and Other Wondrous Stories

Grumpy Old Rock Star

Grumpy Old Rock Star is a collection of never-before-told stories from Rick Wakeman's amazing life, from ordering a curry on-stage to how he ended up with the earth from around Che Guevara's body in his shed.

Rick Wakeman is the most gifted keyboard player of his generation, as at home on stage at a rock concert as in the organ loft of a great cathedral. As keyboard player for the 70s supergroup Yes his extraordinary live tours and multi-million-selling albums are legendary. He has also appeared on Top Gear achieving a lamentable lap time of 1.55.26.

Around about August 1948, Mr and Mrs Cyril Wakeman had an early night and some time later, at Perivale in Middlesex, Mrs Wakeman produced a bonny baby son. They named him Richard, but he quickly became known as Rick. 
 
Rick was a likeable little fellow who had a talent for the piano and for making trouble. Music became Rick's life - he joined a popular music group called Yes and became a legend. Much later he became a Grumpy Old Man who appears on Countdown, hosts a hugely popular radio show on Planet Rock and performs a one-man show telling stories about his rather extraordinary life. 
 
Which is where this book you are holding comes in. Mr Wakeman is simply one of the great storytellers of our age - let's face it, he has some fabulous material. It seemed a shame that some of the funniest yarns should not be more widely known. So he accepted some cash and here we are. 
 
Curl up by the fire with a Grumpy Old Rock Star and your nearest and dearest. We defy you not to want to read it aloud and laugh.

Rick Wakeman

This highly entertaining read gives an unforgettable glimpse into the life of one of the UK's most legendary showmen, rock stars and raconteurs ... A light-hearted romp through the pomposity of the music business and the joy of being alive

What do Postman Pat, Tommy Cooper, Norman Wisdom and George Best have in common with being abandoned in a Costa Rican jungle after a severe bout of flatulence? Indeed, how are they also connected to trying to buy an Australian brewery just to get a beer, owning twenty-two cars, an American soccer team and a Swiss mail-order pornography company? 
 
The common feature is of course a certain Richard Wakeman. 
 
The Further Adventures of a Grumpy Old Rock Star takes you, the privileged reader, on a trip of absurd excess, a cultural car crash of side-splitting hilarity and an unforgettable glimpse (again) into the life of one of Britain's most legendary showmen, rock stars and all-time great raconteurs.

Rick Wakeman

Praise for Further Adventures of a Grumpy Old Rock Star

This highly entertaining read gives an unforgettable glimpse into the life of one of the UK's most legendary showmen, rock stars and raconteurs ... A light-hearted romp through the pomposity of the music business an ...

Books by Rick Wakeman

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