Sweet Dreams Are Made of This: A Life In Music

Dave Stewart

Feb 2016 · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

A no-holds-barred look into the remarkable life and career of the prolific musician, songwriter, and producer behind Eurythmics and dozens of pop hits.
 
Dave Stewart’s life has been a wild ride—one filled with music, constant reinvention, and the never-ending drive to create. Growing up in industrial northern England, he left home for the gritty London streets of the seventies, where he began collaborating and performing with various musicians, including a young waitress named Annie Lennox.
 
The chemistry between Stewart and Lennox was undeniable, and an intense romance developed. While their passion proved too much offstage, they thrived musically and developed their own sound. They called themselves Eurythmics and launched into global stardom with the massively popular album Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).
 
For the first time, Stewart shares the incredible, high-octane stories of his life in music—the drug-fueled adventures, the A-list collaborations and relationships, and the creative process that brought us blockbusters from Eurythmics like “ Here Comes the Rain Again” and “Would I Lie to You” as well as Tom Petty’s  “Don’t Come Around Here No More,” No Doubt’s “Underneath It All,” Golden Globe winner “Old Habits Die Hard” with Mick Jagger, and many more.
 
From great friendships and creative partnerships including the group SuperHeavy along with Jagger, Joss Stone, Damian Marley, and A. R. Rahman, to inspired performances and intimate moments in the studio—Stewart highlights the musicians he admires and calls friends, from Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks, Elton John, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr to Bono, Bon Jovi, and Katy Perry.
 
With a behind-the-scenes look at Stewart’s innovative endeavors that keep him on the cutting-edge of the music business, Sweet Dreams Are Made of This is a one-of-a-kind  portrait of the creative heart of one of its most gifted and enterprising contributors.

With a Foreword by Mick Jagger!

Ratings and reviews

This is a fascinating account of the essence of being an artist, the family and social background, personality traits and choices. Dave is the real deal but f you are English and share some of his background you will relate even more whilst being in awe of his achievement. You might feel insanely jealous or just plain moved. Dave commited himself to music at a very young age and struggled with tantalisingly moderate sucess in a few bands. You will picture them vividly, in a squat in London madly in love and edging towards something ...... Then in a moment iof near despair a monolithic sound emerged almost by accident from the bits of kit they had made into a mini studio. Annie's ears pricked up and she wrote the lyrics to Sweet Dreams. The amazing thing is they then wrote loads more killer hits and became a stadium band. Yes, it's impressive and he puts it across very clearly.

About the author

With a career spanning three decades and more than a hundred million album sales, Dave Stewart is one of the most respected and accomplished forces in the music industry today. With Annie Lennox, he founded the groundbreaking duo Eurythmics, and behind the scenes, he’s produced albums and cowritten songs for Bryan Ferry, Gwen Stefani, Tom Petty, Katy Perry, Mick Jagger, Bono, and Sinéad O’Connor, winning numerous awards as a producer and songwriter. Beyond his creative work as a musician, Stewart has many successful and wide-ranging endeavors, including his role as creator and executive producer of NBC’s Songland, a competition show for songwriters, and founding new ventures such as First Artist Bank, an artist-centered bank serving the global creative community, and the Hospital Club, a sanctuary for artists and technologists to collaborate. Stewart is also a highly respected photographer and his work is exhibited worldwide. Visit him online at davestewart.com, facebook.com/davestewart, and twitter.com/davestewart.