Killing Me Softly: My Life in Music

by Charles Fox (Author), RobertaFlack (Foreword)

New
Paperback
2011
$18.94

Charles Fox has composed more than 100 motion picture and television scores, among them the themes of many iconic series, including Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, Love, American Style, and Love Boat. In this memoir, Fox recounts his development as a musician, describing the cornerstone events of his musical and personal life. He reflects on the highlights of his career, working with some of the greatest names in entertainment, film, television, and records, including Jim Croce, Barry Manilow, Lena Horne, and Fred Astaire.

Synopsis

Charles Fox has composed more than 100 motion picture and television scores, among them the themes of many iconic series, including Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, Love, American Style, and Love Boat. In this memoir, Fox recounts his development as a musician, describing the cornerstone events of his musical and personal life. He reflects on the highlights of his career, working with some of the greatest names in entertainment, film, television, and records, including Jim Croce, Barry Manilow, Lena Horne, and Fred Astaire.

$18.94

Quantity

20 in stock

More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 312
Publisher: Scarecrow Press
Published: 01 Nov 2011
ISBN 10: 0810882213
ISBN 13: 9780810882218

Media Reviews

Fox's breezy writing style captures a man who seems grateful for his successes and the longevity of his career, and holds few, if any, grudges over the ups and downs of the film and music industries....Hopefully Fox's smart and charming autobiography will send readers back to their CDs, LPs, DVDs and Nick at Nite to rediscover the work of this underrated composer. * Film Score Monthly *
Charles Fox's Killing Me Softly: My Life in Music is, quite simply, one of the finest composer autobiographies I have ever read. Fox is the Oscar-nominated, Grammy- and Emmy-winning composer of such songs as Killing Me Softly With His Song and I Got a Name ; films including Goodbye Columbus, Foul Play and 9 to 5; and such iconic TV themes as Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley and The Love Boat. But this is not And Then I Wrote... Rather, Fox frames his career with the story of his youthful studies with famed French composition teacher Nadia Boulanger, who also taught Aaron Copland, Philip Glass, Quincy Jones and Michel Legrand. * The Film Music Society *
A fascinating new memoir. * Broadcast Music, Inc. *
A sparkling memoir that details one of the most interesting and successful careers in American music history. * Aol News *
Readers are taken into a world only an insider can share....Fox, a master of both drama and comedy, shares trade secrets simply by telling his story....Killing Me Softly is certainly a volume for both public and school libraries and for general readers with special interest in television and film scores. As this is a memoir and not a movie or TV textbook, one doesn't need to know musical nor film terminology to follow Fox's own education in how to merge compositional talent with the eccentricities of media production. After reading this memoir, most readers will find themselves appreciating not only the work of Fox but all those who labor to provide musical beds for the audio-visual arts. Simply stated, this is a book for anyone who loves music as much as Charles Fox himself. * Bookpleasures.com *
Television fans may want to pick up Killing Me Softly: My Life in Music by Charles Fox. In his memoir, Fox recounts his life from his formal music education in Paris through his career composing more than 100 movie and television scores, including the themes for 'Happy Days,' 'Love Boat,' and 'Monday Night Football.' * Pasadena Star-News *
Robert Flack's signature song wasn't always called Killing Me Softly With His Song. Charles Fox originally called it Killing Me Softly With His Blues. But his songwriting partner, Norman Gimbel, says the word blues made it sound too old fashioned. Flack first heard the song on a flight from Los Angeles to New York, where the original version was part of the programmed music on the plane. When she landed, she got Fox's phone number and told him she was going to sing his song. She later inducted him into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Fox named his new memoir after the song. * Associated Press *

Author Bio

Charles Fox has composed the music for over 100 motion pictures and television films, including the themes for Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley and Love Boat. One of the most performed composers in the world, he has been nominated for two Academy Awards, has won two Emmys, and received the Best Song Grammy for Killing Me Softly with His Song.