvis and Michael Jackson — it wasn’t just the drugs.

Roger Waters, Dave Gilmour and Nick Mason go on the record about:

Syd Barrett
Dark Side Of The Moon
Wish You Were Here
The Wall
The Final Cut
Feuds
Live 8